[Happy Camper]

My comment on the use of a smaller driver vs larger driver revolves around subtle bass. Big woofers need some power to get them moving. I use a servo Velodyne HGS-15 with my stats and when the lows kick in, they dominate the sound. I'm sure with more volume matching this would smooth out but logically, the smaller drivers would be more agile at lower volumes.

 

[thelsuman]

Lots of love for the Rythmik subs over at the Planar Asylum (and elsewhere) for matching to planar speakers.  Seems this is my best (if not cheapest) bet.  I'm intrigued by the possibility of setting up a 2- subwoofer system.  When you do this, do you hook up to the receiver's subwoofer "pre-amp out" jack via a y-cable (with the same signal being sent to each sub), or do you split the signal & have each sub handle the low frequencies of one of the 2 stereo (right/left) channels?
 
Quote:

 A pair of Rythmik servo subs would be a killer match with the planar mags. I have direct experience with the partsexpress titanic kits...they are pretty good for the money but they do not have the (cone) control that the servo type has, that being said a pair of Titanic III 10's  kits (dead easy to complete) can had for the price of 1 Rythmic 12 inch (which is the smallest cone size they sell). 12's offer good speed with good extension without having to resort to massive amounts of power (on the usually smaller cabs 10's and the like are stuffed into). A 12 inch using a 3 cu ft sealed cab and a 504W plate amp will give you legit 22 hz extension...-3db at 20 hz. It's a compromise of sorts when it comes to subs....I use a pair of Titanic 12's in a tower and a 12 inch M&K (for HT use). EQ'd (digital parametric to tame room modes) and actively crossed over it's a great solution that blends very well with the Maggie/ET panels....*no hint of bloat, sloth or overhang when setup and positioned properly*. I did custom damp the Titanic enclosures (beyond what the kit supplied)....by and large though if you have the extra $$$ go with the Rythmik servo in the larger cab ...down the road add a second sub for true stereo ops.
 
 
* The key to any subs performance depends on this.
 
Peete.

 

 

[ETAHL]

 
Quote:

Lots of love for the Rythmik subs over at the Planar Asylum (and elsewhere) for matching to planar speakers.  Seems this is my best (if not cheapest) bet.  I'm intrigued by the possibility of setting up a 2- subwoofer system.  When you do this, do you hook up to the receiver's subwoofer "pre-amp out" jack via a y-cable (with the same signal being sent to each sub), or do you split the signal & have each sub handle the low frequencies of one of the 2 stereo (right/left) channels?
 


 

 
Both method will work fine. It really depends how your system respond. The best is to try it both ways and see which works the best for you. I have book shelf speakers that work better the first way. My MMG are hook up the second way, because I listen to the MMG most of the time full range without the subs. When I do want the subs, I just flick the switch on the subs without having to messing with any settings.
 
MMGs are awesome speakers for the price, but take a long, long, long time to break in. Bass will improve a bit over time. Placement is also very important to get good bass.
I do not find the MMG bass lacking in my setup. It could be that I have good room reinforcement. The bass of the MMG is very detailed. They have better bass imaging/positioning than any cone speakers I have heard.
I also have two DIY subs, each with a light, fast 10" driver in a large 5cuft enclosure. Most of the time I don't even turn it on, because the music don't need it.
 

 

[Pricklely Peete]

Quote:

Lots of love for the Rythmik subs over at the Planar Asylum (and elsewhere) for matching to planar speakers.  Seems this is my best (if not cheapest) bet.  I'm intrigued by the possibility of setting up a 2- subwoofer system.  When you do this, do you hook up to the receiver's subwoofer "pre-amp out" jack via a y-cable (with the same signal being sent to each sub), or do you split the signal & have each sub handle the low frequencies of one of the 2 stereo (right/left) channels?
 


 

I use a separates system (transport/dac/preamp/active xover to many power amps). I run true stereo operation to the subs via a rebuilt Paradigm X-30 sub xover which has single ended L/R inputs, separate L/R sub outs and three high pass L/R outputs (the sub outs are variable by level/phase/freg range selection) while the other 3 pairs are line level buffered (low impedance) with fixed frequency high pass filters of 50 hz/80hz and 120 hz. The L/R sub outs go directly to the parametric EQ's inputs which handles the room treatment aspect while leaving the main high pass signal from the preamp untouched (still in the analog domain). The subs are then connected from the EQ to the LFE inputs (which bypasses the on-board xover/eq crappola of the plate amp). The 50 hz output is sent to a set of Parasound mono blocks which handle the 50-180hz range, the 80hz output is sent to a Odyssey Stratos + Extreme** (Maggie panels) while the 120hz feed is sent to a set of Marantz MA700 mono blocks (temp use until the VTA M-125 tube amps arrive and are built) which power the mid/tweeter panels of the ET LFT-VIIIbs. It's a very complicated way of doing things but the end result is very very good.
 
That's it in a nutshell. Oh the EQ device is the Behringer Feedback Destroyer Pro (which was also extensively DIY upgraded). Everything in my system has been been tweaked except for the Parasound/Marantz amps and the ET speakers...everything else has been rebuilt/improved/upgraded.
 
The M&K used to be passive which I changed (with a Dayton 12 inch sub and a plate amp). The HT receiver has it's own 5.1 speakers which uses the M&K on the LFE output (set at 80hz).
 
I hope that helps you out a little......My next system upgrade is to reuse the 3 cu ft cabs and swap in a set of Rythmik drivers/plate amps ....a 12 inch cone if low enough in mass can move just as quickly as a 10 or an 8 inch...the use of stereo subs means you can reduce the level on each sub giving them more headroom on the amp side (stay clean) and load the room easier without getting the driver out of it's comfort zone. The new aluminum coned drivers are just as fast as the best treated paper types but the biggest advantage a metal cone has over paper or kevlar/polypro what have you is the fact that is will not deform...it acts like a perfect piston or as close to it as possible, similar to magnesium cones used on some HiVi woofers. The servo function is crucial to this mix IMO...put the two technologies together and you have a sub that is unbeatable IMO in the 3K and under class (for planar/stats/ribbons etc).
 
PS EDIT : Relieving the MMG panels of bass below 50 hz is a good idea since you'll reduce or eliminate altogether the annoying noise called "panel slap" since the Maggie panels have very little in the way of X max. I have tried both ways, running full range with subs which induced panel slap and then run at 50 hz high pass which eliminated panel slap entirely. One other caveat to the older Maggies (which used the older glue formula for the voice coils) was that panel slap generally led to the wires coming loose from the Mylar over time (panel slap sped this up I'm convinced).Environmental conditions could also effect contribute to quicker VC material/glue combo failure. In 8 years I have already had to have my Maggies re-glued at the factory because of this but AFAIK current production Maggies have a much better glue formula. The ET panels are much superior in this regard but the ET design is totally different (being push-pull). The ET tech is laser etched voice coils on the Mylar sheet. In 8 years of heavy use there hasn't been any lifting of the traces that I can see (knock wood = side of my noggin).
 
Sorry for the long post....I'll stop yapping now

 
Peete.
 
 
EDIT: ** my DIY version of the "Extreme" upgrade option which is a variation of the same package offered by Odyssey. Thanks to Klaus at Odyssey for technical consult.
 

 

[thelsuman]

Thank you to Peete & everyone else who chimed in here.  A lot to think about...