Home Speaker Asylum

General speaker questions for audio and home theater.

Two subwoofers are easier to integrate with main speakers ... but one subwoofer usually sounds better if ...

... if you buy one subwoofer rather than two that leaves MORE money for the main speakers which are the most important component correlated to the overall sound quality of your system.

I'd consider upgrading the main speakers before trying to improve the bass from a mono Servo 15 subwoofer: The Paradigm Servo 15 is a very good subwoofer when used with a decent external 24dB/octave crossover. The external Paradigm crossover does not seem to have a steep enough low-pass filter and only sounds good with crossover frequencies of 50Hz. or lower, IMHO. (50Hz. is okay for full-range Paradigm 100 speakers but 50Hz. is too low for many small speakers).


When using one mono subwoofer (as I have for the last 11 years -- I used stereo subs for 14 years before that), you must sharply restrict output above 80Hz. (If you can hear ANY male voices through the subwoofer when the other speakers are turned off, there's too much output above 80Hz. and you should be using left-right stereo subwoofers).


A mono subwoofer with too much output above 80Hz. has to be placed half way between the main speakers to integrate well with them ... and if that location is also half way between the side walls (as it often if with two-channel stereo in a rectangular room), the bass frequency response will be weak compared with one off-center mono sub or two left-right stereo subs.


This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors:
  Western Glow Tube Service  


Follow Ups Full Thread
Follow Ups
  • Two subwoofers are easier to integrate with main speakers ... but one subwoofer usually sounds better if ... - Richard BassNut Greene 11:15:16 10/21/05 (0)


You can not post to an archived thread.