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Should I add a subwoofer for existing ForteII HT setup?


jmelki

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Here is my Home Theater setup:

Mains: Forte II

Center: KLF-C7

Surrounds:JBL PRO1

Sub: None yet

A/V Rec: AVR-2310CI

I have to admit movies already sound great, and I get good bass. Everyone that comes over is impressed by the setup, but I am just wandering if it would be better with a sub added. I really do not have money to burn, but I would be willing to spend some money on this if it would improve the sound. The Forte's already have a fairly low frequency range and provide good deep sound so not sure what would make sense, if anything. My main use for this setup is home theater.

Also, looking to replace the JBL's with some Klipsch speakers for surround and would like some suggestions. Only thing is that they have to be small enough to mount on the wall.

Thanks

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Virtually all speakers benefit from a subwoofer. Fortes can handle pretty much anything music-related on their own but for movies they need a sub for the deepest LFE information.

I've been extremely happy with the SVS subwoofers I've owned. Other brands to consider would be Hsu and elemental designs. They're all internet-direct companies who make subwoofers with useable output well below 20Hz for movies at extremely good values for the performance you get.

Another benefit from having a subwoofer is that it offloads the power your amp/receiver is using to amplify the lowest bass information so that the subwoofer is amplifying it instead. That will help free up some watts to your other speakers.

For surrounds anything from the Klipsch RS series will work very well and all are wall-mountable.

How do you like the KLF-C7 with your Fortes? I've heard differing opinions - some say it blends well, some say it doesn't.

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I've had an old pair of Khorns for years which I incorporated into an HT a few weeks back. I thought with their bass I wouldn't need a sub. A friend talked me into getting one. I got a Klipsch RW 12 d; in short, best HT money I guess I've spend. I'm guessin a sub would help any system; it didn mine.

Marantz 5004 A/V R

Khorn fronts

RC 64 center

KG 1's surrounds

RW 12 d sub

Samsung 1600 BD

Samsung DVD/VCR Rec 3500

Dish DSS and Sharp HD LCD 42 TV

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I recently finished my HT setup, I have the same Denon rcvr, Forte' 1's front, Academy center and KG-3's surrounds in a 12 x 12 semi-octagonal room.

It's sounded pretty good (esp. music) - but movies seemed to lack a little - 2 weeks ago a local HT company had a closeout sale of equipment and I was able to purchase a RW-10 for ~$200 - what a difference it made.

Regards,

Shawn

I would like to clarify - I only use the sub for movie LFE, It made a huge improvement - but I would recommend a 12" SUB and will probably upgrade to one once the $ is available. ( the 10" does pretty good, but I have seen some limitations - esp. Darla tapping on aquarium on Nemo DVD)

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Thanks for the tips I will look into those brands and also check out the Klipsch RS Series for the surround.

As for th KLF-C7, I do not have an academy or another ForteII as a center to compare it too, but I think it sounds really good and blends in well. The speaker itself is great and really brings out the audio dialog when watching movies. I was amazed at the improvement and how much clearer things sounded when I added the center to my HT setup.

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Some other surrounds to look at are older KSP-S6s or KSF-S5s. I believe there is someone (or two) in the Garage section selling some S-6s now. I have some S5s that are black and the vinal is loose on the bottom of one that I would sell for $100 plus shipping but if you can (or are willing to) pay more then the S6s ARE a better speaker.

FYI, I use Forte 1s with a KLF-C7 center and KSP-S6s for surrounds. I would use those S5s for rear surrounds if they were white like my S6s.

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Another benefit of a sub is the LFE track you're currently missing. Some receivers will not redirect the LFE (.1) channel to your other speakers if there's no sub present (not that they could reproduce it anyways). You'd be amazed at how much info below 35 Hz that you're currently missing. I've run my RF-7's as large and turned the my sub off in my bass management section of my pre/pro, just to see how it sounds. I didn't leave it that way for long.

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Get a sub. You can find them used in many places. I have Forte's, love the bass, but not enough to handle the really low stuff in movies AND music. I am now using an SVS 20-39 (tuned to 20hz) and had also used a Velodyne HGS-15(?). Both really round out the bottom end.

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As if you haven't heard it enough, I'll through my get a sub vote in too!

One nice thing about having a sub with Forte IIs is that you have a little more latitude with placement. I can get mine to sound better with different placement than I have but the way I have them works better in the room. The sub helps make up for that issue.

I've tried running my Forte IIs on large just out of pride for lack of a better word thinking they have nice bass, but then when you switch back to the sub you really notice what you're missing with the Forte IIs alone. I say that with a crappy sub, I find myself wondering what I'm missing not having a better sub. I'd never go back to not having a sub regardless of what the Forte IIs are rated at on paper.

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