mirage bps 150i

K-daugh

can anyone tell me how my mirage bps150i powered sub stands up to other subwoofers.....its the only one i have really heard .......wondering how it compares to polk audio subs (dsw pro micro) and is this sub considered entry level,intermediate,or audiophile grade.....thinking of upgrading but have no idea which direction to go in.....my budget is most likely about five hundred....my system is a harman kardon avr 247 monitor 60's fronts ,cs1 (upgrading to cs2 hopefully soon),center monitor 30 surrounds,mirage bps150i powered sub........any advice would help thanks guys

K-daugh

Noone has experience with this sub......really.....?????

rooftop59

I have that sub and REALLY like it, so I am a bit biased. Because it is sealed with dual 8 in woofers you get very tight, fast and accurate bass (i.e. no overhang) and surprisingly low extension (my hits hard in my room pretty much flat to 25hz before tailing off pretty quick). Where it looses out is in output (its just not going to to hit much over 95-100 db due to its sealed cabinet and small drivers) and it cannot plumb the depths of the pipe organ or the War of the Worlds scene (i.e. nothing below 20 hz). However, it is a GREAT music sub, and that is why I have kept mine over several larger ported subs that could go deeper and play louder, such as the Mirage Omni s12 and the Elememental designs A3-300, both 12 inchers with large ports. The difference really comes out in movie scenes such as the chase scene in the BD of Dark Knight. The ED pressurizes the room and you can feel the bass, and you can hear the growling and grunting of the engine etc. The BPS-150i gets most of it, sounds really good, and I still really enjoy the scene, but you are definitely missing out on the lowest and loudest bass info. But then if you turn to music, the BPS-150i KILLS those other subs. for instance, on disc one of JOhn Mayer's where the light is (the trio section) pino palladino's bass is incredibly fast and tight, and with the big port of the ED the notes blur together a little bit. its just can't quick keep up, and the bass is probably my favorite part of that disc. I have a dual purpose set-up, but music is much more important, so I love the BPS-150i. But if your main deal is big action movies, then 500 bones will get you something from ED or SVS or HSU that will serve your purposes better I think.
Good Luck.,
Paul

K-daugh

thanks rooftop ....i really appreciate the info....it was a good read im glad its coming from someone who actually owns the subwoofer .....i really enjoy this sub as well ....i enjoy ht 90% of the time not music.....i still like the sub a lot but i notice it has a hard time keeping up with the action scenes....what do you have your lp filter and level knobs set at ....whats a good setting for ht ......also the lf equalizer and phase settings......i just built a custom 14/3 carol cable(power cord) with heavy duty male ac (from depot) and a Sonar iec i got off of ebay ...notice a huge difference....fits alot tighter as well

K-daugh

why wont this thing let me post pics ...im having trouble uploading pics

K-daugh

having issues with keeping my signature showing too but i think its fixed

K-daugh

ok maybe not

K-daugh

umm ok there it is

K-daugh

getting info on this sub is impossible.... me and my buddy rooftop seem to be the only ones .......anybody????on the settings????

rooftop59

I use the direct (unfiltered) input and cross over my mains at 60hz, again, because my main focus is music and I find that I have the smoothest blend at that frequency in my room. I kept the equalizer at -3 because according to the manual that means that it will be -3db at 20hz, which is pretty stout, but it won't be as loud. Since I have a small room and rarely watch a big action movie, I prefer this setting. In general for ht you want +3, because that will give you a 3db boost at 35hz, where much (but of course not all) of the lowest lfe content in movies is. However, this will mean that it low e and below on a bass guitar will sound bloated and uneven, and that is the main reason I keep it off. I keep the phase on 0, and I also use a DIY power cord which improved the definition and weight of the bass. Like I said, great sub for music, very hard to beat for 500 bones, but for pure HT you could see pretty drastic improvement for 500 bones.

