[sochee]

Heeeyyy,

I have a 13' x 11' room with 2 x Epos ELS3s in the front (up on real stands now!), and I like them. I'm thinking if it would be worth it to buy 2 x 8" or 10" subs to put in each corner of the room so I have some bass extension.

I like bass, but I don't need it to go down very, very low, so I'm thinking a decent 8" pair will suffice. They will need to be powered, and musical - I've had a bunch of old home theater subs and they just can't keep up with some of the songs, I like my bass punchy and with low distortion (obviously 8" subs have their limits). Will something like 2 x HSU STF-1s work? My budget would be around $500...give or take.

 

[Fairbanks]

Look into the Mirage Omni S8 sub.I own one and I'm very happy with it.You can Google it for reviews.Good luck

 

[iriverdude]

For your budget, get one subwoofer.

 

[sochee]

My budget is $500 because the speakers were $300 and the amp was $200. I don't want to blow $1000+ on 2 subs if I can help it. But thanks for the great advice.

 

[iriverdude]

I use a single subwoofer for my Hi-Fi. I would recommend you get a single higher quality subwoofer, sending it stereo (obviously downmix to mono) rather than two lower quality subwoofers running as stereo. Subwoofer is SVS SB12+

 

[qusp]

in a small room 2 x subs is pretty pointless IMO. Sub-bass really isnt very directional anyway and for once I agree with something iriverdude says; you are IMO much better off spending your money on one good quality sub. you will get much better sound for your money

 

[sochee]

Aha, okay. I was under the false impression that placement and imaging with 2 subwoofers would be better. Then I will definitely consider the SVS

 

[iriverdude]

Quote:

placement and imaging with 2 subwoofers would be better

Much much harder to setup and get right, you have interaction between the two so one may need phase adjustment. Two identical subs, stacked is an alternative and won't require phase adjustment - but should just be LFE mix sent to both subs. Basically gives you 3dB headroom and lowers distortion. You get a flatter response too. But a single higher quality one is still preferred.

The SVS has high pass filter, but it's not adjustable. And the variable crossover doesn't cut off that low, just 40hz.

 

[qusp]

oh for sure it is better, but in a small room not such a big difference IMO; there are the advantages mentioned above, but those are far outweighed by the fact you would be getting a far lesser quality sound to begin with. now if you were to triple your budget .....

 

[warpdriver]

Having two subs will allow flatter response through the room, the best setups have multiple subs. But you should just start with one good sub, get that set up right first. You'll probably find that's enough.
A STF-1 or something like the Energy ESW-V8 would be a good start

 

[iriverdude]

yup for music system the subwoofer is hardly working you should not be able to tell it's switched on. Close your eyes pay attention to low bass, can you hear it coming from the area where the sub is? If so it's too loud.

Bass is directional it's only when you reach 20hz or below that you can't tell, as it's just pulsating the whole room. 10hz is interesting, it starts to flex our nailed down floorboards. But really you get that with movies not music. And to get reference levels that down low without distortion requires a high end subwoofer.

 

[spacemanspliff]

Get one good HSU sub. The VTF-1 in Satin Black is $404 + shipping.

Perfect for your room and I will be jealous. My sub goes lower but isn't as tuneful.

 

[ivant]

Quote:

Originally Posted by warpdriver /img/forum/go_quote.gif Having two subs will allow flatter response through the room, the best setups have multiple subs. But you should just start with one good sub, get that set up right first. You'll probably find that's enough. A STF-1 or something like the Energy ESW-V8 would be a good start

What he said.

Furthermore if you generally listen alone and always at the same seat, the benefits of running multiple subs are somewhat reduced.
Also, the same signal should be passed to all the subs and not run them in stereo.

 

[twylight]

SVS, anything - set it up, tune it - be happy.

 

[sochee]

Thanks for the advice and explanations everyone, I'll go with a single sub then