Can hear but not feel bass with SVS

[deedubb]

Home theatre in basement is completed. Bass comes from a PB12-Plus/2 in addition to the built-in subs from Def Tech L/C/R. The sub is set at 9 o'clock (with off being 6 o'clock) and is set for 20 Hz. Setting the gain any higher gives too much bass, but it is heard and not felt. I'm assuming this is because it is in the basement which is carpet over concrete. Am I assuming correctly or do I just need more subs? I don't think so because it is plenty loud. Is it just not possible to feel bass on a concrete foundation? I really want to feel the bass but it is just not happening.

My upstairs HT uses an older PSB Subsonic III and the bass feels better up there vs. the basement set up.

 

[j_garcia]

Yes, good bass is much harder to achieve in a concrete basement, however it also depends on the shape and size of the room. I would think you'd still get plenty with a Plus/2 even in a basement though. How far do you sit from the sub?

 

[mazersteven]

Home theatre in basement is completed. Bass comes from a PB12-Plus/2 in addition to the built-in subs from Def Tech L/C/R. The sub is set at 9 o'clock (with off being 6 o'clock) and is set for 20 Hz. Setting the gain any higher gives too much bass, but it is heard and not felt. I'm assuming this is because it is in the basement which is carpet over concrete. Am I assuming correctly or do I just need more subs? I don't think so because it is plenty loud. Is it just not possible to feel bass on a concrete foundation? I really want to feel the bass but it is just not happening.

There really has to be something not right with the calibration, or receiver settings. To not feel a PB12-Plus/2 is IMO impossible.

Unless all your watching is Lifetime Television for Women. Is that what your doing?

 

[deedubb]

Yes, good bass is much harder to achieve in a concrete basement, however it also depends on the shape and size of the room. I would think you'd still get plenty with a Plus/2 even in a basement though. How far do you sit from the sub?

16 feet back, with sub in the corner.

There really has to be something not right with the calibration, or receiver settings. To not feel a PB12-Plus/2 is IMO impossible.

Unless all your watching is Lifetime Television for Women. Is that what your doing?

I only watch Gay Pride TV. Is that the problem?
Seriously though, even Nemo's Darla on the fishtank scene thunders and I hear things shaking, but I don't actually feel the bass. It's a major bummer. Maybe I need those couch shakers.

 

[Adam]

I only watch Gay Pride TV. Is that the problem?

Man, where's the Rickster when you need him?


As for the sub, have you run through a set of test tones and checked out the SPL for each? Just curious.

Also, a post from earlier this afternoon was saying that the bass that punches you in the chest (paraphrasing) is higher in frequency in the lower midrange region. You might want to check out that post and maybe get cbraver's input on this.

Adam

 

[croseiv]

I only watch Gay Pride TV. Is that the problem?

Yeah that's a MAJOR problem...

 

[zhimbo]

I only watch Gay Pride TV. Is that the problem?

Actually, I would expect a fair bit of thumping disco bass with that.

 

[mike c]

how big is the room in terms of cubic feet? sealed to other areas?

have you measured your in room response?

are you using the 25hz tuning?

 

[Sheep]

Where you sit, and what you sit on will play big roles in the bass response and how tactile it is. with the sub in the corner, you're probably gettng a big suck out at 60hz. If the TV is against 1 wall, you should be 75% of the room length away (NEVER, in the middle).

SheepStar

 

[deedubb]

Wow, lots of questions that I don't know how to answer. I haven't done any type of testing. Sub was set at 25Hz, now at 20Hz. I tried 16Hz but found that 20 seemed to sound the best. Room is fairly large and somewhat "T" shaped with the top of the "T" longer than the stalk. The top of the T is the home theatre area and the stalk of the T is a sitting area off of the home theatre. I can't remember the measurements, but it's probably around 7000 cu ft. The room is geared more towards design than a dedicated theatre.

Screen is at one end with the sub behind it in the corner. Couch is about 15 feet back with another 20 feet or so behind the couch which is an area that houses a bar.

Thanks for all the replies.

Oh, as for test tones, I don't have any. Are they readily available anywhere on the net so that I can burn some to a disc?

 

[Adam]

Oh, as for test tones, I don't have any. Are they readily available anywhere on the net so that I can burn some to a disc?

