KVR Audio

Mike20 · Post by **Mike20** » Fri May 25, 2012 9:43 am

Hey, i just purchased ad Adam Sub 8 to go with my A7X's, but I'm not sure if i am confident using it, i mean my room is quite well treated so i was getting a decent bass response from my monitors anyway, i just figured a sub would be the icing on the cake, however i don't feel confident in the fact that you can crank the sub up way higher than your monitors or a lot lower

What i mean by this is, say for example you set the low too high - your going to be mixing with less bass than you actually need - and vice versa

Does anybody have any experiences with Subs? Im not sure if its just a learning curve but for £420 i don't think its going to get its full use, i might be better investing in more treatment

Any opinions appreciated!

Mike

mkdr · Post by **mkdr** » Fri May 25, 2012 1:14 pm

Mike20 wrote:Hey, i just purchased ad Adam Sub 8 to go with my A7X's, but I'm not sure if i am confident using it, i mean my room is quite well treated so i was getting a decent bass response from my monitors anyway, i just figured a sub would be the icing on the cake, however i don't feel confident in the fact that you can crank the sub up way higher than your monitors or a lot lower

What i mean by this is, say for example you set the low too high - your going to be mixing with less bass than you actually need - and vice versa

Does anybody have any experiences with Subs? Im not sure if its just a learning curve but for £420 i don't think its going to get its full use, i might be better investing in more treatment

Any opinions appreciated!

Mike

I've always used a sub as part of my mixing setup. It gives a lot more punch when you need some, even if you have decent monitors. Nothing beats the feeling of the bass pounding your lungs, vibrating the floor and moving your furniture

You need this to be sure your tracks sound good on dancefloors, or big ass PA systems. Without a sub you might end up with a good track that can't be played in bigger venues or festivals.

I still wouldn't recommend using a sub all the time. It's better to have it set up so that you can easily disable it. Some subs even have a foot switch for doing that. Without a sub you tend to hear other areas of the mix better. So it's not just about the volume.

And for the level issue. You just need to set it up to a level that feels good on material you like(and how much you can disturb your neighbors). Like in every mixing, it's important to set yourself with a good reference. A starting point for your brains.

I'm using a 15" 800W active sub myself. Goes nicely down to the 25-30hz region, whereas my monitors are rated at doing just 50hz. Big difference. And the amount of air a 15" can move is a lot greater than regular 6.5" monitor elements.

Grain Bastard · Post by **Grain Bastard** » Fri May 25, 2012 4:04 pm

You set the level of the sub by using reference tracks that you like. Listen to the track with the sub at the 'correct' level and remember what it sounds like. You them simply need to match that level with the bass in your tracks.

As for making something unplayable on big systems, well if it sounds ok on a variety of test situations then you will be fine with adjusting the mixers eq if it's a touch too high - I assume you mean djing anyway. Too low is more of an issue tho as you can eq what is not there to begin with.

Mike20 · Post by **Mike20** » Mon May 28, 2012 1:43 pm

Ok, you guys have sold it to me

(even though i already have it!)

I see what you mean about needing it if i am making tracks for the club, i have spent a good few more hours using it and just listening to reference music and yeah i can hear/ feel a lot more than i can just off my monitors, I'm now seeing the importance of it!

Thank you!

meldavid · Post by **meldavid** » Mon May 28, 2012 3:40 pm

I've attached two vibration transducers underneath my couch, hooked up to an old stereo amp. I can literally feel the bass, even better than using an audio subwoofer alone. It's perfect for watching horror and sci-fi movies as well as drum n bass. And no need to worry about noise complaints.

mztk · Post by **mztk** » Mon May 28, 2012 3:56 pm

meldavid · Post by **meldavid** » Mon May 28, 2012 4:07 pm

The ones I used are cheap $30 ones from Jaycar, but they work great. You take the subwoofer line out of your receiver, hook it to a normal audio amplifier. The vibration transducers hook up just like normal speakers.

They work much better than you imagine. Of course though, only the person sitting on the couch will feel the bass, so if other people are watching/listening you will want a normal audio sub as well.

They are more popular in car audio systems.

A similar technology but using the full audio spectrum is used by deaf people to enjoy music as well.

thecontrolcentre · Post by **thecontrolcentre** » Mon May 28, 2012 4:39 pm

Mike20 wrote:What i mean by this is, say for example you set the low too high - your going to be mixing with less bass than you actually need - and vice versa

My Genelec sub is matched to the satellites, so it uses the same volume controls. There are dip switches for cutting or boosting the output to suit your room. Once it's setup there's no way to accidentally unbalance things by turning the sub up too much or too little.

mkdr · Post by **mkdr** » Mon May 28, 2012 7:47 pm

thecontrolcentre wrote:My Genelec sub is matched to the satellites, so it uses the same volume controls. There are dip switches for cutting or boosting the output to suit your room. Once it's setup there's no way to accidentally unbalance things by turning the sub up too much or too little.

I highly recommend Genelecs. They're from Finland

mztk · Post by **mztk** » Tue May 29, 2012 7:13 pm

was only kidding about the

pretty interesting idea, home sensurround.

re sub, little story: my next door neighbour was an early
junglist merchant. used to shake my windows at a particularly
stressful point in my life. and outside workmen were chopping
up the estate with jackhammers. audio paradise.
oh, and at the weekend his uncle used to come round and record
lover's rock songs. dancehall, i wouldn't have minded so much.
the thing was, i'd often hear a bum note in his basslines, which
were way low. it bugged me more than anything else, and i bashed
a few pads on a drum machine one day, put it next to his wall and
went out for five hours. (when i came back he was standing on the
balcony, waiting for me)
later, he moved to a basement garden flat with a kitchen at the
opposite end to the living room where he had his studio setup.
roughly ten metres, eg 30 odd foot. the routine was to go to the
kitchen for a cup of tea to listen to the bass. now his bass was
always in tune. there, that's it, that's the story.
as such, getting a little way away from your sound/bass could maybe
tell you a lot about what is going on...er, sorry, i know nuffink,
but i like the idea anyway.

mztk · Post by **mztk** » Tue May 29, 2012 7:24 pm

oh yeah, and i had some mordant short ms10 bass reflex jobs
with a crack in one of them...when the bass reached a certain point,
that cab would 'clack'/vibrate, so i'd use that as a limit.
(not a verifiably legitimate method either...)

cabinet design is a real fine art, and different speakers will
offer you a different end result, depending also on what kind
of music/sound you are making/aiming for. having a sub can give
you a controllable perspective...( i think...i mean i never splashed
out on expensive monitors or anything)

Anybody that uses a Sub