Sub for KEF LS 50

[RAJUSH26]

Yea this one is top of the line sub from Klipsch I am asking 82k for it. Its just 2 months old lying packed

Not in my budget at present

 

[ONEMANARMY]

I beg to differ with some of the above posts in that you will not need a subwoofer.
Even for music, a subwoofer will fill in the bottom end and also make the Kefs sound fuller.

 

[superczar]

@RAJUSH26 - I had a similar dilemma with KEF Q300s
I played around trying combine them with an existing Polk DSW Pro sub to see if I need to buy a separate sub but felt that they are better left alone.

I see that you are based out of Pune. If you are keen to try combining them with a sub, you are welcome to experiment over a weekend

 

[ONEMANARMY]

In my humble opinion any speakers which are good for music, will be great for movies and if they are excellent for music they would be spectacular for movies.
So if your budget permits go for them.
Just read the first post again and he's bought these already, so congrats on a great pair of speakers.

 

[anandshah]

Hello friends ,Got KEF LS 50 for GRT deal at Taiwan.
Pls suggest sub for these speakers.
I have a yam rx-v 479 Amp.
Also how to get the best out of these speakers .
Brgds sushil

I would suggest a DIY Peerless 10" XLS stereo Subs DIY Sealed. with a nice class AB DIY AMP 300 watts and Dayton DSP / Mini DSp

 

[anandshah]

Take my word for it, sub woofers are exciting, for short listening. After a while, you will feel irritated. You will feel a boom inside your head. I can say this, because long back I was of the same opinion. I needed bass. I connected sub woofer in stereo application. Now I can't even imagine adding a sub. I will never corrupt my music. (My humble opinion)

Depends how you configure or Make a Sub. I have a Stereo 10" peerless XLS sub its perfect. had sessions of 4-6 hrs all types music . Without subs I cannot enjoy. Also have a Active crossover system. Passive is not my type.

 

[ONEMANARMY]

Take my word for it, sub woofers are exciting, for short listening. After a while, you will feel irritated. You will feel a boom inside your head. I can say this, because long back I was of the same opinion. I needed bass. I connected sub woofer in stereo application. Now I can't even imagine adding a sub. I will never corrupt my music. (My humble opinion)

I very respectfully disagree with not having a subwoofer with small desktops.
Unless you have full range speakers which go down to 20hrtz, a subwoofer is an absolute must.
The integration of the subwoofer with the speakers however can be a bit of a challenge, but once you're able to get the balance correct, you will not want to go back.
Obviously, IMHO.

 

[RAJUSH26]

I want to see how it will sound as a 2.1 system , hence the need for a sub. I had demoed then at the store and found the bass llittle underwhelming , also what about surrounds to complete a 5.1 set up.

 

[Deleted member 38504]

You probably find the bass underwhelming because of the AVR. A nice powerful integrated will make the ls50 shine. And definately you won't feel the need for a sub. Maybe if u can, visit some friends that have a decently powerful AVR. Take your speakers with you. And maybe see what they can do with a really good amp.

 

[raghupb]

You probably find the bass underwhelming because of the AVR. A nice powerful integrated will make the ls50 shine. And definately you won't feel the need for a sub. Maybe if u can, visit some friends that have a decently powerful AVR. Take your speakers with you. And maybe see what they can do with a really good amp.

Amen to this.
@RAJUSH26 hook up the speakers to your amp first.
Then go about the rest of the stuff.
Only you and your room can tell what kind of bass you will need.
Cheers,
Raghu

 

[RAJUSH26]

Thanks friends , however if I do decide to go for a sub , what are good subs available in India within 25k

 

[RAJUSH26]

Also as I have already posted the snaps ,I have bought all the awesome hardware to make a rocking Media/Gaming PC, Can I connect the PC outlet via HDMI to the Yam Amplifier input . What precautions should I take for same .

 

[raghupb]

Also as I have already posted the snaps ,I have bought all the awesome hardware to make a rocking Media/Gaming PC, Can I connect the PC outlet via HDMI to the Yam Amplifier input . What precautions should I take for same .

With HDMI, the most common issue is electric surge.
Components like BD player, PC (via HDMI), etc can be protected via surge protectors.
The one item where we have very little control is Cable set top box and to a far lesser extent DTH set top box.
Coax cable feeding them is outside of your regular surge protection.
Any thing that can leak in thru the RG56 cable can percolate thru any HDMI subsystem and fry stuff.
Take precautions; try to see if there are strip outlets that isolate coax cables/inputs.
Cheers,
Raghu

 

[sound_cycle]

I connected sub woofer in stereo application. Now I can't even imagine adding a sub. I will never corrupt my music. (My humble opinion)

I shared that opinion till a few weeks ago. Then I heard a reasonably well integrated sub. Not a particularly good one, but setup with some thought, care, patience and understanding.

