For me it was bass and space. With a separate sub, I have much better control over the bass and integration with the room than I would have with a full range.
Have you moved away from full range to standmount speakers + subs?
I want to know if you have been on a journey moving from a large full range speaker to a smaller one paired wit subs, maybe even four subs.
Maybe you moved away from the big speakers because you had too much bass or you got a better soundstage from the smaller speakers. Let me know what motivated you and if you think it’s better now.
My motivation for wanting to try smaller speakers.
I have the Tekton DI and until a month ago I was using a LM845P SET amp to drive them.
It only sounded good on simple jazz and vocals but on complex music everything was falling apart.
I am not playing loud but I think it was the low 2 ohm load in the midrange that made the LM break down.
I bought a used PS Audio BHK250 and pre and it was like getting new speakers. Never ever had it occurred to me that speaker and amp matching could have such a profound effect.
So I am enjoying my speakers now and listen to music I have avoided like the plague and enjoying it (:
But all of this got me thinking, what if I paired my LM845P with an easy to drive speaker and paired it with some subs?
Then the LM845 could do what it's best at, playing glorious midrange and the subs could play the bass.
So that's my motivation for trying smaller speakers.
I am also hoping that maybe I could get better and more even bass with 2 or 4 subs. Maybe a better soundstage because the small speakers have a very small baffle.
- ...
- 158 posts total
I use a full size narrow baffle speaker cabinet, but it's NOT a full range speaker. I could never get the mechanical timing correct, so I split the cabinets. 100hz and below OB servo plates with 12" HE drivers. 100-300hz Mid Bass Columns with correction and direct driver coupling. 300hz and UP NB Small Planar/Ribbon columns, valve driven. To tell the truth, one of the BEST systems I've ever heard was a stand mount speaker AND Servo subs.. The ROOM was still 50% of that great combo though.. 16 x 20 x 9. It had a built in gear rack (LOW) into the front wall. It was tube driven monitors and GRs OB servos. http://pointillistic.com/vmps-audio/626R.htm. TRY to find a pair.. They are like gold when they are set up right.. First time I ever saw and understood the reason for bearding a stand mount speaker.. GR OB servos and super fast planar/ribbons.. Time to feed the chickens.. Regards |
I'm with Doug and James on this unless you are in a very small room. as in 12 x 10 or less. I just bought a new sub this week from REL. I plan to add more subs as $ allow. They will go with my bigger speakers. Small speakers-say under 8", just sound small. You can not achieve the same amount of air movement. Physics. You will get a tighter, faster sound with the smaller sizes so it is all a trade-off. Multi subs add a dimension to the soundstage you will not achieve without them. Nuff said. |
| Post removed |
There are significant advantages to reducing cabinet size with almost all speaker designs. Narrow baffles, etc. Cabinets can do nothing but detract from your experience and the design of the cabinet itself is just an exercise in minimizing problems. Having separate subs, especially with bass arrays, gives you incredible flexibility that you will never have with larger speaker systems. So you may get a larger sense of scale from large speakers, but you will lose a great deal of other equally important things from large "mirror image" designs like the PAP. It is very difficult to design an accurate, neutral large speaker using dynamic drivers in particular. |
- 158 posts total