Line in vs speaker connections
Sotm31
Posts: 4
I just purchased a PSW404 sub and I usually use the line in for a dedicated line from the receiver to the sub. Now I also see I can wire my speakers to the sub and the sub to the reveiver. What advantages are there for using the built in cross-over, or should I just continue to use the line in jacks???Confused???
Post edited by Sotm31 on
Comments
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Which way is better? Depends on what receiver and speakers you are using. If you tell us, then we can make a recommendation. That said, many find that the speaker level connections are the better way.
cheers, JimA day without music is like a day without food. -
I have a Yamaha RX-V1500 Receiver and a Polk Soundbar.
With the PSW404 Subwoofer -
I just purchased a PSW404 sub and I usually use the line in for a dedicated line from the receiver to the sub. Now I also see I can wire my speakers to the sub and the sub to the reveiver. What advantages are there for using the built in cross-over, or should I just continue to use the line in jacks???Confused???
The most typical way to connect a subwoofer to an avr is to use the 'sub out' jack on the back of the avr and connect this to the 'LFE' input on the sub. [NOTE: this 'LFE' input is not to be confused with the 'line level' set of inputs on your sub which have 2 jacks: one for left and one for right]
The advantage to this is that you can now bypass the xover control on the back of the sub, and instead, use the bass management features in your avr for sub crossover, volume, phase, etc.
Most folks prefer this and it works well for HT configs biased towards movies: you can set your speakers to small and let the subwoofer handle all the scary, loud, and dangerous LFE effects.
There can be disadvantages to this - depending on your avr, your preferences for music listening, and what source components you use for listening to music.
For example, if your AVR has a "Direct" mode for 2-channel listening, then, most AVRs will not send any signal to the subwoofer because you have now set your AVR to be more like an old school basic 2-channel integrated amp - with no subwoofer channel.
If you like listening to CDs or LPs and you set your AVR to "Direct" - then - no sound from your sub.
That kinda sucks if you like your music and don't want your subwoofer to turn off.
Another example would be if you have a really nice CD player or turntable/cartridge and you don't want the AVR to perform additional Analog-to-Digital conversion, bass management, then another Digital-to-Analog conversion, then you need to set your AVR to the "Direct" mode, but.....drats....no sound from your sub again.
The way around this is to use either the speaker level connections from your AVR to connect to both your sub and then to your front speakers, or use the "pre outs" from your AVR to the "line level" inputs to your subwoofer.
Keep in mind that you now need to go back to your AVR settings and be sure you have set your Front Speakers = Large so that the subwoofer gets the full bass range of audio.
If you do this, you now have to also set the xover control on the back the sub to 'mesh' the bass xover between your sub and front speakers.
But, at least in this configuration, you can set your AVR to "Direct" for music and the sub does not turn off.
The downside is that when you watch movies and you turn up the volume, your front speakers are now tasked to deal with the all the low scary, dangerous LFE effects that are normally assigned to just the subwoofer.
If you don't listen to movies at high volumes - this may not be an issue for you.
So - there are pros and cons to each way.
It depends on your rig and what you like to listen to.
I have my subwoofer cabled BOTH ways - which does require cable swapping at the subwoofer:
AVR sub out to LFE sub input for movies
AVR pre-outs to sub line inputs for music ("Direct" mode)
You should experiment and see what you like best, or if you are happy now with the way you have your sub connected....just enjoy it.
Sorry...just saw this was a very old thread.....I confess to necroposting.....eeewwwww...
H9: If you don't trust what you are hearing, then maybe you need to be less invested in a hobby which all the pleasure comes from listening to music. -
Why thank you for all of the input, but from what I gather I should use the LFE input on the subwoofer, run to the Subwoofer Pre-out on My Yamaha, and (because the manual says so) Set my speaker preference to large for all speakers? Now my other question would of course be at what hertz should I set the sub? Are all of the controls on the back of the SUB obsolete? Should I run the auto setup on my receiver and just turn off the option to set the size of the speakers? This Sound Bar thing is new to me, I used to have a decent 7.1, but I got married and the wife does not appreciate all of the wiring or the holes in the wall. She actually prefers the sound from the TV? (NOT ME) Sorry for all of the questions, I just don't think my system sounds good, and I am looking for information. Thanks again!!!!:cool:
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Why thank you for all of the input, but from what I gather I should use the LFE input on the subwoofer, run to the Subwoofer Pre-out on My Yamaha, and (because the manual says so) Set my speaker preference to large for all speakers? Now my other question would of course be at what hertz should I set the sub? Are all of the controls on the back of the SUB obsolete? Should I run the auto setup on my receiver and just turn off the option to set the size of the speakers? This Sound Bar thing is new to me, I used to have a decent 7.1, but I got married and the wife does not appreciate all of the wiring or the holes in the wall. She actually prefers the sound from the TV? (NOT ME) Sorry for all of the questions, I just don't think my system sounds good, and I am looking for information. Thanks again!!!!:cool:
No, actually, the major consensus is to set your fronts=SMALL, even though they may not really be small in size.
By setting your speakers to small you can now use the avr bass management features to set the crossover frequency to your speakers and the sub.
Typically settings are either 60Hz or 80Hz. Try both and see what works best for you.
If you use the LFE input on your sub, the control knob on the back is bypassed and will have no effect.
If you use the line level or speaker level inputs on the sub, then the control knob DOES have an effect.
Erik
H9: If you don't trust what you are hearing, then maybe you need to be less invested in a hobby which all the pleasure comes from listening to music.
