I am finishing a basement and am putting in both a HT and some other ceiling speakers. I bought a Denon X2300W receiver, I'm going to use HSU speakers for the HT, and I bought Polk ls 700 speakers for the ceiling. The receiver is in a closet around 40 ft from the TV and everything is wired back to the receiver. My dilemma is the subwoofer. I'm really not sure where to put it, and probably won't know the optimal location until after the walls are all closed up. Which leads me to wondering if going with a wireless subwoofer is a viable option? Pros? Cons? Will it even work in the configuration i'm describing? I really know very little about the topic so looking for guidance. Thanks in advance, Dave
Wireless vs Wired Subwoofer
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People do use wireless subs without any problems, so that's definitely an option. Personally, I'd just run cabling for subs to 3 or 4 different locations in the room before you close up the walls.
Ok thanks - is the advantage of wired just reliability?
Pretty much. Wireless sub links work well, but they can lose connectivity and need resetting. Plus, RCA cable is very cheap. Why worry about it? If it's not too hard to run the cables, just do it.
My $.02...
another option is to run one sub cable to where you would most like to put the sub or the wireless transmitter. That way if the sub does not work out in that spot, you can just put the transmitter there and put the sub wherever there is a power outlet for it and the receiver. Wireless kits work great. I use one in my music only setup and its totally transparent. Mine is the OAW4 from Outlaw Audio but there are others like the one from Dayton Audio that get good reviews as well.
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Definitely run a couple or more pre-wire cables (RG6 Quad or RG59) at least to front left & front right. It should be easy to run to the rear as well. Hardwire is always superior to wireless. Remember you'll need AC power in those locations.
. Thanks. So the advantage is just getting the transmitter closer to the spot where the sub will ultimately be for signal purposes? Also - I haven?t actually bought he subwoofer yet so I was thinking of getting a wireless one with its own transmitter. Any disadvantages? Are the aftermarket ones like outlaws thought to be better? Thx again.
Well, you mentioned your equipment will be 40' away so Im assuming its in another room. I would try and get the transmitter closer than that and anywhere in the same room should work fine. Im not familiar with subs that have built in wireless but with an external kit you can use any sub you want.
got it. Thanks again much appreciated!
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Just think about it, if you run some rca cable to several likely spots in the room that you could put the sub, later you may want to add a second sub and have a couple of prewired spots it could easily go!
You could make a nice looking installation if you used microphone cable in the walls and XLR jacks in wall plates for quick and easy connections. Just use a wire connection like this for the wire from the wallplate to sub wire and use the connection from the amp to both of the inner wires . Just use pin 1 to the shield on both ends and of the two center wires only connect one of them on the sub end and both of them on the receiver end and the thru wall wiring to get from balanced to unbalanced. Would make a neat versatile setup. I also like using speakon connectors for wall plates to connect speaker wire from amp to the speakers if going thru the walls. You can even run a stereo pair using a 4 wire cable thru the walls use a 4 line speakon at each end on the wall and then split it out into lleft and right at each end.
You could make a nice looking installation if you used microphone cable in the walls and XLR jacks in wall plates for quick and easy connections. Just use a wire connection like this for the wire from the wallplate to sub wire and use the connection from the amp to both of the inner wires . Just use pin 1 to the shield on both ends and of the two center wires only connect one of them on the sub end and both of them on the receiver end and the thru wall wiring to get from balanced to unbalanced. Would make a neat versatile setup. I also like using speakon connectors for wall plates to connect speaker wire from amp to the speakers if going thru the walls. You can even run a stereo pair using a 4 wire cable thru the walls use a 4 line speakon at each end on the wall and then split it out into lleft and right at each end.
Thank you! I appreciate the advice. I did end up running a couple of cables. Not sure if i will ever need a 2nd sub but you never know.
I read that a second sub provides better coverage of a room, beyond volume level, in terms of uniformity (performance at different locations in the room). Also, each sub in a pair will perform at lower wattage and potentially last longer.
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That's a good call. I was in the same boat when I finished my family room 6 years ago. I ran a 50' Monoprice subwoofer cable to the spot I thought I'd put the sub but didn't end up using it there. Of course the spot I went with was too far away so I tried a wireless subwoofer kit that Dayton sells and it did work. I found they add a ton of latency to signal and some AVR's may have issues getting the speaker distance/delays correct because of this. Also, the one I bought had a rated FR just down to 20Hz with a SNR of 55 or 60dB. Not ideal. I later ended up putting a wall plate with an F adapter in where I roughed the cable in originally and added another 15' subwoofer cable in line and that seemed to be the best for me.
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One thing not mentioned: wireless adapters add a significant amount of latency. I used an Outlaw OAW4 It added roughly 20ms (milliseconds) of delay. A millisecond of delay corresponds to moving the subwoofer about 1 foot (30cm) farther away. I'm not sure waht the maximum delay compensation is available in most receivers. (The other channels have to be delayed to match the sub.)
This. Wireless adds delay (latency) reduced frequency response, interference, and added cost. The "pro" is you don't have to run a wire. Wireless is a last resort. Are you at last resort?
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