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sub sitting on a hardwood floor: where did the base go?


klipschlover

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I recently stole a pair of KLF30's and matching center channel speaker on UBID. At first, I didn't think that I would need to replace my Infinity sub. That changed however, when I changed the flooring in my den from carpet to hardwood. Where did the base go? I have my downfiring sub fairly close to the wall and even placed a thick towel underneath it to simulate carpeting. Of course, the sub output is at maximum on my HT receiver. Do I need to upgrade to something more powerful like, for example, the KSW15 to get my deep rumbling base back, or would I experience the same problem with it? Thanks to you guys for your input-any suggestions will be greatly appreciated. I really miss my deep base!8.gif

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Did your bass disappear when you changed the main speakers, or when you changed the flooring? The flooring change shouldn't cause any difference, as the long bass waves aren't affected by things like carpet. However, the room is probably now more "live" or "hot" so perhaps the bass is being overwhelmed a bit by the mids and highs. Just a thought.

If the bass disappeared when you changed your main speakers, perhaps it is because the mains and the sub are interacting and cancelling some of the bass. You might try changing the polarity setting on your sub. You could also try setting your main speakers to "small" so that they don't produce the same bass as the sub, and cause cancellations.

DD

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Thanks very much for your suggestions. I believe that the Klipsch speakers definately overpower the rest of my system at this time, and that this is the main issue. The room is much "brighter" now too, but trying some of your suggestions lead me to believe that this is not the problem that I first suspected it was. I appreciate having learned a thing or two in the course of trying to solve this problem. Setting all of the speakers to small resulted in a huge increase in the base and it sounded really muddy. Playing with several more of the setup options on my HT receiver yielded what seems to be the best settings for now: I left all of the speakers set on large and attenuated the main speakers by setting the main level to -10dB. This, along with a sound level adjustment of all speakers helped a lot. The base is there again, but still muddy sounding compared to the very bright and clear Klipsch. I am now thinking that a subwoofer upgrade is on the horizon. I want tight base; a good clear punch, not mud. I think this would compliment my system best at this time. Thanks again for your help!2.gif

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Setting all of the speakers to small resulted in a huge increase in the base and it sounded really muddy.

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This is definitely a sign of cancellation (phase adjustment), as you got more bass by removing part of the signal.

If you receiver doesnt have a adjustment for the subs phase, your plate amp on the subwoofer itself should have one. Turn your mains speakers back up, and play with the phase knob (or switch) till you get the most bass at your seating position.

If neither the sub nor the receiver has an adjustment, try flipping the polarity of the wires leading to the sub (black to red, and the red to black)... it obviously get trickier to do if its a line level RCA input into the sub, but you can do it by replacing the plug.

Good luck...

Rob B.

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