JL Audio Fathom f110v2

POWERED SUBWOOFER

- KALMAN RUBINSON

Some contentious issues will not be resolved in my lifetime: vinyl vs. digital, tubes vs. solid-state, subjective vs. objective, streaming vs. physical media. Also, subwoofers vs. no subwoofers in a stereo music system.

Setting aside the issues of cost and space and domestic tranquility and considering only the quality of the musical experience, I believe a subwoofer, or a few, should be a basic component of any modern audio system.

Regardless of the size and range of yours, loudspeakers—the main ones—are always positioned for optimal tonal balance and imaging based on their on-axis frequency response, off-axis dispersion, and the interaction of those parameters with a room’s reflective surfaces. Optimizing low bass presents completely different challenges: Sources of low bass should be positioned to optimize interaction with low-frequency room modes, which in turn depend on the room’s dimensions and shape. (Low bass is not involved in imaging, and in the low bass, “direct sound” is not even a useful idea.)

Except by chance or in a few purpose-built rooms—not all of them—there is no common solution to both tasks: no single spot that’s best for low bass and the rest of the audible frequency range. The addition of subwoofers allows independent solutions to a music system’s high- and low-frequency needs: You can position the subs independently of the main speakers, putting each in the position that works best. The possibility of incorporating several subs, each a different location, adds to this advantage.