How to Connect a Subwoofer to Your Stereo System

who doesn't want amazing Bass from their stereo system a subwoofer is a very important part of The Grand Design without the ability to hit low frequencies you could be missing out on a full experience of your favorite music in this tutorial I will teach you how to connect your subwoofer to different types of sources as well as make sense of all those knobs in the rear of the sub let's get to it the most crucial step in setting up a sound system is selecting the right subwoofer to meet your needs many people choose to use multiple subwoofers as they can help balance the base response throughout the listening area a single subwoofer May create hot spots or nulls where bass frequencies are either too strong or too weak due to room Acoustics and standing waves utilizing multiple subwoofers can mitigate these issues offering a more consistent base experience in my opinion using two matching subwoofers in a stereo setup is the best approach as it provides enhanced output and dynamic range this allows for higher volume levels and improved reproduction of transient details on the music in some cases multiple subwoofers can facilitate better integration with the main speakers resulting in a more seamless and natural sound as you can see I'm quite the advocate for using multiple subwoofers however if you can only accommodate one subwoofer I'm going to make sure you are well equipped to achieve the best possible listening experience once you've chosen the size make and model of the subwoofer that fits your needs the next step is to connect it to your system if you have an integrated amplifier or receiver from this Sentry it likely has a subwoofer output on the rear of the unit however with older gear this option may not be available and I will address that shortly if your gear are you saying there's something wrong with my gear has a subwoofer output connecting your subwoofer is going to be super simple you'll need a subwoofer cable like this one which can be found for an affordable price on Amazon I will provide the links below connect one end of the cable to the subwoofer output on your gear and the other end to the subwoofer input on the back of your subwoofer some subwoofers have an LFE input on the back the LFE input is designed to receive low frequency effects from an AV receiver or processor when connected using the LFE input the subwoofer takes over reproducing low frequency content relieving the main speakers from handling that deep bass this can result in a more immersive and dynamic home theater experience as well as better overall sound quality now in a two channel stereo setup for music using an LFE input is not typical as it's primarily intended for multi-channel home theater purposes where low frequency effects are separate from the main channels for a two channel stereo setup you would typically use line level connections to integrate your subwoofer with your main speakers if you have an older preamp or receiver like I do the connection process may be a little bit different in my case I had an extra pre-out so one of my pre-outs goes to the main amplifier and the other goes to the subwoofer many older receivers and some budget-friendly newer components and options don't have pre-outs or subwoofer outputs in this case you'll need a subwoofer with speaker level inputs here's how to connect it locate the speaker terminals on your amplifier or receiver find the left and right speaker outputs on the back of your amplifier or receiver typically marked as L or R and using either spring-loaded or binding post terminals locate the speaker level input terminals on your subwoofer these are usually found on the back of your subwoofer marked as Speaker in or high level in and have similar terminals to your amplifier or receiver prepare your speaker wire depending on the terminals on your amplifier receiver and subwoofer you may need to strip the insulation off the ends of the speaker wire or use banana plugs Spade connectors or pin connectors make sure you separate the positive and negative strands of the speaker wire connect the speaker wire from the amplifier connect a positive strand of the speaker wire to the positive terminal on your amplifier's left speaker output and the negative strand to the negative terminal then connect the other end of the speaker wire to the corresponding positive and negative terminals on the subwoofer's left speaker level input make sure to repeat the process for the right channel use another speaker wire to connect to the right speaker output of your amplifier to the right speaker level input on your subwoofer ensuring the positive and negative strands are connected to the correct terminals if your subwoofer has speaker level output terminals connect your main speakers to these outputs this allows the audio signal to pass through the subwoofer to your main speakers use speaker wire to connect the left and right speaker level output terminals on your subwoofer to the corresponding terminals on your main speakers that is an old-school way of doing things but if it's necessary now you know how it's done once everything is connected you're ready to adjust the settings on your subwoofer some manufacturers like SVS offer a mobile app for easy adjustments but many subwoofers require manual adjustment in this case I'll guide you through the traditional method first let's tackle the gain or volume knob adjusting this knob increases or decreases the subwoofer's audio signal amplitude turning it clockwise boosts the output level making the base louder while turning it counterclockwise lowers the output making the base quieter note that this gain control is different from the volume control on your amplifier or receiver as it specifically adjusts the subwoofer's output level so you can't control anything other than that so it's important to note that the gain or volume knob on a subwoofer is not the same as the volume on your amplifier or receiver once you've found the ideal subwoofer volume move on to the crossover the crossover sets a frequency point for the subwoofer to handle low frequency reproduction leaving mid and high frequencies to the main speakers adjusting the crossover helps achieve a seamless blend between the subwoofer and main speakers creating a balanced and cohesive sound the optimal crossover frequency depends on your main speaker's capabilities room Acoustics and personal preferences typically ranging from 60 hertz to 120 hertz I generally set the subwoofer crossover around 10 Hertz higher than my speaker's roll-off point this overlap will help ensure a seamless transition between the output of the main speakers and the subwoofer providing a smoothing nice bass response lastly if your subwoofer has a phase knob you'll want to adjust it the phase knob helps ensure that the sound waves from your subwoofer and main speakers align properly for the best audio performance some subwoofers don't even include this option but many do in simple terms when the subwoofer and main speakers are in Phase their sound waves work together producing a Fuller and you know more coherent sound if they are out of phase the sound waves can cancel each other out leading to weak or Hollow sounding audio especially in the bass frequencies obviously most subwoofers have a phase control that can be adjusted between 0 and 180 degrees or 0 and 360 degrees this control lets you match the phase of the subwoofer with that of the main speakers to find the best phase setting start with the control at zero degrees play a song with a strong bass line and listen carefully slowly adjust the phase control and pay attention to the Bass Performance the best setting will be the one that gives you the fullest most consistent sound keep in mind that the ideal face setting can depend on your room speaker placement and where you are sitting it's important to try different face settings to achieve the best sound quality for your specific setup final aspect to consider is subwoofer placement while some experts recommend crawling around on the floor to find a sweet spot this may not be practical if you have limited placement options like in a smaller setup instead you may need to experiment with with what you got you know such as placing a subwoofer to the left to the right or slightly off center to find the best location that suits your listening area keep in mind that your available space will greatly influence where you can place your subwoofer as mentioned earlier in the video using multiple subwoofers is often the best approach for achieving an even base response however if you only have one subwoofer focus on finding a spot that enhances your listening experience the most remember the optimal subwoofer placement can vary greatly depending on your room's Acoustics furniture and just overall layout so don't be afraid to try different configurations until you find the one that works best for your specific listening environment I hope this guide helps you enhance your basic experience and sets you on the right path with your subwoofer if you enjoyed the video I encourage you to Crane kick the like button subscribe to the channel and ring the bell to get notified when a new video is born with all that said and done I will see you on the next one

Channel: Michael Andrew

Views: 75,757

Keywords: subwoofer, how to, how to connect your subwoofer, home theater, bass, setup, stereo, audio, system, sub, spl, low bass, sound system, how to hook up a subwoofer in your house, home audio, home audio system, audiophile, home cinema, subwoofers

Id: Wo5TwacV7-c

Length: 8min 44sec (524 seconds)

Published: Wed Apr 19 2023