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can subwoofers make things worse?

What tiny subwoofer should i mate with my Aerial 5T? I have a small room with very little space to put a subwoofer. I am very happy with my current sound, but I've read that adding the missing bottom end to stand mounts can add enjoyment).

I've been reading about:
1) Kef Kc62 (very expensive)
2) Rel T5X
3) SVS 3000 Micro
4) Do nothing because they aren't good enough and will make things worse.

Anyone own any of these or have an educated opinion?

(Associated equipment: Parasound Hint 6 integrated, Bluesound Node 2).

 

epz
ghdprentice
7,020 posts
 

No, a sub will not make it worse… will likely enhance a good deal, two would be best.

 

REL… the default choice for most. High quality and great method and controls to feather it in with your speakers so not to create a mid bass hump. 

jl35
4,007 posts
 

I used a pair of REL T/Zero MKlll with Magnepan LRS+ in small room and sounded great...a poorly set up and integrated sub can certainly make things worse...

mlsstl
1,437 posts
 

Actually, a subwoofer can make things worse if it is incorrectly positioned in the room and/or bass traps are needed and not used, the wrong crossover frequency used, or the volume not correctly set.  For most setups this means a certainly amount of experimentation is required. However, once these issues are addressed, a sub can be a big plus in a system. 

However, even when the setup is done correctly, there can be a few situations where a sub will still makes things worse. That's where the recording itself has bass or sub-bass problems. I forget the exact recording, but I can think of one I heard a few years ago where the orchestra was apparently on a poorly constructed wood stand or floor and the sub did nothing but reveal a lot of very annoying thump-thump from foot stomping. 

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