dtr20 Posted June 10, 2016 Share Posted June 10, 2016 I have a definitive technologies powerfield 18 subwoofer. I am curious to know how low the frequency goes down to. I always read how you guys are getting to the teens and twenties in hertz, but I have never figured out how you know what exact frequency your sub is playing and where it cuts out. I believe I need an spl meter, but I'm not sure which to get. Hopefully someone has a subwoofer running for dummies guide or something. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derrickdj1 Posted June 10, 2016 Share Posted June 10, 2016 You can read the spec's for the sub. The in-room performance may differ. REW or Omnimic can be used to check the room frequency response. Room size is a big factor. Will this be for home theater or music? If a good tactile response (TR) is what you are after, consider nearfield subs or tactile transducers (TT's). The TR can be measure at the seat with VibSensor app for mobile phones. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtr20 Posted June 10, 2016 Author Share Posted June 10, 2016 This is in my home theater setup. I'm running a 7.2.4 atmos setup. I was curious to know how low the sub goes in my room. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted June 10, 2016 Share Posted June 10, 2016 I was curious to know how low the sub goes in my room. REW or Omnimic can be used to check the room frequency response. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derrickdj1 Posted June 10, 2016 Share Posted June 10, 2016 dtr 20, how low they go will depend on the room size. Also, will the sub be in a basement vs wood floor, are there vaulted ceilings, is the room sealed vs open to other spaces. Give us some more info and we can help steer you in the right direction for your bass system. It looks like you are planning on an awesome HT experience. Just throwing in a large sub without these considerations will usually fall short of expectations. Ask me how I know, lol. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtr20 Posted June 10, 2016 Author Share Posted June 10, 2016 I don't know the size of my living room off hand (I'll check later). I have hardwood floors, 8 ft ceilings, sheetrock walls. My system is all put together, I just figured there was a way to test the frequencies. I'm not aiming for a particular frequency goal, just wanted to know what it was. I tried using REW with not much luck. I would play frequencies labeled 28hz (for example), and the sounds came out of my klf30s and not my subs (klf30s only go down to 36hz). Not sure if this problem is the program, my laptop, my receiver, or all of the above. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvu80 Posted June 10, 2016 Share Posted June 10, 2016 (edited) I think what Mr. DTR is looking for is some kind of audio file he can play that will test his subwoofer in the sub-20 Hz range. For instance, there are plenty of Youtube sweeps that will purportedly test from 20Hz to 20,000 Hz. Is there a high quality flac type of file he can download which will play sub-sonic bass and display the numbers on his screen? Disclaimer: I don't know if the following Youtube vid is any good, or if you should even use it as it could potentially damage the sub or audio equipment. Edited June 10, 2016 by wvu80 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derrickdj1 Posted June 10, 2016 Share Posted June 10, 2016 Make sure the speakers are set to small or off while testing. The track wvu80 listed is good for a quick test of the system. Room size is LxWxH will give you the cubic ft. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CECAA850 Posted June 10, 2016 Share Posted June 10, 2016 The track wvu80 listed is good for a quick test of the system. At lower volumes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Max2 Posted June 10, 2016 Share Posted June 10, 2016 Tone generator to mess with. May not be accurate, but at least you can hear where the db's start falling off in your room. http://www.audionotch.com/app/tune/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwoCables Posted June 11, 2016 Share Posted June 11, 2016 Here's a tone generator that I like to use: http://www.szynalski.com/tone-generator/ Even this one seems ok: http://onlinetonegenerator.com/ Quick warning: set the volume on the tone generator to a very very very low level first and then slowly work your way up. Its default setting is 100%, and that's a little too high on my end. I recommend reducing your system volume too and then work your way up - just like with the tone generator. I would set both to 0% and then slowly increase them. I used this to test my ProMedia 2.1 system and y'know, it actually seems reasonably accurate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don Richard Posted June 11, 2016 Share Posted June 11, 2016 Here's a link to a test CD you can download and burn. Download the documents so that you will know which tracks are which frequencies: http://ftp.heanet.ie/pub/binkster/ 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtr20 Posted June 11, 2016 Author Share Posted June 11, 2016 Thanks, I'll check it out Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoboKlipsch Posted June 11, 2016 Share Posted June 11, 2016 Derricks comments on the room are key. A 10inch sub in a room with a hardwood floor may be louder or deeper than a larger sub in a carpeted basement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwoCables Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 By the way, I decoupled my ProMedia 2.1's subwoofer from my high-pile carpeted floor several months ago using a soft fluffy bath towel folded up into a square, and ever since then I have noticed an improvement to its performance (so, my low-end is better). One thing I never tried though was testing this improvement with my favorite tone generator that I linked above. Well, now I tried it and guess what: it's confirming for me that this isn't just The Placebo Effect! You see, the first time I used that tone generator was long before I ever decoupled my subwoofer from my carpeted floor. To my disappointment, 36 Hz was as low as I could get before the low-end began to sound weak. At 35 Hz, it was still producing low-end, but it was pathetic. The reported frequency response of the ProMedia 2.1 system is supposed to be 31 Hz - 20 kHz. Except, at 34 and 33 and 32 and even 31 Hz, I couldn't really detect any low-end at all. With my subwoofer decoupled though, now I'm experiencing noticeable low-end even at 31 Hz. I'm an a state of disbelief right now. I'm sharing this because I hope that I can cause someone else to decouple their subwoofer and hopefully get the same improvement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebuy Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 I did one of those test sweeps--while interesting and successful -- it made me nauseous. I felt kinda ICKY afterwards-- Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wvu80 Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 I did one of those test sweeps--while interesting and successful -- it made me nauseous. I felt kinda ICKY afterwards-- If you got sick to your stomach, It sounds like those sub-sonic frequencies are working. Congratulations! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TwoCables Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 My bucket list has a new item on it now: Create a sound system that is capable of vibrating my body so much that I end up feeling nauseous! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtr20 Posted June 13, 2016 Author Share Posted June 13, 2016 I'm sharing this because I hope that I can cause someone else to decouple their subwoofer and hopefully get the same improvement. I have a set of these, how do you decouple the sub? I have never heard of this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derrickdj1 Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 (edited) The track wvu80 listed is good for a quick test of the system. At lower volumes. I all ways play that track on max vol., lol. Carl is right, be careful. This is another good one that I keep on the HTPC: Edited June 13, 2016 by derrickdj1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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