[FuriousFred]

First of all, a little bit of background:


I have recently acquired a pair of Usher S-520s, as well as a Harmon Kardon AVR 146 receiver to drive them. They are hooked with a computer for gaming and music (by stereo-to-RCA, going to try the DAC on the AVR soon). I'm in a 10 by 10 feet room I believe. My budget is around $300-400US, unfortunately, since I also have to ship them to Canada and the CAN-US rate is sucking at the moment.


I'm looking for a subwoofer to complement those S-520s. They're sounding great (although I have no reference to compare them with other professional speaker brands so I guess it might not mean much), and I would like to know if A2-300 is the way to go, or is there any other subwoofers that are also comparable?


I am mainly looking for accuracy, as I won't be turning them up very loud due to the smallness of the room. I don't want "boomy" subwoofers, I value clarity above anything else.


Thanks.

 

[spyboy]



Quote:
Originally Posted by FuriousFred /forum/post/15477283


First of all, a little bit of background:


I have recently acquired a pair of Usher S-520s, as well as a Harmon Kardon AVR 146 receiver to drive them. They are hooked with a computer for gaming and music (by stereo-to-RCA, going to try the DAC on the AVR soon). I'm in a 10 by 10 feet room I believe. My budget is around $300-400US, unfortunately, since I also have to ship them to Canada and the CAN-US rate is sucking at the moment.


I'm looking for a subwoofer to complement those S-520s. They're sounding great (although I have no reference to compare them with other professional speaker brands so I guess it might not mean much), and I would like to know if A2-300 is the way to go, or is there any other subwoofers that are also comparable?


I am mainly looking for accuracy, as I won't be turning them up very loud due to the smallness of the room. I don't want "boomy" subwoofers, I value clarity above anything else.


Thanks.

Can you get SVS in Canada? If so, the PB-10 NSD will player deeper and much flatter than the A2-300 based on the review on the Ed web site.


You should also be aware that there are a group of people who find that a subwoofer that rolls off below 30 Hz sounds "cleaner" to their ears. Very deep bass might mask some higher frequencies.

 

[FuriousFred]

The crossover for those Usher speakers are at 52Hz, unfortunately I can't fine-tune it so the receiver is set at 60Hz crossover. The subwoofer will only need to handle 20Hz-60Hz range pretty much.


Problem is I can not seem to find specs for the SVS PB10-NSD. They are also pricier than the A2-300s(approx. $500CAN including brokerage/shipping fees vs $579 CAN distributor in Toronto). On the plus side I believe I can get a subwoofer from sonicboomaudio.com immediately by going to their shop/site which is located near my city, another plus I've seen is that I've read people with H&K AVRs 300s hooked up with them marveling at it.

 

[spyboy]



Quote:
Originally Posted by FuriousFred /forum/post/15478155


The crossover for those Usher speakers are at 52Hz, unfortunately I can't fine-tune it so the receiver is set at 60Hz crossover. The subwoofer will only need to handle 20Hz-60Hz range pretty much.


Problem is I can not seem to find specs for the SVS PB10-NSD. They are also pricier than the A2-300s(approx. $500CAN including brokerage/shipping fees vs $579 CAN distributor in Toronto). On the plus side I believe I can get a subwoofer from sonicboomaudio.com immediately by going to their shop/site which is located near my city, another plus I've seen is that I've read people with H&K AVRs 300s hooked up with them marveling at it.

Scroll down and look at the graphs.

PB-10 is 19Hz-150 (plus or minus 1 db)

http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volum...r-10-2004.html

 

[FuriousFred]



Quote:
Originally Posted by spyboy /forum/post/15479514


Scroll down and look at the graphs.

PB-10 is 19Hz-150 (plus or minus 1 db)

http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volum...r-10-2004.html

That's a pretty wide frequency range to cover! I heard that's bad for subwoofers? (covering too much will give the woofer too much to work on?)


The specs inside the link though list it as 18Hz-100Hz for PB10-ISD version. Some of the stuff inside is a "bit" techno for me to understand at the moment though.

 

[croseiv]



Quote:
Originally Posted by FuriousFred /forum/post/15480459


That's a pretty wide frequency range to cover! I heard that's bad for subwoofers? (covering too much will give the woofer too much to work on?)


The specs inside the link though list it as 18Hz-100Hz for PB10-ISD version. Some of the stuff inside is a "bit" techno for me to understand at the moment though.

It's capable of that, but most people cross over at 80Hz or less (60 Hz sometimes).

 

[FuriousFred]

Well my current crossover point is at 60Hz.


So far the only ones I've seen are A2-300s and the SVS ones. I saw a PSB SubSeries 1 Powered Subwoofer for $299 CAN at a retail store but I believe I would get much better off from getting the A2-300 or the PB10-NSD one so far.

 

[CADOBHuK]

a2-300 and pb10 are about equal according to craigsub, get whichever one is cheapest after all expenses are counted in

 

[Hksvr4]

I was planning to buy this sub but by looking at the specs, it's pretty big and will not fit my space.

 

[FuriousFred]



Quote:
Originally Posted by CADOBHuK /forum/post/15482353


a2-300 and pb10 are about equal according to craigsub, get whichever one is cheapest after all expenses are counted in

Thanks for the craigsub list! That was really helpful! I'm going to take a look at the mfw-15 and see if they ship it to Canada! I could wait a while longer(next paycheck

) for something that seems that great!


If I can't get it though I will do as you say!


