Will subwoofer make a noticeable difference?

[iGPR3]

I've heard from absolutely everywhere that a subwoofer makes music sound so much better, but at what point does it make a difference? I have JBL LSR305s that are flat to about 45-50hz (frequency response graph here). I've mocked up a subwoofer in WinISD, a sub making program, and in subbox.pro, a website that lets you build the box itself. WinISD shows that the sub has an F3 of 35hz, -3dB at 35hz. If anyone has any tips on tuning subs low whilst keeping the box small that'd be great.

 

But will an extra 15hz actually be noticeable in either how low my system goes or how clean the bass sounds? And considering I can high pass my speakers too, would that make the midrange sound cleaner if my speakers don't have to deal with low bass?

[danalog]

Yes to all of those. You don't realize how massive of a difference a sub makes until you get one. 

[LIGISTX]

21 minutes ago, iGPR3 said:

I've heard from absolutely everywhere that a subwoofer makes music sound so much better, but at what point does it make a difference? I have JBL LSR305s that are flat to about 45-50hz (frequency response graph here). I've mocked up a subwoofer in WinISD, a sub making program, and in subbox.pro, a website that lets you build the box itself. WinISD shows that the sub has an F3 of 35hz, -3dB at 35hz. If anyone has any tips on tuning subs low whilst keeping the box small that'd be great.

 

But will an extra 15hz actually be noticeable in either how low my system goes or how clean the bass sounds? And considering I can high pass my speakers too, would that make the midrange sound cleaner if my speakers don't have to deal with low bass?

A sub will make an enormous difference. If for no reason besides you can cross your speakers over at a much higher hz (say 70hz) which means they will require much less wattage. Your speakers are sucking down a lot of power in a vein attempt of creating bass, and freeing up the midwoofers (which is what your speakers have in them) from trying to reproduce subwoofer frequencies will make their response better, and the sub itself will reproduce these frequencies much better.

 

I run JBL Studio 580’s for front L R and Center and a sub dramatically improves the experience. Iirc I have them crossed over at 60hz since these floor standers get real low real cleanly, but they are not subs, and allowing them to not have to be makes a huge difference in their performance characteristics. 
 

I previously ran a pair of BIC F12’s… but you’d only need 1. That worked great… but I have since upgraded to a Rythmik FVX12 and the difference has been nothing short of mind blowing. Subs matter a lot, but my setup is mainly for movies and TV show type content where having good depth really matters since movies and action shows really lean into bass.  

[saintlouisbagels]

Yes to all of those. You don't realize how massive of a difference a sub makes until you get one x2

[johnt]

You should be asking if it's worth it............... I would say no the older I get (this is coming from someone who has two dual-18-inch ported subs in a theater room and a dual-18-inch opposing sealed unit in my living room). They are a lot of fun, but they are a huge waste of space and time. How are they a waste of time, you ask? Try calibrating them and treating a room. And then finding content that actually makes use of the lower frequencies. And then you will be crazily disappointed with a ton of streaming services because they compress the tracks and the bass is way too tame. This is practically noticeable with free vs premium YT music videos. So you are stuck looking for discs to get the best experience, which are becoming increasingly harder to find.

 

Also. Yes. I agree they help improve everything if they are properly calibrated and your room is treated and all the stars and planets align. But the question is, do you have time to listen to content to a point where you will notice? I have less time the older I get. Each one of my subwoofers weighs over 200 pounds and I realize how it's going to be a disaster to move them to another living space in the future. Of course you don't need to be as crazy as me.

 

They are the most difficult speaker to position, calibrate, treat for, and find content for. I find that most movies from the 2010s have the best bass.

 

They might seem like a plug and play device, but they really really are not. I still want another one! haha Don't tell my wife!

[iGPR3]

Wow, I wasn’t expecting everyone to say it’d be that worth it. Just 15Hz can sound that much better? What volume would you say you need for HT/music and to actually feel any rumble in your chest? Planning on going with a 12” Rockford P2D4-12 on a 450W t.amp e400, WinISD says it can hit 117dB on 400W@1m and probably a good bit over 120dB with room gain.

[Doobeedoo]

Of course it does. I can tune my guitar lower then those. Unless you buy some cheap basic speakers a sub is a must for anything decent sounding. It's like missing a part of frequency spectrum.

[saintlouisbagels]

10 hours ago, iGPR3 said:

Wow, I wasn’t expecting everyone to say it’d be that worth it. Just 15Hz can sound that much better? What volume would you say you need for HT/music and to actually feel any rumble in your chest? Planning on going with a 12” Rockford P2D4-12 on a 450W t.amp e400, WinISD says it can hit 117dB on 400W@1m and probably a good bit over 120dB with room gain.

Honestly if you don't have the budget for at least a $450+ subwoofer (i.e. RSL SPEEDWOOFER 10S MKII or any SVS subwoofer), it makes more sense to go on Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, etc. and picking up a used Klipsch subwoofer for $200-$300.

 

It's basically the rule of thumb that "real bass" doesn't start until that price tier. And in my experience it's been absolutely true. I've owned a $300 10"sub, and a few friends own ~$250-$400 10"-12"  subs as well... when I upgraded to a $650 8" REL sub (small living room), the sound quality was drastically different. Everything in the lower frequencies just sounded so good - and that's with the volume set far below chest rumbling (gotta be considerate of other people).

[iGPR3]

1 minute ago, saintlouisbagels said:

Honestly if you don't have the budget for at least a $450+ subwoofer (i.e. RSL SPEEDWOOFER 10S MKII or any SVS subwoofer), it makes more sense to go on Facebook Marketplace, Craigslist, etc. and picking up a used Klipsch subwoofer for $200-$300.

 

It's basically the rule of thumb that "real bass" doesn't start until that price tier. And in my experience it's been absolutely true. I've owned a $300 10"sub, and a few friends own ~$250-$400 10"-12"  subs as well... when I upgraded to a $650 REL sub, the sound quality was drastically different. Everything in the lower frequencies just sounded so good - and that's with the volume set far below chest rumbling (gotta be considerate of other people).

Well, I'll be putting the sub in a car at some point, so it's temporarily for home use. If I get Rockford's P2D4 then I can wire the 2 4ohm voice coils in series for 8ohms and use that with a home amplifier. Then later I can wire it 2ohm in parallel for a car amp. For £300 including the amp and MDF, I think a custom sub is probably the way to go value wise considering it'll be over 120dB