Sub Rattling

[BM1]

I just got a brand new Infinity PS312BK. It sounds great, but I can hear the woofer rattling on heavy LFE tracks if I put my ear close to it. Subwoofer is set at half and sub on the receiver is neutral (+0 dB). Listening volume is set at comfortable, not cranked.

Did I get a defective sub, or is all Infinity equipment junk? It sounds excellent but don't think the driver should be rattling at all on low frequencies.

Anyone else have this problem? Not sure if I just need to exchange this for a new one or return it and spend more money on a better sub...

 

[MinusTheBear]

I just got a brand new Infinity PS312BK. It sounds great, but I can hear the woofer rattling on heavy LFE tracks if I put my ear close to it. Subwoofer is set at half and sub on the receiver is neutral (+0 dB). Listening volume is set at comfortable, not cranked.

Did I get a defective sub, or is all Infinity equipment junk? It sounds excellent but don't think the driver should be rattling at all on low frequencies.

Anyone else have this problem? Not sure if I just need to exchange this for a new one or return it and spend more money on a better sub...

Sounds like you are bottoming the driver on those heavy LFE Blu-ray soundtracks. Rattling is a very common symptom of a subwoofer in distress.

 

[BM1]

So basically I need to turn it down or buy a better sub, no? Option B it is. I guess $500 gets me half way to a decent sub which is what this one was. What's the best one on the market for $1,000?

 

[Pyrrho]

So basically I need to turn it down or buy a better sub, no? Option B it is. I guess $500 gets me half way to a decent sub which is what this one was. What's the best one on the market for $1,000?

There are several good brands at that price point. I personally would go with SVS. Right now, they have a B-stock PB12-plus for $1049:

https://svsound.com/store/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=550&CFID=372606&CFTOKEN=75553390

Whether they will still have it by the time you click on the link or not is another matter. If not, look at the rest of their products:

https://svsound.com/index.cfm

 

[BM1]

That looks pretty nice. People are raving about the Epik Empire subs. Those decent?

 

[AVRat]

The size of your space will help for proper sizing/capability.

 

[BM1]

I want to buy the biggest thing I can afford and can back the settings off to match the room size. I've been burned on my last two sub purchases, so I want to go big or go home this time. Tired of dealing with it more or less and frustrated.

SVS PC-13 Ultra seems nice too. Too bad I can't listen to any of these items at a local shop.

 

[highfigh]

I just got a brand new Infinity PS312BK. It sounds great, but I can hear the woofer rattling on heavy LFE tracks if I put my ear close to it. Subwoofer is set at half and sub on the receiver is neutral (+0 dB). Listening volume is set at comfortable, not cranked.

Did I get a defective sub, or is all Infinity equipment junk? It sounds excellent but don't think the driver should be rattling at all on low frequencies.

Anyone else have this problem? Not sure if I just need to exchange this for a new one or return it and spend more money on a better sub...

How can you justify "Did I get a defective sub, or is all Infinity equipment junk?" based on one piece of equipment?

Did you use any equalization on your setup? If that's jacked up, you can still over-drive the sub amp and speaker.

 

[BM1]

My sub equalization is set at 0 (neutral) in the receiver. Sub level is set at half which is specifically what the owner's manual tells you to set it at to start with.

An Epik Empire will be on its way shortly. My Infinity mains are awesome, but the sub simply doesn't have a big enough driver to handle super low frequency without bottoming out.

 

[Alex2507]

No doubt the Epik will out perform the Infinity. However the sub isn't junk nor should it be popping and crackling. There's a discrepancy with the amp's reported wattage but I'm like 99% sure that the PS 12, PS 212 and PS 312 are the same sub.

I think my first move would have been to return that sub to hear what a properly functioning unit sounds like and then decide if it's enough for the space or if it goes low enough etc. I have a couple of 10" Infinities and don't have any issues with their performance considering their cost. When the first of those subs developed a squelch upon start up Infinity covered the repair even though it was just outside of warranty and I was unable to find the receipt. I thought that was awesome of them.

... but you're gonna love the Empire.

 

[sterling shoote]

I've been pleased with my passive JBL B380 powered by a Sony TA-N80ES power amp running in mono at about 580 watts into 8 ohms. The B380 uses a 2235H 15 inch driver. Recently I noted some rattling, discovering the need to re-foam. Perhaps you need to re-foam too, if the surround is damaged. At any rate if you can't work it out, consider a JBL 4641.

 

[Beatmatcher247]

I would steer clear of the svs pc13 ultra. Someone tried selling me one and when i auditioned it i had to ask if it was on. I was pretty underwhelmed.

 

[BM1]

My apologies for bumping an old thread here, but I wanted to give a quick update on this.

After my initial PS312BK, 2 different BIC PL-200s, an SVS PC12-NSD, I finally went back and purchased ANOTHER PS312BK. Out of all those subs, the Infinity clearly has the best sound quality and low frequency extension in my particular setup.

This one doesn't seem to rattle. Maybe the first one was defective or something. I retract any previous statements about the Infinity Primus lineup being poor. I'm really enjoying my Primus mains and PS312BK sub now that I have them dialed in with some good hours on them.

 

[Gordonj]

Just wondering how big is the room this sub is sitting in? And have you considered a second sub if the room is causing you to drive the sub to a stress level to get the performance you like?

 

[BM1]

I don't need a second sub. This one is less than half way up and is more than enough. The problem originally was just a defective sub I believe.

 

[timoteo]

Could you post some pics!?

 

[BM1]

Could you post some pics!?

Yes I can take some photos and post them.

 

[BM1]

Here's the picture as requested of my budget 2.1 system. I love it, and it was relatively cheap.

Infinity Primus P363BK Mains
Infinity Primus PS312BK 12" Sub
Sony STR-DH820 Receiver
Sony BDP-S790 Blu-ray Player
XBOX 360 S
CablesToGo interconnects throughout (SonicWave HDMI, Optical, and Subwoofer cables / Velocity 12 AWG speaker wire)

 

[agarwalro]

Here's the picture as requested of my budget 2.1 system. I love it, and it was relatively cheap.

Infinity Primus P363BK Mains
Infinity Primus PS312BK 12" Sub
Sony STR-DH820 Receiver
Sony BDP-S790 Blu-ray Player
XBOX 360 S
CablesToGo interconnects throughout (SonicWave HDMI, Optical, and SubwooferPp cables / Velocity 12 AWG speaker wire)

Looking good! Try this, pull the speakers out to a foot away from the back wall and increasing the distance between the L-R to be equal how far you are from each speaker. Then, angle them inwards. Play with the separation and toe in angle to find the optimal layout.

 

[timoteo]

The new black baffles on the new Primus line look SOO much better!! Those look really good now compared to the all silver they used to be.

Yes absolutely pull them off the wall some more & seperate them as well!! Make sure to read up about the "bass crawl"..sooo important in finding the best spot for your sub. You may find that the current lactation is the best but best to make sure for your room layout!! If you find another spot makes the sub sound better then you can spread the mains out more. With some toe-in you could bet some good imaging as well.

Have fun!!! & thanks for the pics!!