Help needed on Subwoofer selection.

ajlueke

Greetings everyone. I am new to club Polk and would like some input as far as subwoofer selection goes.
My current setup is as follows:
2 TSI400 Front
CS20
2 TSI100 Back
PSW110
Onkyo TX-SR605

My main listening area is 13'x13'X8'. I really like to sound of the TSI series I picked up as well as the sound of the center channel. I have had the PSW110 for quite a few years, and it has always been somewhat reserved with its bass. I have noticed on movies withstronger deep bass, like Inception on Blu-ray, the definition seems to get lost completely, and the bass is undefined and somewhat boomy. I am looking for something that would be an upgrade with a budget of $400.00. I saw the DSW Pro 500 on sale for around $350, and sounded very good as I was able to find it a local audio shop. I have also heard great things about the HSU ST2, but couldn't find one anywhere to listen too. Are there other subs I should consider? And what are your thoughts on the two I mentioned? Is on better than the other? The system is used probably 60% movies and TV and 40% for music

m34est

If you move your sub around a little bit, you may be able to get rid of the boomy-ness. The farther away from the corner of a room, the better. Moving it out from the wall some will help also.

There are a lot of great subs out there. HSU and SVS are two that come immediately to mind. They may be a little out of your price range when new, but used prices are generally about 60% of new prices.

timalan

I'd keep an eye on the Vanns.com clearance section. I searched my local craigslist as well as audio forums for quite a while before finally deciding I was better off with Vanns... subs are hit or miss there, but in the past few weeks, I've seen $1000+ MSRP subs from Boston Acoustics, Yamaha and Energy selling for ~$300. The fact that Vanns clearance section has free shipping and full warranties on pretty much everything is what sealed it. with a 60+ pound sub, shipping was going to kill the savings from any forum deal I could find, and I couldn't find anything locally that fit my specs.

Based on extensive reviews and looking at all the options, I finally decided on a Boston Acoustics VPS-210, 500w RMS, 10" sub that is their top-of-the-line and still sells for $1700 new on their site. It's incredibly tight and musical, and based on subjective listening (just my ears, no SPL), it seems pretty flat down to 25-26Hz... it's able to pressurize a room that's roughly 15'x16', and was a bargain at 80% off.

I also gave strong consideration to the the Energy Veritas sub and the Yamaha Soavo sub they've had appear lately. Nothing on there now that would fit your needs, but it's worth watching for. The best things they currently have on sale are the Energy Veritas VSW10 ($350) or the REL T2 ($500). For that price, the REL comes free right now with a high-end Audioquest subwoofer cable they claim is worth $135, so if you factor that in it sweetens the deal.

If it helps, the Home Theater site reviewed the entire Energy Veritas setup, and liked gave the system a favorable review. Their quantitative tests show the sub performing as follows: "The V-SW10’s close-miked response, normalized to the level at 80 Hz, indicates that the lower –3-dB point is at 29 Hz and the –6-dB point is at 27 Hz. The upper –3-dB point is at 126 Hz with the Low-Pass Filter control set to maximum."

Anyway, hope that helps. If I were picking from those options, I'd take the Veritas for more HT-centered applications and the REL for more musical listening. Hope that helps.

djperez81

ajlueke wrote: »

Greetings everyone. I am new to club Polk and would like some input as far as subwoofer selection goes.
My current setup is as follows:
2 TSI400 Front
CS20
2 TSI100 Back
PSW110
Onkyo TX-SR605

My main listening area is 13'x13'X8'. I really like to sound of the TSI series I picked up as well as the sound of the center channel. I have had the PSW110 for quite a few years, and it has always been somewhat reserved with its bass. I have noticed on movies withstronger deep bass, like Inception on Blu-ray, the definition seems to get lost completely, and the bass is undefined and somewhat boomy. I am looking for something that would be an upgrade with a budget of $400.00. I saw the DSW Pro 500 on sale for around $350, and sounded very good as I was able to find it a local audio shop. I have also heard great things about the HSU ST2, but couldn't find one anywhere to listen too. Are there other subs I should consider? And what are your thoughts on the two I mentioned? Is on better than the other? The system is used probably 60% movies and TV and 40% for music

Check out the new dsw's on newegg they usually go on sale quite often for 350 or so and will definitely blow your current sub away. And they have twice the power than the older dsw line.

onthefenceman

Second m34est on recommending that you focus on placement. It's amazing how different a sub can sound in different locations in your room. It may be out of your budget, but using a microphone and processor is a big help here. If you have a friend with a Velodyne SMS1 or similar you could borrow that might help you get a sense for what works.

Another common error that I see is that listeners frequently have the subs crossed over too high or turned up too loud. I would treat 80Hz as the absolute maximum for crossover point; 50-60 Hz is what I commonly use. If the sub is drawing attention to itself you've probably got it EQed too loud relative to your mains.