Music S.Woofer

[abulgan]

i need your advices for adding Sub to this system,with high price/performance ratio.Price range max 400-500

Marantz Pm-17MKII M Int. amp with Kef IQ3 bookshelf speaker

for music Sub with a Class D amp is better OR Class A/B is better?

[wayner86]

I recently purchased a HSU VTF2 Mk II, and i think its spectacular. Many of the reviews i've read claim its one of the most musical subs in its price category. I lack the experience with subs to make such a claim but i am not disappointed with this product. I don't have much to compare it to, but the bass doesn't ever drag out or flood my room and drown the rest of the music out, you can really hear the bass drum punching with it accuratly. It's a new experience for me since all the other subs i've heard before were cheaper models from the likes of paradigm, infinity, and so forth. Another option could be the Dayton Titanic Mk III, another well reviewd sub by some members of this forum.

Wayne

[musicman1999]

How do you plan to feed the sub.Does the Marantz have a sub out?For music a sealed box sub is normally better than a vented model.You may have to pump up your budget a bit to get a sub to match the quality of your other gear.

bill

[superpanavision70mm]

I don't think you are going to find exactly what you are looking for in that price range unless you strike an amazing deal. Velodyne might make some models around that price, but not nearly as powerful perhaps as you are thinking. What type of bass are you getting from your towers and what crossover settings do you have to work with on your receiver?

[abulgan]

guys,
i am looking fosub for my Stereo system which has no Towers and Receiver but bookshelf speakers and Stereo Amp.and Stereo Amps of mine has no Sub(LFE u assume i guess)but a L/R Pre-Outs

[calegrant]

I would suggest the ASW 300 from B&W. It's only 8" so it shouldn't drown out your speakers but also provides good bass. I tested one but as I've got towers I opted for a 12" for HT.

[wayner86]

Ok..... my sub (which is the VTF-2 Mk II, ported sub) has 2 low level inputs (left, right), which you would connect the L/R pre outs to. I'm not understanding what you're getting at.

Wayne

[Woochifer]

In your price range, there are plenty of great subwoofer options that should work for your purposes. I think the key consideration is whether you want to go with a sealed or ported sub, and how big your room is.

In general, sealed subs have a quicker transient response and a dropoff at the low end that occurs more gradually. Subjectively, several posters have noted that this sounds more "musical." However, sealed subs are less efficient, subject to distortion at the lower frequencies, and the low end dropoff starts sooner than with a comparable ported sub.

Ported subs are more efficient and can have more linear bass down to the tuned port frequency. However, ported subs are also more variable in their sound quality, and if the relationship between the cabinet volume and the port opening is not done right, they can sound really bad. In addition, ported subs can "unload" below the tuned port frequency, which creates a lot of undamped cone movement.

A good rule of thumb is that you should go by your preferences, but if you have a small room, a sealed sub is better suited because your room boundaries will create reinforce the low frequencies. This reinforcement begins at a higher frequency as the room dimensions shorten, and occurs at roughly the same rate as the low end dropoff with a sealed sub.

Since you plan to use your sub with an integrated two-channel amp, you should make sure that you have either a premain output or a tape monitor switch available. Some of the sealed options in your price range that you should consider include Rocket, Acoustic Visions, Outlaw Audio, B&W, Atlantic Technology, and Martin Logan. The ported options include Hsu, SVS, Velodyne, and Paradigm. You can also look at the Dayton kits if you're willing to try building the sub yourself.

I don't think any of these options include a high pass filter on the crossover (which filters out the low end sounds that go to your main speakers), so if you aren't using a receiver/processor with bass management, you should attach an external crossover device such as the Outlaw ICBM or the Paradigm X-30.

Class D amps are more efficient and produce less heat, but there's no general trend that they're better than Class A/B amps for subwoofers.