Wayne Parham Messages: 18756 Registered: January 2001
Illuminati (33rd Degree)
Next step then (in my opinion) is to getcha some subs. I love the sound of my four π speakers even without subs, but adding them puts them really over the top. It's really about smoothing the response as much as it is about increasing extension.
One thing that happens indoors is the reflections from the walls causes self-interference that is additive at some frequency/positions and destructive at other frequency/positions. These room modes are sometimes pretty noticeable all the way up into the lower midrange, to 150Hz or maybe even 200Hz or so. The end result is dead spots in the room - frequencies that are sucked out and can't be corrected with passive or active equalization.
The best way to fix this is to add bass sound sources in different positions in the room. I find having subs placed several feet from the mains usually helps a great deal. Again, it's about smoothing the response, filling in holes made by room modes. That's the goal. You can't even really tell the subs are on, but response is smoother. They do reach lower too, but when setup right (which is pretty easy to do), it sounds like all the sound is coming from the mains. You can't tell the subs are even on. The sound is just smoother.