Two subs in a small room....


I have read that two subs smooth out the bottom end and give a much better sound. But, what if you have a room that is just not big enough for two subs. Is it worth the effort to get two "small" subs or is there a special placement for just one sub besides the usually place, behind one tower. What about placing the sub right in the middle?

By the way, my system is in a 10 X 10 room and it is in a diagonal configuration if you can picture that.
matchstikman
Ok, so, if in a small room, a single subwoofer will suffice, what kind of small sub would be best? Ported? Sealed? Down-firing? And is there any sub that anyone could suggest?
I was going to write a long reply, but see that Martykl has already written more or less what I would have said. So I'll tick an agreement with him, and summarize in different words:

Multiple subs placed using a moderate amount \of trial and error will nearly always provide a smoother, less erratic bass than would a single one. The biggest problem with a small room or a large room isn't its size but just that it is a box with incredibly irregular low frequency response from all the multiple standing waves. Multiple subs let you choose placements that compensate some of the unavoidable holes and peaks that any of the subs singly will give you.
Ok, so, if in a small room, a single subwoofer will suffice, what kind of small sub would be best? Ported? Sealed? Down-firing? And is there any sub that anyone could suggest?

In a small room, a sealed sub will likely be easier to integtate. SVS makes a nice 12" sealed sub that has lots of flexibility at a decent price.
If you want really deep bass from your subs, JL makes a great product, albeit at a premium price. SVS appears (from test results, not listening experience) to be a great value; a bigger, less attractive cabinet with very nearly the same performance as JL at a real discount.

From my own experience, Rythmik (in my system) might trade away a little bit of performance below 35hz, but works very, very well for music only systems, where full, clean output at these frequencies is rarely an issue.

If you're music only, I'd also think about the $300 NHT "lifestyle" woofer I mentioned. I have not heard them, but NHT usually makes a great product and I suspect that a pair of these small cabinet woofers might work well for music in a small room. Each unit combines 2 10" metal drivers and a 200w amp in a cabinet 6" deep. The primary quarter wave cancellation should be pretty benign when the front of the driver is that close to the wall. Even though you won't get true "sub- bass", this could be a really cost effective music solution in a room like yours.

Money back policy from Audio Advisor minimizes risk.

Good Luck

Marty
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