Best way to hookup subwoofer

I

IrvingDIY76

Audiophyte
Hi,

I have Polk Audio PSW505 subwoofer and Yamaha RX-V2067 receiver. Rest of the speakers are Polk RM95. I have a 5.1 configuration.

My question is what is the best way to connect the subwoofer to the receiver. There are plenty of options:

A. Through a RCA cable
B. Through Surround L/R into the subwoofer with L/R being output through the subwoofer.
C. Parallel wire hookup, where I tap into the L/R surround channels directly from the receiver to the subwoofer.

I have listed just these three options, but probably there are more ways to hookup the subwoofer that I am not even aware of. Assuming I have no limitation in my setup and can use any of the above options, which one is the most recommended and why ?

A second question is that when I asked for a subwoofer cable at a local electronics store they handed me a RG6 cable. What is a subwoofer cable, RG6 or RCA ?

Appreciate all your inputs in advance.

Regards,
Irving
 
dapack69

dapack69

Senior Audioholic
Your receiver has a sub preout. Use an RCA and call it a day.
 
j_garcia

j_garcia

Audioholic Jedi
Your receiver has a sub preout. Use an RCA and call it a day.
What he said :) Doesn't get simpler than that.

The reason: the sub preout is the easiest way to get your LFE + bass from your receiver's bass management system.

RG6, RCA, makes little difference. They will both do the same thing for your sub. There is technically no such thing as a "subwoofer" cable. Regardless of what it is called, it is nothing more than an analog cable.
 
Alex2507

Alex2507

Audioholic Slumlord
What those guys said and regarding this ...

What is a subwoofer cable, RG6 or RCA ?
A subwoofer cable can be RG6 with RCA connectors.
It could be other kinds of cable but the coaxial RG6 is a a fine choice.
 
M

markw

Audioholic Overlord
A "subwoofer cable" is simply a coaxial cable (of which RG6 is but one type out of hundreds) with RCA plugs on the end.

Likewise, an "RCA cable" is a misnomer. That would be a cable (not necessarially coaxial) with RCA plugs on the end.

As for the how to connect it, use the receiver's subwoofer output like the others have said. You control the crossover and such via the receiver and, if you can't turn off the sub's internal crossover, turn it to the highest frequency it allows.
 
T

tjf120

Audioholic Intern
So if your sub has a 'stereo' input for the RCAs, ie, one red/white (L/R), does it matter if you plug it in direct into one or the other, or should you 'Y' it to the L/R. I'd think the Y would add another potential for noise.
 
I

IrvingDIY76

Audiophyte
Your receiver has a sub preout. Use an RCA and call it a day.
Hi,

Thanks for your input. The Polk Sub-woofer manual lists the three connection options that I described in my question and says that the option B, which is the option where one would need to run the L/R channels through the sub-woofer as the RECOMMENDED option.

I like the simplicity of the RCA cable approach, however I am wondering why the would call the L/R approach as the preferred method.

Regards,
Irving
 
j_garcia

j_garcia

Audioholic Jedi
Polk's recommendation to hook it up like that does not apply when using a receiver with bass management. That setup is intended for small sattellite speakers that need to be crossed very high or in a stereo, full range setup. Hooking it up inline means you defeat the purpose of having bass management in the receiver and really that method more or less hasn't applied since the mid 90s, not unlinke many of their sub designs.

So if your sub has a 'stereo' input for the RCAs, ie, one red/white (L/R), does it matter if you plug it in direct into one or the other, or should you 'Y' it to the L/R. I'd think the Y would add another potential for noise.
Whether you use a Y or not, the sub is mono and they are summed back to mono. Some subs will tell you which one to use for a single input, others it does not matter, so basically if you get no sound with one, it is the other. If you get sound with both, then it doesn't matter which. The Y doesn't add any noise, it is the same signal.
 
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