CHOOSING & INSTALLING A SUBWOOFER

Choosing & Installing A Subwoofer

Technique : Monitors

An incorrectly set up or unsuitable design of
subwoofer can seriously compromise the
accuracy of your monitoring environment. We
outline the performance characteristics of the
different types and show you how to
incorporate a sub for optimum effect within
your system.
Mallory Nicholls
In this article, I intend to look in detail at the way subwoofers should be used in the studio, and how you can go about choos
and configuring the necessary components. Installed and used correctly, systems incorporating subwoofers can perform
extremely well, with the 'sub' being acoustically invisible. However, to many people involved in audio production, having a
subwoofer implies having too much low end, or bass which is flabby and ill-defined.
Whatever your feelings, subwoofers are now an inescapable part of the audio reproduction chain, especially now that
domestic multi-channel audio equipment is available for consumer DVD Video playback. The benefits of using smaller main
speakers in conjunction with a subwoofer are, in theory at least, many and varied. This type of monitoring system can be an
ideal solution in many situations where the size and weight of full-range monitors can be problematic, as is often the case in
small mix rooms. There is also the advantage that sub and satellite systems usually
give better imaging, due to the smaller monitors, and less mid-band intermodulation
distortion, due to the lighter bass workload placed on the satellites. Unfortunately,
the potential advantages are often not fully realised in practice.
When talking to recordists about subs, a common catalogue of dislikes usually
emerges. People will often complain about lack of integration, lumpy or 'honky'
bottom end, single-note bass, poor timing and lack of bass headroom. All of these
complaints, and indeed many others, are valid and can easily be heard in poorly
specified and configured systems. In many cases, a small misalignment or
placement error renders an otherwise capable system completely unusable.
What Is A Subwoofer?
The term 'subwoofer' has two common interpretations. The first describes a
low-frequency system that takes over below the cutoff of the main speaker's bass
unit -- I shall refer to this as type A. The second, and perhaps more relevant in the
professional audio arena, describes a low-frequency system that takes over below
the main speaker's bass frequency limit, and continues down to at least the 20Hz hearing limit and preferably below (a type
signal content commonly referred to as sub-bass although, strictly speaking, signals below 20Hz should be called infra-bass
infra-sound.) -- I shall call this type B.
The vast majority of the subwoofers currently on sale are type A. This type encompasses the more dubious domestic hi-fi an
home cinema units, as well as those found in some car audio applications. The specification for h
ome theatre subs calls for a 30Hz bass response, but this is ignored by many budget manufacturers. Many people believe th
a unit capable of extreme Sound Pressure Levels (SPLs) at around 50Hz is a subwoofer. This is not only incorrect, but has
also resurrected the series of complaints (such as 'one note bass' and so forth) that started in the early days of ported speak
design.
It is very easy to understand why this type of unit is commonplace. It is technically straightforward to produce units generatin
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The band-pass speaker construction
and its typical frequency response. It is
possible to create a flatter frequency
response (lower graph) at the design
stage, but this can only be done at the

Should A Larger Subwoofer Produce Much
More Bass?

In my experience, most people expect a
larger subwoofer to sound completely
different from a smaller one. Most listeners
seem not to expect large subs to perform to
reference-monitor standards; rather they
expect overblown 'club'-type bass from such
units. This, of course, is totally wrong -- true
subs will have very similar response curves,
regardless of their box or driver dimensions.
Where size actually makes a difference is in
the amount of SPL the subwoofer can
generate.
high SPLs above 40Hz or so. It is also easy to generate high levels over very
small bandwidths. The real challenge is to produce a unit with high output over
a broad bandwidth and in an acceptable size. Due to the laws of physics, this
becomes increasingly difficult as frequency falls.
Speakers of type B are available by only a few manufacturers. To generate
low-frequency audio at moderate-to-high SPLs, you need to move a lot of air.
This requires large-surface-area drivers, large-displacement drivers, high power
levels, or a combination of all of these. These factors combine to make true
subwoofers one of the more expensive items in the audio chain.
Design Variations
The construction of subwoofers will usually follow one of three models, although
there are notable exceptions. Each of these is a compromise, with a number of
factors which must be juggled to achieve the required results. Designs of type A
commonly use reflex or band-pass methods, while type B mainly use reflex or
closed-box construction -- there are diagrams throughout this article to
demonstrate the basic principles of these designs.
Although I do not have space within the framework of this article to examine the
technical aspects of these construction types, it is useful to examine the typical
response curves generated by them. The most efficient is the band-pass
design, which gives the highest SPL for a given amount of input power. These
units may be recognised as having one or more ports (holes in the cabinet) that
are visible, whilst the driver is not.
With efficiency comes the small bandwidth and peaky response typical of
domestic and car subs. It is possible to smooth out this response at the design
stage, at the expense of some efficiency, but even this increased bandwidth
cannot match that of other designs. Although this might suggest that the
band-pass design would not be an ideal choice for a wide-bandwidth system, it
can be used successfully when the main monitors already have a reasonable
low-frequency response. Another point to note is that band-pass constructions
are quite complex mechanically, and this can make the size, weight and
manufacturing costs undesirably high.
The second basic subwoofer model, and perhaps the most common, is the
reflex design. It gives reasonably good performance and offers the possibility of
greater low bass output when compared with a similar size of closed box. The
system is tuned by a port and may be optimised for good extension, as seen in type-B subs, or for g
reater output over a chosen frequency range, as seen in many type-A
units. Reflex designs are easy to spot, as the port and the driver are
visible.
The third fundamental subwoofer design is the closed-box
construction. This is the simplest and generates the least low bass
output for a given size, but it can also offer the best phase
characteristics and group delay (of which more later). In addition, the
bass driver is very well controlled due to the air inside the box being
trapped. This makes closed box designs quite rugged and tolerant of
out-of-band audio signals. Various tricks may be applied to
closed-box designs to extend the bottom-end frequency response.
Used in this way, closed-box designs can be made to perform very
well and certainly to type-B standards. In order to achieve a good
low-frequency response in a moderate-sized closed box, great
demands are placed on the driver unit and amplifier. Typically, drivers
used in this application will have very large roll surrounds facilitating
big cone excursions. From a cost perspective, the extra performance required from the driver and amplifier will tend to make
this method the most expensive. Readers may be interested to know that this type is preferred by the author.
Choosing The Correct Frequency Response

