Which type of sub for my room?

[mjcmt]

We live in a 10 year old 2 story town home with neighbors on each side. The first floor has an open architecture with the living room/ dining room being 18' x 22'.

Though it is well insulated between neighbors, I'm looking for advice on which style of sub would be better to not annoy our neighbors too much. We don't listen to tv loud and movies/sports only slightly louder and want a sub to augment the lower frequencies a little more. Our speakers reach down to 50-70 hz.

Which sub type would your recommend: Down firing/front firing, sealed/ported, woofer+passive radiator/single woofer, etc.

 

[shadyJ]

The sub design will not be an issue since subwoofer bass frequencies are omnidirectional. What will be an issue is how loud you play it. I would try to get the sub as close to the listening position as possible, so you can hear it loud and clear without having to crank it and risk annoying your neighbors. I would use the sub in the near-field, in an end-table type position or put it right behind the seating if you have room.

 

[mjcmt]

Sub volume will be taken into consideration, but aren't some sub designs more boomy than others. I want to avoid these if that will matter.

 

[TheWarrior]

We live in a 10 year old 2 story town home with neighbors on each side. The first floor has an open architecture with the living room/ dining room being 18' x 22'.

Though it is well insulated between neighbors, I'm looking for advice on which style of sub would be better to not annoy our neighbors too much. We don't listen to tv loud and movies/sports only slightly louder and want a sub to augment the lower frequencies a little more. Our speakers reach down to 50-70 hz.

Which sub type would your recommend: Down firing/front firing, sealed/ported, woofer+passive radiator/single woofer, etc.

You didn't mention a budget, but given your concerns I think a pair of nice Rythmik sealed subs would be your best option.

Subs are expensive. They require a big magnet, an amp, and a sturdy enclosure. Skimp on any, and you often end up with a 'boom box' instead of a subwoofer.

 

[mjcmt]

What do you think of this one.
https://www.aperionaudio.com/bravus-ii-8d-powered-subwoofer

 

[tyhjaarpa]

What do you think of this one.
https://www.aperionaudio.com/bravus-ii-8d-powered-subwoofer

You can get better ones for similar price range. What is your budget?

 

[mjcmt]

$300 to $400 tops

any of these any good?

http://www.accessories4less.com/make-a-store/category/spksubwoofer/speakers/powered-subwoofers/1.html

 

[shadyJ]

Sub volume will be taken into consideration, but aren't some sub designs more boomy than others. I want to avoid these if that will matter.

The only designs that are boomier than others are poorly executed designs. Ported, sealed, passive radiator, down-firing, side-firing, front, etc, can all sound very good, but not of the engineering is botched. In your budget, I would get either two of these or one of these. The STF2 is probably a bit more linear, but it won't have the output or room smoothing abilities of two SUB-1200s, which, if placed optimally, may be able to give you a more linear response than a single sub.

 

[mjcmt]

who makes those subs?

 

[tyhjaarpa]

I would take a look on 2x Dayton sub-1200 if you can place 2 subs on your room, if not then perhaps Dayton sub-1500.

 

[mjcmt]

From reading the answers, I think I'm going to look for a sealed sub or one w/ a passive radiator, and not consider a ported sub. I also like the more compact size of sealed subs so our nice living room doesn't turn into a home theater.

The Aperion Bravus IID still looks interesting to me in my price range, so I'll have to do research if it's worth it. I'll have to see what else is out there.

 

[Checker9]

If you can up your budget just a little, I would get one of the smaller sealed subwoofers from one of the internet direct companies: SVS, HSU or Rythmik. All will offer very smooth linear bass that would not be boomy. I think all have some sealed subwoofers near your budget. All are well regarded.

 

[mjcmt]

Thanks all, will keep researching. I may get a cheap sub at first to see how it contributes to the sound before I settle on a good one.

 

[KEW]

My Denon AVR has a feature to taper off bass frequencies for the very purpose of not annoying neighbors with bass output. It tapers off the bass frequencies and you choose between 4 levels of reduction. The nice thing about this is the ability to retain your setup calibrations wit out turning down the entire sub. If it is mid day and neighbors are gone, you can turn off the feature and have full sound.

