Best Subwoofer for Music for a small room?

[chander]

Hi, if there is already a post on this, please guide me to it, I looked before I posted, but couldn't find anything definitive.

Question is, I am looking for a sub for my office, the size of the room is approx 11ft X 8Ft X 11ft (LXWXH). The room has a pair of Quad S1s driven by an Audiolab 6000a + Blusound Node 2i + my old trusty focal cub 2 sub connected via the pre-out of amplifier.

Coming to the Blusound Node 2i, I have been really enjoying the quality upgrade I have got on my music in general and the only weak-link (I feel) is the sub. There is not much wrong, considering it is a cheap, old thing which has served me well for years. However, I was wondering if there is anything - not very expensive, but reasonable, that can be great for music. I do not want to buy the RELs and the SVSs cause I do not see how the improvement will justify the cost (I am a cheap - read poor audiofool). Like I said there is not much wrong with this sub, except, it is slightly wooly, a little boomy (tested with both spotify and a few FLACs). I didn't really feel that unless the Node 2i was introduced to the chain, but now I do.

Question - are there any budget subs, under 50K which will be great for music, I tried the QB12 with this, but for this room, it was a bit too much. So perhaps a smaller 6-8 inch sub that is tight and punchy and not boomy.

***Mind you - I understand the placement is crucial, I have it in the best place possible as far as my room is concerned and I have been reading up and everything pushes me to the RELs and the SVSs, which I can't afford.

 

[nosortf]

In a 11'x11' room you should be experiencing a huge bass boost at 100hz. Is there no boominess in your room??

 

[chander]

In a 11'x11' room you should be experiencing a huge bass boost at 100hz. Is there no boominess in your room??

Dear @nosortf - I do not really understand your question. At present my Sub is at 60Hz with about 40% volume. The S1s are rated at 58 hz, if I reduce the sub crossover to anything below 60hz it becomes boomier, 60Hz seems to be the sweet spot.

The problem is not the presence of the bass - there is plenty, just the quality of that bass, it is not tight, I love the bass to just hit and disappear (unless the song demands otherwise). The bass in my situation stays a little longer than desired.

 

[nosortf]

That is what I was talking about. It's not the speaker or subwoofer that is causing the booming bass quality, it the fact that your room is a square and it is therefore resonating at 100hz region hence muddling the sound. You have a room acoustics problem. Understand?

 

[chander]

@nosortf Understood! Thanks! Any way to correct it? If possible please help me out. If not I am sure I will get used to it eventually.

 

[nosortf]

Placement is the solution.
Try placement of the front baffle of the speakers 35" from the front wall(ie from wall behind speakers) and woofer center 22" from room side walls. This should leave close to 6.5' between the speakers, enough for a good stereo image. Sit 1" away from wall behind you. Things should improve.

 

[chander]

Thanks! Speakers sadly can't be brought out further, but the rest aligns, the sub is around 28 inches from the closest side wall and I am around 1.5 mt from the speakers. Thanks for all your help!

 

[DB1989]

What you need is a MiniDSP UMIK-1 (approx 10k) or any other measurement tool and you'll mostly be able to dial in your existing problem. I'm sure Acoustics treatment is not an option in your office, especially bass traps which need to be at least 30 cms thick for addressing sub 100 cycles.

In sub 100hz, your ears can and tend to decieve you. You can't really tell which frequencies are out of sync with the rest of the spectrum though you can hear that it is out of sync. Sometimes, whole octaves go missing or a specific frequency witnesses a massive bump which can be mitigated to a great extent by playing around a bit with positional EQ, crossover and gain.

New gear aint going to be the solution.

 

[DB1989]

Get this, i was able to get a more or less flat frequency response using only 1 sub and by using two other speakers as woofers (by setting a bandpass filter) which would not have been possible at all without a Umik. No chance. Zilch.

 

[chander]

Thanks @DB1989 - I will have to first read up what it does, let me open that pandora's box too! Never used it, not sure what to do with it, what to make of the measurement files

 

[DB1989]

Thanks @DB1989 - I will have to first read up what it does, let me open that pandora's box too! Never used it, not sure what to do with it, what to make of the measurement files

It's a no brainer insofar as basic functionality is concerned. Put the Umik in your listening position and hit measure and you get a frequency graph which is pretty straightforward and something I'm sure you've encountered plenty of times on this forum. Change position, crossover and gain on the sub and hit measure again and compare it with your previous measurement to see the changes. That's all the functionality i know of with a Umik and REW software and that was sufficient for the time being to reasonably dial in the bass (will have to read up on advanced functionality).

That is, if you really mean to save a few bucks . I know buying new gear is just that much easier and more fun than what is perceived as a herculean effort to learn a new skill i.e. the REW software and measurements but it really won't take more than 10 minutes to get right

 

[chander]

I know buying new gear is just that much easier and more fun than what is perceived as a herculean effort to learn a new skill

Not at all, I am never happy to spend money . Let me read up on this thing and figure what to do

 

[DB1989]

Not at all, I am never happy to spend money . Let me read up on this thing and figure what to do

Would you believe this dropped today specifically for sub placement?

 

[chander]

Would you believe this dropped today specifically for sub placement?

They listening to you ! Thanks a ton @DB1989.

