Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Home Theater hsu stf-2 ?

i just purchased the hsu stf-2 sub. and was wondering what the best setting were. im talking about the volume and crossover settings on the back and any other settings that i can do to maximize it. i have a onkyo tx701 receiver if that helps. i also have m60's, vp160, and 3qs8's on the way(running 6.1). any help will be appreciated as i am new to all this and have no idea what is best for the sub settings. thanks.

vp150, sorry...

Defeat the crossover on the Hsu and set the crossover on your receiver to between 60-80hz. Volume setting is pretty much preference. Generally you want the sub and speakers equalized. If your receiver will generate pink noise to allow you to set levels, then that's the best way to do it. Get a Radio Shack sound level meter, and as the pink noise switches from channel to channel, make adjustments as necessary to get the levels matched.

There's a recent thread around here for finding that sound meter REALLY cheap. Well worth the price...

Greetings,
First, go to your local Radio Shack and buy a sound pressure meter. Then, do a search on this forum for "calibration" and follow along on the instructions. It's pretty simple, and only takes a few minutes to get the initial settings. The key is the meter...check back in after you get one.
b.

Listen to them. They speak the truth.

I picked up an STF-2 from my local compUSA on Thursday. I had been on the fence for a while, wondering why there was only ONE review on audioreview.com, and whether my local compUSA had an early bad batch with the Darla problem. What pushed me over was the review by spiff and curtis, and thank you guys for that (I chose the clenched empty hand). It fit within the budget and the very limited space available for it. Nothing else came close on those criteria and still had performance.

I'm still locating, calibrating, evaluating, etc., but I am listening to music again. Actually, I'm listening to ALL of my music. The bass that was missing with my old subwoofer with music is so THERE with this one. It blends so nicely with the m22Ti's, it's like they were designed together.

OK, your original question. I have the RatShack meter and the S&V setup disk, and I think I've got it real close to where I'll never need touch it again. Believe it or not, the suboofer volume is only one hash mark above minimum, due west on your compass, 9:00, 270 degrees.

Start out lower than you think. Once you get accustomed to listening at that setting, you can add a little bit more sub volume and be able to notice whether that little bit more is good or bad. You can't do that if you start out with too much bass from the subwoofer.

Unless you want a disco.

Not to be off topic... BUT.... am I the only one who does a double-take every time he sees stf-2? I keep thinking I am seeing STFU. Or am I just that immature?

jr

Coch, as Craig suggested, for the crossover switch the STF-2 internal crossover out and let your 701 handle the crossover duties. The best compromise frequency to set for the speakers you'll have is 80Hz. The level of the sub should be set by ear or preferably by meter, using the sub level controls on the sub and the receiver working together. It shouldn't be necessary to set either control near its maximum, rather if possible both should be at a similar level. If set by ear the sub level shouldn't be so high that it draws attention to itself; the impression should be that the sub isn't working but the other speakers are putting out more bass. Many setups have the sub too loud.

thanks all for replying, i knew i was probably doing something wrong because i have the volume on the sub turned up over half way... how do i turn off the crossover on the sub so my receiver can handle it. also i went into speaker setup and the sub only went up to 12db. is that right? am i doing something wrong? any help is greatly appreciated as i am clueless to this stuff but am trying to learn a little. thanks again...

Greetings,
To get the Hsu cross over out of the way, just turn the dial on the back all the way clockwise...now the receiver will handle the crossover wherever you have it set..If it is adjustable, set it at 80...
b.

Or just use the "crossover" toggle switch (located on the sub amp) set to "out".