Question about subwoofer purchase

[KEW]

You know Gene doesn't speak to highly of AVR auto-cal.

I don't want to derail this thread, but I assume you have not read this page where Gene setup a receiver using Audyssey for his parents:
http://www.audioholics.com/av-receiver-reviews/avr-2308ci/avr-2308-listening-tests

Concluding remark:

I walked away from this installation amazed at the fidelity improvement of my parents system thanks to the Audyssey room correction and solid amplification section.

But it really doesn't matter what he thinks because I hear the improvement in my room and that is what counts!

 

[matt houser]

The Hsu setup should work fine there. Try to follow a placement scheme like this as closely as you can. If you have room for a stand-off distance for the speakers as is suggested in the owner's guide, that is great, but they don't need it to sound good. Hopefully you have different places where you can try the subwoofer, because the subwoofer's sound can vary by a lot in different locations. A beast like the VTF3 will still give you some massive bass in a room like that regardless. For whatever AVR you end up with, remember to run the room equalization routine on it. It's a nice feature that a lot of people don't bother with.

So even after several days of research I'm still leaning toward one of the 2 systems that you recommended, however after reviewing the 2 systems I am left with a few questions & would like to get your opinion on them that way in the end I have the best system in my price range, first off, I know how great you say these 15" subs are, and I am sure they are bad ass, in your opinion are these 15 inch subs a make or break deal, I have been checking out the 12" sub from each of the two systems, they look pretty amazing also, i'm just not sure that I need 600 W of power from a 15 inch speaker, but I am asking your opinion as I don't know a lot about this stuff, is going down to the smaller speaker too much of a sacrifice in quality in your opinion, secondly I have my speakers narrowed down to three sets, The first one being five of the HB-1 MK2's and the second option, and this is where I wanted to get your opinion, i've considered upscaling on my front three speakers going with three CMT-340 SE's in the front & two of the CBM-170 SE's in the back, and the third option would just be five of the CBM-170 SE's, considering these three configuration options what in your opinion would give me the best quality of sound, I know this is a lot but I feel like I'm getting better advice from you than anything out there as far as reviews and research goes, thanks once again

 

[shadyJ]

I haven't heard the CMT-340s, but they do look very good. They probably have the widest dynamic range of the three, good for when you want to crank the volume. If you can swing the CMT-340s, that would be a great system, but, again, when you place it horizontally, it creates problems with off-axis dispersion, which can affect the sound at listening position. It probably still won't be bad, but perhaps not as good as a normal bookshelf speaker. Vertical MTMs like the CMT-340 tend to have more controlled vertical dispersion.

As for the 15"s vs the 12"s, go with the 15"s. The 12"s are good, but the 15"s are great. A very different level of performance. You may not think you need that level of performance, but once you have it, you will be glad you didn't go with the 12"s. I think you are more likely to take more advantage of the headroom of the 15"s subs than the extra headroom of the CMT-340 MTM speakers.

 

[KEW]

So even after several days of research I'm still leaning toward one of the 2 systems that you recommended, however after reviewing the 2 systems I am left with a few questions & would like to get your opinion on them that way in the end I have the best system in my price range, first off, I know how great you say these 15" subs are, and I am sure they are bad ass, in your opinion are these 15 inch subs a make or break deal, I have been checking out the 12" sub from each of the two systems, they look pretty amazing also, i'm just not sure that I need 600 W of power from a 15 inch speaker, but I am asking your opinion as I don't know a lot about this stuff, is going down to the smaller speaker too much of a sacrifice in quality in your opinion, secondly I have my speakers narrowed down to three sets, The first one being five of the HB-1 MK2's and the second option, and this is where I wanted to get your opinion, i've considered upscaling on my front three speakers going with three CMT-340 SE's in the front & two of the CBM-170 SE's in the back, and the third option would just be five of the CBM-170 SE's, considering these three configuration options what in your opinion would give me the best quality of sound, I know this is a lot but I feel like I'm getting better advice from you than anything out there as far as reviews and research goes, thanks once again

This is a gross over-generalization, but the difference between a 12" and a 15" sub is more how deep it goes than how loud it gets. The better 12" ID subs play down to 20-something Hz. A good 15" gets into the teens.
For music, the 12" would cover everything except the largest organs or some extreme synthesized bass. 20Hz is widely considered the lowest audible frequency.
However, for HT, the added bass is something that you feel without hearing and adds a profound sense of depth and solidifies the effect of that alien ship landing on Earth or the dinosaur stomp. If you don't experience it, a 12" will seem fine, but when you do feel it, it is just fun! It is the difference between watching a movie with friends and they say the bass sounded really great vs. them looking around with a nervous smile on there face when the really deep LFE kicks in.
If you go with a 12", you'll be happy, but if your goal is ultimately to have a great HT you will end up with a 15" down the road and it is much cheaper to buy once.

