What is simply the better sub???

[alphaproject]

You got the TN-1220 or the VTF-3 as flagships of either line, but which sub kicks the most ass during movies?

Personally I already have a huge sub, but since it's not exactly a perfectly engineered sub I'm not sure on what I might be missing.

I made a sub out of a Rockford Fosgate Power Series woofer with 1000 watts RMS per voice coil, 2000 watts peak. I had RF give me specs of a box that could be used for Home Theater. A speaker company built it and mailed me the box and now that's what I use. It has a rectangular port, which has been excellent. I hear no port noise at all.

I'm only putting 100 watts x 2 into it, which could be a huge limiting factor, but of course I'm not sure.

The sub can pound, that's not the question. I'm mainly concerned about getting that true home theater quality sound you hear in really good theaters or in showrooms.

Maybe it's not the sub at all though, could be the room....

How can I be sure???

Is there a way I can test the room acoustics? Or sub?

Overall it's not a bad sub, it really rattles the walls, big time. It's said to go down to 24 hz. Not quite the low HSU specs, but decent. Could be worse!

Sometimes I feel the low bass is like passing me by. Like if I am in the bathroom, I almost hear a really low bass that the bedroom is missing. I can sure feel the air though. I do feel it in my chest.
I'd almost rather hear the low end than feel the higher end bass though.

If anyone has any suggestions let me know. Someone told me a really good amp could help. I'm just not sure.

It's like.....buy the HSU sub and probably get what I am looking for or waste my time experimenting with my already existing sub.

Does anyone is Florida have an HSU setup I could hear???
Maybe you could even hear my sub and let me compare yours in the same room.

I am in West Palm Beach area.

[Sasha_G]

I wouldn't say it is "simply the better sub", but for home theater the VTF-3 rocks. You can hear bass notes instead of bloated featureless booming, and the maximum output mode helps with impact. A flat mid-bass frequency response limits the mid-bass peaking in the room.

Yes, sounds below around 200 Hz are especially effected by room acoustics. Just walking around the room like you did will prove that.

Dr. Hsu provides advice on where the bass response might be best, based on his knowledge of room acoustics. We have a form on the website to figure that out.

For those who are into experimenting, you can measure the changes in the bass response with a Radio Shack SPL meter-- or a good microphone and these computer programs:
http://www.etfacoustic.com/
http://www.telebyte.com/pioneer/

Another technique to see the entire room's bass response on a map is with a calculation program such as this:
http://www.cara.de/

All of these methods will prove that the room is very important when it comes to bass. I can guarantee that.

One good techique for positioning is to do "subwoofer crawling". That technique involves putting the subwoofer where you will be sitting! Then, walk or crawl around the room until the bass sounds the way you want it. Then, put the subwoofer at that part of the room, and the resulting bass in the seating position should sound like you want it to.

Another technique is to place the subwoofer behind the listening position and adjust the volume. It sounds like it won't work, but it does if done correctly. This technique has the advantage of slightly reducing the rooms effects because the direct output of the sub can slightly overcome the room's effects. It works especially well when the subwoofer is in the corner.