Sub recommendations

Hi,

looking for a sub recommendation £300-500. I currently have Yamaha S501 with Dali zensor 3 and technics turntable. Moving into a new house(semi detached) so want to be considerate for my next door neighbour. Can anyone recommend a decent sub please? Was thinking about SVS PB1000 however not sure if it’s a bit of an overkill with my current set up?

 

For 2 channel audio you really want a sealed sub, SVS SB2000 or REL T5i...

 

Check out REL subwoofers if primarily used for music had SVS sub swapped out for a pair of SHO 3

pair of T/i series should fit your budget and yes you want dual subwoofers

high level input should work with your Yamaha amp

 

What’s a sealed sub? SVS SB2000 is like double the price too

 

Will check it out. What about something like Dali C8D? Do I need to look at Hz when buying one?

 

Sorry I meant SB1000!

A sealed sub has no port, sealed subs work better in 2 channel audio setups:-

Sealed vs. Ported Subwoofers

 

I would try a Wharfedale SW150. £149 on Amazon. Powered sub with all the connectivity you need. You can get a pair for under £300.

 

Thanks I did look at them and might consider. How do subs connect and what channels would they go in? I know S501 has a port for sub, but how would I connect 2 of them? Use normal speaker wires?

 

If your amp has a stereo pre out you can use those for each channel. Otherwise use a splitter cable or you can daisy chain them using the line in and outs provided on the subs or you can connect from the speaker terminals.

Wharfedale now do a larger SW 10 Sub which is being discounted at £249 at HiFix but less adaptable connectivity.

 

REL use high level connect - connect to same terminals as your main left and right speakers

 

Not sure what Rel means, sorry never owned a sub and I can see there’s different connection options on the back of most subs so I’m a bit confused which one would be ideal. S501 has sub out connection.

 

If your 501 is like my 801, the Sub Out forces attenuations of signals over 90hz. Which may or may not be ideal. I am hoping someone here can explain that to you better than I can However, when I plug the sub out from the Yamaha into my subs LFE input, it disables the subs crossover, which is a non starter for me. So for me the best way to connect the Yamaha to the Sub is:

High Level Inputs: Basically connect speaker wire from the taps of the amp, to the the high level inputs of the subwoofer. This is the connection method you find when you Google "how to connect a sub to an old school receiver."

Check out a thread I started sometime ago: Yamaha A-S801 Subwoofer Connection Confusion

I must confess - I have still yet to set up the sub......

 

So would I connect the wires to same channel as my speakers or would it go to channel b? Would a sub need 4 wires in total (left and right)? I don’t even know what the difference is between speaker out speaker in on the sub.

 

I have owned the Wharfedale SW150 and wouldn't buy again.

I would consider a second hand BK Electronics - the XLS200 measures very well. However, I got stung by BK when I bought a Monolith, which in my eyes never worked properly from the day it arrived, and getting support via distance is very difficult.

I recently measured one of the smaller new REL subwoofers (T5i maybe?) and the company have come a long way from the distortion generators of 20 years ago. They are still not great at high volumes, but at most sensible listening volumes they perform well.

 

The way I understand it, you can do it both ways. You can connect your speakers to Channel A and the Sub to Channel B and use both channels together A+B. I also understand you can connect both sets of speakers to Channel A if you are using bare wire - simply connect them on top of each other. I hope someone chimes in to ensure I am not talking rubbish I am going to try the subwoofer out connection first and if I don't like the fixed filtering the amp imposes, I am will connect to the sub as speaker B.

 

REL is a subwoofer manufacturer based in the UK. They are generally praised for their musical performance.

In my view the older REL subwoofers are just terrible and should be avoided at all costs. They are some of the worst measuring pieces of HiFi I have ever seen.

The newer REL products are very different and measure quite well.

On a pure lab-test basis, the BK XLS200 is an absolute stunner at normal listening volumes and should integrate very well with most systems. A pair of them would be even better. However note my comments about aftersales support. Subwoofers are expensive to move and it pays to have a retailer nearby who can fix it if it goes belly up.

 

Hopefully not derailing the OPs thread with my question, but I think this will be beneficial to him as well.

If he goes the high level connect route, does his speaker cables need to be the same gauge? For example, is it ok to use 12AWG out to the main speakers and 14AWG out to the SUB?

JQ

 

Definitely not detailing as I have no clue how would they connect

 

For connecting a rel (with the provided cable) to the speaker outputs on your amp:

Determine whether to use High Level, Low Level, and LFE/.

I don’t have a rel, a friend does. The provided cable is the right one. Unless of course you ‘upgrade’ to their expensive one, but I wouldn’t bother. My friends speakers had cables I made fr him, which I doubt very much were the same gauge, and the provided cable works just fine.

 

With the REL T5i you would either use the provided cable (A Speakon/Neutrik connection at the subwoofer end & spade connectors to the same speaker terminals you have your speaker wire connected to on your amp) or you could use their wireless Arrow system but that's another £199.

Can your amp take banana connectors & spade connectors at the same time?

 

I found the key to integrating my sub into my HiFi system was the use of DSP, in my case I used an Anti-Mode 8033 unit.

Without the DSP I could never get the speakers to gel with the sub.

 

Rel

 

So when you say connect to the same terminal would that require 4 cables(2 left and 2 right) or does sub only goes either left or right? My speakers Are connected with banana plugs and I believe I can do spade connector too. I’m assuming if I’m connecting via high level input, the wire is provided?

 

The Elac 3010 is another sub to consider. They run factory sanctioned sales periodically, which will help get it into your price range.

 

I myself just received my used 8033 and hooked it up the other day.

Immediate improvement, got the last ~15% of the way to satisfactory integration and validated that I had the sub as close as I could get and that the room, as ever, is the limiting factor.

Absolutely awesome piece of gear for those of us who cannot have (and don't really want) a dedicated, purpose built listening room.