It is tempting to purchase the subwoofer with the lowest -3dB frequency. However, in many rooms this will
result in an elevated, boomy bottom end. This is because, unless your room has been designed and treated
to give near anechoic results at low frequencies, the bass level will rise as frequency falls. This is known as
room boost. When viewing subwoofer specifications, it is better to look at typical in-room response figures
and choose an in-room figure of 15-20Hz. Many subs that are designed with truly flat responses will be
totally unusable in an average listening room and will require further sloping equalisation to get them under
Monitors Demystified
Monitoring Tips
Monitors vs Hi-Fi?
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The reflex speaker construction.
Depending on the tuning of the port, this
design is capable of an extended flat
frequency response (upper graph) or a
boosted response over a small band of
control. If a manufacturer publishes a figure of 25Hz anechoic, don't think that his product is not as good as
another specified as 18Hz without qualification. The chances are that the first manufacturer understands
bass in the real world whereas the second may be playing the numbers game to sell pro
purchasing subs, it is vital to audition them in your own environment.
Bass Management
Unless the user chooses to use a subwoofer with each satellite speaker, rather defeating the object, some form of bass
management will be needed. Bass management systems extract the low-frequency elements from each channel and pass th
sum of them to the subwoofer. In a simple stereo monitoring setup, this may take
the form of a simple crossover with two inputs, one each for left and right, and is
normally built into the subwoofer. In a more complex system for multi-channel use,
each of the full-range channels requires an input and filter, and an additional input
is needed for the dedicated Low Frequency Effect (LFE) channel.
Many of the current domestic amplifiers intended for home cinema applications
have good bass management facilities built in, but not all offer bass management
when using the multi-channel inputs. If you intend to use such an amplifier in a
small studio, it is advisable to check this detail carefully before purchase.
The topology of bass management systems varies from manufacturer to
manufacturer. It is also fair to say that the effectiveness of these systems also
varies. I have found one well-known manufacturer who likes to rely on the natural
roll-off of the satellites rather than crossing them over electrically. After much
experimentation and measurement, I decided that this method was unreliable --
low-frequency roll-off characteristics of satellites vary considerably according to
their construction method and placement. Although the system allows the
crossover point to be adjusted, no account is made for the slope of the roll-off. This oversight makes it impossible to achieve
flat system frequency response with many satellites. Rather than rely on the natural roll-off of the satellites, I have obtained
much more reliable results by imposing a known
electrical roll-off a little higher up. In this way, both the slope and the crossover
frequency are known quantities.
Subwoofer Headroom
When used in a system with satellites, great demands are made of the
subwoofer. For a stereo music system, the sub will need to produce the bass
that would normally be generated by two full-range loudspeaker channels. For
most moderately proficient sub units this should not represent any real problem,
even at higher sound pressure levels, as sensible music mixes will rarely
contain peak-level extreme low frequencies. Consider, though, a multi-channel
satellite/sub system. Now the sub has to handle not only the bass elements
from five or six channels, but it also has to reproduce the demanding bass
content of the LFE channel. Clearly, when such a system is also expected to
deliver high SPLs, the subwoofer must be very capable and preferably
protected from abuse. All too often subwoofers used in this way will be under-
specified, resulting in the sub driver constantly banging it's end stops. This is
clearly audible as a loud 'clack' on kick drums or sound effects. The only
solution to this problem is to use more or bigger subs.
Phase
To obtain a flat frequency response, the subwoofer and satellites must be in
phase at the crossover frequency (the frequency at which the satellites take
over from the sub). If this is not the case, the resultant response will have a
hump or dip -- for example, in the graph on this page you can see the response
error from a 43-degree phase shift at 60Hz.
Phase errors originate from a number of sources:
the phase characteristics of the sub and satellite speakers with frequency.
the electrical phase characteristics of the crossovers.
the physical locations of the speakers.
Errors caused by the first two of these factors can be reduced or removed by
the use of a variable-phase filter in the subwoofer feed. This usually offers a
phase range of zero to 180 degrees. Unfortunately, due to cost considerations,
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frequencies (lower graph).
The closed-box speaker construction,
with its typical frequency response.
The response anomalies created by a
43-degree phase shift between a
subwoofer and its satellites at 60Hz.
many such filters produce their stated phase adjustment at only one, normally
undocumented, frequency. This centre frequency will almost certainly not be
that of your chosen crossover point. Some products offer filters with much broader operating bandwidths -- in other words th
phase adjustment is constant over a broader frequency range -- and, in addition,
may include a signal invert switch. These give much more flexible and reliable
phase compensation.
