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Group delay in subwoofers

I understand the phenomenon of group delay when subwoofers are connected to a preamp and that they need to be placed approximately 8 ft closer to the listener than the mains.  Is this also the case when connecting a sub through the speaker level inputs from an amplifier or is group delay much less of an issue in this configuration?

jc4659

Showing 2 responses by erik_squires

erik_squires
5,268 posts
 
Um, um, um, it is complicated.

By themselves, a large woofer driver does not have any group delay other than the position of the motor relative to the other motors.

BUT!!

DSP processing like you find in a lot of advanced subs can add up to a couple of milliseconds worth of delay. This affects the slope and phase matching as it hands off to the main speakers. On the other hand, if both your top and low are going through DSP, the difference is negligible.

Best,
E


erik_squires
5,268 posts
 
JC: Group delay for subs isn't as important as the proper phase/amplitute matching through the crossover, room acoustics and EQ.

That's where you should focus your time and energy.
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