Do's and don't for serious bass

[cruiseoveride]

Some of you might already know that I just ordered a SVS PB12-Plus2 (in Piano Black) and it should be at my door soon.

However I have never owned a separate component subwoofer before and don't know much about it at all, other than the features list on the svs site.

Could someone point me to a list of "Do's and Don'ts" for a new comer learning how to drive with a Ferrari?

 

[Adam]

I'm sure that within hours you will get good links to reference articles on this site. Setting up subwoofers is a big topic.

I just want to say...do NOT crank the volume knob up on the sub when you first get it and want to try it out. Start low and work your way up. A lot of sub amps (I'm not sure about SVS) put out a lot of power before you even get to the 9 o'clock position on the knob. Just don't want you to blow something.

Also, congratulations on your new sub! I hope that you get it soon.

 

[cruiseoveride]

Since the amp is built in. wouldn't SVS do something to limit the amount of voltage going into the power amp, and hence stupid'ify the system from people over driving it?

 

[Adam]

Since the amp is built in. wouldn't SVS do something to limit the amount of voltage going into the power amp, and hence stupid'ify the system from people over driving it?

Some subs do have protection to prevent damage. Perhaps SVS does, but not every sub manufacturer does. At least, that's my understanding.

 

[cruiseoveride]

My floor standing speakers are identical in spec, (different in design, i have the euro model) to this http://www.tannoy.com/Default.asp?Id=3927

I would like to use my sub in a 2.1 configuration, What would be the best configuration for this?

I was thinking of just turning the bass level down on the floor standing speakers and passing Stereo L/R to the sub and get the sub amp to do high pass cut off

 

[Adam]

Does your Nakamichi have bass management? If so, what are your available cross-over frequencies? With good bass management, I'd recommend using the receiver to do it and feed a line-level subwoofer output to the sub from the receiver.

From what I've read, that SVS PB12-Plus2 is a monster and will almost surely be the better choice for playing frequencies below about 80 Hz. People here own that sub and should be able to give you good advice. In the end, I'd say experimentation to find out what you like the most is the best approach.

 

[cruiseoveride]

You must understand that my Nakamichi is the real deal, it was designed by Niro Nakamichi himself way before Dolby caught on, its not made by the current USA Nakamichi .

It does have a bass line output, but i think it only turns on if you are using the ProLogic feature.

 

[Warpdrv]

Well the way I look at it, you are feeding the stereo from a sound card, and then distributing that to your Tannoy speaks, I may be wrong here, but you could run the rca's (red & white) from your sound card to your new SVS input, and then from the sub outputs to your receiver input. Therefore you will be utilizing the crossover on the sub to run the Low freq. to your sub and everything else above that to your receiver...

Correct me if Im wrong here, or you ahve any other equipment hooked up to your reciever, which will change the way you will hook these items up, otherwise, you could also use the high level outputs from your receiver (speaker wires) to the sub, and then from there to your speakers.

Good luck, and don't forget to get a spl meter to test output levels here, but seeing as you are just doing 2 channel, then you may be able to forgo this procedure of level matching and just adjust your bass level with your ears...


Please inform us here as to what equipment is hooked up to your receiver, or is this just a 2 channel only rig. Im assuming that you don't want to be running all your music in pro-logic, correct.

PS: I have that monster of a sub as well, GREAT CHOICE !!!

 

[Seth=L]

I personally would not rely the computer for my volume control.

 

[j_garcia]

The sub will pass a FIXED output, not variable (meaning it is not adjusted by the sub's x-over adjustment), from it's high pass output, the same as nearly all subs.

 

[Warpdrv]

Well there you have it... My bad, I have never hooked up a sub in that way before, so I just assumed...

 

[Davemcc]

Congratulations. I'm sure you will enjoy this sub.

It sounds like speaker level in/outputs will be your best bet.

As for other recommendations, I'm sure that you've heard about the process of placing your sub at the seating position and then crawling around the room to find the best bass response, then moving the sub to that location. Unless you have a non-optional sub location, you may want to consider crawling for bass.

Also, let me be the first to suggest start looking at room treatments, even just a couple of simple corner traps to start. This sub will find flaws in you room's acoustic profile.

