glennconti

Thanks for the info. The only problem with these meters is they are not rated to perform in the lower frequencies and there are no correction factor tables available to compensate for the inaccuracies. Plus there is variablity in the meter manufacturing process. Even if there were compensation tables, were the tables created to average meter in the manufacturing variablity. Goldline apparently makes good meters. I think you have to buy separate a microphone though. I think a professional service is the way to go for the least expense.

I found this SPL Meter on ebay (TES-1353H) and it is only rated to be accurate between 31.5 Hz and 8K Hz +/- 1.5 db. It is $1000. I also found correction factors for the Radio Shack Analog SPL meter. They want you to correct like 7 to 20 db for frequencies below 20Hz. But I couldnt find a RS analog meter for sale. It is apparently discontinued now. Bottom line is I trust my ears and what sounds good much better than SPL meters of dubious accuracy. Maybe I can get an audio professional to come over and test my setup with their meter. Wonder what they would charge for something like that?

I have been looking for an SPL meter but haven't found one spec'ed to work below 31.5 Hz. Plus I don't want to spend more that like $60.00. Any suggestions? I used test tones to guage crossover frequencies and phase. I set the sub's volume by listening to various types of music; some with little base (Yes - Fragile); some with medium amount of bass (Return to Forever - Romantic Warrior); and some with alot of bass (Black Eyed Peas, 50 Cent, Etc). The subwoofer volume control was set to give a pleasing level of bass regardless of the music format. Of course the Rap music really works out the sub, while some Rock not so much. The receiver is set up with the bass control at 12:00. I also switched the main speakers off to listen just to the sub for the various formats. Very clean sound out of the sub. Like I said I am very pleased with the performance of this sub. As far as using a SPL meter, it would be interesting to see the results to see how well my ears stack up. I would be hesitant to change the volume levels on my sub now as it has taken a long time of listening to find the sweet spot.

Well I got my Sunfire True Signature Sub about 3 hours ago. Its all tested and set up. Everything works! Luckily the sub came with no feet so it was easy to place it on a rubber mat so it wouldn't "walk". First I tested it with test tones and frequency sweeps. All good. Then some bass heavy jazz (Stanley Clark). I set the sub's volume based on this material. Then some Pat Metheny. Then some Black Eyed Peas - "Boom Boom Pow". I must say I am truely impressed. The Hersey III's just couldn't get there by themselves. The bass notes are clear; you can hear them distinctly as well as feel them. The bass is more 3 dimensional now and you definitely know when the bass player comes in. I've got to say for music this sub rocks. As long as this sub is working properly, I can't believe I'm ever going to need anything better than this sub. I wonder how H3's with a good sub like this stacks up against higher end klipsch speakers with no sub? I am completely happy with this setup for music.

I'm going to have my Sunfire Signature in a few hours. Quote from Willland: "Just been playing around with the Sunfire and my Heresys in my "demo room"(spare bedroom). Hooked a pair of RCA cables to right/left preouts on my Marantz 2252b and set Sunfire crossover to 50HZ, phase at 50 degrees and gain at 1/4 inch from mute. Wow." This is very close to my set up. I'm going to also use the RCA's to right/left preouts. But I'm also going to use the sub's high pass (70Hz) RCA's to come back to the Marantz's Main-in. Then set the sub's crossover to 80Hz. Gain also at 1/4 inch from mute (Thanks for the info Bill). For phase I was going to start at 90 degrees and then run a phase test tone CD to see what's up. I can't wait!!!

I ordered a Sunfire True Signature Sub off of ebay. It should get here 4-3-2012. I have three days to evaluate it. I have done alot of research on the internet and there are alot of pros to this sub. However there are apparently issues that come up with this sub. Over time the sub tends to "shake" itself to death (or repair) due to its high power relative to its size. So I am going to try and set it up mechanically so it wont "walk" on me. I intend to use it mostly for music so that will keep some of the ultra low frequencies out of it too. Appearently it "walks" most for only the lowest of frequencies. After years of use there are issues I found with the auto off circuitry (wants to turn off while music is playing). So I am going to test that feature well. There are also issues of the sub having a "hum" noise. The manufacturer recommend having the sub on an isolated AC outlet separate from the rest of the stereo equipment. And to keep the AC cord away from the line level cables. Well fingers crossed that I didn't get a lemon here. Ebay is offering a two year warranty on it for $170. I may just go for it but I think I'll call Sunfire to see what a "standard" repair charge is. I think I've see on the internet that Sunfire charges $350 for an over haul but I'm going to verify that.