I believe that they are. Only because I had read about some people downloading sine waves that hurt their systems, I ordered this disc from AV123. That doesn't mean that you can't find good test tones. I'll bet people here can point you to them. I just played it safe.

 

[mike c]

Oh, as for test tones, I don't have any. Are they readily available anywhere on the net so that I can burn some to a disc?

i don't even use the test tones because i'm afraid of toasting my subs
please consider this:

http://www.hometheatershack.com/forums/rew-forum/11707-room-eq-wizard-rew-information-index-links-guides-articles-stickies-please-read.html

you'll need an SPL meter, a PC in the room, some cables, that free software and some patience in learning it.

 

[moreira85]

Wow, lots of questions that I don't know how to answer. I haven't done any type of testing. Sub was set at 25Hz, now at 20Hz. I tried 16Hz but found that 20 seemed to sound the best. Room is fairly large and somewhat "T" shaped with the top of the "T" longer than the stalk. The top of the T is the home theatre area and the stalk of the T is a sitting area off of the home theatre. I can't remember the measurements, but it's probably around 7000 cu ft. The room is geared more towards design than a dedicated theatre.

Screen is at one end with the sub behind it in the corner. Couch is about 15 feet back with another 20 feet or so behind the couch which is an area that houses a bar.

Thanks for all the replies.

Oh, as for test tones, I don't have any. Are they readily available anywhere on the net so that I can burn some to a disc?

http://www.realtraps.com/test-cd.htm

 

[Rickster71]

Man, where's the Rickster when you need him?
Adam

See what happens when I go to bed early!

 

[j_garcia]

That is a big room. The T shape could contribute to the problem as well.

 

[Warpdrv]

That is a big room. The T shape could contribute to the problem as well.

I agree with both possibilities here... I will say that I have dual Plus/2's in my 8000 + cu ft room, which opens to everywhere and I find there is a lacking of impact in comparison to my 1700^3 bedroom with a single JL F112 in it...

I would suggest that your single Plus/2 in that huge room isn't enough, but the T shape might aid in negating the usual standing waves from a standard square or rectangle shaped room....

As big as the Plus/2 is and as much bass it puts out there are limits to how much space it can pressurize. 4 subs in that room would be great, and you may want to think about adding more. I will certainly be doing that for my gynormous room.

 

[abboudc]

Home theatre in basement is completed. Bass comes from a PB12-Plus/2 in addition to the built-in subs from Def Tech L/C/R. The sub is set at 9 o'clock (with off being 6 o'clock) and is set for 20 Hz. Setting the gain any higher gives too much bass, but it is heard and not felt. I'm assuming this is because it is in the basement which is carpet over concrete. Am I assuming correctly or do I just need more subs? I don't think so because it is plenty loud. Is it just not possible to feel bass on a concrete foundation? I really want to feel the bass but it is just not happening.

My upstairs HT uses an older PSB Subsonic III and the bass feels better up there vs. the basement set up.

Try adjusting the phase.

 

[bandphan]

As mentioned, if you measure the rooms response from the trouble spots you can apply filters to correct your issues

 

[Djizasse]

Couldn't this be just the crossover too high?

 

[no. 5]

Home theatre in basement is completed. Bass comes from a PB12-Plus/2 in addition to the built-in subs from Def Tech L/C/R. The sub is set at 9 o'clock (with off being 6 o'clock) and is set for 20 Hz. Setting the gain any higher gives too much bass, but it is heard and not felt.

Try using just the SVS and see what happens.

I'm assuming this is because it is in the basement which is carpet over concrete. Am I assuming correctly or do I just need more subs?

No, carpet will have no appreciable absorptive effect on a subwoofers passband. The concrete, being unyielding, will make the room modes far more energetic than if the room had more flexible construction.

I think your problem is not with the number of subs, but rather with their positions.

Is it just not possible to feel bass on a concrete foundation? I really want to feel the bass but it is just not happening.

Bass will be more pronounced on concrete because it is acoustically reflective, the problem comes in because room resonances will be far more pronounced, and then some frequencies will be much louder than others, and bass will sound (and feel) bad.

Bass covers four octaves, it is very important to know where in those octaves the problem is for a solution to be reached, as was suggested, you really need to find out what the in room frequency response is.