 

[j_garcia]

Small movements in the sub can make a difference as well. I moved my sub less than 1 ft and response changed quite a bit at my listening position.

 

[Nick250]

It takes a bit of time to get your head around sub setup, especially the location part. You may or may not need bass traps to avoid "boominess" depending on your room and location restraints. A couple of suggestions is to read through a lot of the threads here and also start visiting the SVS users forums. I am assuming they have them. Can you download the manual at SVS? If so read it throughly to get a head start.

Nick

 

[cruiseoveride]

I have 6 x 1/4-inch TRS channels (4 for output, 2 for input) going to a 16 channel mixer, which i hookup guitars, mics etc....
From the mixer i take a 15ft pair of RCA plugs (Left and Right Main output) to the CD input on the Nakamichi.

I noticed I have a SW level control on my remote, have no idea what it does yet...

here are a brief spec on my reciever...Maybe you will get a better idea on what capabilities are available to me.

AV 7

• 5.1 channel input and Dolby Pro-Logic Decoder built-in. Three position (NATURAL, HALL, STADIUM) Ambience Synthesis circuitry
• High-Power Amplifier Section – 80W x 5 (8 ohms, 5 channels drive. 20 Hz - 20 kHz, 0.1% THD) or in stereo mode 100w x 2
• Harmonic Time Alignment (HTA) amplifier technology provides superior high-resolution fidelity comparable to separate power amplifiers by the use of completely discrete amplifier circuitry
• 7 Audio (CD, AUX, TAPE, DVD, VIDEO, VCR-1, VCR-2) inputs
• 4 Video (DVD, VIDEO, VCR-1 VCR-2) inputs

OTHER ADVANCED FEATURES
• Adjustable subwoofer output
• Wireless remote
• 30 AM/FM station presets
• Loudness circuit
• System Remote interface for Nakamichi CD players and cassette decks
• 2-way binding post speaker terminals
• Bass/Treble tone controls

 

[Davemcc]

You will need to find out what "adjustable subwoofer output" means. Is it a volume adjustment or crossover adjustment? That may affect setup.

 

[Buckeye_Nut]

Since the amp is built in. wouldn't SVS do something to limit the amount of voltage going into the power amp, and hence stupid'ify the system from people over driving it?

For the same reason you don't turn your receiver to full volume, you wont do the same with your subwoofer.

If you calibrate your subwoofer correctly, it will be set at around 25-35% gain anyways...... so never fear. Anything more, and it will overpower the rest of the soundtrack during loud movie segments. I sometimes tweak mine upwards to 50% during 5.1 TV shows, but never that high for movies.

 

[cruiseoveride]

OOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiIITTTTTTTTTTTTT

ITS HUGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGEEEEE

I came back from the office and saw it in my living room. I dont think i can move this thing!!!

Its MASSIVE, How the hell they got it through the door is still a mystery!

I'm scared. it weighs 170lb!!!! thats almost like me!

My music room is in the basement, how the hell do you move this thing!

j_garcia this is all your fault!

 

[Buckeye_Nut]

OOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiIITTTTTTTTTTTTT

ITS HUGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGEEEEE

I came back from the office and saw it in my living room. I dont think i can move this thing!!!

Its MASSIVE, How the hell they got it through the door is still a mystery!

I'm scared. it weighs 170lb!!!! thats almost like me!

My music room is in the basement, how the hell do you move this thing!

j_garcia this is all your fault!

They slide rather easily down the stairs. Just be sure it doesn't run you over during the process!! All you have to do is to supply the resistance so that it doesn't become a runaway truck!!

When my plus/2 arrived, I opted to pick it up at the local trucking hub on a Friday afternoon rather than wait for a Monday home delivery. I managed to offload the pallet from my SUV, unpack and move it up 3 steps into the house, then down a full flight of stairs to my theater and into position without assistance.

It was a hot day, so I worked up a good sweat

Remember......... p u s h & s l i d e!!

Aaaah yes, the beer tasted especially good on that particular friday night.......

 

[j_garcia]

LOL! Didn't we mention that this thing is HUUUUUGE? and just a tad heavy... Listen to it though...FEEL it...I'm going to go out on a limb and guess you will be happy with it

Nothing is really that big to me any longer after you see my sub... (If you haven't seen it, click on My HT)