Subwoofer Placement
Caution! The subwoofer has
•Do not place the cabinet near sources of heat such as furnace registers or radiators.
•Do not allow water or other liquids into the unit. •Allow some air circulation at the rear of the unit.
If the subwoofer is used only for LFE reproduction, it can be placed almost anywhere. If more than one subwoofer is used, placing them in different locations tends to even out possible room resonance irregularities.
If the subwoofer is used with a crossover or Integrator to reproduce the low frequency portion of the main channels then placement is a little more important. The subwoofer(s) preferably should be approximately the same distance from the main listening area as the main speakers. With one subwoofer the best position is usually somewhere between the main speakers but behind them a few feet if possible in order to maintain good stereo imaging.
The use of two subwoofers allows the low frequency signal to be processed in stereo by the crossover unit, and, therefore to provide the best possible imaging. In this case, it is preferable that the subwoofers be placed somewhat near each main speaker. Good placement is anywhere from between the speakers, near each speaker, or at the side walls.
For LFE (“point 1”) channel use, corner placement is often ideal, providing maximum output.
Center placement against the front wall is often optimum for music or movie systems where the subwoofer is used to reproduce left/right channel bass. It provides high output and good “imaging”.
Higher output is achieved when the subwoofer is placed near a wall and even more output is available when placed near a corner of the room. If very high output is desired in large rooms corner placement can be used with little trade- off in sound quality. For use in very large rooms, greater than 4,000 ft3, more than one SS2 may be required if very high playback levels are desired.
Dual corner placement provides maximum output from each sub, higher total output, good “imaging” and more even room response.
Dual subs near the main speakers provide the higher output of dual subs combined with the best “imaging” and most even room response.
Dual subs at the side walls provide the higher output of dual subs, high output from each sub, good “imaging” and even room response.
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