Adding a sub. - can i start with one?


I’m pretty happy with my setup I’ve assembled over the past year. However I feel I am missing some oomph and I find I am turning up the volume a lot. My space is big (converted barn) with 18 ft vaulted ceilings and about 700 sq ft of space with hardwood floors and minimal soft furniture. 
 

So I am thinking adding a sub woofer will help increase the bass and maybe give me more of the kick in the sound I’m used to in my old room and prior older speakers and amp. 
 

I’ve read that most people add 2 subs to a system instead of one. I’d prefer to spend the 2500 per side over time and just get one for now. What’s the thinking on one channel sub vs two and can I consider going from 1 to 2 later on as another upgrade?

daveinpa

+1 on the idea of a SWARM, especially in your space and for less $$ than two REL's. 

 

@ronboco Thanks for the compliments! I decided to start a hifi business on the side, which requires me to invest in gear for customers vs investing more into my own personal system. If the business takes off well, I'll reward myself with new subs. :)

It's obvious to me who here is speaking from subjective experience and who is enamored with an abstract idea

You can absolutely use one sub and have an improvement in sound, however...

"I feel I am missing some oomph and I find I am turning up the volume a lot."  Maybe you should be looking at other parts of your system also.  What kind of speakers, how sensitive, how much power are you giving them?  If your speakers aren't up to the task of filling your room with the sound level and dynamics you want, a subwoofer(s) won't fix that.

A single subwoofer if properly implemented will add more body to the music, but it's not going to add much volume, at least it shouldn't or you will be overpowering the rest of the music.

A single subwoofer may sound good in one spot in your room, and not so great in others because of peaks and nulls (too much or too little bass).  You will probably need to do some time doing the "subwoofer crawl" to make sure it sounds best at your listening position.  

Adding another sub, ideally having 4 subs, helps cancel out those peaks and nulls.

You don't have to have super expensive subs if you go the route of multiple subs.  Adding additional subs means that you can play each individual sub at lower output, giving them more headroom.  My music system started out being more focused on home theater. 

I have 4 subs, two have twin 15" drivers and 800 watt amps and two have 13.5" drivers with 1000 watt amps.  Two have analog volume controls which are at about 9 o'clock, the other two have digital volume controls and are at about -15 on the volume.  In other words, they are barely turned up, yet when the music calls for it, there's a visceral instantaneous reaction from the subs, while most of the time you might not even notice them. 

My point being that you don't have to spend a lot if you get multiples and you don't have to get super expensive subs either.  I'm not naming names, but Rel for example.  Wait, I did name names.  I've heard Rel subs and they work great, but so do many other subwoofers.  There's nothing special or unique about Rel subs that I have heard.  I'm sure fanboys will say they weren't set up "right" or I'm deaf, or whatever, but that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

If I were to make suggestions, I would say for sure go with sealed subs and if there's a brand that gives a good combination of price/performance/sound quality, to me, it's Rythmik.  I have and enjoy subs from SVS and Power Sound Audio also, but I like the servo technology in Rythmik subs.  If there's anything "special" about Rel subs, it's that they are sold by dealers, so it is easier to hear one, but that also means you're paying the dealer's markup compared to buying direct from the manufacturer like the other brands I mentioned.

a single sub works best, if you have a single listening position, and the flexibility to place the sub where it sonically needs to be...the more subs, the easier they are to place...