Considering you plan for speakers, you can save a little money by using WaveCrest HVL-1 speakers for your surrounds. It would be a better option to do that and have 340's for your fronts than to have 170's all of the way around. There is not much content in the rear/surrounds and it makes sense to focus on the fronts and the subs. The HVL-1's are designed by David Fabrikant; the same guy who designs the Ascends (Wavecrest is to Ascend as Scion is to Toyota) and have a similar sound, the main difference is the lack of bass, but for HT you cross-over the rears at 80 - 120Hz anyway (my rears play down to 50Hz, but I cross them at 120Hz - wasted money). Plus, the HVL-1's are lighter and more compact for easier placement and/or wall mounting.
If you have a friend with a 5 or 7 channel system, play a favorite clip from a favorite movie, then disconnect the front 3 speakers (from the receiver so you don't short the amp if the leads touch) and you will see what I am talking about - the surrounds never work very hard compared to the front.

 

[fmw]

I have a 15 and 2 12's. The 15 really does sound better. It handles all the bass I need with the amp barely turned on and almost no visible movement of the driver cone. It is as though it is idling. The reason could be that my 15 is a DIY using a very good driver. But on the other hand it is sealed while 12's are ported. I don't think I have any interest in 12's for the future and probably upgrade the ones I have over time. I'm considering a DIY 18 as an upgrade for the home theater. So I agree with Shady J.

 

[matt houser]

Just wanted to get some final thoughts before I place my order in a couple of days, it's looking like I'm going to go with the Ascend Acoustics CMT-340 SE's in the front, I did call a Ascend and they said they could send me a vertical center channel, I think I'm going to go with the CBM 170 SE's in the rear just to keep the system matched and add to it the FVX15 Sub, for right around $2000 do you think this is the best bang for my buck, and by adding the larger 340's should this system out perform the HSU hybrid 3 HP package that you originally recommended

 

[shadyJ]

That looks like a good setup. I think the Hsu sub will punch a bit harder but the Rythmik sub will dig a bit deeper. The Rythmik FV15HP sub should be able to match the Hsu's punchiness.

 

[Auditor55]

Just wanted to get some final thoughts before I place my order in a couple of days, it's looking like I'm going to go with the Ascend Acoustics CMT-340 SE's in the front, I did call a Ascend and they said they could send me a vertical center channel, I think I'm going to go with the CBM 170 SE's in the rear just to keep the system matched and add to it the FVX15 Sub, for right around $2000 do you think this is the best bang for my buck, and by adding the larger 340's should this system out perform the HSU hybrid 3 HP package that you originally recommended

I would be careful with using a vertical center channel. A vertical center lots of time will require for your display to abnormally elevated (looking up at screen), I see a lot of wall mounted flat panels up higher than recommend and front projection screens place real high to accommodate a vertical center.

 

[matt houser]

ShadyJ, I wanted to say thanks for all your help as your advice has helped me create the greatest system I have ever owned, the 340's, 170's along with the HSU 15" sub & Denon 3100 sound absolutely mind blowing, a truly amazing sounding system, I am curious about one thing though, should I be crossing this system over at 80 Hz or would you recommend another setting

 

[speakerman39]

ShadyJ, I wanted to say thanks for all your help as your advice has helped me create the greatest system I have ever owned, the 340's, 170's along with the HSU 15" sub & Denon 3100 sound absolutely mind blowing, a truly amazing sounding system, I am curious about one thing though, should I be crossing this system over at 80 Hz or would you recommend another setting

I have owned the 340's across the front and crossed mine over at 80 Hz. I also had the 170's in the rear and thought it was overkill. Just recently got a Hsu ULS-15 MK2 sub and I love it! YOU will love YOURS too. Congrats on YOUR set-up!

