Subwoofer placement

[PaulD]

I understand that a subwoofer is non directional and can be placed just about anywhere in a room. I would like to place one inside an entertainment hutch if possible to make it less visible. Placement would put it within 1 foot of other electronic components in the same entertainment hutch. Will that work?

 

[electron]

IMO, This might cause some annoying vibration issues, but I do know that as long as it has enough room to breathe, it should be doable.

 

[IVB]

What type of subwoofer? I have a Hsu Research STF-2 subwoofer, one of the draws (other than price & performance) is that I could use it as an end-table, and put stuff on it.

 

[Paul]

I also use my subwoofer as an end table.

Fwiw both of my xboxes sit on top of the thing, and I haven't ever had a problem.

I did have a lamp walk its way off once, but I put some squishier feet on it and it seems to be steady now. If you do put your sub in the cabinet, make sure you get good feet on it, and maybe put small pieces of dynamat or the equivalent on the edges of doors/drawers so that they don't rattle. Especially if you're putting out as much bass as mine is

http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cf...tnumber=300-764

 

[PaulD]

The sub I have in mind is not big enough for an end table plus my wife would never let me use one that way anyway. It is a small one...about a 15" cube size and that is why I thought I could stuff it in my entertainment hutch. I think I can deal with the vibration via some cushion feet. My biggest concern was if it might cause any electrical issues by being too close to my A/V receiver or other components.

 

[ginigma]

When I build my wall unit (at some point the economy will get better and I will be able to afford it) I plan on putting my sub in the base cabinet, and basically replacing the door in front of it with acoustical fabric (speaker cloth). I will insulate the cabinet with some type of damping material as well, because I don't want the whole wall unit vibrating. The sub woofer will be isolated from all the wood some how. Don't have that planned out right now, but that's the idea.

 

[Paul]

The sub I have in mind is not big enough for an end table plus my wife would never let me use one that way anyway. It is a small one...about a 15" cube size and that is why I thought I could stuff it in my entertainment hutch. I think I can deal with the vibration via some cushion feet. My biggest concern was if it might cause any electrical issues by being too close to my A/V receiver or other components.

I don't think it will cause any electrical issues. Most HA subs are shielded to avoid it.

 

[AutomatedOutlet]

I understand that a subwoofer is non directional and can be placed just about anywhere in a room. I would like to place one inside an entertainment hutch if possible to make it less visible. Placement would put it within 1 foot of other electronic components in the same entertainment hutch. Will that work?

Not true, subwoofer place DOES matter. If not done properly, you can get dead spots, etc. For a guide on placement, here is one place to look

I think cabinet installation would also be problematic due to vibrations. If the sub is doing what it is supposed to be doing, a lot of air will be moving and vibrations will happen.

 

[IVB]

One other idea: I also have an inwall Niles PSW inwall subwoofer in the MBR. Don't get me wrong, the Hsu kicks it's butt, however there's zero chance of a freestanding subwoofer in the MBR. It's better than nothing.

 

[huggy59]

PaulD, I doubt the subwoofer will cause electrical issues being close to other equipment (but anything's possible). The larger issue will be the muffling of the sub's output, and vibration (and what that causes). Now if you have a turntable in the same cabinet, you'll know about vibrations and feedback when you spin up a nice vinyl LP... ;-)

If any of your gear has tubes, I wouldn't put the sub anywhere near the tube gear - the vibrations will shorten the life of the tubes quickly. But anything solid-state should be fine as long as terminals and connections are firm and tight.

 

[PaulD]

OK...you convinced me. Based on everyones comments, I do not think I would have an electrical isse to deal with but I would have vibration issues as well as degrated sound quality. I will place the sub outside the cabinet and deal with the WAF seperately. Perhaps I can hide it behind a plant.

 

[sjht]

I read that you can put your subwoofer in your primary listening position and then move around to find where it sounds the best. Wherever you were standing, place the subwoofer in that location. For most folks, they end up putting it where it fits in easily. Good luck.

 

[wuench]

Apparently, I was using mine as a hideout for a family of scorpions at my lake house. That was until I started a movie up, man was that an exciting movie. Too bad we weren't watching Indiana Jones...

 

[mdesmarais]

Don't automatically discount it on the basis of placement- it is possible that it could work, just that you can't count on it- you need to try it, ideally with a sound meter and frequency sweep to make sure it doesn't cause severe nulls or peaks.

 

[Neurorad]

Put it in the cabinet. Try it. No harm.

Just make sure you try it without the wife around - she may say it sounds fine, but you may disagree.