I just got my first sub, the velodyne vx-10 and I have it connected to the onkyo 605. I don’t know much about subs and how they are supposed to be setup. I ran the speaker calibration and played a few movies, but the sub doesn’t sound very loud. I know this is a cheaper sub, but my room is not very large. Are there any tricks or settings that I need to adjust?
Do I need to adjust the subs voulme for each movie? Or does the receiver output the right amount of bass?
Thanks in advance for your help.

newguy,


The VX-10 has L/R input jacks, and is not very sensitive when having only one plugged in. Try getting a y-cable (one female to two male) to plug into both the Left and Right input of the VX-10 (the female connection obviously connects to the subwoofer cable you're using). It should produce considerably more bass.


If this doesn't do the trick, check a few things. First, what do you have the receiver's crossover set to? If it's really low like 50hz, then the VX-10 won't play too much (since it only is rated to 36hz at -3dB). Second, check what you have the gain knob on the subwoofer set to. Obviously don't put it near the maximum, but maybe around 30-50% to start with, and see how it is. Also, how did you connect it to the receiver? I'm assuming you connected it to the receiver's subwoofer pre-out? Another thing...many times auto-setup programs like the one on the 605 do a terrible job of calibrating the subwoofer. If at all possible, get a Radio Shack SPL meter (around $40 to $50) and AVIA Guide to Home Theater DVD to calibrate your system. If not, at least play it by ear with the subwoofer. Check what the receiver's subwoofer volume is. Good luck!

Stephen

Thanks, Stephen.
I did only use one plug in not a Y cable, and I just ordered a better (single) plug in from monoprice. Currently it is connected to the recievers subwoofer output. I guess I will look for the Y cable.
The volume knob is at about 60%, but I am not sure what to do with the Low-pass cross over knob or what the phase does. I read the manual but I am still not sure.
On my settings the sub is set to +1 db and the LPF of LFE is at 100.
It does have options for 80, 100, or 120.

Thanks again Stephen. I will order a Y cable and try that. If you see anything above that I should correct, please let me know.
Thank you,
Michael

newguy,

Check out Velodyne's website. They actually recommend using a y-cable for getting optimal performance from the VX-10. Contact them - if I'm not mistaken, they will send you one, free of charge. Double check before you pay for one.

Ok, regarding the low pass crossover knob, heres what it does. It pretty much tells the subwoofer where to stop playing. If you set it to 50hz, then the subwoofer will play up to 50hz, then start to roll off. If you set it to 120hz, the subwoofer will play all the way up to 120hz before rolling off. THX uses a crossover of 80hz. It's the most common crossover people use, as it extends high enough for the subwoofer to blend well with smaller speakers that aren't full-range, but low enough that the bass doesn't become localizable. If you set the crossover really high, like 150hz, chances are, it will be obvious that the bass is coming from the subwoofer.

Here's the thing...if your receiver has a crossover, it's best to bypass the subwoofer's crossover. However, since the VX-10 doesn't have a defeatable crossover, it's best to put it to the highest setting you can (probably around 200hz). This will be ok since your receiver's crossover (mine's set to 80hz) will make it so the receiver stops passing frequencies over 80hz to the subwoofer anyway. If you set the subwoofer crossover to a lower or equal frequency as the receiver's, the crossovers can interact in bad ways. So if you're using the receiver's crossover, I'd recommend turning the crossover on your VX-10 all the way up.

With regard to setting your receiver's crossover, check out the specs on your other speakers. Take a look at the -3dB point for your front, center, and surround speakers. If your speakers don't have equal extension capabilities, only pay attention to the speakers with the highest -3dB frequency. If all of your speakers can get to 80hz or below, I'd recommend using 80hz as your crossover. If you have small satellites, 100hz or 120hz might be necessary so you don't have a gap in frequency response between your speakers and your subwoofer (meaning you'll be missing some frequencies completely).

As far as phase goes, in simple terms, it is used to affect the timing of when sound waves are put out from the subwoofer. Having your subwoofer out of phase with your other speakers can result in cancellation of some frequencies, and overemphasis of others. Your subwoofer has a switch for setting phase to 0 or 180. Try it at 0, listening to music from the main listening position. Then switch it to 180, and see if the bass seems more powerful or more natural. Use whichever phase position sounds best to you. Adjusting phase allows you to integrate the subwoofer with your other speakers better.

Good luck with everything!

Stephen

Wow. Thanks for being so detailed, just what I needed. I will contact Velodyne and see about the Y cable. I am going to raise the crossover on the sub and double check my receiver's settings. My front and rear speakers are large so the setting of 80 should do the trick.
Thank you again for your time and help, it is appreciated.
Michael