Do you use a subwoofer with music? Why or Why Not?

Do you use a subwoofer when listening to music

  • Yes, Bass is a must

    Votes: 145 55.1%
  • No, Speakers only for me

    Votes: 100 38.0%
  • No, But I plan to

    Votes: 14 5.3%
  • Yes, But I am unhappy with the result

    Votes: 4 1.5%

  • Total voters
    263
Only if the sub lacks an adjustable low pass crossover. Adjust the low pass properly and the sub will take over those depths which the speakers cannot reach and not intrude upon the speaker's lower range frequencies.
Set the crossover wherever appropriate, let's say 60Hz. Now, play a tune which has little bass below 60Hz. A user new to the sub experience tends to want to get the bass he just purchased a sub to get; and thus, he will raise the gain on that miniscule bass content, which unnaturally emphasizes it. In other words, if he sets the bass initially to his ear on content which is light on bass in the bass region, 20Hz to 70Hz, he might be disappointed with his sub integration, since it will deliver results other than the desired ones.:)
 
Well,,,I'll do this one at a time I guess...

Ask me this is where having a sub comes in the most handy,no hamfisted loudness controls are needed.
Both my 2.1 systems are primarily used @ low volumes and I would'nt want to be w/o my sub in either system.
There's plenty of low frequency content to miss @ low volumes with MANY speakers.
So call me silly but I want to hear it no matter what volume I'm listening at.

See my above comment...
Though in all honestly I dont much use either of my 2.1 systems for that sorta thing.

This is typically due to a couple of reasons.
First one is poor sub choice,an example would be a sub that's too big -or- too small for the given room size.
That or the given sub is poorly equipped to adapt to the given system (ie: lack of certain controls like a variable phase control or such).
And lets not forget operator error,some times when one does'nt quite understand what's going on,bad things happen and frustration sets in.
So we cant always blame the sub for this one.

Again,this is typically due to the same set of issues mentioned above,and throw in the given room's acoustics as well (ie: no room treatments).
But yeah some subs just cant cut it and sound like $#!t,so this one often falls under the "buy wisely" line of reasoning.

No doubt about it,some speakers DO go low enough and DON'T need a sub.
If I have a set of speakers that are say -2 -or -4 dB @ 35Hz I'm not gonna run out and buy a sub for that system.
My CV's certainly dont need a sub (LS-12 & E712)...

Again this one falls squarely in the individuals court.
It's their money,and it's their decision,nobody else gets to tell them what's right -or- wrong.
But should they feel something is "missing" down low with their system in it's cuurent configuration,then a sub is the logical thing to consider.
They just need to do their homework before pulling the trigger,and places like this often dont help them much as they get too many POV to sort out.
That's simple information overload,that can be as frustrating as a poorly implemented sub.
This is part of what turns many people away from using subwoofers.

Again,see above comment,,,pretty much covers this one too...

Lemme see,,,which smart aleck emoji to use as a reply ???
I think I'll go with this one...

o_O

Neither do I. Dont want a surround system either,,,heck I dont even really like surround systems very much...
I'm more than happy to watch my movies with a decent 2.0 -or- 2.1 channel rig,so I have no interest in surround systems what-so-ever.
But may I remind everyone that the title of this thread is: Do you use a subwoofer with music? Why or Why Not? .
So talking about subs for home theater use is pretty much taking this off topic.

:thumbsup:

Bret P.
I like the way you see it. I want to add, whether you have an interest in surround sound for Home Theater, or not, to enjoy the full 5.1 multi-channel SACD music experience, you will need front, rear, center, and sub channels.
 
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Myself I don't listen to SACD,I'm strictly a redbook (16/44.1) listener.

But yeah for for folks that are into SACD I see what you're getting at.

:cool:

Bret P.
 
Neither do I. Dont want a surround system either,,,heck I dont even really like surround systems very much...
I'm more than happy to watch my movies with a decent 2.0 -or- 2.1 channel rig,so I have no interest in surround systems what-so-ever.
But may I remind everyone that the title of this thread is: Do you use a subwoofer with music? Why or Why Not? .
So talking about subs for home theater use is pretty much taking this off topic.

