REL Quake or ACI Force for semi small room

It was my understanding that the rega vulcan is made by REL. Is it another sub you're referring to ?

I'm wondering why you don't want another strata 3 ?

At what frequency did you have the strata crossed ?

I currently have my strata 3 set at 46Hz, but with my pervious speakers it was crossed at 28Hz. I notice that the Essex-audio sw-1 only crosses as low as 40Hz. That would not allow it to be partnered with anything more than a modest size standmount speaker, and almost certainly not with any floorstander.

It seems that the new RELS are very overpriced in the US, so the Velodyne DD series might represent a better buy here.

48Hz floorstanders with a 40Hz sub cutoff is indeed quite close. Close enough that I'd want a home demo before committing my money.

I'd hold out for a used REL. I bought mine used several years ago and they still sell for what I paid (about $800), so it's a bit like money in the bank (particularly with current interest rates !).

The velodyne DD series do seem to be almost universally thought to be better than the REL strata, but they are much more expensive .... I guess you pay your money and take your choice.

"That said when setting the sub up you would need to set the crossover slightly higher than the lower notes on the main speakers"

That has not been my experience at all. I have always had to set about 5 Hz lower than the stated -3dB point of my speakers.

Raul ... 2 subs MAY load a room better than one, but they also cost twice as much. Given a budget of $1000 I'd rather pick one $1000 sub than two $500 subs.

As for crossover ALWAYS being at 80Hz that would only apply if you are filtering the signal to the main speakers. If you are running the main speakers full range then the sub crossover frequency will depend on the specification of the main speaker. No one frequency will work.

Raul ... the problem with your answers is that you always assume unlimited (or very high) budget.

All hifi components may be "inadequate" but also may represent the best compromise at their price points. The art of engineering is to find the best balance of compromises in order to hit the market at the correct price point.

If a REL (or similar) is inadequate I think you should tell us how you propose to improve on the REL for a budget of $800, roughly the cost of a used Strata 3.

Perhaps you could be a little more specific. Say for example:

I have $800 to spend.
I have an integrated amplifier.
I like the sound of my monitor speakers, I just want to extend their performance.

Sure, there are other sub manufacturers, but you have given no indication of how their offerings could give a superior solution at the given price point.

If someone were to ask how to get better performance from their honda civic and they have $1000 to spend telling them to go trade for a 911 turbo doesn't really help them.

Raul, RELs only sum to mono if you connect both channels of the power amp. You can connect two REL subs, one to the left channel and one to the right channel if you desire. You then have true stereo sub bass.

RELs can be connected to the power amp or to RCA or balanced outputs from a preamp or processor also. With either method they can run true stereo or mono-mixing.

Besides, with a sub upper rolloff at 35Hz how much LP information is in stereo at that frequency. It is my understanding that bass is summed to mono on most LPs. Strange then that most audiophiles profess to preferring LPs.

In general I agree with you that two subs will provide a better room loading, that 80Hz may be a good integration point, and that integration as high as 80Hz may cause the sub to be more directional than in my case (crossed at 45Hz).

But I contend that you cannot do what you are suggesting with a budget of $1000 or less.

Hi Raul,

"Mi issue is to leave free of low bass reproduction the woofer in the main speakers, in this way we can eliminated almost the most severe intermodulation distortion and heavy harmonic distortion that do a great degradation to the music reproduction"

I can see definite advantages in relieving the main speakers of their lower bass. I am in complete agreement in this respect.

However I also see a disadvantage: The higher the frequency at which the subwoofer is crossed the more directional the subwoofer becomes, and the more difficult it is to place the subwoofer for even room loading.

Your solution of two subwoofers solves this disadvantage, but it also approximately doubles the cost.

So I think that your solution of crossing at 80Hz and using stereo subs is probably optimum, but I doubt it can be achieved for under $1000.

By crossing at a very low frequency (20-40Hz) the REL is much less directional, and loads the room a bit more evenly and so it allows a single sub to be used to good effect.

The negative aspect of this approach is that it does nothing to ease the stress on the main speakers, so no midrange clarity is gained.

Horses for courses !