What speakers do you have?
I don't know the situation with your neighbors, but it maybe that you are looking for a woofer, just to fill out the bass more than a subwoofer which will fill out the bass and give you LFE. If so, let us know and we can adjust our recommendations accordingly.

 

[XEagleDriver]

MJCMT,
Whichever sub you decide on, adding a sub isolating platform like an Auralex SubDude will help a great deal. In addition to reducing the LF energy placed into the bujilding's structure which travels easily to other's apartments/rooms, IMHO it also improves the sound you get out of the sub.
Cheers,
XEagleDriver

 

[Checker9]

My Denon AVR has a feature to taper off bass frequencies for the very purpose of not annoying neighbors with bass output. It tapers off the bass frequencies and you choose between 4 levels of reduction. The nice thing about this is the ability to retain your setup calibrations wit out turning down the entire sub. If it is mid day and neighbors are gone, you can turn off the feature and have full sound.

Just want to qualify in case people see this and think all Denon receivers have it. It is mainly in the upper end receivers. The feature is called Audyssey Low Frequency Containment - I think it is only in MultiEQ XT32 tier. So, if someone is interested in that feature, make sure that the level of Audyssey, in receivers you are considering, has it before buying.

 

[mjcmt]

Fellow members,

I broke my own criteria and today purchase a cheapo sub to try it out, as I don't know what to expect from one and felt unsure of myself.

I purchased Martin Logan's entry level Dynamo 300 sub from Amazon for $140. I will be mating it with Definitive Technology's SSA-50 passive soundbar, so my better speakers will go into storage. It will make our living room look more like a home instead of a home theater. I'll post photos later.

The soundbar and sub will be used with Yamaha's entry RXA-740 Aventage AVR and their BDS-677 bluray/sacd player.

The overall package may be hard pressed to fill our 18' x 22' living/dining room's open floor plan to convincing levels, but the neighbors shouldn't hear from us. Hopefully we'll get plenty of pleasure with this system for TV and occasional movies.

Mike

 

[KEW]

Fellow members,

I broke my own criteria and today purchase a cheapo sub to try it out, as I don't know what to expect from one and felt unsure of myself.

I purchased Martin Logan's entry level Dynamo 300 sub from Amazon for $140. I will be mating it with Definitive Technology's SSA-50 passive soundbar, so my better speakers will go into storage. It will make our living room look more like a home instead of a home theater. I'll post photos later.

The soundbar and sub will be used with Yamaha's entry RXA-740 Aventage AVR and their BDS-677 bluray/sacd player.

The overall package may be hard pressed to fill our 18' x 22' living/dining room's open floor plan to convincing levels, but the neighbors shouldn't hear from us. Hopefully we'll get plenty of pleasure with this system for TV and occasional movies.

Mike

Sorry to hear you need to go from speakers to a soundbar, but I assume you have your reasons.
I was thinking if you are after more of a "woofer" than a "subwoofer", that an 8" or 10" may be the way to go. As you are speculating, the issue is that you have a decent sized room and most 8-10" subs will not have great output. You may want to position the sub close to your listening position to help the sub get more presence. Normally I would say put it in a corner to enhance bass, but that may be counter-productive in your apartment environment.
One thought is you can go with a wireless connection to your sub.
http://www.parts-express.com/dayton-audio-sub-link-xr-24-ghz-wireless-audio-transmitter-receiver-system-for-subwoofers--300-580
If you decide to return the ML, you can save some money on a package deal using Dayton Audio subs:
http://www.parts-express.com/8-wireless-subwoofer-bundle-dayton-audio-sub-800-8-80w-powered-subwoofer-sub-link-xr--300-581
or
http://www.parts-express.com/10-wireless-subwoofer-bundle-dayton-audio-sub-1000-10-100w-powered-subwoofer-sub-link--300-582
Note: Search on the PE site for SUB-1000 or SUB-800 to find more info and reviews for the subs, themselves.

PS: Def Tech generally sounds pretty decent (but it is still a soundbar). However, they have historically published specifications that were less than honest. The bar probably doesn't go down to 50Hz, 80Hz is probably closer. You will want a sub for sure.

 

[mjcmt]

Thanks Ken, but you don't have to feel sorry. I'm quite happy with my decision.