KSW 15 Questions...

[oldmako]

Just obtained one of these behemoths used and I don't have a manual. I will get my search on in short order but in the meantime.....

There is a three positon power switch on the back. OFF - AUTO - ON.

Now, I'm fairly clear on the on and off positions. My querie is this.....In auto, can I assume that it powers up and down on its own accord according to what exactly?? Does it sense current in the line from the amp? Or are there more mysterious methods at work? Juju? Planetary alignment perhaps?

Secondly, my amp (Yamaha RX V1500) has but a single RCA style jack on the back for the sub. There are several +/- connectors on the speaker and my guess is that I will simply ignore these. There is also a single INPUT jack on the speaker. May I assume that a single RCA type jack from the Yamaha to the sub will work? The speaker itself has TWO RCA inputs, but there is a short pigtail from them to a single female end.

There are several other swithches on the back which confound me, but I hope to figure them out once I download the manual and I ought to be able to give the unit a readh around to manipulate them. Right now I just want to wrestle it into position and continue getting it wired up. Can you say boom?

Thanks in advance for any info and / or ridicule.

[dtel]

I leave my sub on auto, yes it turns on when it gets a signal and after a certain time passes turns itself off also, works great.

My receiver only has one output also, I ran the one line and used a splitter at the end to be able to plug into both plugs on the sub. I was told when I asked here, doing that gives you a couple more db's using the splitter.

One setting should be volume which I would start off at less than half at first until you decide where you like it by ear or with a db meter.

One setting should be crossover which you set where you want the sub to take over, for me it's a little above where the mains drop off.

Phase is the other knob, I used a db meter in the listening spot and had some one change back and forth between 0 and 180, I left it where it was the most db's.

Not sure what else is there, those are the general settings and just one way to do it.

Good luck. Myself I like subs where you can't really tell where there playing and the speaker leaves off, I just need to control myself with the volume or the bass gets crazy when you hit a song with alot of bass, like Reggae.

[oldmako]

Thanks Dtel,

I used the splitter since that's what the PO used. I just used half of a R/W RCA jack. In that way, it all made sense, but it's nice to know that I wasn't smoking crack. The auto function works great and I noticed it cycle on and off during quiet passages in Apollo 11. I figured that I may as well toss something in with at least a rocket launch or something similar for my maiden Sub voyage.

Oddly enough the PDF file for the KSW 15 deals with several other Klipsch subs. In fact, none of them are labeled as the KSW 15. The only one listed with a 15" speaker is called the KSW 300 and none of the knobs on the back are in the same posn as on my 15. So, that made it seem a bit greek but I was able to make some edumacated guesses.

Overdoing the bass during music won't be a problem as I split my system today and will only use the sub with the HT setup and the CF3s, KLF-C7 and Academy. That will be TV and DVDs only. Occasionally I may watch some music vids streamed through the Laptop HDMI. For music I'll use just the KLF20s and KH5.2s using a different set of amps.

Thanks for the info.

[Quiet_Hollow]

I was told when I asked here, doing that gives you a couple more db's using the splitter.

This is true. The splitter halves the AVR subwoofer pre-amp impedance load, doubling the output voltage for a given signal. Good for around +6 dBW (four times more power) into the subwoofer driver.

Just be mindful that it's not a free lunch. The pre-amp out of the AVR will be working harder, and if trim levels are already running high for some other reason, the input stage of the subwoofer amp could be driven into clipping during certain passages. You'll hear that classic "wuh" sound from the sub on large transients.

A way to check for this, on a unpowered sub (the type using a component amplifier), is to disconnect one of the wires going into the subwoofer and patch a multimeter across the output terminals of the subwoofer amp then set the meter to read AC voltage. Set the AVR master volume to the loudest setting you'd ever consider watching a movie at. Then using a test tone from the Binks CD, 40 Hz @ -1 dBFS for instance, which will drive your disc player as hot as it can get, play the tone and read what the voltage output is on the meter. Then turn the master volume knob up a little more and see if the voltage goes up any further. If so, you're good-to-go. If not, the input is getting clipped and the trim, or "sub level" will have to reduced .

To check this on a powered sub (one with an onboard amp),use an SPL meter placed next to you instead of the multimeter, and wear earplugs because it'll be very loud. Use of an SPL meter is required because a powered sub doesn't typically allow access to it's amplifier output terminals.

..or you could play it safe and ditch the splitter.

* Edited for technical content

[dtel]

I was told when I asked here, doing that gives you a couple more db's using the splitter.

This is true. The splitter halves the AVR subwoofer pre-amp impedance load, doubling the voltage for a given signal. Good for around +6 dBW (four times more power) into the subwoofer driver.

Just be mindful that it's not a free lunch. The pre-amp out of the AVR will be working harder, and if trim levels are already running high for some other reason, the pre-amp could be driven into clipping during certain passages. You'll hear that classic "wuh" sound from the sub on large transients.

A way to check for this is to patch a multimeter across the single end of the splitter then set the meter to read AC voltage. Set the AVR master volume to the loudest setting you'd ever consider watching a movie at. Then using a test tone from the Binks CD, 40 Hz @ -1 dBFS for instance, which will drive your disc player as hot as it can get, play the tone and read what the voltage output is on the meter. Then turn the master volume knob up a little more and see if the voltage goes up any further. If so, you're good-to-go. If not, it's clipping (and the meter is reading the max rail voltage) and the trim, or "sub level" will have to reduced .

..or you could play it safe and ditch the splitter.

Thanks I had know idea how it really worked. [Y]