Need help adding a sub to my 2.0 setup

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Coreyk78

Limp Gawd
Joined
Jul 10, 2008
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Hi all, this forum helped steer me toward real speakers and I am currently the happy owner of a pair of M-Audio AV40 monitors. They sound great but I want to add a powered sub for more bass definition. I've been looking hard at the Dayton 8" powered sub from partsexpress.com Dayton 8" powered sub

But here is what I can't figure out from reading specs. I have my monitors plugged into my XFI card and I just leave the volume up in windows and control the volume with the knob on the speakers. I was originally thinking I could just add the dayton sub and plug it into the center/sub output and be good to go, but then it occured to me, how will I be able to control the subwoofer volume? Will I need to get some sort of pre-amp or what is my cheapest option at this time? Thanks in advance.
 
. . . the sub has an amp in it, inherently with a volume control.

As for what to hook it to, I guess using a mini in the X-Fi sub jack to RCA cable hooked to LFE or one of the sub channels (either) will work just fine.
 
while the above suggestion would work, you would have to controll the overal volume with windows.
you set the av40 on a volume level and match the sub level with the sub's volume control then you change the overal volume only via software.

if you want a true volume knob you need a preamp with subwoofer out or use a y-splitter for sub and speakers.
if you only want a "knob" you could use the powermate http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/powermate

i think the powermate is one of the cheapest solutions but consider an external dac with preamp function if your budget allows it. you get the volume control and better sound quality with a device like the zero dac.
 
shadowlord said:
while the above suggestion would work, you would have to controll the overal volume with windows.
you set the av40 on a volume level and match the sub level with the sub's volume control then you change the overal volume only via software.

if you want a true volume knob you need a preamp with subwoofer out or use a y-splitter for sub and speakers.
if you only want a "knob" you could use the powermate http://www.griffintechnology.com/products/powermate

i think the powermate is one of the cheapest solutions but consider an external dac with preamp function if your budget allows it. you get the volume control and better sound quality with a device like the zero dac.
Click to expand...

Thank you very much, thats what I want to be able to do, is have the speakers and sub controlled together with a knob. Controlling the volume through software would be annoying to me, especially in games since most that I play are fullscreen and I would have to alt-tab to desktop just to change the volume. I'll look into your suggestions and figure out what I want to do. :D
 
the behringer should work ok as preamp.

but if i where you i would go used with that budget.(i don't like the look and the resulting cable clutter of the behringer mixer)

there are some home hifi preamps that end soon are still within your budget.

http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?from=R40&_trksid=m37.l1313&satitle=preamplifier&category0=

http://cgi.ebay.com/Carver-Control-...ryZ12050QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/Sansui-Stereo-P...ryZ12050QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
 
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I ordered my sub today, I followed your ebay links to those preamps and I watched a few of the auctions but the kept getting bid up over what I was willing to spend so I decided to try one of these,

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=150284936999&ssPageName=ADME:B:EF:US:1123
Seems like it should work nicely for what I want to do, and it has additional sets of inputs so I can add other stuff like PS3 etc., and play them through my computer speaker setup :)

Thanks for the advice shadowlord, and although I didn't actually get anything you linked me too you steered me in the right direction I think :D
 
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That preamp is for phono. This is an important difference. Phono preamps (well, other than $10 China specials) have special equalization curves (RIAA). If it is not defeatable on that, it will screw up your sound majorly.
 
you are right the 3 standard inputs should work fine for you and you can add a turntable if you want too :)

please let us know how it sounds.
 
My Dayton 8" sub showed up at my house yesterday, still waiting on the preamp though. For now I have my monitors daisy chained through the pre-out on the sub so that I could start playing with the sub. First impression, WOW! this thing really packs a punch, especially for being an 8" with a modest 80watt amp. IMO it sounds much more powerful and cleaner than the sub from my old klipsch 5.1 multimedia speakers.

Its going to take some more tweaking to get the levels balanced right so that the sub doesn't overpower the other speakers, but I am very impressed and happy with my purchase so far. I don't expect the preamp to make a difference in the sound, but it will add the convenience of a single volume knob and the ability to add other music sources later. I'll post again when I get the preamp sometime next week. :)

Also, I decided that I would like to have a real set of headphones for gaming and music listening, especially at night when the kids are asleep. I ordered a pair of Sennheiser HD 485's that from what I have read are pretty decent at their price point (got mine for $70 off ebay). This is my set of "real" headphones, so I'm excited to get them. I'm going to try running them straight off my soundcard to start, since I heard they don't require an amp to sound nice, and then sometime later I may add a dedicated headphone amp like a Zero and run it off the digital out on my X-FI.
 
Just wanted to update this thread, I got the preamp and wired it between my soundcard and the sub with my M-Audio's running off the preout on the sub. It seems to be totally transparent, I hear no difference in the sound, which is good I think :) The volume dial is smooth and there isn't any crackling or popping or anything while changing volume, it does exactly what I wanted it to so I'm happy.
 
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