The third type of phase error can be tricky to remedy. Typically a manufacturer will
expect you to use the phase control to correct errors caused by placement
difficulties. However, and this is a key point, although this type of difference can be
described as a phase error, it is actually a time error. In larger rooms, it is possible
to get errors of greater than one complete cycle. Although common phase controls
will allow you to align the waveform such that the peaks and troughs coincide, they
do not always allow you to align to the same peak and trough. In order to achieve
this, a delay line must be inserted in the system, which then begins to make things
unwieldy -- one reason why the placement of your sub is vitally important.
Placing Your Subwoofer
Many people who have never actually worked with subwoofers say that it doesn't really matter where you put the sub, becau
low frequencies are omnidirectional. However, this statement is very misleading, because the physical placement of the
subwoofer has a huge effect on its frequency response. Also, the interaction between the sub, satellites and listening room w
cause peaks and troughs in the frequency and time domains, the effects
of which are clearly audible. Can you tell if a speaker is wired out of phase
within a few seconds of listening without having your head facing the speakers?
Anyone who is 'tuned in' to phase anomalies will 'feel' the same effect from a
badly placed sub in a good room.
Conversely, and perhaps this is the root of the aforementioned incorrect advice,
the ear cannot detect the physical location of a sub in a sensibly installed
system. I was recently demonstrating two subs at a hi-fi show in London. One
used a 15-inch driver and the other a 6.5-inch driver. The performance of the
systems was such that, when operating within their relative capabilities, the only
way to ascertain which unit was in use was to feel the bass driver by hand.
Given that the phase of the subwoofer needs to be matched to that of the
satellites, it should be clear that the ideal position for the sub places it at the
same distance from the listener as the satellites -- this yields the same physical
delay for both. Also, as the brain is able to detect the phase errors caused by
placing the sub and satellites at different directions relative to the listener, it is
reasonable to suggest that the sub is placed in front of the listener along with
the satellites. In theory the ideal placement for a stereo system would be
centrally between the left and right satellites.
In a multi-channel system there must obviously be a compromise. I would suggest that placement with the front speakers is
favoured, as they carry the most important audio information and, once again, a centre position is ideal. However,
experimentation shows that any frontal position is workable. The sub should point, or 'fire', directly t
owards the listener or down towards the floor. If the sub is positioned in a way
that allows it to fire across the listening field, audible phase problems may arise.
Placement with respect to walls and other large structural features should be
considered next. The majority of smaller subs will be designed so that they can
be used out of the way against a wall. If such a unit is used freestanding, the
frequency response and output level will suffer. On the other hand, a number of
companies produce subs which are designed to be used freestanding and give
best results when moved away from walls or other hard surfaces. The rule here
is to check with the manufacturer and experiment with placement and/or
listening position when performing the system setup.
When choosing a frontal position, care has to be taken if the sub is placed in a
corner, as two problems arise. Firstly, corner placement will increase the low
bass output of the sub and will often make it boomy. Secondly, using only one
subwoofer will encourage the formation of standing waves in the room. This
effect is exaggerated with a sub placed in only one corner. The effect of this can
be heard as uneven bass throughout the listening room with some areas being
boomy and some being bass light. It is possible to minimise this problem by using two subs, along with a shelving filter that
curtails the rise in low end -- an approach I use in my own listening room.
Group Delay
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A block diagram of a simple bass
management processor for a stereo
A block diagram of a simple bass
manager for a multi-channel speaker
Loudspeakers, by their very nature, delay signals at certain frequencies more than at others, and thi
s can affect their performance within a system where phase-matching of the
output of different drivers is desirable. Group delay (sometimes also called
envelope delay), is the measurement of these frequency-dependent delays, and
can be shown plotted on a graph of delay time against frequency -- such a
graph for a subwoofer is shown above.
Group delay is the least-considered loudspeaker parameter, but it is important,
because, in some loudspeaker designs, the delay can be very large (ie. greater
than 50ms) in the low-frequency area. If the chosen crossover frequency
coincides with a large delay, the placement and phase problems will be
impossible to resolve successfully, and a bass manager will be vital in that case.
Group delay is normally far larger in satellites with ports than with closed boxes,
although the bass response of ported designs is normally better.
Group delay problems can be minimised by following these guidelines.
Choose satellites designed for low group delay.
Check the frequency of maximum delay with the manufacturer, and don't use it
as the crossover point.
Set the crossover point at least 10-15Hz higher than the satellite -3dB frequency, if using bass management.
What Crossover Frequency Should I Use?

