RM6500 Sub
jd45177
Posts: 35
Hi,
I know this has probably been discussed dozens of times although I have done a search and I can't find anything specific to this issue with this speaker/sub system.
I've had my RM6500 system for 4 years and I've been VERY happy with it, other than having only a manual volume control for the sub. I had the system connected to a Pioneer VSX-26TX AVR. Those familiar with that receiver are probably aware of the failure rate of these models and after having failed twice, Pioneer has graciously offered an upgrade at a very reasonable cost. I should have my NEW VSX-53TX with another week or so.
With my old AVR, I had the speakers connected in the Polk recommended fashion, the fronts set to large and the sub connected in parallel to the fronts rather than using the LFE output on the AVR.
With my new AVR, there is an auto calibration system and people have told me to trust it, that it works extremely well, and it makes sense to me to do so. With my old AVR, and the sub connected to the fronts in parallel, even with a sound meter, I never quite knew for sure how to set the volume of the sub. With my new receiver, and the auto-cal feature, connecting the sub to the LFE output and setting the fronts to small, this is no longer an issue.
However, than I read about the ills of double filtering. The filter on the RM6500 sub can't be switched on or off. According to the specs, the filter is an active 4th order low pass filter, whatever that means. The crossover selections on the VSX-53TX are 50, 80, 100, 150 and 200 hz. For the THX mode, the default is 80 hz. Ok, the frequency range for the RM6500 speakers is 100 hz to 24 khz and for the sub, 25 hz to 180 hz. It seems to me that if the AVR crossover was set to 80 hz, there will be a dead zone in the system in the 80 hz to 100 hz range.
Can someone PLEASE shed some light on this and pass on their experience? Thanks very much.
I know this has probably been discussed dozens of times although I have done a search and I can't find anything specific to this issue with this speaker/sub system.
I've had my RM6500 system for 4 years and I've been VERY happy with it, other than having only a manual volume control for the sub. I had the system connected to a Pioneer VSX-26TX AVR. Those familiar with that receiver are probably aware of the failure rate of these models and after having failed twice, Pioneer has graciously offered an upgrade at a very reasonable cost. I should have my NEW VSX-53TX with another week or so.
With my old AVR, I had the speakers connected in the Polk recommended fashion, the fronts set to large and the sub connected in parallel to the fronts rather than using the LFE output on the AVR.
With my new AVR, there is an auto calibration system and people have told me to trust it, that it works extremely well, and it makes sense to me to do so. With my old AVR, and the sub connected to the fronts in parallel, even with a sound meter, I never quite knew for sure how to set the volume of the sub. With my new receiver, and the auto-cal feature, connecting the sub to the LFE output and setting the fronts to small, this is no longer an issue.
However, than I read about the ills of double filtering. The filter on the RM6500 sub can't be switched on or off. According to the specs, the filter is an active 4th order low pass filter, whatever that means. The crossover selections on the VSX-53TX are 50, 80, 100, 150 and 200 hz. For the THX mode, the default is 80 hz. Ok, the frequency range for the RM6500 speakers is 100 hz to 24 khz and for the sub, 25 hz to 180 hz. It seems to me that if the AVR crossover was set to 80 hz, there will be a dead zone in the system in the 80 hz to 100 hz range.
Can someone PLEASE shed some light on this and pass on their experience? Thanks very much.
Mains: Polkaudio RTi70's
Center: Polkaudio CSi40
Surrounds: Polkaudio RTi38's
Rear Center: Polkaudio CSi30
Sub: Polkaudio PSW-404
Receiver: Pioneer Elite VSX-53TX
DVD Player: Pioneer DV-414
CD Player: Pioneer Elite PD-M59
TV: Toshiba TZ-43V61
Monster Power MP HTS 2000 MKII Power Center
Center: Polkaudio CSi40
Surrounds: Polkaudio RTi38's
Rear Center: Polkaudio CSi30
Sub: Polkaudio PSW-404
Receiver: Pioneer Elite VSX-53TX
DVD Player: Pioneer DV-414
CD Player: Pioneer Elite PD-M59
TV: Toshiba TZ-43V61
Monster Power MP HTS 2000 MKII Power Center
Post edited by jd45177 on
Comments
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With the 6500, you are stuck with a speaker level connection to the subwoofer and manual calibration. Your subwoofer does not have a filter bypass switch or an LFE input jack.
The 4th order low pass filter means the subwoofer will play everything below a certain frequency (whatever that is, I don't know, but I'm guessing it is around 150 Hz). Above the frequency, the subwoofer filter will ramp down the signal at a rate of 24 dB/octave (4th order), which is standard and pretty steep. This prevents the sub from playing too much over the specified crossover frequency.
If you want to use the new MCACC features of the Pioneer, then replace the subwoofer with one that has a filter bypass switch. Set all your speakers to small, the sub to on, the crossover to 150 Hz, and connect the sub via the sub cable method. Then let the Pioneer calibrate the system.
Doc"What we do in life echoes in eternity"
Ed Mullen (emullen@svsound.com)
Director - Technology and Customer Service
SVS
