Second Subwoofer

[Bwils10]

I was thinking about hooking up a second subwoofer to my system. I have a sony wm40 now which hits pretty well but I am considering putting another on the other side of the room. Any recommendations or things I need to look out for when purchasing a second subwoofer? Thanks

 

[avaserfi]

I was thinking about hooking up a second subwoofer to my system. I have a sony wm40 now which hits pretty well but I am considering putting another on the other side of the room. Any recommendations or things I need to look out for when purchasing a second subwoofer? Thanks

If you are wanting to add another subwoofer the best course of action is adding another subwoofer that matches your own. If you use two different subwoofers they will likely have different output capabilities so the weakest link in the chain will most likely cause audible distortion when trying to keep up with the superior one.

As far as adding another subwoofer it will increase headroom by giving you about 6dB more output capability. Also, with proper placement and set up you will be able to achieve a more linear response.

I have looked into this subwoofer a bit and honestly wouldn't recommend getting another. Instead I would work in getting a more capable sub. If you would like to spend less money I would recommend getting this or this. Both of these subs are extremely capable and of high quality for the price. If possible I would recommend two of either of these over two of the Sony subs.

 

[mazersteven]

Sell your current Sony sub on E-bay. Take that cash plus the cash you want to spend on the second subwoofer, and purchase a quality subwoofer.

I would rather have one quality sub, then two bad subs.

www.svsound.com

 

[Bwils10]

If you are wanting to add another subwoofer the best course of action is adding another subwoofer that matches your own. If you use two different subwoofers they will likely have different output capabilities so the weakest link in the chain will most likely cause audible distortion when trying to keep up with the superior one.

As far as adding another subwoofer it will increase headroom by giving you about 6dB more output capability. Also, with proper placement and set up you will be able to achieve a more linear response.

I have looked into this subwoofer a bit and honestly wouldn't recommend getting another. Instead I would work in getting a more capable sub. If you would like to spend less money I would recommend getting this or this. Both of these subs are extremely capable and of high quality for the price. If possible I would recommend two of either of these over two of the Sony subs.

I don't doubt your advice or knowledge avaserfi I am just wondering why recommend the Dayton subs? I have read many posts on here of people recommending them over many other brands. What are the reasons? What makes them such a quality sub for the price?

 

[avaserfi]

I don't doubt your advice or knowledge avaserfi I am just wondering why recommend the Dayton subs? I have read many posts on here of people recommending them over many other brands. What are the reasons? What makes them such a quality sub for the price?

The short story is these subs simply measure superbly.

The long story:

The cost to performance ratio on the Dayton's is very high especially in respect to others within the same price range. In fact, four of the Sub 120s (total cost of about $600) will outperform any single commercial sub that I am aware of in terms of output versus THD as well as linearity of response (in part due to multiple subs working together to equalize each other)*. While these subs may not go as low as others they are very well built and designed for the non-DIYer.

*This is assuming proper time has been taken to set up and place all subs accordingly. Even with this setup I would still recommend a high quality equalizer (this does not mean expensive) to allow for a response curve tailored to personal preference.

 

[Bwils10]

what equalizers would you recommend?

 

[mazersteven]

I don't doubt your advice or knowledge avaserfi I am just wondering why recommend the Dayton subs? I have read many posts on here of people recommending them over many other brands. What are the reasons? What makes them such a quality sub for the price?

A lot of people automatically look at a subwoofers watts, and think it must be good it puts out X amount of watts. Watts is only a small portion of what makes a subwoofer good.

Enclosure design is very important.
Amp design.
Crossover.
Driver design.

With the Dayton subs they are a good combination of all those components that make up their subs.

 

[avaserfi]

what equalizers would you recommend?

For simple subwoofer equalization the Behringer Feedback Destroyer is a great option. There are step by step tutorials online at this site.

 

[Bwils10]

Awesome, thanks for the advice. Now when would one really see a difference in their HT system with a equalizer? Do you need to have expensive speakers and multiple subwoofers or can the basic system be altered and sound much better than the original.

 

[avaserfi]

Awesome, thanks for the advice. Now when would one really see a difference in their HT system with a equalizer? Do you need to have expensive speakers and multiple subwoofers or can the basic system be altered and sound much better than the original.

The quick and dirty is that a properly used EQ will allow you to get the most out of the speakers you have in terms of in room response. Coupled with room treatments this is a great option no matter how expensive or the quality of your system.

Simply put with a good EQ and a linear system nearly any response can be achieved. The subs recommended are linear and perfect for this application. Also, another plus is say you get one now you can always upgrade to more later giving you better response and more output.

A great example of this is something called a House curve. Due to the way the human ear works we perceive certain frequencies differently than others. So many people use an EQ such as the one recommended to make the lower frequencies louder than the others. This makes for a great movie experience. An expensive system is not required for this, just one that has appropriate headroom and can produce required frequencies.