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Subwoofer
placement is fortunately a bit easier than positioning your
main speakers. That is because low frequencies are non-directional. Placing your subwoofer too close to side or rear walls may excite room resonances making the source of distortions (your subwoofer, sorry) detectable again. So
how do you find the perfect place for your Some
audio magazines suggest the completely experimental route
but in my opinion, some After
all, how would you be able to tell that a subjectively "nice-sounding" position
is really I
have gotten great results starting with some Then I re-adjusted my subwoofer's position somewhat until I was satisfied. |
Where to Place Your Subwoofer:
Single Subwoofer
It's
a commonly accepted fact that subwoofers should be placed so reflections
from adjacent areas (e.g. side walls or floor) are kept to a minimum.
This allows you to capture as much direct radiation
as possible - pretty much the same as with stereo speakers.
One possibility is therefore to try placing your subwoofer with a reasonable distance to the rear wall centered between your speakers but a few steps closer to the rear walls.
You might also place it right next to the stereo speakers and gradually move them closer or further away from/to your listening position.
The third not so obvious choice is corner placement which means placing your subwoofer in the corner behind a main speaker so that the driver must not be further away from corner side walls than 53cm.
Wait,
doesn't corner placement contradict with what was initally said
about room resonances?
Yes and no.
Taking wavelength of low frequencies and physical effects such as +/- reflections of the walls into account, the influences of the side walls become more insignificant at these frequencies and sound pressure levels of the driver with its added wall reflections are not larger than the sound pressure of the driver alone. You gain improved phase linearity as a result.
Another nice effect is that you also lower harmonic distortions as those distortions arrive with a much smaller amplitude. And your subwoofer requires less power which ultimately boosts its efficiency.
Multiple Subwoofers
If you
have two or more subwoofers to play with, you can take overall
fidelity one step further.
Try placing your second subwoofer in
the opposite corner following my advice for single subwoofer placement.
Both subwoofers now have about the same distance to your listening position. Not only will you notice increased sound pressure levels but room resonances and standing waves will be attenuated by a high degree because both corners work in opposite phase to combat half wavelength room resonances.
That's why two subwoofers are actually superior to a "one-box" solution.
If you have 4 or more subwoofers you can improve room acoustics even more by either placing them in line behind your main speakers or placing another pair in the corners behind your listening position.
Try and see (or hear) what works best for you!
Setting Crossover Frequency
Adjust
the crossover freqency of your subwoofer so it's anywhere between
45Hz - 80Hz.
Start conservatively with say 50Hz and slowly work your way up.
Adjusting Phase of Your Subwoofer
Next,
you want your subwoofer to play "in phase" with your
main speakers and integrate quietly.
If your subwoofer's crossover
provides adjustable phase settings, here's how to proceed:
Use
some test signals, preferably pink noise recorded at your subwoofer's
crossover frequency.
As soon as sounds appear full bodied and most
impactful from your listening position, you're done.
Proper Volume Settings
Again, you should be experimenting. Start with a lower setting and increase volume to your comfort level. Audition some material with heavier bass tones to make sure you're completely satisfied.
Other Subwoofer Related Tips