Cheers,

Phil

 

[shadyJ]

ShadyJ, I wanted to say thanks for all your help as your advice has helped me create the greatest system I have ever owned, the 340's, 170's along with the HSU 15" sub & Denon 3100 sound absolutely mind blowing, a truly amazing sounding system, I am curious about one thing though, should I be crossing this system over at 80 Hz or would you recommend another setting

80 Hz is the recommended setting. You can experiment with other crossovers to see if you prefer something else. 80 Hz is where human hearing is widely considered to stop being able to localize sound, so if you raise it higher, the sub might draw attention to its position. Some have had trouble localizing the sub at higher frequencies though, so it might be worth a try. The sub will be a lot more capable in dynamic range than the speakers you have, so it could punch up the sound a bit. If you double up on the sub, its position will be more difficult to localize, then you can raise the crossover and have punchy mid bass.

 

[matt houser]

ShadyJ, is punching up the sound a good thing? You also mentioned doubling up the sub, i'm pretty sure this means getting a second sub, just want to make sure I understand what you're saying

 

[TLS Guy]

I've read that 2 Subs are better than one and that you really shouldn't miss match the two subs, well I have decided to get a second sub, The one I have now is the PSW111 from Polk Audio, it's an 8" 150 watts RMS but it only dips down to 38 htz. which from what I've been reading isn't that low, so my question is am I better off mismatching this sub with a one that reaches lower or just getting a second PSW111

You do not have a sub now. Going to 38 Hz is not a sub.

So you need to get rid of the Polk and add one decent sub. As funds permit you might want to add another, but one good sub may be all you need.

 

[matt houser]

You do not have a sub now. Going to 38 Hz is not a sub.

So you need to get rid of the Polk and add one decent sub. As funds permit you might want to add another, but one good sub may be all you need.

Lol yes I very much agree with you, I have learned a lot in the past few months, I have since moved on from the petty Polk & have since then replaced it with the HSU VTF3-MK5, now I know what a real sub is

 

[Auditor55]

You do not have a sub now. Going to 38 Hz is not a sub.

So you need to get rid of the Polk and add one decent sub. As funds permit you might want to add another, but one good sub may be all you need.

Yes it is, a subwoofer is a loudspeaker unit designed to produce extremely low-frequency bass sounds. Subwoofers cover a small frequency range between 20 and 200 Hz."

 

[Ismael Betancourt]

+1 SVS, HSU will are great values with awesome performance. I replace a polk sub for and HSU stf-3 and wow with just one it made a huge difference. I will be buying another one soon.

 

[shadyJ]

ShadyJ, is punching up the sound a good thing? You also mentioned doubling up the sub, i'm pretty sure this means getting a second sub, just want to make sure I understand what you're saying

By punching up the sound, I mean the system will be more capable in mid and upper bass frequencies. Your mains do not have the dynamic range in bass that the subwwoofers do. By raising the crossover and allowing the subs to take more bass frequency bandwidth, your system can get more headroom. The problem is subwoofers can become localizable above 80 Hz, but with multiple, properly-placed subs, localization can be stamped out.

 

[Mohamed Nazeer]

Hi,
I have a Marantz SR5005. I was wondering whether the following would be compatible.
Fluance SXHTBW Surround Sound Home Theater Speaker System or Fluance AVHTB Surround Sound Home Theater 5.0 Channel Speaker System which is available in Ebay
and Polk Audio PSW111 sub? As for the sub, it's nominal power rate is 300W RMS though the AVR has 100W. I really need your suggestion on this pls.
Awaiting your response.

Thanks & Regards
Nazeer

 

[shadyJ]

Hi,
I have a Marantz SR5005. I was wondering whether the following would be compatible.
Fluance SXHTBW Surround Sound Home Theater Speaker System or Fluance AVHTB Surround Sound Home Theater 5.0 Channel Speaker System which is available in Ebay
and Polk Audio PSW111 sub? As for the sub, it's nominal power rate is 300W RMS though the AVR has 100W. I really need your suggestion on this pls.
Awaiting your response.

Thanks & Regards
Nazeer

The Flaunce speakers, Polk sub, and Marantz AVR are all compatible with each other, no worries there. The AVR does not power the sub, because the subwoofer is self-powered, it has its own amplifier which is what that power rating is for. Everything there will work together with no problem.