Equalizer Add-On

[timone]

On SVS FAQ page, they recommended adding an equalizer to flatten frequency response. Has anyone here who owns a sub (SVS or otherwise) used an equalizer as a way to flatten the FS? Do you find it beneficial and makes a difference?

Thanks.

 

[j_garcia]

Of course it will make a difference because you are tailoring it to YOUR room's issues, and every room has issues; some are just worse than others.

 

[Warpdrv]

There are a number of options to EQ your sub.

Velodyne SMS-1
Antimode 8033
Behringer - multiple products....
Others...


Here is a link to a place you can do some reading on the subject, as well as a good site to obtain software for you to use with your laptop and measure your room to see what you might need to do to correct the problems you have. http://www.hometheatershack.com/forums/bfd-forum/

I personally have a SMS-1, and I enjoy the simplicity of its use, but there will undoubtedly always be more and probably better products that come out, but still the SMS is a very good tool.

 

[gus6464]

Behringer DSP1124P used with REW would be the cheapest way to go.

http://www.zzounds.com/item--BEHDSP1124P

 

[mtrycrafts]

On SVS FAQ page, they recommended adding an equalizer to flatten frequency response. Has anyone here who owns a sub (SVS or otherwise) used an equalizer as a way to flatten the FS? Do you find it beneficial and makes a difference?

Thanks.

I would highly recommend that Behringer 1124 that Gus posted. You can select any frequency you need to correct most any width of that frequency, all done in the digital domain. You have 12 separate settings or frequencies you can set per channel so you can do two subs or daisy chain if you need more for one sub, and inexpensive.

 

[Warpdrv]

Have you bought a sub yet....
If not, what sub are you thinking about, and what are your room dimensions, maybe we can help with suggestions for you...

 

[davidtwotrees]

I am on the fence on this one..........I am probably more of the sms1 type of guy. I just want to plug and play and watch it through an OSD. But, they are pricey, at $400 used. The 1124s are under $100. For $300 I am not above doing some work. So: I don't have a laptop computer, and my pc is in the other room. To use the 1124 and the REW do I need a laptop? Thanks in advance. David

 

[Exit]

I have a 1124 installed and there is no laptop or other computer connected to the system. A computer is very handy in setting up the system using a Radio Shack analog sound pressure level meter. The meter readings have to be adjusted by correction factors to get a true graph of your frequency response, so you know where to make cuts with the parametric EQ. Setting up a 1124 is a fairly complicated affair but there are BFD guides on the internet which make it possible. You might want to buy the analog (special order) Radio Shack SPL meter and find a custom audio automatic graphing excel spreadsheet on the internet first. Then you can run the test tones (from internet software), graph the results and see if you really need the EQ. You might be able to make subwoofer placement changes and get the right sound. There are numerous articles on subwoofer placement including audioholics guides.

 

[Exit]

I thought of another thing to consider. For subwoofer purposes, you room is all the space that is open to your listening room. By this I mean if you have an open floor plan, where a great room is open the the kitchen, dining area and hallways, then your room size is figured using all that space. That was the case for my layout which came out to about 8500 cubic feet. I asked SVS about the need for a parametric equalizer and they said that with a room volume of that size, it would be unlikely to need a parametric equalizer. With that being said, I presume that smaller rooms benefit more that larger rooms when using a parametric equalizer.

I read up on the Behringer Feedback Destroyer (BFD) or 1124 and the way people were using it and I bought one anyway because I thought it was a bargain and it might be discontinued. I equalized an old Radioshack subwoofer for practice, although it was still cheap and incapable of decent bass. I bought an SVS PB12+2 on closeout in the hope it would be enough to fill my room space. I made a few tests and it seems like it will, but I haven't had any time where the family is out of the house so I can really try it out, run test tones and calibrate with the BFD. (It was kind of a purchase for the future where I knew I wouldn't be using it fmuch or a year or so.) Other audioholics can probably verify the actual sonic benefits of a parametric equalizer better than I can. There are before and after graphs of subwoofers equalized in various room conditions in some of the BFD literature on the internet.

Some audioholics feel that using a parametric equalizer is just trying to cover up underlying acoustic problems in the room and that the room acoustics should be addressed directly. By this I believe they mean things such as acoustic diffusers, reflectors, absorbers, bass traps and probably a lot more. This approach will likely end up spending a lot more money than the $109 for a BFD, but if you read the acoustics forum there is a lot of support for this approach and documented real benefits. I think the two options depend a lot on how high end you aspire to and available money. I think you can combine the two approaches, but again, someone else would need to speak to that issue.

 

[Djizasse]

Some audioholics feel that using a parametric equalizer is just trying to cover up underlying acoustic problems in the room and that the room acoustics should be addressed directly....
...things such as acoustic diffusers, reflectors, absorbers, bass traps...

You must not forget that when you're EQuing, this is just for a single position, not the whole room. Acoustic treatment works for the entire room.