When You Go With The Flow, How Low Do You Go?

musichal

poet emeritus
Back in the 80's, I had signal generator access and rooms full of brand new speakers for play-time fun. I discovered that I liked two-way bookshelf speakers that could produce a clean 40hz, but that was asking a lot. Fifty hertz was more like it for those type speakers, which by-and-large were... well, larger than many of that genre today.

These days I expect to hear a clean 30 from my floor-standers, and even though I use dual subwoofers, they are compact in size and don't go appreciably deeper than 30. However, if 40 is good, I'm satisfied. I know some of you need to get down more deeply to really satisfy your ear-bone (maybe sternum, too). Especially you pipe-organ lovers.

So how low do you need it to go?
 
I agree with @musichal , with the various bookshelf & floor-standing speakers I've had or heard reaching 30hz is very good and 40 to 50hz will do in most situations.

Mark Gosdin
 
Opening scenes of "Edge of Tomorrow" 10hz at 85db for my HT, whatever my ADS L1290/2s get to in my 2 channel room, supposed to be 40hz +/- 3db without room gain
 
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Kind of depends on whether you mean flat to say, 40 hz, or -3db down at 40 hz like many small monitor speakers. For example the ADS L-910's are spec'd at 28-20,000 +/- 3db. (18hz-25,000 +/- 5db) They have what I consider pretty good low end for my listening situations.
 
I don't know yet. My two subs are Hsu STF-2, a 10" ported design, rated to 25 Hz. But I'm playing at sound pressure levels usually well below 80 dBA peaks, and although I've said that my mains defy Fletcher Munson, they don't really go below 40 Hz. So true lower first octave content without harmonic cues could go unnoticed, not that there exists much of that in my experience.

Speaking for myself, I have none of the difficulties integrating the subs with the Quads that many minimalists moan about, so either their hearing is pickier, or they're doing it wrong, or something. I use the speaker-level inputs, set the low-pass on the subs for 45 Hz or so, and run the Quads full range. I believe that the wide-area, coherent wave launch of planar speakers establishes arrival times firmly enough that the subs (down-firing on carpet), placed just behind the Quads at the inside edges can contribute without confusing phase issues.

But, I bet that if I spent several thousand dollars more, that there are improvements yet to be experienced. It's rather doubtful that I'll get to that point. So, I guess where I am now is as low as I need. Good thing, else I'd just have to rob a bank, or something. :biggrin:
 
My Fisher xp10 goes to 26 but I can hardly hear it because of the steep roll off. If nothing in the music at the time is over 35 I can hear the Fishers to 26. So I'm going to say the true fun starts at 35 to 40. The Fishers are in the back corners of the room. The top rolls off just as much as the bottom. If I could fix the bottom roll off I would try a tweeter change.
 
Linear response to just below 30hz suffices for me.

Sound Lab U-1PX stats in main system:

U-1PX_response.jpg


Acoustat 1+1 cum dual Eosone subs (without the benefit of bass traps and using some parametric EQ attenuation at room modes):

ht_response2018.jpg
 
My subs are equalized flat to ~20Hz..

Mine too (but to 30hz) and I generally don’t listen too loud, however on really heavy bass tracks and with the volume cranked right up it pushes the subs a bit too hard, so I’ve been looking for ways to still get that low end rumble and punch but without the potential to damage anything if someone else inadvertently goes a bit too hard on the volume knob.

Sub Positions Filter Repsonses.png

Interestingly my LS50’s produce a significant amount of bass with 90 watts or so through them which for tiny stand mounts is impressive. I can hear a noticeable difference if I cross them over at 42 or 50hz.
 
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. . . So how low do you need it to go?
If I get some response at 60 Hz--and it's fine if it's down a bit there--I'm happy. From what I've read, and experienced, it is bass frequencies below 60 Hz that are more prone to going through walls and bothering the neighbors (I share walls with my neighbors these days).
 
My Fisher xp10 goes to 26 but I can hardly hear it because of the steep roll off. If nothing in the music at the time is over 35 I can hear the Fishers to 26. So I'm going to say the true fun starts at 35 to 40. The Fishers are in the back corners of the room. The top rolls off just as much as the bottom. If I could fix the bottom roll off I would try a tweeter change.

I guess I failed to notice that the XP-10 goes that low. I have a nice pair in my storage awaiting restore (including new tweeters - surprise, surprise) so I should get after it and see what this is all about.
 
Recently surprised to find out my rebuilt McIntosh XR16's were capable of giving me useable SPLs down to 14hz. Couldn't really hear it during the test, but you could certainly FEEL it. Being sort of skeptical, I tested with pure sine from REW to verify what the frequency sweeps were showing.

PS ... not a lot of source material even gives you response that low, but I use a dbx BoomBox (sub synthesizer) here that extrapolates a full octave below what it's being fed. That can be dangerous in the wrong hands ... mine, fer instance ... <G>
 
Mine go to 40hz before they start to roll off. That's good enough for me. I have a 15" sub that will go to 20hz but I don't use it anymore. Maybe I'll drag it out from time to time but it's ridiculously big and doesn't fit the space very well.
 
I need to get low enough that the Phil Lesh bass bombs at Red Rocks stand out. Would be ideal if I could get it real enough to vibrate my eyeballs like it did in person, but I don't take those drugs anymore. :cool:

My Time Window Sevens are spec'd to 20 hz, but I'm generally happy with a real 40hz low before things start to roll off.
 
Quality of bass makes a pretty big difference to me also. I'd rather have a monitor that is accurate at a higher cutoff frequency than a speaker that plays lower and "One-notes" it's way through stuff or where the woofer goes "Excursion City" on really low notes it can't can't cope with (as in an overwhelmed ported design).
 
My Aerial Acoustic Model 8's get low indeed. Both of them have a 10" woofer in it's own 64L enclosure tuned for 19Hz. I may not necessarily hear some of that low freq reproduction but I can certainly feel it!
 
I’m a bass fan, so I have speakers which can go really low. Both the Pioneer ElitE and Onkyo speakers go below 25hz with the right amplification.
 
Whatever this says is what I like.......they are my favorite speakers. My Pioneer CS88 (that I just had recapped) probably go lower but not by much.

s-l1600.jpg

s-l1600.jpg
 
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