EDIT: ahh damnit, its $699 US, not 599 anymore !! Do they make those subs anymore? The black ones are all sold out!

 

[johsti]

Unless you are a total bass head, an MFW-15 would be overkill for a 10'x10' room IMHO. Even a SVS PB10 would be overkill. It all depends on what you like though.


I own a PB10 in a room quite a bit bigger than yours, and it does a great job with movies. However, I don't find it to be a very musical sub and turn it off when listening to music. If I were to do it all over again, I would rather sacrifice some low end extension for a faster and more detailed sub. For pure muscle and low end extension, the PB10 will be hard to beat for the money.


I don't know how handy you are, but the Rythmik servo kits look interesting. They play low and are supposed to be very fast and musical and have a fairly small footprint. The Martin Logan Dynamo is also in your price range (used) and is supposed to be a very fast and musical sub with a small footprint. You might want to check out some of the Mirage subs which should be readily available for audition where you live.

 

[domingos1965]



Quote:
Originally Posted by FuriousFred /forum/post/15485719


Thanks for the craigsub list! That was really helpful! I'm going to take a look at the mfw-15 and see if they ship it to Canada! I could wait a while longer(next paycheck

) for something that seems that great!


If I can't get it though I will do as you say!


EDIT: ahh damnit, its $699 US, not 599 anymore !! Do they make those subs anymore? The black ones are all sold out!

seems that great? lo lol lol have u been over at the MFW web site?

 

[FuriousFred]

I'm a audio newbie, so to be honest this is going to be my first subwoofer purchase as a separate item instead of as a package like PC speakers. (I'm never going back to PC speakers after hearing those S-520s.) With all these different brands its kind of killing me.


My thoughts are that even though its a 10 by 10 room, I am using them to listen to music/gaming, so the volume is not a huge factor, but the clarity is. I don't need a big boom factor from movies (although that is a plus if I do watch them on my PC).


Unfortunately, I can't seem to find any good reviews of Mirage speakers/subs online. The Martin Logan Dynamo that was on Audiogon is sold as well, and I'm not a very "handy" person either.


I guess I'm back to the origin, A2-300 or PB10-NSD... haha

EDIT: Domingos I'm not sure what is your point?

 

[domingos1965]



Quote:
Originally Posted by furiousfred /forum/post/15486548


i'm a audio newbie, so to be honest this is going to be my first subwoofer purchase as a separate item instead of as a package like pc speakers. (i'm never going back to pc speakers after hearing those s-520s.) with all these different brands its kind of killing me.


My thoughts are that even though its a 10 by 10 room, i am using them to listen to music/gaming, so the volume is not a huge factor, but the clarity is. I don't need a big boom factor from movies (although that is a plus if i do watch them on my pc).


Unfortunately, i can't seem to find any good reviews of mirage speakers/subs online. The martin logan dynamo that was on audiogon is sold as well, and i'm not a very "handy" person either.


I guess i'm back to the origin, a2-300 or pb10-nsd... Haha

edit: Domingos i'm not sure what is your point?

mfw-15 = bad amps,bad finishes,subs that hum

 

[rick240]



Quote:
Originally Posted by FuriousFred /forum/post/15486548


I guess I'm back to the origin, A2-300 or PB10-NSD... haha

Also in Canada, and just bought a sub in your basic price range yesterday.


The PB10-NSD was on my short list. In Canada you get it from SonicBoomAudio at a list of $579 Cdn, free shipping in Toronto ($60 out of Ontario); if you're ready to order they may give you a break.


I also looked at the PSB 5i, you looked at the 8" 1 not the 10" 5i (although in your space it may be enough).


I rejected the A2-300 because in my space I needed front firing and front ported (and I didn't want to wait).


For the same reason I also rejected the Hsu STF-2 (also, their shipping quote was really high).


I ended up with a Paradigm DSP-3100 and so far am very happy. It lists at $569 Cdn but retailers give discounts of 10-25%.

 

[FuriousFred]

Whats the difference between firing and port positions?


I live in Mississauga which is right next to Toronto, so I may very well end up with the PB10-NSD as I don't want to wait either too for the A2-300 to deliver here. I assume you found the Paradigm at a retailer in your city?

 

[rick240]



Quote:
Originally Posted by FuriousFred /forum/post/15487656


Whats the difference between firing and port positions?


I live in Mississauga which is right next to Toronto, so I may very well end up with the PB10-NSD as I don't want to wait either too for the A2-300 to deliver here. I assume you found the Paradigm at a retailer in your city?

Firing being the direction of the driver.


Not all subs are ported.


Front-firing and front-ported means you can have it only open to the front.


I'm in Calgary, so I would have had to add $60 delivery for the PB10. You can likely get it for less than the $579 list.


I forget their name, but a Toronto Paradigm retailer (name begins with a T) had the DSP-3100 for $400 for Boxing Day and when i talked to them yesterday were ready to extend the price.

 

[FuriousFred]

So does that mean I have to surround a front-firing front-ported subwoofer with stuff around it and leave it with space only in the front???

 

[rick240]



Quote:
Originally Posted by FuriousFred /forum/post/15488111


So does that mean I have to surround a front-firing front-ported subwoofer with stuff around it and leave it with space only in the front???

You don't have to, but you can. So it can be built into a wall or a book case; but they're perfectly happy out in the open.

 

[FuriousFred]

What about those that say downward firing like the A2-300? Does it need space underneath it to sound good?