I would like to make my own setup with a subwoofer, and an amp. Is this possible with my receiver?

My Receiver and HTIB setup:
https://www.sonystyle.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=10151&catalogId=10&langId=-1&productId=8198552921665793616

Hey guys, I found out my Sony HTIB outputs 3ohms to the sub. So that poses a problem.

Budget - $300ish

Ill probably use a car sub, and an amp that plugs into the wall.

Im trying to get close to this without the price:
http://www.epiksubwoofers.com/sealedvanquish.html

I was thinking I would use this sub since I can get them at a great price. http://www.diamondaudio.com/content/view/131/152/

Im not sure about the amp, Im new to home audio amps.

Any help?

Thanks!!!

Does that receiver have a subwoofer (LFE) output? Or is the sub powered from the receiver (passive sub)?

If that's the case you're going to have an issue getting any type of signal at all to a powered subwoofer. Especially since it looks like the Sony uses some type of proprietary speaker connections. You'd have to splice the connector to some speaker wire and use the speaker level inputs on the sub of choice from the receiver.

And as far as the Epik goes, that little sub is a monster. You're going to have a tough time matching that level of performance (small footprint, sealed, low extension, high output) for $300. But there will be folks along shortly to recommend with that budget that you get as big of a plate amp as you can afford (or even a rack mount type pro-amp), build your own box, and find an appropriate driver.

But first things first, see if your receiver is up to the task of utilizing a powered subwoofer.

Does that receiver have a subwoofer (LFE) output? Or is the sub powered from the receiver (passive sub)?

If that's the case you're going to have an issue getting any type of signal at all to a powered subwoofer. Especially since it looks like the Sony uses some type of proprietary speaker connections. You'd have to splice the connector to some speaker wire and use the speaker level inputs on the sub of choice from the receiver.

And as far as the Epik goes, that little sub is a monster. You're going to have a tough time matching that level of performance (small footprint, sealed, low extension, high output) for $300. But there will be folks along shortly to recommend with that budget that you get as big of a plate amp as you can afford (or even a rack mount type pro-amp), build your own box, and find an appropriate driver.

But first things first, see if your receiver is up to the task of utilizing a powered subwoofer.

How would I go about checking to see if my receiver is able to handle a powered subwoofer? It only uses special connectors at the receiver end, so thats not a big deal.

Here is the back of the receiver:
http://akamaipix.crutchfield.com/products/2009/04/158/x158HTSS360-B.jpeg

I was thinking this plate amp:
http://www.oaudio.com/300W_SUBAMP.html

Matched with this 4 ohm 12" sub.
http://www.diamondaudio.com/content/view/134/148/

Thanks!

Yeah... looking at that image of the back of your receiver... it is going to be hard to add a powered sub to that system.

To use a powered sub you either have to have a sub woofer (LFE) pre-out on the back of the receiver or at least some type of speaker level outputs. Obviously you have speaker level outputs... but with those proprietary connectors you are going to have to hack off the speaker wires on the sub end and use those to plug into the high level inputs of the plate amp... and since the speaker level "subwoofer" outputs of your receiver are probably crossed over within the receiver, there is no guarantee that it will sound that great.

Trying to hook up a powered sub to that receiver is a gamble is all I will say. It could work... but it might not be worth it anyway.

You might be better off in using this system for a bedroom or something and saving up a bit for a component based system, or maybe even one of the Onkyo HTiB that have receivers that include a sub pre-out in the case you ever do want to upgrade. I know this isn't what anybody wants to hear, but if you really want to add a good sub, you're probably going to want to upgrade your speakers shortly thereafter. Trust me. I've been down a similar road.

Good luck either way!

Yeah... looking at that image of the back of your receiver... it is going to be hard to add a powered sub to that system.

To use a powered sub you either have to have a sub woofer (LFE) pre-out on the back of the receiver or at least some type of speaker level outputs. Obviously you have speaker level outputs... but with those proprietary connectors you are going to have to hack off the speaker wires on the sub end and use those to plug into the high level inputs of the plate amp... and since the speaker level "subwoofer" outputs of your receiver are probably crossed over within the receiver, there is no guarantee that it will sound that great.

