Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater epic 60.500, sub just doesn't sound right :(

doh! i thought i was supposed to set the crossover on the sub to the same as the cross over setting on the receiver. *goes to look at the manual online*

read the manual closely *slap self*. Its right there under the crossover section that it needs to be set ABOVE the cross over level set on the receiver ><

now i can't wait to get home and actually set it up the way it was supposed to be done in the first place. my eyes we're immediately drawn to the "M60" at the end of the cross over section of the manual. Not realizing that was referring to a high level input configuration.

I do have an SPL. I bought one years ago and never even took it out of the box. i'll give it a try. i think i'm going to re-run the 5300's calibration once i get the sub set correctly.

Do any of you guys have the M60's, VP150, QS8's and a EP500? What cross over did you set in your receiver? or did you just leave them all set to large?

Generally we set them to small. Crossovers are more of a personal preference, but the general concensus is to start at 80Hz and go from there. If you have crossovers available for each channel, things get a little more complicated--I have my M80s set to 60Hz (maybe 40?), VP100 to 100Hz, and QS4s to 120Hz, with the sub topped out at 120Hz.

I use a xover of 80Hz all the way around for movies (M80s, VP150, and QS8s with EP500 sub). I prefer this for movies and multichannel audio. But for 2 channel standard CDs, I usually prefer to put the receiver in analog bypass mode and use the M80s direct with no sub. This does depend on the recording of the CD as there are a few I prefer to listen to with all speakers and sub.

Good plan to get the crossover set right on the receiver, leave the sub xover on bypass (or as high as it will go to get it out of the way) and balance the level with the other channels. Let your receiver to the auto setup and then check it with your SPL meter to see that it is close to all the other channels from your primary listening position. Also experiment with the phase between zero and 180 and go with what sounds best to you with music. If you change the phase, repeat the auto setup and again double check with your meter.

After finishing the above steps, resist the temptation to turn it up if it doesn't sound strong enough. Give yourself a week of listening as you may find your ears will start to get used to the proper bass level. Certainly is okay to make changes that suit you, just don't rush them. Good luck and happy listening.

I know for myself, I calibrated my sub with the volume knob on the back, to 75db with an SPL meter, and 0 db correction on my reciever. This gave me the ability to + or - the sub to my liking, and always know where 75 db was (right at 0). I usually put the sub at +5db on the receiver end for movies.

well i set it to bypass last night and its still sounds bad. its better and more smooth but now it just sounds like the sub is trying to play all the audio. unfortunately my ears are incredibly sensitive to pressure changes so i need the bass to be really tight and to only enhance the lows. right now it just sounds like poo.

I guess I just need to try to recalibrate it and see what happens. This receiver's auto calibration actually lets you pick and choose which calibrations you want to perform. I'll see what it comes up with and if I like it better. If that doesn't help I'll try manually with the SPL.

I've got another concerns. this theater room is in the basement and the carpet spikes are going all the way through the carpet and pad to the concrete floor. is this going to have an undesired affect on the sound quality? should the spikes elevate the speakers (sub and fronts) so that there is a gap between the carpet and the bottom of the speaker?

That's exactly what they're supposed to do. They're to maintain solid contact with a hard surface, so the speaker isn't "floating" on a soft surface.

Again, forget about the auto calibration - it can severely mess things up. Just shut it off, grab your SPL meter, and do it manualy (sp?). Also, do not underestimate how much the location of the sub has on the sound. Play something that has a lot of repetitive bass. Walk around the room and you will find areas that have WAY too much bass, and others that have almost nill. Move the sub, and the location of these peak and null areas will change.

And as much as everyone says NOT to, if you're still not happy, set your mains to large, and set the sub crossover as low as it will go. That way, the sub is only reproducing the very lowest frequencies. Try it - you can always change it back.

H, since you didn't mention it, I'll again point out that unless your room is very large you may find that setting the trim control to half or even full may give a smoother overall response.

Your comment that the sub is "trying to play all the audio" isn't entirely clear, but may indicate that the level is simply set too high. The sub shouldn't be heard as a separate source; the impression should be that it isn't working but that the speakers are putting out more bass. The level can either be set by the auto calibration or manually with the aid of the SPL meter, although considering that the manual level setting adds a human error factor, it's unlikely to be more accurate(or even as accurate)than the job the receiver will do.

that is definitely my issue. in that the sub just feels like this separate sound source. I'm going to try the SPL setup this week.

If I use the internal test tone to calibrate what volume should I set the receiver on? -20dB? -15dB? what about a starting on sub level (I've seen 9/10 o'clock mentioned but thats just ridiculously loud for my environment) Once I do all the dB adjustments in the receiver for all the other speakers should I turn down the level on the sub directly if I have to adjust that channel excessively in the receiver to match the others?

Check your receiver manual if needed, but most will auto-set the volume for you when using internal generated tones to measure a 75dB reading on your SPL meter. Yes, 9/10 o'clock is way too loud for a EP500. I would think 7 o'clock is closer to where you need to be. Start there and if you end up being too far off in your receiver level controls, start over after adjusting the subs volume knob again.

Once all is balanced you can start experimenting over time with what sounds best to your ear regarding sub phase, crossover, and the trim settings. I would recommend you re-calibrate with your meter if you make any changes to these.