weird question

[dodger]

Hi Jennifer:

It's NOT what we say, it's what YOUR ears tell you they like.

Does your Klipsch dealer have the models in stock to listen to? Listening with a pair of RB 15s?

If so, take 2 or 3 CDs that you are familiar with, 1 with a lot of bass. Audition each of the subs. Make sure that they are connected to RB 15s.

Look at the size of the auditioning room and compare the size, any furnishings that may be there, etc..

You may have an answer within a few songs.

Then if you move, you can either sell the unit if not large enough and put the money toward a new sub.

Or If your dealer has a 7 day trial policy, buy the 8" and then if they are not enough move to the 10".

But no matter what any of us say, no science, graphs, explaining why the 8' sub is recommended It is your taste, your ears, what YOU are happy with.

Good Luck and make sure to take your time listening to each model.

dodger

[jt1stcav]

Dodger beat me to the punchline (I was about to say the very same thing).

The RW-8 goes down to a respectable 35Hz (and the RW-10 will go down further to 25Hz). In your size listening room, at moderate volumes that you usually listen to, I'd venture to say the RW-8 may just be enough sub for your listening needs. As long as you adjust the sub's crossover point to about 50Hz so the subwoofer gets the majority of the bass output and not your RF-15s, plus keep the sub's gain level up enough to ONLY enhance the low bass frequencies, in other words so it's not too overpowering and boomy! You don't want your subwoofer to sound like some punk's Honda Civic with his bass booming so much from his car that his hatchback and license plate rattle away with each beat and drowns out the rest of his music. The subwoofer should only be heard enough to enhance the low end of your music and movies, and not be so loud as to overpower everything. In your listening environment, the less expensive RW-8 might just be enough bass for your system.

Later on when you move into a much larger home and your system is installed into a larger room, then you may need a larger subwoofer. But I think the RW-8 may be all the sub you'll need for now.

Just my opinion, natch...

[wyattearp]

Jennifer,

Welcome from another "newbie." Would like to thank you for starting a lively discussion that has taught me much also. Started researching for a home theater system here on the Forum in Dec. and haven't slept since and am about to be fired from my job! Keep it up folks...

[dodger]

Don't get yourself fired, you'll be pressed for cash for a good system.

And also Welcome to the Forum to you.

Good luck in your quest.

dodger

[Jennifer1]

well I'm very glad others learn about my questions....but we must thank those who answer me, their knowledge and generosity! I trust them entirely!

so if I come back to my subwofer choice problem, I will choose the RW-10 over the RW-8, does anyone know if it blends well with the RF-15...?

[dodger]

Yes, I have heard that combination. Plus there is the advantange of the larger woofer.

It's good to see a person checking all options and combinations to prevent a problem.

dodger

[Jennifer1]

someone said in a previous thread that if one day I want to upgrade my system I could move the RF- 15's eventually to the surround position, with say RF35's as my new fronts. I didn't know that I could put floorstandings as surrounds? Any others idea of upgrading?

I'd go ahead and get more sub now if that future setup is good...like the RW-12...

[Jennifer1]

so is the RW-12 too much for the RF-15?....WITH A 50$ difference, i would go for the 12....

[michael hurd]

There is never a thing as too much subwoofer, as long as it meets your needs. There is a gain control, and you can turn it down to achieve a good match with your main speakers.

[Jennifer1]

ok that's great. I'll go ahead and buy the RW-12. very soon...ehehe

what about my future upgrading issue that I wrote in the previous post?

[michael hurd]

You could use floorstanding speakers as surrounds, however they would have more direct sound than a purpose built surround type speaker that has a much wider dispersion ( sound is not as concentrated ). In most rooms, a dedicated surround type speaker works very well.

With a wider dispersion of sound, you hear a greater portion of sound that is reflected off the walls, rather than direct sound. What this means is you have a little bit less ability to localize ( hear where the source is directly ) .

Some people have a preference for similar type loudspeakers at all of the locations, especially for listening to discrete multi-channel music.

[michael hurd]

Moving on, to reproduce low frequencies ( the role of a subwoofer ), requires moving a lot of air, even at low volumes. Displacement ( amount of air moved ) can be expressed by the area of the speaker's cone times the amount of distance that it can move in a linear fashion. Kinda like an engine that is bigger can make more power, like a 3.4 litre V6 compared to a 2.2 litre 4 cylinder.

If we compared 3 different subwoofers, say an 8" model ( 7" actual cone size ), a 10" model ( 9" actual cone size, and a 12" (11" actual cone size ), we would find the following.

Area of the 8" ( Pi X Radius squared ) = 38.4845 inches squared.

Area of the 10" " = 63.6172 inches squared.

Area of the 12" " = 95.0331 inches squared.

For instance, if the 12" model had a linear stroke of 1/4 inch in either direction from rest, this would be 1/2 inch total. Multiply this by the area, and you get a displacement of 47.5165 cubic inches.

To displace the same amount of air, the 10" model would have to move .7469", or roughly 3/4 inch peak to peak total. The 8" model would have to move 1.234 peak to peak to displace the same amount of air.