K-daugh

thanks again for the info but im a little confused on the settings still............. i have the phase on zero and the equalizer set to +3 that im ok with and understand your explanation....i have a digital coaxial cable going from the subwoofer output on my avr to the mono input on my sub .....is this unfiltered???and there are two knobs on the back of the sub ,one is labeled lp filter this is labeled 50-100, is this the crossover setting????the second knob is labeled level this is labeled 0-10 ....not sure what this is for i have it at 3 and the lp filter i have set for 80....again i have no clue the manual doesnt really explain much it just says adjust the knobs until they sound good .....appreciate the help thanks

rooftop59

Yes you are connected to the mono input on the sub which means that signal is unfliltered, so your receiver is setting the crossover (or filter). IN other words, if you are using the mono input, the lp filter is disabled and not affecting the sound. The knob that goes 1-10 is the volume, and the phase switch is generally set to 0 unless the sub is say on the opposite side of the room from the main speakers. Those along with the eq switch are the only ones that affect the sound with the mono input. What is the crossover in your receiver set at? If you feel like the sub is lacking in some action scenes, I would recommend experimenting with the flat (0) eq setting. Does that all make sense?

K-daugh

yes that makes perfect sense ...i have a hk avr 247....the crossovers are all set to 80 .....monitor 60's are set to large.....the cs1 and monitor 30's are set to small .....the sub is set to lfe.....is this the right way to do it??

K-daugh

i also have the option of setting the sub to l+r+lfe.....not sure what the difference is ...again home theatre is my main listening i have a 16'x18' room insulated and sound board(just throwing that out there)

rooftop59

Do you have quadruple bass management on that avr (one of my favorite features on my hk)? If you do, I would set the m60s to 60, and the center and rear to either 80 100 (play around with it). The bass scenes may sound stressed because the m60s can't quite handle it because they are not quite full-range (which would mean -3db at 35, which they can't get to at all). Try that and see if it helps.

K-daugh

Ok I went to 60 on my mains didn't notice a huge difference but ill play with it switch it back and forth watching a bass heavy movie ......should the subwoofer setting on my hk be set to lfe or l+r+lfe ????

K-daugh

Also I know its most likely personal preference along with the acoustics of the room but I have the volume knob on the sub set to just under three on some stations you hardly notice its on and some stations it pounds.....I don't wanna keep running back and forth adjusting it .....maybe I should set it to zero and turn up the subwoofer volume on the hk

rooftop59

To keep the distortion down you want to keep the sub volume on the HK down. One reason it fluctuates is just the differences in bass info on different sources, which has nothing to do with your room (that's why remotes are getting popular with subs). The other reason probably has to do with the +3 setting on the eq, which is going to make the info betwee 30 and 40 hz 3db louder than the rest. So I would also suggest trying it at 0 or -3 and seeing if there is a difference. You may also want to try bumping the crossover up to 80 on the mains, and you want to leave that at lfe because the plus LR will also send the lfe info to your mains which cannot handle it.

K-daugh

Thanks rooftop ....I appreciate your patience with me ....lol and yes I have the sub volume on zero on the hk .....I will be sure to play with the 0 and -3 settings also ill go between 60 hz and 80 hz to decide which sounds better .....for the crossover setting ......one more question.....my fronts are set to large my backs and center are set to small .....is this right

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rooftop59

Your fronts have to be set to small in order for the crossover to apply. Set to large means no crossover; the full signal is being pumped into those babies and they can't quite handle it. Also, turn the sub volume on the HK down to about -5 and then the volume on the sub to about half. Should be more responsive with less distortion.

K-daugh

good advice thanks boss

SoundAdvice123

K-daugh wrote: »

getting info on this sub is impossible.... me and my buddy rooftop seem to be the only ones .......anybody????on the settings????

You should be able to find the owners manual here; http://audio.manualsonline.com/manuals/mfg/mirage_loudspeakers/bps150i_frxs12_frxs10_frxs8_1.html

And is there any other info you are looking for? I have the same sub and all my other speakers are Mirage as well, I was using a Yamaha RX-V1300 but about a year ago I upgraded to the Yamaha RX-A3020 which can do 11.2 but I want to run it in 7.2 so I would like to get another BPS-150i