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Musical accuracy in subwoofers

I'm hoping some members who are more musically & technically knowledgeable can answer my questions about subs. While sub shopping, web research and sales people make referrence to subs with accurate timbre. The Linn & REL lines were reported to be more accurate than Sunfires in this respect. After playing my sub at a 45-48 hz. crossover without the main speakers, listening leaves me wondering how timbre ( at this low a crossover point) can be an attribute of a sub when most aspects of timbre are a product of higher frequencies. It seems that pitch accuracy, lack of bloat & "overhang," freedom from cabinet resonance, and the ability to tune crossover, volume, & phase accurately are paramount. But timbre?
photon46

Showing 3 responses by detlof

detlof
1,899 posts
 
Sugarbrie is right. To test for timbre I suggest the following:

Set your crossover point on the sub to its lowest possible setting, preferably to 30hz. Play a disc containing a lot of bass information at your normal listening level with the rest of your equipment switched off, so that you are solely listening to your sub. The sub, which allows you best to distinguish between a base guitar, a double base, the lowest notes of a concert grand and the low pedals of an organ has the best timbre. Cheers,
detlof
1,899 posts
 
Its the timbre of the instrument being reproduced, I referred to, not the timbre a subwoofer might have. If the sub has timbre, a sound of its own, it distorts and you will never get the timbre of the instrument reproduced right. You have to have a lot of intimate experience with live music to test subs this way, i.e. to see if it reproduces the timbre of differet instruments properly. If you don't have this experience, Esmeralda is right, stick to maths. By the way, its necessarz to develop a language to describe musical experience. No maths will tell you, how a rig will sound.
detlof
1,899 posts
 
Nobody said it didn't.
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