Setting Up 2 Different Subs in HT

Tornado Red

I've had the opportunity to pick up a Polk DSW660 sub which I'm getting in the next day or so. I presently have a DSW550 and would like to attempt to blend them both into my HT/music set up. If they don't play well together, I may consider selling the 550 but would like to try running both. I did the sub crawl with the 550 and have it on wall just to left of one of the (fronts) Monitor 75Ts. It also worked well on right side, same location placing the 660 there should be okay I'm hoping, but maybe I'm way off? Room is about 19' x 12' with the system on the long wall. I'll be running 7.2 with a Pioneer SC-61, Emo amp running the front 3 (Monitor 25c center). I will run MCACC and see what it gives me for sure, though I seem to recall I didn't like what it did to the 550 and ended up tweaking it myself. The 550 is presently running about 3/4 on its volume. My first thought is to have it set slightly higher than the 660, but something tells me over compensating with the 10" sub is not likely the way to go, that I should not be trying to make them "equals". Speakers are all set to "small" right now. Any advice would be appreciated, thanks...

Polkie2009

You have a situation many end up in, having a couple of small subs that are mismatched somewhat. I did this for a couple of months and decided to just get a bigger,better sub and eventually another one just like it. Then___ to put the icing on the cake ,I bought a Antimode 8033S sub eq unit from one of our CP members and it made dealing with bass issues a thing of the past. If anything, try running the subs you have ,see how it goes(they may match close enough) but check into a sub eq like Antimode,Velodyne, I think SVS makes one too,some have used the Behringer unit too. I found the Antimode to be so easy to set up ,that alone__ sealed the deal. Good luck TR and keep us informed!

Speedskater

Multiple sub-woofers (mix & match) are becoming more popular.

Doc Earl Geddes has done a lot of work on the subject.

'Earl Geddes on Multiple Subwoofers in Rooms'
This is the PowerPoint:
http://www.gedlee.com/downloads/Optimal%20Bass%20Playback%20in%20Small%20Rooms.pptx
That you need when watching the video:
http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/28637776/highlight/319149

Tornado Red

Nice piece of gear Polkie, didn't know such a thing existed, but price would a make a purchase prohibitive for me. Thanks for the links SS, hope to do some reading tonight. I picked up the 660 last night and put it into use. Funny, the SPL is showing more db from the 550 at 3/4 volume than the 660 (not much, about 3-5db) at the same volume. 660 is new though so I'm not pushing things at this point. A working theory for this is that I've placed the 660 on the left side of the rig, the 550 on the right. From where I sit, the entry to the room is on my left with a 6' wide entry way. This is the side the 660 is on, and I'm thinking it's having a harder time pressurizing that area than the 550 on the right where there is no exit. I like the entry the way it is and don't want to close it off, but... a winter project is going to be a portable room treatment I want to build on wheels. There is a room beside the entry way I'm not using and will keep it in there, rolling it out for any serious music listening/movies. It'll be a compromise solution, but c'est la vie. I'm starting to find subwoofers very intriguing the way they function, I'm looking forward to reading more on the urls, thanks for the tips guys....

Face

To set up multiple subs, at a minimum you'll need an SPL meter and the ability to play test tones through your rig. I used an Omnimic and their multichannel DVD, and it didn't take look to dial everything in.

audiomagnate

Speedskater wrote: »

Multiple sub-woofers (mix & match) are becoming more popular.

Doc Earl Geddes has done a lot of work on the subject.

'Earl Geddes on Multiple Subwoofers in Rooms'
This is the PowerPoint:
http://www.gedlee.com/downloads/Optimal%20Bass%20Playback%20in%20Small%20Rooms.pptx
That you need when watching the video:
http://www.ustream.tv/recorded/28637776/highlight/319149

Harman did some excellent work as well. Multiple subs are the way to go. Two are great but three or four are even better. Room nodes start to go away, and each sub has less to do so distortion goes down.

Face wrote: »

To set up multiple subs, at a minimum you'll need an SPL meter and the ability to play test tones through your rig. I used an Omnimic and their multichannel DVD, and it didn't take look to dial everything in.

Or you can do it by ear. As far as using different subs, that's actually a good thing. If they're relatively cheap they will have some problems, so it's better if the problem areas, usually resonances, are at different frequencies.

Face

I wouldn't recommend by ear, especially when you consider how insensitive the ear is at low frequencies. I don't have any issues with tuning with the correct equipment, then fine adjustment by ear though.