surface under VTF-2

[UncD2000]

My listening room has shag carpeting over a concrete slab floor. The VTF-2 is performing quite well in a front corner, but I was wondering if the carpeting is reducing the output. Would placing a wood board (cut to fit back into the corner) under the VTF-2 be worthwhile? Also, do I have the best orientation with the open port facing forward?

[Sasha_G]

Carpet is the optimal surface for a subwoofer. The carpet will absorb no bass, and the bass will go through the carpet to the wood or concrete underneath the carpet and disperse in all directions. Carpet only absorbs higher frequency sounds.

[Invierno]

From other posts, those of us with wood floors should place a small rug under the sub and use the heavy rubber caps for furniture feet on the spikes to keep them from digging through the sub into the wood.

However, I'd like to get your opinion on placing the sub on top of acoustic foam instead, such as the Auralex GRAMMA riser described at http://www.auralex.com/sound_isolation_gramma/sound_isolation_gramma.asp as being helpful at isolating the sub from the floor. We have a 90 year old house with old and creaky wood floors and I worry about the sub vibrations getting the floor going too much.

This will be for the VTF-3 Mk II that I'm expecting soon. Thanks for any feedback on this.

[Michael Bain]

That Auralex pad is a perfect fit underneath the Hsu subs. Sasha and Dr. Hsu, I think you guys should purchase some of these and test them out with your subs on hardwood and tiled floors, and also in a room that has deep plush carpeting where the subwoofer spikes can potentially sink into the carpet.

[Invierno]

My concern with the Auralex pad is that, since the VTF-3 Mk II is downward firing, the pad will absorb a bunch of the bass and make it less accurate. I don't know if this is actually the case or not.

[Michael Bain]

The Auralex pad should not absorb the lower bass frequencies, just as carpet does not absorb lower bass frequencies. It will work well. A member of this forum, boomer, has already tried it with the downfiring STF-2, with great results:

http://www.hsuresearch.com/forum/showthread.php?t=756

Hsu Research should look into offering something like this directly via this website.