Marantz PM6005 and Subwoofer

[ReconRon2021]

I just moved house, the acoustics are different, the set up is different and things just don't sound as good as they used to, so I'm thinking about trying to find a small subwoofer for this amp as a starting point, to make things a bit punchier. Is anyone familiar with this amp and can they recommend anything? I can't even work out what type of connection I would use. I tried to attach a photo but it's too large.

Everything sounds quite squished at the moment, there are audible bass notes that I'm just about hearing but not feeling and the top end is falling a bit flat too, but the bottom end at the moment is just not great and as a bit of a bass head, this annoys me more than my apparent need for tweeters. My speakers used to be on stands and it felt like they were able to breathe more, now they're sat on a cabinet and it seems to be really stifling them. Thing is, I can't really do much about it other than buy more stuff to try and compensate.

Appreciate your help!

 

[lovinthehd]

New room and speaker positioning can indeed make differences. You don't have a particularly subwoofer friendly integrated amp, looks like you'll need a sub with high level (i.e. speaker level) inputs and any bass management will have to be come from the sub.

 

[ReconRon2021]

New room and speaker positioning can indeed make differences. You don't have a particularly subwoofer friendly integrated amp, looks like you'll need a sub with high level (i.e. speaker level) inputs and any bass management will have to be come from the sub.

Thanks. Do you think I should just get a newer/better amp? I have the money to spend but I don't wanna go crazy, and I don't really know the ins and outs of audio separates. It's just annoying because nothing sounds really bad, but it doesn't sound as good as it used to or as good as I know it should!

 

[PENG]

Thanks. Do you think I should just get a newer/better amp? I have the money to spend but I don't wanna go crazy, and I don't really know the ins and outs of audio separates. It's just annoying because nothing sounds really bad, but it doesn't sound as good as it used to or as good as I know it should!

As HD suggested, try using a speaker level sub first. If you get one that has both speaker level and RCA inputs then you can still use the subwoofer when you get a better amp.

 

[lovinthehd]

Well I'm not you so hard to know . I use avrs in my setups with subs. Few 2ch integrated amps will have bass management, altho may be more connection friendly (altho many only have a full range sub pre-out, some may allow insertion of an external device like a minidsp to provide some bass management). Depends what you want and how much you want to spend....

 

[ReconRon2021]

As HD suggested, try using a speaker level sub first. If you get one that has both speaker level and RCA inputs then you can still use the subwoofer when you get a better amp.

I'm sorry, I appreciate your input but can you please explain the terminology "speaker level sub?"

Honestly I haven't got a clue. Literally think of me as a day 00 noob who has good ears but knows nothing about audio systems apart from the most basic of basic wiring concepts.

 

[lovinthehd]

Here's a plate amp similar to what's on many subs that has both rca (low level) inputs and speaker level (high level) inputs; not all subs have the speaker level inputs though.

 

[PENG]

I'm sorry, I appreciate your input but can you please explain the terminology "speaker level sub?"

Honestly I haven't got a clue. Literally think of me as a day 00 noob who has good ears but knows nothing about audio systems apart from the most basic of basic wiring concepts.

In addition to HD's photos of one such subwoofer plate amp, you can also see the one on the SVS website:

SVS SB-1000 Subwoofer | 12-inch Driver | 300 Watts RMS (svsound.com)

You can just use the speaker binding post, that's what we call "speaker level", or " high level speaker level" as SVS called them.

You can also use one that are similar but have two sets of speaker binding posts, some with high pass filters typically set to 80 Hz so you the frequencies above 80 Hz would go to your speakers. Those with two sets of binding posts are common, but most come without the high pass filter.

 

[Pogre]

Speaker positioning really is critical and if not optimized switching amps isn't going to fix it. When it comes to sound quality speakers and placement is probably #1 with amplification falling toward the bottom of the list unless you're straight up underpowered.

That said, if considering buying something along those lines I'd highly recommend getting a unit with some sort of bass management (ie: LFE or subwoofer preout) if considering a sub. Bang for buck AV receivers offer a lot, and some of the better models have pretty good room correction to boot, and you may well benefit from that also from the sounds of it. If this is mainly for music you can pick up previous models at good prices.

That said, I'd really take a look at the space and try to figure out more optimal placement options first. That's going to have the most immediate and direct impact on how they're gonna sound. Generally speaking cubbies or shelves that put them close to a wall don't usually make for great placement.

 

[lovinthehd]

As HD suggested, try using a speaker level sub first. If you get one that has both speaker level and RCA inputs then you can still use the subwoofer when you get a better amp.

And along these lines a larger sub is generally better than a smaller one

 

[sterling shoote]

Get a Marantz NR 1200 it has a sub preout which has an adjustable low pass filter. You can connect to an active powered sub or a passive sub and separate amp. It's really simple. What makes everything seem so complex is back in the days when subwoofers became a thing in the early 1980's, there were no stereo receivers out there that had internal crossovers, and outputs necessary to run a sub; thus, the s the sub needed an internal crossover/amplification charged from the L and R speaker output from the receiver. and of course speaker wire back out from sub to mains. With the NR 1200 whatever sub you get will be better integrated to the receiver with proper volume matching better assured