I was/am chasing a fast, taut, and deep tuneful bass, not slamittude. What I heard with the sub, was more than bass, the magic was what that foundation of bass reinforcement, did to the the panels elsewhere in the frequency range. The sub was not detectable, at all till it was off.

It was a mind, ear and wallet opening experience.

And hopefully can get it set up right.

Ciao
GR

 

[prateekatasniya]

I very respectfully disagree with not having a subwoofer with small desktops.
Unless you have full range speakers which go down to 20hrtz, a subwoofer is an absolute must.
The integration of the subwoofer with the speakers however can be a bit of a challenge, but once you're able to get the balance correct, you will not want to go back.
Obviously, IMHO.

Very true..
Music has content which can go very low. Speakers should produceat least 20hz to 20khz .

 

[superczar]

I very respectfully disagree with not having a subwoofer with small desktops.
Unless you have full range speakers which go down to 20hrtz, a subwoofer is an absolute must.
The integration of the subwoofer with the speakers however can be a bit of a challenge, but once you're able to get the balance correct, you will not want to go back.
Obviously, IMHO.

I subscribe to both schools of thought.
Under normal circumstances, most people would be better off without a sub in a stereo setup - not because it's not better to have a sub handle the low frequencies that most bookshelves can't go down to or struggle with
But because getting the integration right by hand is extremely extremely difficult if not impossible.

I had tried (unsuccessfully ) for hours and days to add an old unused Jamo sub (nothing fancy) with an old pair of KEF iQ5s (again nothing fancy) but could never get it right
A few years later, I ended up picking a Paradigm PW Link Amp - although it's class D, it's quite good (and coming to think of it, the LS 50 wireless must also be using class D)
More importantly, it has a LFE out couple with onboard anthem room correction which is able to apply the right cutoff , gain , frequency equalization and most importantly, timing correction on the LFE to match up everything.

That amp was able to do a brilliant job of matching the sub with the 2 speakers and made them sound like one cohesive unit within 20 minutes of installation and setup - something I couldn't achieve after spending 20x the time trying to do it manually

The obvious caveat here being that stereo amps that support this are relatively rare and difficult to find and using a full blown receiver with good correction for a 2 speaker setup will be overkill and too expensive.

 

[prateekatasniya]

I would suggest a DIY Peerless 10" XLS stereo Subs DIY Sealed. with a nice class AB DIY AMP 300 watts and Dayton DSP / Mini DSp

Who can make the diy AB amp ?

 

[arj]

Music taste depends from person to person. I prefer sub for music.
What's your budget for the sub?

I know. I have used 2 subs (RELs) with bookshelves till i moved to an extended range floorstander.
The point is sub is not a priority as the KEFs have a sufficient bass for most music and sub is not necessary..unlike any other satellite speaker.

I would feel that a dedicated stereo amp would give better quality bass that a sub and money would be better spent there rather than Sub.

 

[raghupb]

The real challenge for @rajudhs ain't gonna be the sub (or its eventual integration).
Having heard the LS50, it is going to be the amplification, placement/positioning and its knack to call out bad quality content.
The suckers are 85dB with an impedance curve that is below 8 ohms in mid bass and top-end; yes it is near 4 ohms sometimes.
Which means the amp driving it, better have a decent power supply and high current capability.

The opinion of these puppies only capable of 79db (3dB roll-off) and may be lack oomph for pure 2-channel is not true.
Hear it with a decent source/content and a good amp; they do really sing.
They are really good monitors.
Again this is from personal experience. When getting my speakers, KEF R300s, LS50 was a close second.
I heard them a few times before settling on the slightly more muscular range/model.

I have always felt that AVR calibration magic does a good job for movies 3.1/5.1 or whatever.
They don't quite get it right for just good old music.
This is from personal experience. I may be wrong or completely naive when it comes to subs.

@arj, OP has an AVR and plans to use the LS50s for movies too. AVRs have bass management anyways.
Looking at his requirements/tastes and responses by many FMs a sub may work out for him.
Most importantly, he wants it

@rajudhs, Yamaha AVR spec sheet is just confusing when it comes to power capability.
The only meaningful spec is 80Wpc (2-ch drive, 20-20K, at 6 ohms)
Extrapolating, this amp will probably do 50-60W max at nominal 8 ohms.
LS50 will be demanding more power (see the first para)

Cheers,
Raghu

 

[RAJUSH26]

Friends , all the info is overwhelming.
Thanks .
Will be home with the KEF's by this month end .
First will try them out .
Then will decide on the sub.
But pls give me options for sub in 25k available in India.
And a good Amp, new/used also available in India suitable for the KEF's.