Do I need a subwoofer?


Hopefully I’ve framed this in a way to help people answer. Up until recently I have had a combo 2-channel/home theater system (Krell preamp with home theater bypass, Bryston 5 channel amp, PSB Synchrony 1s bi-amped speakers, Marantz home theater receiver, Power Sound Audio XV15 subwoofer, Oppo CD player). I wanted extra oomph for surround sound movie watching and occasionally some rock music, hence the sub. I was never really impressed with the XV15 sub (have it for sale now). It is insanely large and I wasn’t sure it was adding the oomph I expected, even after having a local hifi shop owner come out for a listen and tune.

What’s changed: A few weeks ago I inherited my late father’s B&W 801 speakers circa 1980, which I have put in place of my PSBs and am enjoying thoroughly despite the age difference.

My questions: (1) would a sub still be of value in my setup (I still like a lot of bass) and (2) what might folks recommend?

 

Thank you.

olfac87

Showing 2 responses by millercarbon

 I really appreciate the input as I put my audiophile research hat back on.


If you actually do research, as opposed to going with the majority status quo then you will read up on DBA and find that compared to the importance of using 4 subs the choice of which subs to use hardly even matters. The truth is if you stick with one or two there are no one or two ever made that will be as good as any 4 you could buy at random.

Do the research, you will see.

danager came closest, and torquerulesok darn near put his finger on it.

The solution to subs and getting SOTA bass was discovered in a research paper more than 20 years ago. Since then it has been used by Audiokinesis in their Swarm subwoofer system, and written up extensively here. Every single one of us who tries it raves about how well it works. Audiophiles however are slow, painfully slow, when it comes to understanding new technology.

Torquerulesok sort of noticed but drew the wrong conclusions. Bass energy does get absorbed into the room. Walls, ceiling, floor, the whole room. Which then this energy has to be dissipated, a lot of which goes right back into the room. One of the bigger lesser appreciated factors in muddy bass. People who do notice try and suck it up with tube traps. Trying to get rid of the problem they themselves created with the one big powerful sub in the first place.

Or they try and EQ, making a bad situation even worse. Because EQ has to boost bass even more, and it can sound flat in one spot but that extra energy goes into the whole room making the bass smearing problem even worse. More own goal, more tube traps. Thank you sir, may I have another?

The solution is more subs in more locations produces more smaller modes resulting in bass that is powerful and deep yet clean and clear. It works because with 4 each one needs only 1/4 the output, meaning the lumpy modes are only 1/4 as big, meaning way less excess energy going into the room. This is why everyone with a DBA reports not only exceptionally smooth powerful bass but greater natural ease and detail all across the range.

Do a search. This has been explained countless times. Every single one of us who has done this knows just how well it works. The search bar is your friend. Distributed Bass Array, DBA, Swarm.