Subwoofer advice please


I'm hoping to find a little bit of clarity with your help.

I've got the itch to buy a pair of modestly priced subs, (SVS SB13 Ultra or REL S/3 SHO).

Here is my dilemma; I use a PrimaLuna Dialogue Premium HP driving a pair of rebuilt and completely upgraded Quad 2805 speakers.

The PrimaLuna has one subwoofer out. Okay, great I think.

My dilemma is when I research proper subwoofer integration almost all posts and articles state that an external crossover is needed to really dial in the sound.

Obviously I can't do that with the PrimaLuna.

It would be less expensive to sell the Quads and upgrade, (a topic I'd love to talk about) than to buy a new front end and hope that the subs worked out for me.

Any help or advice is greatly appreciated and if you're ever in SE Washington state I would repay your kind advice with world class bbq and cool, refreshing beverages.

Thank you in advance,

Bob
jzzmusician
Thanks for the comment Shadorne. I agree 8 inch is small for a subwoofer driver, but the PV1d has two of them, in opposition to each other. As for alternatives, subwoofers are rather less common in the EU than in the US because our living rooms tend to be a lot smaller, so the choice in the market is more restricted. A home demo of my shortlist was impossible. However, after my initial disappointment, and once I got the PV1d equalized by the Antimode, the sound was in no way bloated. You push the sub into the corner for maximum reinforcement, but the Antimode then flattens the response. The result has been that the bass really seems to come out of the stats, and has the same kind of clarity. It is important to cross them over pretty low: 33 Hz with the 4th order filter slope (and zero degree phase) is what I arrived at for minimum colouration and smearing.
The PV1d also looks very nice in our modern design interior.

Right you are, willem, it was indeed Gradient. DSPeaker and Gradient are both Finnish companies, and there is some relationship between them, though I don’t recall exactly what it is.

The GR Research OB/Dipole Sub is offered as a kit, the H-frames into which it is installed needing to be made (or have made) by the user. So shipping shouldn't be too bad. The dimensions of the H-frame are about 16" wide, 14" deep, and 28" tall, not too bad.

have you thought of adding another set of Quad's in a stacked array, I've heard this and it sound wonderful and you get much more base. I've heard a double and triple stack and both sounded significantly better then just two. Of course your into the cost of more panels and matching amps to drive them.
glenn,

Stacked 2805s?  Sounds like a lot of fun, but at 8 feet high or so I doubt they would pass meet the "wife acceptance factor."

Willemj and others,

Thank you very much for your comments about what to do.  After comparing the SVS to the REL, it looks like the REL is probably a better fit, although it's another $1000 if I buy a pair.  I really need to ponder that.  I have a friend that would buy my Quads and if I took that money and another $4000 I could probably buy something that wouldn't have all the headaches. 

On the other hand, it wouldn't have the Quad sound either.

Re: a dipole sub; I would probably pass.  Only because at some point I'd probably want to sell it for something else and I'm guessing I'd take a bath doing so.

Thank you all again, I'm yet undecided, but thinking hard.

Bob

The 57 worked stacked because it had a single tweeter panel with a bass panel to either side. Stacking turned a pair into a quasi-line source speaker.

The 2805, on the other hand, is essentially a coaxial design, the sound emanating from the center of the driver outward (via delay lines in the driver). Placing one 2805 above another will result in lobing and comb filtering. Not good.