Picking up on what willand wrote I found a Denon PMA-737 on ebay for really cheap. http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-DENON-PMA-737-INTEGRATED-STEREO-AMPLIFIER-VERY-NICE-CONDITION-/180852116138?pt=Vintage_Electronics_R2&hash=item2a1ba04aaa It's available now for less than $20.00 plus freight. This one appears to be a "2 cap" version. Later versions had 4 caps and are more highly touted. You are going to have to move on it if you want it. The auction is over in about a day.

If you have spares not being used you could experiment for a few days by disconnecting some (or all) of the offending fans on one of your servers and see how it runs. I have a box with a coolermaster case that one of the fans was in the way so I removed it and it didnt matter. The cpu temp monitor software never had any problem and I've been running that box continuously since 2003. Remember too cell phones have no fans and some now have dual 1 GHz processors. No way to get around the size though. 18" x 24"

A 1U rack mount server if you can find one cheap would look better than the desktop on its side. I have like 5 of them in a closet but they are older Dell Pentium 4 units.

In your testing you didn't use anything the same between the two setups (maybe the same album, cable or cartridge) except the TDK125 and TDK124 model types? Maybe both the TDK125 and TDK124 need the same repair done that is typical to the Thorens line and the tech didn't notice his problem but you noticed yours. There has to be a fix.

Is this why a powered subwoofer sounds so good? Or why I like to turn up the bass tone control on my receiver with no sub? It looks like for the frequencies between 300 Hz and 15Khz there only is a 10 dB volume requirement. But to hear below 300 Hz the volume needs to be increased like 30 more dB. I am looking at the bottom red line the "Threshold of Hearing" line. With a powered subwoofer you can set the low frequency volume (higher) independent of the 300 Hz to 15KHz range (which is controlled by the receiver volume). Or is my head up my rear on this?

I made a test tone CD from .wav files I found on the internet. Very Interesting!!! I played 20KHz down to 20Hz in increments. First thing I found is that I cannot hear anything much above 10K Hz. I know the H3's are pumping the high frequencies out; I just cant hear them! The second thing I found is that the H3's still make sound at 40Hz!!!! These babies are suposed to roll off at 58HZ. The Heresy III are damn fine speakers. From what I understand Cymbals are 15KHz at the high end and a Bass is 40Hz at the low end of possible sounds from musical instruments. I'm can't wait until I get my Sunfire True subwoofer and can do some testing with it and the rest of my system.

Thanks for the advice. I have a rubber pad/runner 2' x 4' to keep carpets from moving that I can cut to size and put underneath. This should keep the sub from "walking". Its funny you said that. One of the reviews I read said the same thing as you about the sub moving. They called it a "neutron star" because it is so heavy (53 LBS) in such a small package (13 x 13 x 13"). I will also be very careful with the volume settings on the sub. It sounds like I've gotten a real beast. I don't do HT with my set up but can. So I think I will give it a go with movies too.

Thanks for the input. I like the Sunfire True! I got one on ebay. This one was 2700 watts with dual 12" woofers. Hopefully I didn't pay too much which I tend to do. This one appears to be in excellent condition. I paid $675 and that included freight. This is less than I would have paid for a new delivered HSU VFT-2 with High Pass filter box.

The Hsu VTF-2 MK4 looks like it will fit the bill if I go new. For $519 plus shipping. They (Hsu) also have a high pass filter box for another $100 that goes between the Marantz 2245 preamp-out and main-in to filter out any bass below a setable frequency (60 or 80 Hz) so the Heresy III's will never see any freq below say 60Hz. Any more thoughts on this set up or leads on any used equipment? Thanks for every body's help by the way.

I contacted the sub owner and he said he already had three buyers at the asking price. So its a no go.

I live in NJ at the shore (Bay Head). Our Craig's list is http://jerseyshore.craigslist.org/ There are a two RW-12D available for around $350 each in new condition.

Thanks for both of your responses. I think a sub may be the way to go. What does anybody think about the Klipsch SW-115. I like the stand by mode and the frequency response down to 18 Hz. I think I can get a new one for about $700. I want a sub that can get down to at least 20 Hz. The H3's get down to 58 Hz so a crossover of about 60 Hz sounds right. Any more thoughts?

I have set my 2245 receiver to have the bass, mid and treble all at the 12:00 settings assuming this will not color the source material. However it sounds better to me to have the bass setting at 2:00. If I need more bass am I better off with a powered subwoofer and all EQ off? Or just add more bass at the tone control and not have a sub. Budget is not a problem. Again my setup is Marantz 2245, Klipsch Heresy III's and a Pioneer DV-610-AVS and I play mostly SACD's.