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The art of subwoofer placement
What is the best place for my subwoofer? As with many things in life, the placement of a subwoofer often requires compromises. Usually that choice is determined by competing factors such as furnishings and visual appearance, available floor space, walkways in the room and, of course, optimal sound quality.
But one place…
Sometimes there is literally only one place for the subwoofer. Don’t be alarmed if that’s the case, it’s common for home theaters or audio systems to be located in the living room/family room. Everything in that space is competing for available square footage, and décor and visual impact also play a big role.
If you are limited to one subwoofer location, try (as far as possible) to find the best listening spot in the room. You’ll notice that bass response varies greatly as you move around the room. This is due to the complex pattern of direct and reflected standing waves in the room.
Sometimes simply moving a few steps in any direction can change the bass from a boomy, monotone sound to a balanced and precise sound. Once you’ve found the “subwoofer sweet spot” in the room? Then save that spot for yourself!
Some possible subwoofer locations
Specially equipped listening rooms and home theaters generally offer more flexibility in subwoofer placement, with usually 3-4 possible locations to choose from.
Starting at the front
Placing the subwoofer at the front of the room is most common and usually provides the best mix with the main and center speakers. It also minimizes the chance that you can hear exactly where the low is coming from. After all, bass is omni-directional. With proper placement, the subwoofer will not “give away” where it is, and it will appear as if the low is coming from across the room. If you find that you can still pinpoint exactly where the subwoofer is, try placing it on either side of the front sound field and listen to which position gives the best results.
Try an angle
It is best to start with corner placement. Placing the subwoofer in the corner addresses all possible room modes, resulting in a denser pattern of standing waves in the room. This reduces (but does not eliminate) the likelihood of zeros; spots in the room where acoustic extinction occurs and thus the sound “drops dead.
If the subwoofer in the front corner sounds great, consider yourself lucky and sit back to enjoy music and movies!
The ‘Subwoofer Crawl’
If placement in the corner doesn’t produce the desired results, try the “subwoofer crawl/creep” technique. It may sound a little strange, but it really works and can help you find the optimal subwoofer location when you have multiple options and are looking for the best sound quality. To do so, follow these steps:
Place the subwoofer in or near the main listening position. (If necessary, have help lifting it if it is a heavy or large model.)
Play a familiar soundtrack with a repeating bass line.
Assess bass response at every possible subwoofer location in the room. Keep your head at or around knee level while listening (hence the term “subwoofer crawl”).
Choose the spot in the room where the bass sounds most precise and balanced and place the subwoofer there.
Also, take a look at the complete SVS Subwoofer line to find the subwoofer model that best suits your needs.
