another "help me choose" thread...

[cokewithvanilla]

Let me start out by saying that I hate to be the one always asking questions and never giving answers. But here I am, again, in search of help. Home theater is new to me, however, if any of you need help with your computers, I would be more than happy to offer advice :)

Again, I feel terribly stupid to have to ask, but after looking at many other forums, I figured that maybe someone here on the polk forum would have a similar setup and could offer some advice.

I need a subwoofer, and I have done some looking. There are a few brands that I have been watching for, including: SVS, HSU, and M&K. I don't want to spend more than $800, and I don't mind buying used.



The room is 20 x 18 x 9.
Speakers: LSi25,LSiC, LSiFX, LSiFX

Preamp: Emotiva DMC-1
Amplifier: B&K 7270 Series II

I am in for a clarity, not just loud noise, which is why M&K's THX certification attracted me (i'm probably stupid for even caring about the badge). My primary use for this setup will be movies. I, of course, will listen to music from time to time, likely classic rock and movie soundtracks.

I guess what I really need to know is what size sub is enough, and what is too much for a room of this size.

My only problem is there is only one place I can put the sub, because I have run the wire through the walls, and the sub cannot be in any walkway, or in front of any doors. The placement will be on the left 20 foot about 5 feet away from the main speakers. Also, have I gone wrong with the LSi25's?

Any advice?


And thanks in advance for *all* advice/comments

[janmike]

Your room is very close to mine and I am running the LSi series as well. I purchased a SVS sub and, YES, I went over my budget. The one I have is the SVS PB12-PLUS and I could not be happier. Loud is one thing but REAL sounding is another. The SVS delivers. There are lots of good brands out there and for movies I have no regrets about purchasing the SVS. Good luck.

[Shicks18]

ever thought of changing out one of those pairs of LSiFX's for some LSi9's? Especially for rear surround.... just a thought.

edit: Epik Caliber for $699 new. http://www.epiksubwoofers.com/Products.html .. good reviews especially for HT

[cokewithvanilla]

yes sir, I was just about to ask if I sould do lsi 9's in the rear and fx on the sides... is that what you would suggest?

[cokewithvanilla]

oh, I am mounting the rears on the walls. they are about 5-6 feet off the ground... is this a problem? I hope not, because I have already put up the drywall :)

edit: are lsi 9's as deep as LSi25's? do they have wall mounts o nthe back like the fx and c?

[Shicks18]

I would suggest LSi9s for rears and FX for sides.

Mounting LSi9s on the walls wouldn't be the best idea since they are 33lbs a piece. It can be done however, but ive heard that they sound different on wall mounts instead of normal speaker stands. I would ask others have their 9s mounted. I use my 9s as fronts on speaker stands and they are wonderful that way. I am considering another pair for my surround rears, its a great speaker.

The 25's will be deeper than the 9's in part to their 10" subwoofer. From what I have gathered the drivers are the same for the midrange and tweeter between the 9s and 25s, but the crossovers n such are different, thus making the 9s preferable to some, and the 15s and 25s to others.

Hope that helps you out, as of now getting a subwoofer will benefit your system the most than swapping the FXs for 9s.

[McLoki]

B-tech, BT-77 stands would allow you to mount LSi9's as your rear speakers. You could also go with LSi7's if you chose.

For a sub, I would look hard at SVS, Epik, eD, HSU and outlaw (HSU design). Out of these, I would say Epik and eD are at the top of the performance per dollar ratio with SVS and HSU close behind. Typical good advise is to figure out what size sub you need for your room (just send an e-mail to the sub companies and ask their opinion giving them your room size, use (movies or music with type of music or movies you watch) as well as your typical volume level. Most will answer honestly) and get at least that level of sub or one level above it.

Regarding the 25's - personally I like the 15's more, but if you like the 25's, there is nothing wrong with that. They will still match the rest of the LSi line just fine. Personally, I am not a huge fan of powered towers.

Enjoy - you are building quite the home theater.

Michael

[cokewithvanilla]

Well, I demoed the 15's ad the 25s, the 25's sounded much, much better. However, when I demoed the 25's they set it up special for me, so I do not know what amp and what not they used. They could have been just trying to sell me the more expensive speaker (especially considering that they told me they could set me up a theater system for only $50,000). I also felt that by buying polks top end speaker, I couldn't go wrong. I could always sell mine and buy 15's.

Unfortunately, I will *have* to mount my speakers on the wall. I have wires running up to boxes that are 5.5 feet off the ground. I hope I made the right decision, I had planned for the FX's :(

IF the 25's sound bad, I could just turn off the subs on them and use them like a lsi 9, right?

As for subwoofers, I did not realize that Epik were better than HSU, Epiks are surprisingly cheap (this is good news :) ). a while back on AVSforum, someone rated a whole bunch of subs and the HSU with "turbo" was third from the top of the list.

No one has mentioned M&K so far. I hear that owners are incredibly impress with the quality of their subs, and I have a neighbor who has one that sounds great.

A new theater place just opened down the street, they apparently deal in super high end audio ($50,000+ systems). I am almost afraid to walk in there, but I might check to see if they have any of these subs.

[Face]

If you hooked 15's and 25's up to a receiver, the 25's will probably sound better. From what I hear, with a real amp, 15's should sound better.

[danger boy]

since you have Polk speakers.. why not get a Polk subwoofer and the you have a complete set up of all Polks?

the PSW1000 is the perfect match to the LSi's http://www.polkaudio.com/homeaudio/p...ofers/psw1000/

[cokewithvanilla]

from what I hear, the polk subwoofers aren't very good.

thats too bad about the 25's :( I suppose for my 7270 the 15's would have been a better choice? Makes me mad, but not quite as mad as when I dropped my brand new LSiC :/

I took a look at Epik and ED subs. I can get a 18 inch ed w/ a 1300 watt amp for only 775, free shipping. With Epik, I can get the Caliber for around the same price. I cannot find any reviews comparing them, does anyone know of a place I can find one?

[Face]

Save your money and get the 15's.

eD puts out a good sub, and so does Epik. I have a eD A5-300, but have never heard a Epik to compare it to.

As for Polk's subs, the DSW line is much better than the stuff they've put out in the past. See if you can catch a demo somewhere.

[cokewithvanilla]

Save your money and get the 15's.

I already own the 25's.

[Face]

I already own the 25's.

Sorry, it's late. :)

[erm93ct]

i just got a PSW303 and it sounds amazing. you should get one

[suprafantx]

If you hooked 15's and 25's up to a receiver, the 25's will probably sound better. From what I hear, with a real amp, 15's should sound better.

With correct phase set up, 25's will sound better than 15's regardless of using receiver or amp. Setting up 25's is not an easy task, but if you have your 25's set up right, you will never go back 15's.