:thumbsup:

Bret P.

No, Bret, I do have a surround system and LOVE it. I was adding to the above list of why someone wouldn't want a sub. I have a sub in the surround system but not in the two channel (though I still debate putting one in).
 
Set the crossover wherever appropriate, let's say 60Hz. Now, play a tune which has little bass below 60Hz. A user new to the sub experience tends to want to get the bass he just purchased a sub to get; and thus, he will raise the gain on that miniscule bass content, which unnaturally emphasizes it. In other words, if he sets the bass initially to his ear on content which is light on bass in the bass region, 20Hz to 70Hz, he might be disappointed with his sub integration, since it will deliver results other than the desired ones.:)
This goes directly to what I said about most people who don't like subs haven't heard them properly integrated into their systems.
 
Anyone have a list of recordings that HAVE 20 hz material in it?
There's plenty of pipe organ music that have below 20Hz material:

J.S. Bach: Organ Masterworks, Vol. II, specifically Toccata con Fuga in D Minor, BWV 565: I. Toccata
Saint-Saens Symphony 3 'Organ
Charles Widor's Symphonies for Organ
J.S Bach: Passacaglia and Fugue, for organ in C minor, BWV 582

I hope your sub can handle it!
 
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There's a bunch of pipe organ music that have below 20Hz material:

J.S. Bach: Organ Masterworks, Vol. II, specifically Toccata con Fuga in D Minor, BWV 565: I. Toccata
Saint-Saens Symphony 3 'Organ
Charles Widor's Symphonies for Organ
J.S Bach: Passacaglia and Fugue, for organ in C minor, BWV 582

I hope your sub can handle it!
Your suggestions are excellent. I'd suggest listening to them with mains turned off to understand the effect of bass at the user selected crossover. I'd also suggest the same listening experiment with dance music, which has sustained notes of synthetic bass in the 30 Hz arena. This bass can be heard as well as felt.
 
Here you go try this bass out with mains on and mains off. Might want to set volume for about a 75 db level first, to preclude blowing or breaking anything in the system or in the listening area.
 
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I have no interest in surround systems what-so-ever.
But may I remind everyone that the title of this thread is: Do you use a subwoofer with music? Why or Why Not? .
So talking about subs for home theater use is pretty much taking this off topic.

:thumbsup:

Bret P.

Not at all. Lot's of great music has been released in dedicated 5.1 and even Atmos mixes. You haven't heard Dire Straits Brothers in Arms until you've heard it in surround. "Ride Across the River" was a track I used to skip on the CD, but it is the highlight of the album in 5.1. The mix literally makes that much of an improvement.

Home Theater/surround is NOT just for movies.
 
Do you always mock people for their experiences, or just the ones who have had experiences which you have missed?

Lucky tried to steal a base by asking the reader to fill in the blank for 'tastefully'; Sterling rightly called him on it (in a humorous way). No harm in that.
 
Interestingly enough, while I can manage bass from my OPPO 205, outputting to analog multi-channel amp, there is no crossover, since the .1 is a dedicated 6th channel. This means my mains are operating at their full range and not just to 60Hz as they are set to operate when connected to my DSP of another system. So far, this has not been a problem.
 
I have been using my Loth-x Ion BS speakers quite a lot recently in our small dining/music area. They are bookshelf speakers that are almost 'full range' from a small 6" woofer with a 1" tweeter that comes in at 10kHz. They start to run out of bass at about 60Hz so I figure I will supplement them with one (and if needs be two) of these https://rel.net/shop/powered-subwoofers/zero/

I used to run a 5.1 HT setup when I was living in the US and had an Epik Valor (here's my old For Sale ad https://www.usaudiomart.com/details/649193274-epik-valor-15-sealed-subwoofer/ ) and that thing was a beast in the room I had it in. But it did integrate well with the music I played on it as well. I went on to get some NEAR 80 speakers which provided sufficient bass on their own and I moved my music setup upstairs to the main room.

When I was in NJ I met a guy who had some cracking Magnepans that he supplemented with a couple of subs. Not being familiar with the Maggies I had no idea that it wasn't them producing the bass as he had it so well integrated.
 
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