BIC Acoustech H200 Subwoofer (AKA PL-200) - Page 35

No issues with it like that?

Got mine a couple of days ago... replacing a Martin Logan DYNAMO that recently died. It definitely gets lower, it seems like it skips a few beats when playing music, but I think the over all bass makes up for it. I can complain considering I paid less for this sub than I did for my ML (which I should have running again sometime next month when I get a new power supply). What sub in the same price range is better for music?

Nope.. Once you put it on the subduded, it won't move.

Apprently what I purchased of CL a year ago was a knock off. I purchased a Subdude off Amazon last week for 50.00 for my PL200 and it works just fine. The item I purchased off CL was a cheap knock-off that rattled. The blanket idea I originally had helped a bit but the Subdude works much better.

How exactly does a subdude improve the bic pl-200?
I am interested to see if I should buy one.
I have my sub on a carpet floor.

Awesome, I was afraid I was going to have to get an ugly GRAMMA. I'm going to order one this week.

So just got it in,

what do I put the Phase and Crossover In or Out? and the Crossover frequency?, how do you set that?

Phase at 0, Crossover to Out, and Crossover Frequency all the way up. In your receiver set the subs crossover to 80. This should get you all set. Enjoy it bud, it's a great sub for the price.

gets the sub off the ground which relieves boomyness or rattling to an extent and an help get a tighter sound from the sub. Seems like most folks use a subdude when on wood or tile. You might be okay on carpet.


I would beg to differ on setting x-over to 80hz. I would suggest 120hz.. Also, I have my x-over to in, why are you changing it to out? I am not sure what this switch does to be honest. The instructions were a bit deceiving.

I set it to out because when I got the sub I asked the seller the proper position for this toggle switch and he said "out"

As far as the subs crossover is concerned, you're right with 120hz...I was thinking about the speakers. Those should be set at 80hz. Sorry for the misinformation.

Thanks guys, so,

Phase @ 0

Crossover Freq @ all the way up, set receiver to 120hz

and Crossover do I set to In or Out, you guys both said something different

Gotcha, I was wondering there for a minute. I started messing with the x-over toggle and there is indeed a stronger presence of LFE with it set to out. Ran a bunch of tests on the sub last night and it seems to be getting better with tweaks. Surprisingly the 'real' subdude did a lot more than that CL knock off POS.

With more tweaks and adjustments in placement it will get better over time.

Indeed set it to Out and all your other setting you listed would be correct. Enjoy!

There is no 'correct' setting to set your sub and speakers. It's all going to be a work in progress with your system. Yes, setting your sub to 120hz and your speakers to 80hz is a good start. However, I have my x-overs all over set differently because of the sound I am looking for and the acoustics of my room. I have my SBL/R at 100hz, SL/R at 80hz, L/R at 60hz, and the center back to 80hz. I have also changed the x-over on my sub to 100hz as an experiment a few times.

You'll find that you may want to relieve the sub of off the top end by adjusting your L/R to 60 (or even 40hz). 40hz for my fronts seemed to be a bit too much but 60hz was the perfect touch it needed. I am not sure what speakers your have but if they're capable of producing a devent amount of mid-end bass, I would look into playing with the x-overs. If you're running a small bookshelf or satelite, leave it at 80-100hz. Experiment with your settings, test out different combo's, and you'll figure out what you enjoy.

Good luck!

I have:

Front: Polk Audio Monitor 40

Center: Polk Audio CS2 Series II

Rears: Front: Polk Audio Monitor 30

Suggestions?

Set those speakers to small in your receiver and set the crossover to those at 80hz. But BigDonk (it feels really weird saying that) is right. Every system is different and what works for someone won't sound the same to everyone. You can use a SPL meter to dial your speakers and sub in. I never went that way because it's well beyond my knowledge to do so. Setting my speakers to 80hz is fine for me, but there's no doubt in my mind that I could dial them in to sound better.

I'm about to order the first part of system, the Yamaha RX-867 deal real cheap on newegg. Anyway, is this still the best sub for it's price range and how much should I be paying approximately (Is this against the rules apparently the rules are getting more strict so lemme know if it is.). I know the Lava sub was the competitor when I was looking before but it's kind of ugly compared to the PL-200. Any other subs I should be looking at?

