Active line level crossover with subwoofer out - HELP

No idea whether either of these will solve the problem but Parasound Halo preamps have sub out with adjustments

Purely analog crossover, you can add an EQ to the sub after.

My concern is if the sample rate of this device will nullify the resolution value of my DAC. The miniDSP HD apparently is 32bit & 192k. The new $60 dsp from Parts Express doesn’t say.

Yeah, this is an issue. This is why I run purely digital EQ (roon right now) or only in the subwoofer.

These DSP based EQ systems have to deconstruct the incoming analog signal, do math on it, and then have a DAC to turn those numbers back into voltages. Not really some one who spent a lot of money on a DAC wants to do.

Using a digital only EQ solution, which does the math BEFORE your fancy DAC gets around this, but doesn’t have a solution for your subwoofer. I use

For the OP, who has 2 speakers in two different locations, plus a sub, though, he’s really going to need EQ to match the L and R plus integrate the sub. Having a fancy DAC is the least of his worries.

Of course, other solutions include a digital preamp with built in EQ. :) Anthem makes them as well as integrateds, and built in sub out, with automatic configuration.

DSP makes the miserable space I've been relegated to employ as a 'listening area' (I'd be hard pressed to call it a 'room') tolerable....so my bias is obvious, and enough said.

Exactly.  Sure, we all want to be purists, but the reality is that EQ works.

A light hand, focusing on the most terrible problems in the bass, along with fully thought out speaker integration is a good thing.

Doing this when it's quiet is important, or you'll try to EQ your air conditioner.  :-)

Using OmniMic or Room EQ Wizard can be a lot easier and faster than attempting to us an SPL meter though.

Also, no matter the route you go ruler flat rarely sounds best - especially in the analog domain.

Indeed, you, Fred Toole and I agree on this. Fixing gross abnormalities in the bass region is often all you should do.

PS - I do like the Mytek products, but for the most part I’m not fanatical about them.  They have class-leading specs AND sound really good but over the last 10-15 years a lot of great sounding DACs have hit the market.

The only DAC I’m really against are the standalone Oppo lines. I made one or two bad comments about them on Audiogon about them, and the company went under. ;-)

Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.

Fear me, mortals!!!

I have to say last show I was at, the Vandersteen room was the best sounding. The compensation for the room worked really well.

@heaudio123

Not usually how a four output miniDSP works. Usually the outputs are for high and low frequency, so with that configuration it is for 2 satellites and 2 subs, with configuration for high pass, low pass, timing, global EQ as well as EQ per driver. It’s’ important to double check with miniDSP as the mixing is controlled by the app, so ask them if you want to do anything fancy with the bigger units.

OP:

If I remember right, you are a proponent of standalone DACs (specifically Brooklyn),

I like mine, my biggest fear with integrated streamers is support for new handheld OSes and new online services. For instance, if you buy a streamer/receiver, in five years, how many of the online services it supports will still work?

DIY swarms,

Yes to DIY speakers, not swarms. Yes, they work, but they are also complicated in that they require 4 subs, and appropriate cabling. My own personal solution is usually 1 to 2 subs, with bass traps AND EQ.

My (limited) understanding of room nodes is that they are affected by the placement of the subwoofer (or subwoofers, as in a swarm). If that is true, can a single mini-DSP fix the room nodes regardless of subwoofer location? Or do you need one mini-DSP for each sub?

I never said a miniDSP would fix everything all by itself. I was quite narrow in my claim. If all you have is 1 sub, adding EQ can get you far. Of course, optimal placement helps, but after this you may still be left with enormous (20 dB) narrow peaks at the listening location. That is what the EQ alone can fix. Clip them, and you can raise the overall sub volume. This alone is an enormous improvement. How much of course depends on how bad the room is to start with.

Room treatment, AND speaker placement AND EQ however can go even further. It can even out the response across the room, not just one location, and you can even treat nulls.

I see this as a continuum:

• Poor bass due to overall bass level dominated by peaks.
  
• Enjoyable bass 
  
• Great bass.

One subwoofer, good placement and an EQ can often get the hobbyist with limited space and money far into the "enjoyable bass" region. Appropriate room treatment (GIK Acoustics Soffit Traps for instance), additional subs are what moves the needle into great bass.

So, I don’t think the swarm fanatics are wrong about swarms working. I think they are wrong that it is the only possible answer for the hobbyist.

Best,

E

OP:

I encourage you to read in the Room EQ Wizard forums, as well as Audio Science Review similar topics.

If you get a measurement microphone, and a miniDSP, I encourage you to try it out.

Best,

E

You are confused, disoriented, and profoundly illogical opinions can not be "mistaken" they are opinions although in this case what we are talking about are facts also you do not know anything about my professional, academic, and scientific achievements, accomplishments, patents, and interests.

I know you don’t believe in acoustics, and you have yet to ever post anything with measurements, and experiments to prove your point.

You just continue to repeat tropes which were dead in the 90s.

Best,

E

EQ can not fix, correct, or eliminate room nodes the nodes will always be there all you will do is add distortion and an even more uneven net frequency response plot.

clearthink (George hifi’s alt?? ) and Millercarbon lack education and personal experience in a home or professional environment with this, so their opinions are incorrect. Fortunately I have personal, home and professional experience in the motion picture industry as well as I am guided by acousticians who have written on the subject.

They’ve also failed to read multiple postings I’ve made citing appropriate links. They are guided completely by feels.

I’ll summarize my position, guided by hands on measurement, listening and acoustics:

You can use an EQ to clip resonant modes. This allows the overall subwoofer level to be lifted.

With bass traps, you can even solve nulls.

Miller is, as always,  flat out, laughably wrong. He and george number 9 will never know it though. The rest of it is so riddled with half truths and falsehoods it’s not worth attempting to dissect.

Cool part is when you learn to EQ the bass and realize you can fix your room modes. :)

Hey Perkri,

You can do all the filtering and mixing in the miniDSP, or you can do all the filtering and send L and R as separate signals to the sub. up to you.

I recommend you use the miniDSP, then you only have to deal with 1 delay.

Also, look at room EQ Wizard or OmniMic to measure and calibrate it.

The simple way is a miniDSP.
The complicated way is to put a capacitor in series with the amp, and send the full range to the sub, if the sub has a low pass, and most do, you just have to match the cap to the frequency and preamp input impedance.
Otherwise, a number of people make analog crossovers for consumers, but they are rare. Bryston comes to mind.