Cosequences of hookup method

iamstubb

I have a simple system of Onkyo TX-SR502, Monitor 50's and PSW10 for a 12x12 room. I got it for primarily lisening to music and I liked the SW10 over larger models when listening to classical/acoustic stuff. I didn't go for high power because I replaced a 20 year old NAD 3020/Mirage SM1 system that always sounded great, and I'm cheap. I'm really happy with the new stuff, well, OK, blown away is better , but I cannot figure out the best overall method for hookup. Because of the modest power of the amp, I would like to preserve the headroom for the occasional head bang. The "Through the Sub" method with the crossover around 130 sounds best at low volumes, but I wonder how much work the amp is doing at high volumes and if I can get more out of the system. It seems a suggested alternative from the sparse instructions is to take the sub-out from the amp to one of the line inputs (or split to a Y and in according to some posts here). It would seem this would let the amp drive the 50's if set to "small", and the sub amp do the rest of the low stuff. The question is, does this really help? Does the "Through the Sub" method put more work on the amp and limit the overall output? Is it possible to minimize the double filtering effect if the line in is used by matching the crossover frequencies? Should I have shelled out the extra bucks for the PSW12 that has a legitimate LFE input?

John K.

Stubb, welcome, and glad to see that you also enjoy he beautiful world of classical music. Yes, it will help a bit to take some of the low bass load off your 50s and the amps in your 502. As you know, the SW10 isn't the most powerful of subs, but you should assign to it the bass below 80Hz by setting your 50s "small" on the 502, setting the sub on and the crossover at 80Hz, which is about the best compromise frequency to set. The mode setting on your 502 would be stereo rather than direct, so that it would send the low frequencies to the SW10 through the sub output. If you don't have one around you'll need to get a cable with an RCA plug on each end to connect the sub out to one of the sub inputs. It shouldn't run more than about $10, and more expensive ones don't provide any benefit. A Y-splitter isn't really necessary; the added volume from feeding both sub inputs can be duplicated by setting the sub out level on the 502 a little higher, which it has plenty of room to do. Since the 502 will be handling the crossover at 80Hz the internal crossover in the SW10 would just be in the way, so turn it all the way up to the highest frequency and leave it there, which is almost as good as bypassing it completely if the sub had a LFE input. Good listening.

iamstubb

Thanks John,

All I need now is to learn how to spell "consequences".
The line-in/80khz setup saves me a lot of wire too. I've compared a few versions of wiring now and agree this is probably best for an amp will less power. When I decide I need more power and get a beefy amp I may do it the other way. My goal is not to shake my room, but to fill out the Monitor 50's for music. They are a little bright, which helps the vinyl, which never wounded so good, but a bit much for digital material. The sub seems to balance it out nicely. What I don't like about this setup is that the receiver switch from large to small for the fronts does seem to cause some deficit somewhere in the low-mid range. I need to learn more about the differences between the Large and Small settings.

My neighbor who just set up a Bose surround system came by today while I was goofing with the setup. He was so impressed with the sound and imaging he went slack-jawed and took a seat. Now if I could just convince him to bring his plasma over to my place!

Thanks Again,

Stubb