End system is going to be my Yamaha RX-867, Monitor 70s and the BIC PL-200 unless I find something else. I'll get surround speakers later =p

+1

It can take time to dial in everything but it's well worth it once you have your setup where you want it. Even the enthusiast can be missing out on what their system really has to offer. However, usually at 80hz and sub 120hz you're going to get a decent and acceptable sound.

It happened to me and they fixed it under warranty. Took 3+ weeks though...


I have bookshelf fronts (Boston Acoustics CS 26) that are noted for having a weaker lower end and this sub definitely rolls off above 120hz. So now I'm wishing it did a little better in the upper end. I'm considering getting a replacement driver that will be a bit better in the upper end. The bass can be felt, but the more musical stuff is a bit lost on the sub if you have a size-limited set of speakers.

UGH!

PL200 died today, not sure what the deal is - must have been a defective sub to begin with. I was listening to some music and I heard a loud repeated thud and the sub just died. Similar situation happened the same day I received except it was a loud pop. Oddly, after it being unplugged for a 1/2 it started working again on the same BDP and original AVR. Since then, I have replaced the BDP and it's on a different AVR. I tried doing the same thing as I did last time but now I think the sub is dead...

Bought it from SD and they're going to take care of me, good bunch of folks... Never had an issue like this with my F12 so I don't think it was my equipment that damaged the sub. I probably just got a bad sub to begin with. Seems like there has been a few issues with failed subs lately as Urlacher also had an issue.

Strange...

Sorry to hear that pal. My sub is almost 2 years old and my amp died. I should have the amp back next week.

Has anyone removed the fiberglass to replace with another dampening material inside the cabinet? If so, what did you use and did it improve anything on the sub?

I'd like to know this too. I may stuff it full of polyfill when I get me amp back. I think a bag of that is like $5. I've read people who have done this.

Yes, someone who posted in this thread did it and I am wondering what the results were. If you try it out, please post some results and let us know. I would be curious if there is a difference (good or bad) in sound. A friend of mine has built a few subs in his day and I have reached out to him with the same inquiry.

I am not just patiently waiting for the new sub to arrive. Hopelly I'll have it in my hands before the new transformers film is released. Surely a terrible movie, but I be the sound is incredible!

Lately my sub has been making a loud popping noise during certain parts of certain Blu-Rays. It happened several times while watching Battle Star Galactica: The Plan (every time they had a flash back of downloading), and once during Serenity (don't remember the exact scene). I turned it down a bit after the last time after realizing that it wasn't just that single movie. Has anyone else experienced this? Was it just turned up too high?

In the PL-200 when you set the crossover to out it disables the internal crossover in the sub. No matter how you set the dial on the sub, it will not affect the setting. Setting the switch to out will allow you to use the settings in your receiver.

I assume, now that you have turned it down, the popping noise stopped or became less apparant? This can be a sign that a sub is blown, but it could mean that you are exceeding the limits of the driver (the driver is moving farther than designed) and it hasn't blown yet. Let us know if you keep hearing this sound at lower settings. Using an analog clock scale, what time do you have your sub set? Mine is set at about 12:00 and for my setup, this seems appropriate. I'm always worried about pushing subs too far. My family ruined a Sonance sub because they didn't understand about adjusting the sub for material with excessive bass. When I started hearing the popping sounds, it was too late.

Pull your driver out, check the leads to the terminal on the driver.. It's possible they're coming off or it's a poor connection. Also check the other internals and make sure everything is connected properly. If that does not work, time to deal with "Fred" at BIC.

Good luck...


+1

This is also possible.. I kept my gain on my sub at 9ish and that was plenty.

Fred at BIC is awesome by the way. What a polite and helpful man.

I have mixed feelings... He assisted me on a FH-65B that went bad and I felt as if he was in a hurry to get things done and rushed me off the phone. If this is their only tech support guy, that's another story, but I still feel he could have been a bit more patient.