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Passive radiators, ext crossovers & subwoofers

Do crossovers work equally well with speakers which include passive radiators?

This may be a silly question, but I asked it anyway. I don't know much about passive radiators. I have a pair of Polk Audio Monitor 7 speakers and I'm considering adding a subwoofer to help out in the lower frequencies by applying a crossover. If I set the crossover at 60, will the speakers continue to create sound at frequencies below 60? Or does the passive radiator create the sound only at the frequency delivered to the speaker?
pgawan2b

Showing 2 responses by martykl

martykl
3,578 posts
 
All speakers will continue to produce sound (though rolled off) below the frequency you select on your x-over unit - at the rate specified by the x-over function. Whether a passive radiator or active driver, the input signal is attenuated by the x-over at the specified rate. If the speaker is dead-on accurate in-room (none are), you'll have the precise roll-off you selected.

In practice, the room is mucking up everything at these frequencies. I use a Velodyne SMS-1 sub controller to view (and corrrect for) room effects. I like this approach a lot and highly recommend it. Note: I also use an NHT x-1 to roll off my main speakers because I like it better than the internal hi-cut function in the SMS-1.

Marty
martykl
3,578 posts
 
To clarify,

The passive radiator (if properly designed) is designed to produce output mirroring the electrical input at the speaker's terminal - exactly like an active driver. If you attenuate any frequency at the input, a properly designed speaker - passive or active - will attenuate the output accordingly.

Good Luck.

Marty
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