Subwoofer Placement?

[Buddybot111]

Hello,
I have the logitech z-5500 5.1 speaker system. The subwoofer I believe is 10 inches but the boxes actuall width is 12. It has a port on one side of it. My question is placement. Right now its hugging the wall, but the port is on the side that is 1-2 inches away from the wall. I hear a subwoofer next to a wall increases the strength of it, but it seems when playing music at a higher volume that i get this weird sound like a hollow sound when I hear thumps not long tones but thumps from the subwoofer. My guess is its the air thats being pushed against the wall from the port hole is being pushed back creating some kind of problem I guess. I'm don't know much about how this all works which is why I'm here. Also I'm thinking of moving the subwoofer to a corner for even more bass, but I'm wondering to have the ported side touch a wall or not touch a wall, the main 10 inch driver will of course not be touching the wall which I believe is the right thing. Correct me if I'm making wrong assumptions. So to the final question, when placing a subwoofer next to a corner or wall, what sides touch the wall and what sides do not?
Thanks,
Michael

 

[Tritonman]

When placing a subwoofer in a corner you dont want the sub to actually touch the walls at all. You want the sub approx a foot away from each corner.

thats the simplistic explanation.

 

[MDS]

Continuing the simple explanation, a good rule of thumb is to have the subwoofer a distance from the wall that is at least twice the diameter of the port. Start there and then experiment further with placement options.

 

[Buddybot111]

And what about the port and main driver does it matter which direction those are firing? Also if I can't put it that far away from a wall, best I could do is like 6 inches max, is that ok? Does that change which direction the port and main driver are firing, I need a little more detail then a simplistic explanation.

 

[JeffD2.]

First follow tritonmans advice. Next get a screwdriver and snug up every screw on the sub. If you still have noise at high volumes, you're prolly stessing the driver or encountering port chuffing, turn it down.

 

[Buddybot111]

Ok, it seems I have a few options now, you guys tell me which one will get the tightes bass with the most power. I can put the subwoofer parallel with my desk making the small port around 6 inches from the wall with the main driver not firing in the direction of a wall. Or I can put it in a corner near my desk with the port firing parallel to the wall not towards it and the main driving firing towards me isntead of towards the wall. Or in the corner I can have the small port 6 inches from the wall but the main driver no longer is firing towards me, but is not firing towards the wall either. Or I can put the port 6 inches away from my desk firing towards my desk and the main driver 6 inches from the wall firing towards the wall. After you get the picture I'm trying to portray you can get some other configurations that may be better then the ones I attempted to describe. Also please give me more detail on what your saying so I can understand the reasoning behind it.

 

[JeffD2.]

It doen't matter which direction the driver firing. After all, floor firing subs project onto a base plate sometimes no more 3 inches from the driver itself. The function of the port to is extend the lower range of the bass as opposed to a sealed a design which generally requires much more $ and amp power. Experiment with turning/placing the sub as much as you can. I've seen, from my own experience, a difference as little as six inches one way or another can make an audible and measurable difference in sound quality. There is no simple answer to sub placement. Takes a lot time and experimentation.

 

[Buddybot111]

It seems to me that it does because when listening to music there seems to be alot more bass in the direction the main driver is firing, this is not only heard, but seen since objects tend to shake alot more when there 3-4 feet infront of the main driver then they do when there 3-4 feet behind it. Also can u give your best imput on which of the setups I mentioned before would be best.

 

[Buddybot111]

No answer for awhile, I'm looking to move the sub today so if someone could comment somemore on my questions I asked above.

 

[Tritonman]

No answer for awhile, I'm looking to move the sub today so if someone could comment somemore on my questions I asked above.

Have the port facing the wall. Make sure there is about a foot difference between all sides of the sub

The thumps you are hearing is most likely a cause of a couple things.

1) Port is entirely too close to the wall. Causing back pressure or sever port noise
2) The sub is being pushed to far past its excursion level
3) Your sub is crossed over too high making it move more than it should

Most likely the cause is number 1.

No part of the sub enclosure should touch the walls.

 

[MDS]

No answer for awhile, I'm looking to move the sub today so if someone could comment somemore on my questions I asked above.

Does that mean you wouldn't try moving the sub if you didn't get an answer?

Seriously though, follow Tritonman's advice. It's not like you are going to hurt anything.

One thing about Logitech subs though is that they are a bit boomy and they don't provide a level control with enough range to turn it down. I had the Z-540 4.1 setup and gave it away because even with the bass level all the way down and eq settings cutting all of the frequencies below 200 Hz it was still too overpowering.

Get that sub away from the walls a good distance and turn down the level on the sub. You'll have to experiment to get it to sound decent. If you can tell where the bass is coming from, the levels are too high. If you are using it with a receiver, your xover may be too high and/or the subwoofer channel level is too high.

 

[brian32672]

Have you read the review? http://www.audioholics.com/productreviews/loudspeakers/LogitechZ-5500Speakers01.php
This may all be common with this sub. It looks that way after I reread that review.

 

[Sheep]

GUYS!

The subwoofer is crossed out at like 150hz! Thats why its making that sound. These speaker systems all suffer from this, as the sats can't handle any bass. 6 inches is good enough for the port if you can't get more.

Theres nothing you can do about the sound. Its what you have to live with.

How is this system set up? At a computer or in a room for a HT? The best way to make this subwoofer noise non-irritating is to put the sub right in front of you.

SheepStar

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