Gain level on a REL sub

@surfcat thank you for your detailed explanation based on real life use of REL subs and it has helped me to decide whether it is even a good time to buy some new subs, or to continue to use my Paradigm’s for a bit while experimenting heavily with the settings on my kit.  My subs it seems are designed for HT but reviews say they actually are better for music than a lot of HT applications because they lack a lot of slam.  That’s OK by me as my system is used 90% of the time for music anyway, so perhaps I live with what I have and tweak.  I certainly don’t want things rumbling across the room, that is not how I listen.  Hopefully the OP gets their issue sorted out as well.

Have been through a progression on a number of different subs and several Rel models.  Totally agree with a number of posts that Rel subs are most compatible for 2 channel and not the best choice for HT.  IMO the best Rel for HT and music combined is the SE/SX series.  For my setup I have a stereo pair of Rel's for music and a JL Audio sub for HT LFE.  

Having said that, sufficient volume should not be a problem but will not sound great at max gain.  Could be an issue with a number of potential issues already mentioned?  Generally, the common mistake in setting up Rel subs is to have the X-over set too high and the gain too low.  Properly set up Rel's should add major "dynamics" to the music but be totally transparent.  Should not be boomy.  Comment above that the presence of the sub should not be obvious until you turn it off is right on.

Good luck in the quest...

Well thanks for that, Larry.  Glad I could help something today.  L0L

I’m not sure if anyone mentioned this before but there is a phase switch on the back. Flip it the other way. Hope this helps 

@sns His response is right on target.

The wiring is most likely the issue. I just put 2 T/9X's in yesterday and while they were in route I verified the proper wiring scheme to use. Here is what customer service offered:

"Thank you for reaching out. Either a signal ground or earth ground will be fine for connecting the black High Level wires to, though if possible the earth ground screw would be preferred. If you experience hum from the subwoofer when connecting the black wires to this screw, then you could instead try the signal ground and see if this yields improved results. 
 
We recommend starting with both the red and yellow High Level wires connected for each subwoofer, and in most cases this will result in excellent performance and usable signal levels. However, if you find that the subwoofers have too much output, where barely raising their Level controls already results in them overwhelming the output of your main loudspeakers, then you could try disconnecting one of either the red or yellow wire for each subwoofer. This will lower the input signal gain roughly by half, and will allow for greater flexibility when setting their Level controls. The red and yellow wires are functionally identical, though we generally recommend leaving the red wire connected for the right channel subwoofer and yellow wire connected for the left channel subwoofer in these cases."

The low level may be a better option for you. I found that I have very little volume needed for twin subs but am okay with that since it needs so little (about 30% of the volume knob) to mate with the Wilsons. Took me less than 10 minutes to get a good start to proper sound. I'll further tweak it this weekend.

Lots of good tutorials on their website and manuals are also available.

@jacobsrph And yes, check the phase. If sitting next to the mains then 0 is required Put your fingers on the main woofer and sub to verify they are working in the same direction while playing.