Sub placement questions

[PSU80]

I'm leaning toward an SVS 25-31 PC-Plus and was wondering how much if any "open" space I need to provide for a downfiring sub. I know a corner placement is a good place to start. The closest corner to my listening position is behind me and the sub would fit there but be right next to a desk along the long wall. If I go with a front corner it could fit behind a wooden cabinet about 30" high that is placed diagonally in the corner. Would either of these locations work or is more free space around the sub needed?

Is there a preference to placing the sub in front or to the rear of your listening positon?

One wall has has two wide openings (approximately 4' each) a few feet in from each end. Regardless of whether I go with a front or rear corner, would it be better to use a corner on the wall with the openings (opposite a solid wall) or on the solid wall opposite the openings?

Finally...the cable. My room is 24x13 so I could end up needing anywhere from an 8' to 45' cable depending upon where the best placement ends up being. I will probably get a Bluejeans cable and don't want to spend more than I really need. Aside from the cost, is there a noticeable performance with a longer the cable assuming it is a good cable to begin with? How of you guys dealt with cable length before you knew where the best placement would be? I'm wondering how much difference there will be between a front or rear corner and if I should just assume a front placement and go with a shorter cable and not worry about it?

Any thoughts and experiences would really be appreciated.

Thanks

 

[tbewick]

It's preferable to have the subwoofer in front of you and is even better if you can put it between your front left and right speakers.

Corner placement of the subwoofer will improve efficency and loudness but may make the sub sound boomy. Typical room dimensions will lead to standing waves and uneven bass response through the room. The only way to solve this problem is to have your room acoustically treated. A work-around solution that THX use is to roll off bass gradually below 50 Hz (THX equaliser). Having more than one subwoofer can help smooth out bass response, as the two (or more) subwoofers will tend to excite different standing waves in the room.

The only thing I know for sure about cables is to keep them as short as possible! As to how different they sound, the only thing I've ever seen for cable reviews are descriptive measures of performances. From personal experience I know video cables make a difference. Audio cables probably have a less noticeable effect. I think cables are a bit of a rip off anyway. It probably is still worth buying any reasonably good quality cable, just don't go over the top with the price (10% of total system budget on cables is a well-known rule of thumb).