Beginner Seeking Advice about Starting Out

lovinthehd

lovinthehd

Audioholic Jedi
Also, the times I would add the bass boost would be rare. Most music I prefer to listen to with a flat response. I'd probably only use it on 5% or less of the music I listen to, and maybe some movies. I haven't tried the AAs for a movie yet, perhaps they wouldn't need it for movies.
Movies could/would have more bass/lfe demands than most music....
 
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shadyJ

Speaker of the House
Staff member
OK, I get it now. :) I think I'm going to wait a few weeks (or months) before really committing to a sub, to really listen to the AAs in a couple different settings and give them time to open up, if they have a break-in period. I'm also a bit hesitant to buy a sub since I have no experience at all with them. ;) Do you have any recommendations for subs to pair with the AAs, should I decide to buy one?

Also, here's my logic for why I would want to add a sub: the bass on the AAs is low, and it does reach the range I am listening for, which is really nice. However, I like listening to some genres with a bit more power in the mid-lower end, probably in the 50-100 Hz range (not rap music 30 Hz stuff). I found that giving a slight bass boost on the NAD gives me more of the sound I want, but I worry that bass boosting a bookshelf speaker will put unnecessary wear on the woofers and a sub would be a better way to go. Is that reasonable?
Rap music rarely digs down to the 30s.

Boosting the speakers in bass won't wear them down unless you are pushing the woofer to the edge of its performance envelope. There it will be stretching its soft suspension parts, and if you put too much tension on those parts, that will have an effect, but it would take an awful lot of that to occur, and you probably aren't pushing the speaker that hard. However, you still may be pushing the speakers hard enough for them to distort the bass, and a subwoofer can alleviate the low frequency playback of the speaker, thereby greatly reducing distortion. I would add a subwoofer for the sake of cleaner and more powerful bass rather than to reduce any kind of wear on the speaker.
 
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Isaac52

Audioholic Intern
@shadyJ You can tell I don't listen to much rap. I just remember hearing one song that I think had a lowest note around 38 Hz maybe. Probably that song was an exception rather than the norm. :) Your reasoning for the sub makes sense though.

@lovinthehd I do have a friend that has built subs before. I'm thinking maybe to go the route of building a sub if he's able to help me. If I built my own sub would that still cost around $500 to be considered decent? I'd rather not spend that much... maybe I should just save up for it instead of going cheap.
 
lovinthehd

lovinthehd

Audioholic Jedi
@shadyJ You can tell I don't listen to much rap. I just remember hearing one song that I think had a lowest note around 38 Hz maybe. Probably that song was an exception rather than the norm. :) Your reasoning for the sub makes sense though.

@lovinthehd I do have a friend that has built subs before. I'm thinking maybe to go the route of building a sub if he's able to help me. If I built my own sub would that still cost around $500 to be considered decent? I'd rather not spend that much... maybe I should just save up for it instead of going cheap.
How do you know its 38hz? I agree with shadyj's reasoning too....

You can DIY a sub for $500, helps if you build the box yourself rather than buying a pre-cut flatpack, tho.... With a reasonably priced driver, most of the expense will be the amp (and usually you'd get an amp that would work well for two subs, which is where you can gain some savings overall).

Here's an example of a low cost diy subwoofer that I remember hearing good things about (I've built one of the Infinity driver subs they're referring to that is no longer available) but there are others, you just need to search a bit or ask for help/ideas in the diy subforum here....
 
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Isaac52

Audioholic Intern
Well, I don't remember the song, so I don't know it was 38 Hz. :( I've played bass guitar though, and I'm fairly certain the note was lower than the open E on a bass guitar, which is a 41 Hz. Maybe I'm wrong though, since I can't remember which song it was.

Thanks, I'll look into the diy subforums here. :)
 
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Isaac52

Audioholic Intern
So I know it's been a while since I've last posted here. I've been pretty happy with my system so far. I decided to wait on getting a sub for at least six months since the bass output of the AAs is quite impressive. I've had a few comb filter type effects from the apartment room I think, since it's definitely not ideal for accurate sound. I'm not sure how much I can do to fix that problem though, since I was under impression that an eq can't fix room effects. So anyways, my question is how much of a difference do you guys think a more expensicve DAC would make? Here is the one I'm currently using: https://www.amazon.com/Signstek-Coaxial-Converter-Decoder-Analogue/dp/B00FEDHHKE/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1468964084&sr=8-10&keywords=usb+dac
If I did replace it I wouldn't want to pay more than $100.
 
