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Gammatron
8
May 28, 2015
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Quick beginner question - do you need a receiver or audio interface to hook this up to a computer, or is there a direct-to-mainboard cable that you can use? I have a pair of Yamaha MSP5A monitors that I'd like to use this woofer with on my comp.
May 28, 2015
Anonymouse
216
May 28, 2015
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GammatronYou can do it with just the right cables and adapters, but for a bunch of reasons you'd be better off buying a different unit. Read the previous two pages of the thread.
May 28, 2015
Gammatron
8
May 28, 2015
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AnonymouseYou mean the SB-1000? Are those RCA inputs equivalent to the 6.3 mm / XLR ones on the Yamaha woofer? Would I go about connecting the speakers to it and it to my computer in the same way? Just a matter of cables? I had read your criticism of the HS8 but $500 is a bit more than I'm willing to pay.
May 28, 2015
tigrrrlily
6
May 28, 2015
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GammatronYou'd be fine using the standard hook-up method of an RCA/TS cable (like a pair of Hosa CPR-510s) going to the sub, then branching out from the sub outputs to the MSP5As. What you'd use depends on how you've got them connected now, and whether you get enough / too much volume out of them currently. If you have to turn your volume control down a bunch as is, go with a standard XLR microphone cable from the sub into the speakers' XLR inputs. If your current available volume is just sufficient, then an XLR->TS adapter cable going from the sub into the phone jack of each MSP5A would be the way to go.
May 28, 2015
Anonymouse
216
May 29, 2015
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GammatronFeels a bit to me like "But for want of $150, $350 was wasted", but it's your money in the end. It costs less than 50% more to get something way more than twice as good, so while it might cost more, it's much better value.
To connect the Yamaha you'll need XLR cables, which tend to cost a little more, and at least one adapter of some sort to get your (presumably) stereo RCA out into the sub. With the SVS options you only need a stereo RCA cable and two mono ones, no adapters (unless your monitors only have XLR in). You need to factor adapter and differing cable costs into your final total cost.
May 29, 2015
Gammatron
8
May 29, 2015
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AnonymouseIf there were in theory a $100,000 subwoofer 1,000 times as good as this one, that would be a better value too, but should I sell a lung and kidney for that just because I'm in the market for one? $150 may not seem like much to you, but at this point in time it's a greater difference than I'm willing to pay for a piece of equipment that will probably only marginally improve my enjoyment of sound.
This is true in particular because this would be my first ever subwoofer purchase, and I'm sure I'd enjoy it very much for being a decent piece of equipment, even if someone [as well-versed in audio tech as you] claims it has obvious flaws. Moreover, I have to be skeptical of your saying that the SB1000 is over twice as good as the HS8, largely because sound quality is subjective but also because of diminishing returns. Forgive the analogy if it has no place here, but in the world of headphones, for example, I'd be hard-pressed to find anyone who would claim that even a $1000+ pair could ever sound 'twice as good' as a good $200 pair. I appreciate your criticisms of the HS8, and I've taken them into consideration (I'm not joining the drop; I'll look at more alternatives before making a purchase), but, without intending to offend, I must say that you sound like an SB sales rep, haha.
May 29, 2015
Anonymouse
216
May 29, 2015
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GammatronYou can make such a quantification with subs, though, as their performance is very much limited by physics. They work down in the regions where efficiency limitations make more full-range drivers functionally inaudible, by focusing only on those regions. Much like with engines, there's just no substitute for displacement. The point of a sub is to fill in the gap between the lowest your speakers can go and the lower-limits of human hearing, and there's no point buying something that isn't going to cover most of that gap, otherwise it's like buying a monitor that only displays red and blue properly, but just barely manages a suggestion of green; there's whole ranges of "colour" missing from the audible palatte.
Similarly, if the sub can't make the volume, your "monitor" is just too "dim" to enjoy, or even notice at all in a lot of its professed range. Once you realise this, the only solution is to replace it completely, so the most frugal option is to buy the right thing first off. What the right thing is depends on what you want to play through it, how much room volume you want to sacrifice to the bass gods, and how big your room is. The HS8 doesn't sound like it'd be the "right" thing for anyone, really. The "Studio" part of the name is largely ruled out by the ported design choice, and the "Sub" part by the fact it doesn't produce much actual sub-bass. And then it's only 150W, which puts a low cap on your maximum SPL and severely limits your ability to try to EQ it upstream for better performance.
May 29, 2015
Gammatron
8
May 29, 2015
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AnonymouseWell, once again, I appreciate the wealth of information you've taken the time to share, and it's nice that there is the occasional someone whose advice can help you skip a few rungs on the upgrade ladder. If the void left in the lower sub-bass regions by the HS8 is as pronounced and bothersome to me as to you, then I'd have no trouble agreeing with your reasoning, yet I imagine the best way to find out is to test it and compare its performance to that of another sub. Thanks and good luck!
May 29, 2015
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