Subwoofer Help

Blue|Fusion · Posted: Tue, 16 Feb 2010 22:50:00 Post Subject: Subwoofer Help

Wow, alot of you may not know me but for those of you who do remember me, it's good to be back! I don't know why I haven't been on here in such a long time, but I suppose it has to do with school and pursuing my career.

Anyway the reason I stopped by is a technical question that I don't know where else to ask.

I have a 5.1 receiver and 2 speakers and looking to add a subwoofer. I found a great deal on a 10" Polk Audio subwoofer, but I want to make sure it will work before purchasing.

What concerns me is that my receiver has a single LFE-out port using an RCA connector. The input on the subwoofer takes two (left and right) RCA cables. You can see that in the pictures located on the page below.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16882290034

Would I need a special cable for this like a Y-splitter cable? Or would I just plug the single LFE cable into the left or right audio-in port?

I'm hoping to order this tonight to try to have it shipped to me before the weekend. Any help appreciated.

acruxksa · Posted: Wed, 17 Feb 2010 02:21:05 Post Subject:

You should be fine just connecting the receiver's LFE output to either one of the subwoofer's inputs. Some receivers will specify either left of right if it matters. I've usually seen left being the most common. Also, if you're worried about it, you can just buy a y adapter and connect both inputs. Using both inputs via a y adapter has been known to improve output on some subwoofers, but usually they are older. In any case, the improvement is probably minimal.

Not trying to talk you out of the polk sub, but have you looked at BIC America subs? for about $20 more you can get one of their 12" sub's (Venturi V1220) with a much lower frequency response (23Hz rather than 35Hz). BIC's are usually considered great bang for the $$$ subwoofer's. Also, their 10" sub (Venturi V1020) is about the same price as the polk, but with 160W amp and lower frequency response (26Hz rather than 35Hz).

35Hz bottom end is fine for music, but for home theaters, it's a bit high. Generally speaking HT subs should dip down into the mid 20's, with many of the higher end subs dropping below the audible range of 20Hz.

Blue|Fusion · Posted: Wed, 17 Feb 2010 21:34:57 Post Subject:

Well I did order the subwoofer and an LFE cable with a Y adaptor last night except I got them from buy.com instead of Newegg. Saved me $30.

I didn't know about the lower frequency response but since the PolkAudio M10 speakers I have only go as low as 60Hz, this sub should be a good improvement even if only down to 35Hz. The speakers alone are pretty good, but just lacks some bass I'm used to from my old Logitech speakers and my Bose PC speakers.

acruxksa · Posted: Thu, 18 Feb 2010 03:46:44 Post Subject:

You will be fine and it will be a big improvement over not having a sub. Saving $30 isn't so bad either.

Blue|Fusion · Posted: Wed, 24 Feb 2010 03:45:08 Post Subject:

Got it hooked up this weekend. What a difference! Massive improvement over the speakers alone. I did not realize how much I was missing the lows - and I usually like alot of bass. I did tune the sub to the best acoustics as I read online, though. It's placed in a corner and set just right that the sub improves the lows while not overpowering the mids/highs.

And District 9, amazing already, was even better with the new setup!