@mayhem13
Good points.
I hadn't considered OB bass. The Wiim Amp might have enough control flexibility to pull it off. I use 10" SB Acoustics sub drivers in W-frame in the lx521 clones in my studio, but that would not work well to 200 Hz due to the resonant peak 350~400 Hz. A good pair of 6.5"s would do ok, as that peak gets pushed higher, and I don't need it really loud.
But do I want the complexity of OB bass & the high bass EQ? Can it be stylishly integrated under the LS50s? Will chew on that for a bit.
Also, I have face the fact that with the mono sub output from the Wiim, even with 2 subs (or bass modules) under each KEF, allowing them play up to 200Hz is going to hurt the imaging. Something you mentioned in the 15" sub idea thread I started.
I need to just try the sub out with speakers than can add reasonably decent bass to the KEF before embarking on another build. If mono sub or bass is not acceptable, then the tidy simplicity of the Wiim Amp + LS50 around the TV falls apart. The only way to get stereo subs from the Wiim Amp is to tap into its speaker outputs and that then needs external low pass filtering. Now we're creeping back to complexity. 🙄🫤
Good points.
I hadn't considered OB bass. The Wiim Amp might have enough control flexibility to pull it off. I use 10" SB Acoustics sub drivers in W-frame in the lx521 clones in my studio, but that would not work well to 200 Hz due to the resonant peak 350~400 Hz. A good pair of 6.5"s would do ok, as that peak gets pushed higher, and I don't need it really loud.
But do I want the complexity of OB bass & the high bass EQ? Can it be stylishly integrated under the LS50s? Will chew on that for a bit.
Also, I have face the fact that with the mono sub output from the Wiim, even with 2 subs (or bass modules) under each KEF, allowing them play up to 200Hz is going to hurt the imaging. Something you mentioned in the 15" sub idea thread I started.
I need to just try the sub out with speakers than can add reasonably decent bass to the KEF before embarking on another build. If mono sub or bass is not acceptable, then the tidy simplicity of the Wiim Amp + LS50 around the TV falls apart. The only way to get stereo subs from the Wiim Amp is to tap into its speaker outputs and that then needs external low pass filtering. Now we're creeping back to complexity. 🙄🫤
Yeah, I been very aware of this. 😀
I need to find or wire up a Y adapter to try it. And keep fingers crossed that the miniDSP for the Orions and the DSP in the Wiim have similar (if any) hysteresis.
Ah -- But I should bypass the miniDSP, and use the Wiim to replicate the original PEQ settings.
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Actually, this gets complicated real quick because... The Orion drivers are hardwired to an 8-conductor Speakon connector. The woofers each get one pair of conduits. The dedicated 8-conductior cable ends in 4 pairs of banana plugs. The 8-ch amp which drives the speakers have 4 channels dedicated to the 4 woofers, fed by 2 pairs of identically set channels in an 8-ch miniDSP (OpenDRC-DA8). So...
To feed those 2 pairs of woofers the mono sub signal from the Wiim Amp, I need a single phono plug split into 4. (Or 3 phono Y-splitters.) Sigh. Another PITA that's probably worth doing for the end result.
So I did manage to get the bass section of the Linkwitz Orions set up as dual-mono subs for the LS50 Meta. Wiim sub out>phono splitter>amps>dual Orion woofers -- a pair on each side. The EQ for the Orions bass was replicated using the PEQ function in the Wiim Amp. I got it pretty close to the original EQ in the miniDSP.
The end result was a much fuller sound and deep bass with the LS50 Meta. I tried a variety of crossover frequencies, from as low as 80Hz to as high as 150Hz. Best seemed to be 120-130Hz. It was quite a nice tidy pleasant presentation, but a bit too tidy at times. Switching back to the Orions always brought a sense greater relaxed openness, fuller range of harmonics (??) & authority. That switching was only done a couple times because the process was rather fussy, a PITA.
My decision in the end is to switch back to the Orions. The KEF LS50 Meta experiment is over.
I picked up a Wiim Ultra at 20% off with Black Friday sales. The HDMI ARC didn't give any output for the first 36 hrs, but switching eARC off on the LG TV solved the problem, and now the remote volume control integration is complete.
The end result was a much fuller sound and deep bass with the LS50 Meta. I tried a variety of crossover frequencies, from as low as 80Hz to as high as 150Hz. Best seemed to be 120-130Hz. It was quite a nice tidy pleasant presentation, but a bit too tidy at times. Switching back to the Orions always brought a sense greater relaxed openness, fuller range of harmonics (??) & authority. That switching was only done a couple times because the process was rather fussy, a PITA.
My decision in the end is to switch back to the Orions. The KEF LS50 Meta experiment is over.
I picked up a Wiim Ultra at 20% off with Black Friday sales. The HDMI ARC didn't give any output for the first 36 hrs, but switching eARC off on the LG TV solved the problem, and now the remote volume control integration is complete.
You've just answered a query I had and was going to ask in the Wiim thread.....splitting the SW out into 2 channels. Good to know. I was going to buffer it aswell, but it obviously works as you have proved.
Currently making some 3 ways in a 20litre cabinet with the Kef R coax and the ubiquitous Dayton RS225. Will have additional LF help below the 3 ways
Currently making some 3 ways in a 20litre cabinet with the Kef R coax and the ubiquitous Dayton RS225. Will have additional LF help below the 3 ways
The KEF LS50 Metas got moved to my studio. The stands were equipped with spikes to make them more stable, and driven with one of the 2x150W amps from @Erica.C They sound considerably better here than in the house by the TV. If they sounded like this in the house, I would have accepted them and moved the Linkwitz Orions on elsewhere. The simplicity of stereo amp is such a big attraction for the house. But they didn't sound like this in the house.
The 3' sealed sub with SBA 15SW800 was sitting between the KEFs, calling out to be tried.... so naturally, I complied. I used the EQ settings that make them flat to ~25Hz, set the crossover (miniDSP) at 120Hz LR4, and set levels between the KEFs and the subs by ear. The latter, driven by one channel of a 2x150W amp, required -8 dB reduction.
Now this is not far from what I hear with the LX521. Very impressive!
The 3' sealed sub with SBA 15SW800 was sitting between the KEFs, calling out to be tried.... so naturally, I complied. I used the EQ settings that make them flat to ~25Hz, set the crossover (miniDSP) at 120Hz LR4, and set levels between the KEFs and the subs by ear. The latter, driven by one channel of a 2x150W amp, required -8 dB reduction.
Now this is not far from what I hear with the LX521. Very impressive!
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