 

[Murty P N]

Hi, if there is already a post on this, please guide me to it, I looked before I posted, but couldn't find anything definitive.

Question is, I am looking for a sub for my office, the size of the room is approx 11ft X 8Ft X 11ft (LXWXH). The room has a pair of Quad S1s driven by an Audiolab 6000a + Blusound Node 2i + my old trusty focal cub 2 sub connected via the pre-out of amplifier.

Coming to the Blusound Node 2i, I have been really enjoying the quality upgrade I have got on my music in general and the only weak-link (I feel) is the sub. There is not much wrong, considering it is a cheap, old thing which has served me well for years. However, I was wondering if there is anything - not very expensive, but reasonable, that can be great for music. I do not want to buy the RELs and the SVSs cause I do not see how the improvement will justify the cost (I am a cheap - read poor audiofool). Like I said there is not much wrong with this sub, except, it is slightly wooly, a little boomy (tested with both spotify and a few FLACs). I didn't really feel that unless the Node 2i was introduced to the chain, but now I do.

Question - are there any budget subs, under 50K which will be great for music, I tried the QB12 with this, but for this room, it was a bit too much. So perhaps a smaller 6-8 inch sub that is tight and punchy and not boomy.

***Mind you - I understand the placement is crucial, I have it in the best place possible as far as my room is concerned and I have been reading up and everything pushes me to the RELs and the SVSs, which I can't afford.

Try for REL T 5i

 

[Mayank Shah]

Hi, if there is already a post on this, please guide me to it, I looked before I posted, but couldn't find anything definitive.

Question is, I am looking for a sub for my office, the size of the room is approx 11ft X 8Ft X 11ft (LXWXH). The room has a pair of Quad S1s driven by an Audiolab 6000a + Blusound Node 2i + my old trusty focal cub 2 sub connected via the pre-out of amplifier.

Coming to the Blusound Node 2i, I have been really enjoying the quality upgrade I have got on my music in general and the only weak-link (I feel) is the sub. There is not much wrong, considering it is a cheap, old thing which has served me well for years. However, I was wondering if there is anything - not very expensive, but reasonable, that can be great for music. I do not want to buy the RELs and the SVSs cause I do not see how the improvement will justify the cost (I am a cheap - read poor audiofool). Like I said there is not much wrong with this sub, except, it is slightly wooly, a little boomy (tested with both spotify and a few FLACs). I didn't really feel that unless the Node 2i was introduced to the chain, but now I do.

Question - are there any budget subs, under 50K which will be great for music, I tried the QB12 with this, but for this room, it was a bit too much. So perhaps a smaller 6-8 inch sub that is tight and punchy and not boomy.

***Mind you - I understand the placement is crucial, I have it in the best place possible as far as my room is concerned and I have been reading up and everything pushes me to the RELs and the SVSs, which I can't afford.

Look into Dali E12F sub. Easier on placement due to down firing port. 12 inch aluminium cone, doestnt go real deep, but packs a very taut and agile bass. Around your budget too.

Some sealed subs from Rythmik and XTZ are good as well.

 

[Phaneendra]

Hi, if there is already a post on this, please guide me to it, I looked before I posted, but couldn't find anything definitive.

Question is, I am looking for a sub for my office, the size of the room is approx 11ft X 8Ft X 11ft (LXWXH). The room has a pair of Quad S1s driven by an Audiolab 6000a + Blusound Node 2i + my old trusty focal cub 2 sub connected via the pre-out of amplifier.

Coming to the Blusound Node 2i, I have been really enjoying the quality upgrade I have got on my music in general and the only weak-link (I feel) is the sub. There is not much wrong, considering it is a cheap, old thing which has served me well for years. However, I was wondering if there is anything - not very expensive, but reasonable, that can be great for music. I do not want to buy the RELs and the SVSs cause I do not see how the improvement will justify the cost (I am a cheap - read poor audiofool). Like I said there is not much wrong with this sub, except, it is slightly wooly, a little boomy (tested with both spotify and a few FLACs). I didn't really feel that unless the Node 2i was introduced to the chain, but now I do.

Question - are there any budget subs, under 50K which will be great for music, I tried the QB12 with this, but for this room, it was a bit too much. So perhaps a smaller 6-8 inch sub that is tight and punchy and not boomy.

***Mind you - I understand the placement is crucial, I have it in the best place possible as far as my room is concerned and I have been reading up and everything pushes me to the RELs and the SVSs, which I can't afford.

Hi i recently brought polk HTS12 @41k i am very happy with that, no booming sound so good. U can go for it at your budget.

 

[Murty P N]

Try for REL T 5i

You may consider Earthquak minimise sub also

 

[manofx]

HTS 12 user here .. Trust me .. i was surprised by the tight and smooth and heart thumping effect its generating .. thunder sounds in movies are 100% real .. my room is smaller like you .. I thought it will be boomy but .. it was dynamic experience, Very balanced .. spreading like waves all my room

Polk really nailed with signature series .. for the price to performance

I am more than satisfied with my purchase .. got it for 37.5k

 

[ajuvignesh]

If it is for a small room and for music with a small budget, you can go with Yamaha SW 300. It is a servo-controlled sub and will be accurate for music. The other recommendations if budget is not an issue are Rel subs and Rythmik subs( servo-controlled)