Little help with REL subwoofers, please?


I'm not especially knowledgeable about subwoofers and I'd appreciate some advice. I've got a pair of Magnepan 1.7i placed in a small (long, rectangular) room. I had a hefty JL sub that shook the house but that I could never fully integrate. On a whim, I switched it out for a pair of the diminutive REL Tzero subs and the sound is vastly better. On some music, though, such as classical organ, I miss the growl and thunder. I don't feel like I need to boost the "upper bass" and I definitely don't want to muddy things up; it's really the deep rumble that I occasionally want.

If it helps, I'm thinking of a piece of music like Max Richter's "On the Nature of Daylight," which about halfway through delivers a broad, deep sweep of musical sound that I want to *feel.*

I'm mostly pleased with the setup and I don't want to reinvent my room's wheel or break the bank. And I'd like to stay with at least two subs and likely stay with REL. So I'm thinking I might: 1) add a T/9X or maybe a T/7X and perhaps keep the crossover low; or 2) swap out the Tzeros and replace them with a pair of T/7Xs. For now, a pair of T/9Xs is a budgetary stretch that I'd like to avoid (and it is a small room).

Would it be weird having two Tzeros combined with the much bigger T/9X? Would the T/7X produce that deep, enveloping bass? I'm not particularly good at reading specs but -6dB at 30Hz doesn't sound especially deep to me. (The JL was -3dB at 23Hz.) Or am I misunderstanding how bass works and would a T/7X go plenty deep in a small room?

Thanks and Happy New Year!

 

northman

You’d be surprised how fast the Rythmik subs are. I’m using an F12 with Ascend Sierra Towers w/ RAAL ribbon tweeters and they integrate great to my ears.

I’ve eyed the FM8’s before but my use for them would be as low/mid-bass drivers, as they were intended, to add punch around 150Hz. Sub-bass (<80Hz) isn’t the type of bass that hits you in the chest.

Hello, @northman. Just so you know, if you decide on REL T/7x's, I'm about to sell a pristine black pair. I have all of the original equipment: boxes, power cords, high level cables, manuals, etc. I'd be willing to sell the pair for $1400 + shipping costs, so this could save you a bit of money versus new. If interested, please reach out: fitmannj@icloud.com.

Thanks to you both. I bet many can relate to this: I was moving forward on the subwoofer path, closing in ... and then life stepped in. In the last five days we've had two major weather events here in northern Vermont where I live, and my house and property took a serious hit. I'm now waiting on the repair estimates before I return to the more pleasurable audio prospects. Obviously the lesson is: don't delay  the fun purchases!

@northman I wish you the best in getting your house into tip-top condition once again...