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Lack of bass in NHT 3.3.

I recently failed to sell my pair of NHT 3.3's to a local(Dallas/Ft. Worth) buyer who remembered selling them circa 2000 and feel mine are not putting out enough bass volume. As you may know they are noted for the bass from the 12" side firing woofers. I followed a suggestion and removed the jumpers and connected just the subwoofer input and was able to verify signal. Since these are perhaps subwoors rather than traditional drivers I am not certain how loud they are supposed to play. My two part question is are there any 3.3 owners in the area willing to let me visit to hear your speakers and has any 3.3 owners run into a similar issue. Many thanks, LS
trytone
trytone OP
113 posts
 
Thanks Dave but they are positioned correctly and have 300 watts from a Bryston 4bsst. I am not convinced the output is low, the would be buyer is. Just want to make sure before selling that the speakers are indeed functioning as designed. May have to find another local pair and see how much output they have, again it is not an issue of how low they play, they measure and sound well, just not putting out the volume that the buyer hoped for. Not sure if my speakers are defective or his memory/expectations but thanks for reminding all of the power needs and the placement requirements. LS
onhwy61's avatar
onhwy61
5,137 posts
 
Use a test CD with a bass frequency sweep and measure with a smart phone SPL app.
trytone OP
113 posts
 
Thanks onwhy. Have the omnimic and can measure SPL with that. To my ears they seem to perform like my other subwoofer, the lowest frequencies are audible but do not have a lot of SPL. And what should the proper spl be for a sub woofer? The other drivers are certainly playing with robust volume. Not sure i have a cd with bass sweep, although it may be on the omnimic test cd but still not sure what the proper spl should be. Thanks, LS
onhwy61's avatar
onhwy61
5,137 posts
 
Set your volume so that a 1kHz tone reads at 75dB.  Then measure the readings for midrange thru bass tones without changing the volume control.  There will be peaks and valleys, but the bass level should be strong down to at least 30Hz.
trytone OP
113 posts
 
Thanks again onwhy. The omnimic shows a nice flat frequency response down to 20 Hz. My question is more about the spl levels I should expect from this 12 inch sealed subwoofer, as I have stated it seems to be about the same as my Martin Logan Grotto subwoofer, nice low frequencies but not a lot of SPL.
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