Should I bother to try a subwoofer?

06-28-11: Wolf_garcia

"Acoustically, either the 'ST' or the 'Q' range work excellently in either a hi-fi or home cinema system. However, the inputs on the 'Q' range are slightly more oriented towards home cinema use."

That I can understand. But did they actually say "Their downward firing subwoofers are designed for music and their forward firing subwoofers are designed for home theater."?

I highly doubt that.

Rgs92
I use a REL B1 with my Sonus faber Cremona Auditor Ms with great success. My dealer took about 1 hour to dial it in - even though I do not have it located in an ideal spot. Xover is around 32Hz.

I used a REL sub and until it quit working it sounded OK but not any better than the one I replaced (ACI) it with at less than a third of the price.

I'm sorry, but IMHO, crossing-over at or above the -3 dB bass response of your primary speaker - particularly monitor speakers - is a recipe for frustration. Ever wonder why some say subs are difficult to integrate into a 2-channel system? One of those reasons is simply the sub is crossed-over far too high. At least no one here is recommending an 80 Hz crossover point.

The Dynaudio Contour 1.3 MK II has a lower -3 dB response of 43 Hz. Again, IMHO, the best place to start is multiplying the lower -3 dB response by 0.7 for your starting point:

43 Hz x 0.7 = 30.1 Hz

This is assuming you can cross-over your sub this low. Many cannot (and have a lowest cross-over frequency of 40 Hz).

Often, rooms that are appropriate for monitor speakers have natural resonances in the 50-ish HZ range. You need to consider more than just the response of the speakers...you need to consider the response of the room.

Oh...and keep it away from corners. IMHO, that's mistake #2 that makes subs "hard to integrate".

And my last controversial statement in this post...IMHO you'd be better off with 2 (or more) "lesser" subs than one "more expensive" sub.

Duke over at AudioKinesis has an offering he calls "the swarm". Check it out (at least for some food for thought). www.audiokinesis.com. I have no affiliation (other than meeting him at LSAF a couple years back).

My post is pretty much is on point with you Nrenter. I think you speak truth!