The crossover frequency between the sub and the satellites will normally be in the region of 40Hz to 90Hz,
and will be dictated mainly by the low-frequency performance of the satellites and the group delay at the
crossover frequency. To find a good starting point, check the low-frequency response figures given by the
manufacturer -- if using a bass manager, add 10-15Hz. This crossover point should be adjusted when
performing the final setup.
In order to obtain truly seamless integration of the sub, you should choose satellites that go down to at least
70Hz. I have listened to and tested many systems that are designed to cross over at between 100Hz and
250Hz. The results are always disappointing, and these systems tend to sound disjointed and separate and
can certainly not, to my ears, be classed as monitor systems or even hi-fi.
The Step-by-step Guide To Setting Up Your System
Advising people on the best way to set up a sub/satellite system is a thorny business and one that has led me to exchange
heated emails with many 'professional' installers in the past. While, ideally, the setup method should certainly involve detaile
measurement using high-resolution test
equipment, hardly any end users have access to, or expertise with, this type of
gear. By contrast, all audio engineers, amateur or professional, have access to
the most detailed measuring equipment yet devised -- human ears! Although
setting up a system subjectively may not be as accurate in absolute terms, if the
system sounds right to the person using it, then it is right. In fact, even if the
technical performance of a system seems right, a system which doesn't sound
right to the user will encourage them to add bogus equalisation while recording
to compensate.
To help those of you who don't have access to the test equipment, here's my
subjective adjustment method. First, place the sub and satellites, paying regard
to the points raised above. Next, and this is a caveat, choose a recording with a
wide-ranging and evenly recorded bass line. I would suggest that classical
music is unsuitable for this, as I know of no piece which has a constant and
consistent bass content. My business partner once observed that 'modern'
music is more suitable for this because it emulates pink noise better! I use
Robben Ford & The Blue Line's song 'You Cut Me To The Bone' as a starting
point, for judging bass balance. Note that you should beware of most recordings
made during the '70s and '80s as, almost without exception, they are bass-light
by today's standards.
Set the crossover frequency, also known as frequency contour on some subs,
following the guidelines I've given above. Set the phase control to zero degrees
and the output level to minimum. Place yourself in the intended listening position
and play the track. Spend some time listening carefully. Listen to the bass line
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A graph of group delay against
frequency for a subwoofer, showing a
large delay for signals at around 50Hz.
and identify where the bass notes start to tail off.
Increase the sub output level slowly until you judge it to be roughly correct. Listen carefully again, and ask yourself whether
the bass
level rises on the lower notes. If it does, reduce the output level until the lowest
notes seem to match the upper ones. The golden rule when aligning
subjectively is that too much sub sounds impressive, but is not correct. Be
brutally honest when listening -- if you have set the sub too hot, the bass lines
will not all be even.
Next, listen to the progression of the bass notes and check whether they are all
even. If some frequency regions are more pronounced, you should try adjusting
the crossover point slightly to improve the situation. If this doesn't help, reset the
crossover point and vary the phase in small steps -- note that the most
successful phase setting will not always give a bass maximum. If this also fails,
try inverting the sub signal and then repeating the above steps. If you cannot
get an even response using any of these methods, try siting the sub differently
and then repeating all steps.
When you are happy with the results, play a range of music and make small
adjustments if required. Finally you should remember that the extra octaves that
the sub adds may excite your room in ways you have not previously heard.
Although, without specialist acoustic treatments, there is little that you can do
about this, usable results are normally obtainable by changing the positioning of
either the sub or your listening position.
As long as you specify your speakers sensibly, you should be able to get good performance out of any sub and satellite
system, especially if your funds allow use of a bass manager. Just be sure to take enough time to make the careful subjectiv
judgments which will allow you to properly align the system.
Published in SOS July 2002

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