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Subwoofer recommendation and wisdom

So I have a relatively difficult room 19' x 19' x 9'. I have made a bunch of sound absorbing panels which made a massive improvement. I have worked on speaker placement and landed on the 5/8 ratio......5x from the back wall, 8x from the side walls. I use Harbeth 30.1 speakers on appropriate stands, driven by a Luxman L505 xII integrated. I am very pleased with the sound but sometimes wish I had a bit more foundation on the bottom end. I will listen mostly to classic rock and jazz. I would like to consider adding a sub, but not sure where to start. I don't want sledgehammer bass, I just want a nice, blended bottom end on my music. I think that is one of the only improvements I can reasonably and cost effectively make. Looking for recommendations on a sealed sub that would have a good chance of integrating well in my room.

My preference would be for a single sub solution. Thanks
 

stuartbmw3
bartsw's avatar
bartsw
232 posts
 

@mswale 

One thing of note, usually if you are getting 2 subs, you can go down a size/level and still get more out of 2 smaller subs over 1 bigger. Where you would spend $1500 on one sub, 2 $700 subs will give you more bass.

Yup. I'm not sure about 'more' but wider coverage with more consistent SPL vs 1 bigger sub having a hot spot in the center and cool zones near the edge and varying SPL in between. Overall better quality though not necessarily higher max SPL. Also you have less risk of room modes from too much bass in a particular area (not room).

 

I don't agree with any sub crawl suggestions. It's hard to localize bass below 40Hz. A mic does a better job.

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tkelleyalaska
10 posts
 

Don’t go dual T5x , go with a used T9x , then get a second , there are lots used from anywhere including TMR in fact I just traded 2 T9x into them in brand new mint condition and they have some others , the dual T9x can be used if you upgrade or go to larger home , where the T5x is stuck and you will just lose money if you ever upgrade 👊🏾  

macg19
1,334 posts
 

I used a pair of T/9x with my 30.2 XD’s which I thought worked really well. I had a chance to A/B that set up in my room with 40.3 XDs and it was really close.

IMO you need subs in pairs and driving them from the speaker taps makes a lot of sense (unless it’s a home theater set up)

 

 

 

m-db's avatar
m-db
1,088 posts
 

@mswale    I don't agree with any sub crawl suggestions. It's hard to localize bass below 40Hz. A mic does a better job.

When performing the crawl or stroll within the room you're listening for the standing bass wave excited by the extra low frequency typically near a rooms boundary. 

Exactly what make and model subwoofer have you placed in the listening position to preform this task?

Sub-bass woofers output rated at -6dB@xxHz typically roll off before exciting the rooms standing waves resulting in the crawl a futile exercise.

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