Trying to hook up a powered sub to that receiver is a gamble is all I will say. It could work... but it might not be worth it anyway.

You might be better off in using this system for a bedroom or something and saving up a bit for a component based system, or maybe even one of the Onkyo HTiB that have receivers that include a sub pre-out in the case you ever do want to upgrade. I know this isn't what anybody wants to hear, but if you really want to add a good sub, you're probably going to want to upgrade your speakers shortly thereafter. Trust me. I've been down a similar road.

Good luck either way!

So its probably not worth it, or it wont sound better? You recommend I save up and buy a better receiver, and just use this one in a bedroom or sell it?

Whats a good receiver than can accept audio via HDMI? Thats why I bought this one.

So its probably not worth it, or it wont sound better? You recommend I save up and buy a better receiver, and just use this one in a bedroom or sell it?

Whats a good receiver than can accept audio via HDMI? Thats why I bought this one.

The first thing I would ask you... do you really think you need more bass? Because depending on where you got this Sony setup, you've already invested $350 or so. With that in mind, if you want to get a new receiver, you are now talking about at minimum: $200 for a receiver that accepts audio over HDMI, ~ $300 or so for good entry-level L/C/R (bookshelves) and surround speakers, and another $300 or so as deemed by your earlier subwoofer budget.

With that new thought of ~$1000 in mind, there are many good entry level receivers (5.1 &7.1) that accept audio over HDMI. There are two kinds... ones that decode HDMI audio (H/K 254, Onkyo 507, 606, 607) and there are those that accept decoded audio over HDMI like your Sony (H/K 247, Marantz 4002, 5002, Onkyo 576). There are many more out there like Pioneer, Denon and Yamaha, but the above listed models are the one's that I'm a bit more familiar with.

Speakers are a more personal thing... but newegg.com has good deals on Polk bookshelves at the moment, and there are also some good deals to be had on Cadence speakers if you look around.

Good luck!

The first thing I would ask you... do you really think you need more bass? Because depending on where you got this Sony setup, you've already invested $350 or so. With that in mind, if you want to get a new receiver, you are now talking about at minimum: $200 for a receiver that accepts audio over HDMI, ~ $300 or so for good entry-level L/C/R (bookshelves) and surround speakers, and another $300 or so as deemed by your earlier subwoofer budget.

With that new thought of ~$1000 in mind, there are many good entry level receivers (5.1 &7.1) that accept audio over HDMI. There are two kinds... ones that decode HDMI audio (H/K 254, Onkyo 507, 606, 607) and there are those that accept decoded audio over HDMI like your Sony (H/K 247, Marantz 4002, 5002, Onkyo 576). There are many more out there like Pioneer, Denon and Yamaha, but the above listed models are the one's that I'm a bit more familiar with.

Speakers are a more personal thing... but newegg.com has good deals on Polk bookshelves at the moment, and there are also some good deals to be had on Cadence speakers if you look around.

Good luck!

Thank you, I will look into the options. Ill check out the receivers and try and justify the new expense lol.

The first thing I would ask you... do you really think you need more bass?
Good luck!

Ha, I'm wondering how I can get less bass! I have a small place and my rec-room is 12 x 14ft and I have great neighbors, who I don't want to annoy. I've got the bass and subwoofer levels down as low as they can go in the AMP menu and still the thing is booming all the time. It's not just that it's bass-y, it's that it doesn't sound good. Just kicks in with a rumble, rumble all the time and seems to have just one level and no range and not really adding anything to the soundtrack, in my opinion. It's rumble on or off. I'm tired of spending the entire movie fiddling with the remote and volume.

Other than sticking an old t-shirt into the opening in the front, what can I do? I have a 4 ohm subwoofer (passive as well) from a JVC HTIB that has a broken dvd player / receiver unit. Would using it with this 3 ohm system cause any damage?

Other than the bass, I love the thing. Just wish Sony would put a damn level knob in the back.