KEW

KEW

Audioholic Overlord
Glad to hear you are enjoying the AAs!
Generally, I would not expect to hear any significant change in sound from changing DACs!
However I know nothing about the particular unit you are asking about.
 
lovinthehd

lovinthehd

Audioholic Jedi
Concentrate on speakers, not dacs; if your current one is doing its job another won't make a difference.

Might want to post up some pics of speaker placement, maybe some improvement can be suggested.

How did you come to the conclusion of comb filtering being the issue?
 
zieglj01

zieglj01

Audioholic Spartan
So anyways, my question is how much of a difference do you guys think a more expensicve DAC would make? Here is the one I'm currently using: https://www.amazon.com/Signstek-Coaxial-Converter-Decoder-Analogue/dp/B00FEDHHKE/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&qid=1468964084&sr=8-10&keywords=usb+dac
If I did replace it I wouldn't want to pay more than $100.
For well built DAC's regardless of price -- you would probably need superman like ears to tell a real difference. As stated, speakers, placement, and the room, is the biggest difference
 
Pogre

Pogre

Audioholic Slumlord
I made big (not just a little) improvements repositioning my speakers. Sometimes a few inches can make a difference, especially if you're close to any room boundaries.
 
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shadyJ

Speaker of the House
Staff member
Concentrate on speakers, not dacs; if your current one is doing its job another won't make a difference.

How did you come to the conclusion of comb filtering being the issue?
Agreed, comb filtering isn't likely to be an acoustics issue with the room.
 
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Isaac52

Audioholic Intern
Well, I thought it sounded like a comb filter effect. I don't know if it is actually comb filtering in reality though. It is very mild if there is any. I do think it sounds like two ranges are weaker than I would have expected since the speakers are supposed to have a very flat response. One is in the upper bass and one is in the mids. I think the mids dip might be due to the room though. I know very little about room placement.

So in the picture, the wall behind the TV is 12 ft. The speakers are approximately 5-6 ft apart. There is also a concrete-brick wall on the left. I've noticed that the bass response seems to get progressively deeper the farther back in the apartment I am from the speakers. Any advice?
 

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zieglj01

zieglj01

Audioholic Spartan
The speakers are voiced to be on stands and should be higher than they are -- and should come forward from the wall -- also the sound is bouncing off the dinning table and that coffee table.
 
lovinthehd

lovinthehd

Audioholic Jedi
Interesting stands you have there :) Have any without backs? If you sit more than 5-6 ft consider that usual placement of the front speakers is in an equilateral triangle with your seat, so perhaps they should be wider apart as well as further from the wall/on stands. Where is your seat? Speakers' tweeters should be at ear height at your seated position generally as well.
 
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Isaac52

Audioholic Intern
I didn't know any stands that would work with the speakers, so the chairs are my temporary budget stands. It's hard to beat the price of $0. ;) I don't have any stands without backs, it didn't occur me that that would make a difference.

Space is kind of an issue so I don't know how much farther from the wall I could move the speakers. I don't usually sit farther than 6 ft from them though.
 
zieglj01

zieglj01

Audioholic Spartan
I didn't know any stands that would work with the speakers, so the chairs are my temporary budget stands. It's hard to beat the price of $0. ;) I don't have any stands without backs, it didn't occur me that that would make a difference.
Budget friendly stands
https://www.amazon.com/Atlantic-Speaker-Stands-Bookshelf-Speakers/dp/B007P8DKDE/ref=sr_1_10?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1505347846&sr=1-10&keywords=speaker+stands

https://www.amazon.com/Sanus-BF24B-Inch-Speaker-Stands/dp/B00006JQ5N/ref=sr_1_7?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1505347997&sr=1-7&keywords=speaker+stands&refinements=p_89:Sanus
 
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Isaac52

Audioholic Intern
How do I attach the speakers to the stands? The bottom of the speakers is just smooth wood.
 
zieglj01

zieglj01

Audioholic Spartan
How do I attach the speakers to the stands? The bottom of the speakers is just smooth wood.
Just stick some bumper feet on the stands, and set the speaker on the stands -- or use something like Blu-tak
 

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