Hello all, and welcome to the May blog from Audio T Brighton! This month, we’re following up our April blog on the brand-new iteration of a long-standing model in the Dynaudio Contour range – the Dynaudio Contour 20 Black Edition standmount speakers – by incorporating a pair of REL T9X Special Edition subwoofers to delve into new depths of subterranean bass, allowing a full-range speaker sound to be achieved.

dynaudio contour 20 black edition with a pair of rel carbon t9x subs

Dynaudio Contour 20BE with REL T9X Carbon SE

Last month’s blog, which can be viewed here, talks about Dynaudio’s latest version of the Contour 20, the Dynaudio Contour 20 Black Edition – what a fine speaker it is!

For all the sonic prowess of the Dynaudio Contour 20BE, there isn’t a speaker known to mankind that can’t benefit from some bass enhancement, with commensurate gains in extension, both in the obvious bass department but perhaps, more surprisingly, across the higher frequencies – a strange phenomenon and slightly counterintuitive, but one that is there nonetheless. The laws of physics apply to virtually all speakers used in the domestic environment, and in the rest of this blog, we hope to enthuse you about the benefits of adding a sub or two to your system!

I can confidently say that, once heard, it cannot be unheard, and the desire to add multiple subs to your system will be strong. Indeed, I’d say anything less will be substandard – pun intended.

Where the magic lies

The key to getting the sound one desires from a hi-fi setup is system component synergy, room acoustics and a little know-how!

All of these are important, but the last is based on some diligent choices and the science behind sound. Fortunately, this category costs more in time acquiring the knowledge than throwing hard cash at the situation – although this certainly can help.

Bass convention

We’re all familiar with the boom, boom bass of that low-rider vehicle passing by in the street! If that’s your desire, then the remainder of this blog may not be of any use.

In conventional bass subwoofer setups, placing a subwoofer near the room boundaries, in particular the corners of the room, can be a useful means of obtaining more gain from the subwoofer. This is very useful if the sub is a smaller type, with smaller drive units and a smaller interior volume, or if the room in which the sub is to be used is quite large. Remember, as I said earlier, the laws of physics apply and there is no substitute for large drivers, large cabinets and powerful internal amps if bass extension and volume are your raison d’être!

Another method is to use the “subwoofer crawl” – placing the subwoofer in your usual listening position, playing some suitably bassy music and crawling on your hands and knees until you hear the most bass! Swap your position with the subwoofer and voilà!

Based on the crawl, the chances of your subwoofer being positioned in the “most aesthetically pleasing” location are slim, and nobody wants “slim” bass!

It’s all in the timing

Bass sound reproduction is often considered omnidirectional, and this isn’t strictly true. Bass sound waves are often very long and wrap around speaker cabinets, reflecting off various room surfaces and consequently give the impression of not having any clear source point, unlike high-frequency drivers, where direction in sound is much more obvious. Along with the ensuing amorphous sound pattern, bass sound waves can often arrive out of time with the mid or high frequency drive units. The “time smearing” effect can affect sound, causing a poor sense of rhythm in the music, especially with higher quality equipment and those more sensitive to time alignment. In poorer systems, haphazardly set up in acoustically untreated rooms, the bass can swamp the sound of a system with a commonly occurring “boomy” and “ploddy” bass, sucking any timing or dynamics from the sound and integrating poorly with the mids and highs.

Sadly, this type of sound is one we get used to hearing and not the one we want our customers to experience. So what can be done?

Integrating subs

Our REL representative, Stuart, spent a considerable amount of time educating us on the how and why of subwoofer setup, with careful positioning of dual subs to integrate with the main speakers, in this case, our Dynaudio Contour 20BE.

The basis for positioning is in understanding that the sound wave doesn’t begin at the driver position on the front baffle but in front of the driver by a distance equivalent to the driver’s diameter. The Dynaudio Contour 20BE’s 7-inch driver wave starts 7 inches in front of the speaker, and the REL T9X Special Editions 10-inch driver wave, 10 inches in front of it. What this means is that if you place the front baffle of the Dynaudio and REL equidistant from the listening position, then the drivers are not time-aligned because of the 3-inch difference between where the sound wave of each driver starts. This time-alignment error spoils subtle timing cues, obvious to those listeners more sensitive to time-smearing effects.

If you look more closely at the photos in this blog, you may see the REL T9X Special Editions located slightly behind our Dynaudio Contour 20BE’s. How far behind, I hear you say? Answer: 3 inches behind!

Interestingly, when Stuart set up the subs, he was listening and altering their position by ear. It was only after the setup that I got my tape measure out to check the distance, and lo and behold, the distance was 3 inches.

Conclusions

Subwoofers can divide opinion, especially when used to augment the low end of a stereo system. User requirements vary depending on whether you want additional thump when watching movies or owners with small, LS3/5a type monitors wanting more bass extension, whilst retaining the qualities of their main speaker. Either way, the integration of a pair of quality subwoofers capable of superior control and bass extension cannot be underestimated. Even some colleagues in the “hard to be won over” camp enthused about how the system sounded when the REL T9X Special Editions subs were implemented correctly. The combination of a Naim ND5XS2 streamer, Rega Aethos integrated amplifier and Dynaudio Contour 20BE’s sounds great as it is, but adding a pair of subs into the mix really does allow the listener access to wide bandwidth sound that could be just the ticket!

As always, the proof of the pudding is in the eating – so get in touch to book a demonstration and hear for yourself.

Thanks for reading.

Ade, John and Paul - Audio T Brighton

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