Thundercat710 Posted November 27, 2018 Share Posted November 27, 2018 (edited) Greetings to all, I'm not experienced enough with home theater setups to know what my expectations should be, so I would like some other people's input. I recently hooked this system up in our modestly-sized living room and fired away with movie explosions and awesome music, and the subwoofer sounded...WEAK. I oriented it a couple different positions without much difference noted. I mean, I could tell that it was on, and when I turned up the subwoofer volume on the remote it did get a bit more pronounced, but still. It wasn't at all what I was hoping it would sound like. The soundbar itself sounded good to me, just the subwoofer seemed questionable. So, a few questions: 1. People at my work said it sounded like the subwoofer was malfunctioning - "it should be providing way more oomph". Could that be the case? Seems to me like it would have obvious signs of malfunctioning if that were the case, but I'm not sure. 2. How much beefier does the R-10SWi sound compared to the 8" sub that comes bundled in the RSB-x series? 3. Can't I just get a Klipsch soundbar without a subwoofer bundled in and get a R-10SWi to pair along with it? Thanks for all your help, Mike D. Edited November 27, 2018 by Thundercat710 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wuzzzer Posted November 28, 2018 Share Posted November 28, 2018 Asking an 8 inch woofer to perform the full duties of a subwoofer is a tall order. They typically don't have the capability to achieve what you're looking for. Depending on the sound bar you may be able to add an upgraded subwoofer. However, long story short, my best friend bought a Klipsch RSB-3 (I think?) on black Friday. I believe it is the only soundbar Klipsch makes without a subwoofer. He ended up returning it because he said it really didn't sound much better than the speakers in the new tv he bought the same day. I don't know if it even had the option to add a subwoofer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thundercat710 Posted November 28, 2018 Author Share Posted November 28, 2018 Yeah, I wish they offered an upgrade path for the subwoofers. I didn't think it was malfunctioning, I just thought it wasn't enough sub for what I'm looking for. Thanks for the response, good sir. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wuzzzer Posted November 28, 2018 Share Posted November 28, 2018 If you have room, you can get a pair of powered bookshelf speakers such as the R-15PM that have a subwoofer pre-out to let you use the subwoofer of your choice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thundercat710 Posted November 28, 2018 Author Share Posted November 28, 2018 I'm wondering if I can use the rsb11 soundbar and just pair the 10" sub (R-10SWi) to it instead of the 8" sub that comes in the bundle? Pairing is pairing in this case, right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blvdre Posted November 28, 2018 Share Posted November 28, 2018 It's really a woofer, not a subwoofer, and I get a surprising amount of output from mine in an average sized living room (placed in a corner). It sounds like something's wrong with your unit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thundercat710 Posted November 28, 2018 Author Share Posted November 28, 2018 32 minutes ago, Blvdre said: It's really a woofer, not a subwoofer, and I get a surprising amount of output from mine in an average sized living room (placed in a corner). It sounds like something's wrong with your unit. Yeah I'm hoping the woofer that came with the first kit was malfunctioning. I picked up a replacement bundle today at lunch and am eager to check it out tonight Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thundercat710 Posted December 3, 2018 Author Share Posted December 3, 2018 Got the 10" R-SWi today, and it won't connect out of the box with my soundbar. I was hoping that they would connect automatically and I'd have an updated woofer sound. Negative. I paired the 8" woofer back to the soundbar and am feeling kinda bummed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melquisedec Posted September 22, 2019 Share Posted September 22, 2019 Hi. The same happens to me with the subwoofer of the RSB-11. The power is very low. I have it located under the bar. I will try to place it further. I'm disappointed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennis D Posted January 8, 2020 Share Posted January 8, 2020 I have the RSB=11 and have the same problem, I have a cheaper Polk that will walk all over my Klipsch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris orrell Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 I have same issue, but I was wondering if we could put an hdmi audio extractor in the chain of hdmis, and use that as a preamp for adding another sub? I want to try it, but I don't want to waste money for nothing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris orrell Posted January 7, 2021 Share Posted January 7, 2021 I just tried it with a digital to analog converter. I have all the sources connected to tv, then I connected the optical to a converter. I then took my subs input cable to the converter and my sub played. So now I just need a optical splitter or hook my devices thru the sound bar by hdmi and problem fixed. Alittle playing and got it going great Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Lukas Posted March 2, 2021 Share Posted March 2, 2021 I purchased a reconditioned Klipsch RSB-11 sound bar and sub-woofer, but the sub-woofer volume and output is much lower than expected. I admittedly am not very technical with electronics, and would appreciate if anybody can provide recommendations about my speaker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheesynoodles Posted March 28, 2021 Share Posted March 28, 2021 I, too, am inexperienced with electronics, but can anyone enlighten if using the sub pre-out as suggested here would help? I'm assuming it's not a long-term fix, but something that could improve sound in the meantime. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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