Understanding Subwoofers

Few people in the world are like audiophiles, who like to cause trouble for themselves and deliberately go "fever"! If they are unlucky enough to mess with the subwoofer, they will be hurt.

The subwoofer is what everyone is familiar with. It has the ability to reproduce subwoofers (30Hz-20KHz) realistically.

There are many satellite-type split speakers on the market called subwoofers that are completely incapable of reproducing sub-bass. The lowest frequency can generally only go down to around 40Hz, so they are not qualified to be called subwoofers.

Real subwoofers are expensive behemoths. Why is that? Because to accurately reproduce the subwoofer, a larger unit is needed, preferably with a diameter of more than ten inches. A large unit is better than a small unit because it has a better ability to push a large amount of air.

The size of the speaker box also increases with the size of the unit. It is very difficult to make a large speaker box. The impact of harmonic vibration on low frequency must be considered. The material of the box, the choice of wood veneer, etc. How to effectively control the harmonic vibration produced by the large unit is the most difficult. Therefore, it is not surprising that there are no cheap small subwoofers. Due to the high production cost, and the fact that most subwoofers have their own amplifiers, there is no room for negotiation on price.

The first time I came into contact with subwoofers was at Audio Suite in Marina Square. The speaker I auditioned was the Spice TC-50, which gave me the feeling that it had a wide sound, strong midrange positioning, and was best at reproducing female voices, but it was not natural enough when it was booming, and it felt compressed and not effortless enough, which was really a flaw! The agent quickly stepped forward and connected the Kinergetics SW100 subwoofer to help. Spica TC-50 and SW100 were all the rage in the United States a few years ago, and Tianshu TAS especially recommended this speaker. It is not difficult to understand why they are so popular, because its performance is first-class. The full-frequency balance, the boom is natural, and the transients are extremely fast. It is a system that can compete with speakers that are twice as expensive. From then on, I was very interested in subwoofers.

The second time I came into contact with a subwoofer was when I listened to the Wilson Watt II/Entec at the Regent Hotel. The Wilson Watt had a good tone and airiness, and the positioning was also good, but unfortunately the low frequency was lacking. Once the Entec was added, I knew what kind of role it played in the overall performance.

I have always loved small speakers, especially those made of exquisite wood veneer. I have heard countless speakers, among which Spice TC-50, ProAc Tablette, and AE-1 left a deep impression. Readers must think that I must be using a pair of them, right? What a pity, I only use JM LAB MICRON. Driven by Audio Innovations tube pre- and post-amplifiers, the song "You and Me" sung by Zheng Yi and Wu Sikai made me feel so good that I placed an order on the spot. Micron speakers not only have good positioning and wide sound field, but also good stereo and air sense. In short, they have many advantages of Mini-monitor. The tenor's tone is even more beautiful and the cello is full of charm.

The only way to run in the speaker is to play music. I took out Hugo's gold disc, but when the big drum of "The Little Knife Society" hit, the four-inch unit almost pounced on my face, which was terrifying. The Organ seemed to be leaking, without any kick, not pleasant enough, and I lost my appetite for a few days. Later, I had an idea and thought of the subwoofer.

I couldn't wait for the weekend to come. I was so tired of thinking about it in the barracks. When the weekend came, I took Micron to Audio Suite for a test listening. The effect was very satisfactory. Even with the subwoofer, the low frequency was not much better. It was even inferior to the super value performance of a pair of Epos 11. So with the noble spirit of an audiophile who never gives up until he reaches the Yellow River, I persuaded the agent to let me test it at home.

Readers don't need to guess what the result was, and there is no prize for it. After waiting for several days (it seemed like several years!), the new Kinergetics SW100.5 finally arrived! I was so excited that it was like a child who had acted cute to his parents and got a set of toy guns that he had been itching for for a long time! I immediately used all my skills and installed the SW100.5 with my fastest hands (if my feet could help, they would definitely come in handy). When I turned it on, it was terrible! It was terrible. I sat there like a wooden chicken for five minutes, and then I realized that the machine was not yet fully burned in. I had to wait patiently. After burning it in for a whole week, the front stage broke down at the most critical moment. I don't know what happened!

A big thank you to Kevin from Reference Audio for loaning me an Acurus L10 to replace the faulty B & K during this time.

The original Micron arrangement was quite random, but once the SW 100.5 was added, trouble came! I had to spend a whole day looking for the best speaker position again. The Micron speaker feet are heavy. I couldn't sleep that night because of fatigue and back pain. I moved it back and forth for a week, and of course my back was sore and I couldn't sleep for a week! At that time, I wanted to split the SW100.5!

Readers should note that the voice coil of the subwoofer must be in line with the voice coil of the main speaker so that the full frequency will be in-phase, and the speaker cable should also be the same as the main speaker to ensure the best effect.

The most enjoyable thing about audiophiles is, of course, a well-tuned sound. Since I got SW100.5, it has been the most enjoyable time of my six years of audiophile experience. No one can predict how far I will go in the future.

In the dim light, VTL seemed to be waving at me from a distance...

Even when daydreaming, I can’t forget the tube amplifier!