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Ok, having some issues here. First off I will describe my setup. Right now I am running a line from the headphone plug of my computer into a Samson S-xover 2-way crossover. From there I go into my 2-channel Carver pro amp which is rated at 450watts a channel at 4ohm or 900 bridged at 8ohm. I've got my voice coils on my XJ-15 sonosub wired in parallel to accept the 450watts. If I play a test tone only, say a 20-30hz sweep, I've got plenty of power and could easily over drive the sub if turned up. However, when I play any music my output drops to a whisper. Both of the above scenarios occur with the xover on, and not changing any settings. I could understand the output drop if it was a passive crossover but it is powered and still dropped significantly. Any ideas? I've had to do some interesting coupling to get all the inputs and outputs (RCA, 1/4", XLR, etc.) to work and I understand that this will drop the input level. Also, does anyone know how to bridge the carver amp? It says on the back that you connect to both (+) terminals to be bridged but I can't tell any difference? Thanks guys.
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What crossover frequency are you using? Maybe there just isn't much content that low in the music you are playing. The lowest note on a bass guitar is about 41Hz and the 82Hz second harmonic is a lot louder than the 41Hz fundamental. -
There are two kinds of 1/4" connectors TR and TRS.
Which 1/4" connectors are you using and where are you using them?
And why are you using the headphone out as opposed to the line level out from the soundcard?
IB subwoofer FAQ page
"Complicated equipment and light reflectors and various other items of hardware are enough, to my mind, to prevent the birdie from coming out." ...... Henri Cartier-BressonComment
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Similar to what Dennis said, I am running a subwoofer with a 2 channel music only system. The amp I am using for the sub has an auto on feature that is indicated by the power LED turning from red to green if signal is present. The sub is crossed at 40 Hz using an electronic crossover. There are many times that the sub amp will not even turn on during playback because there is no content in the music. You say you have done a 20-30 Hz sweep and it sounds fine. Have you done a 20-200Hz sweep and heard whether or not you have any problems with that? Also, are you playing the test tones directly from the computer using the same wiring that you use when you play music?
ChuckComment
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ThomasW: Tell you the truth I ended up just making the 1/4" cable with some shielded mic cable and solder on ends. I didn't want to buy a 25' cable when I only needed 2'. And at this point I'm just running it off of my laptop and haven't yet gotten an external sound card. Does this make a big difference? Pardon my ignorance.
Chasw98: That is an interesting point you make, I don't think I have found a sweep that large though, I only have them in 10hz increments but I guess it really doesn't matter that much. All the wiring was kept the same though for both sweeps and music. I probably need to try a movie though to see what it will do there.Comment
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I'll ask again are your running 1/4" TR or TRS connectors?Originally posted by bikedave
The Samson is a rather bizarre design in that they're not using 2 balance outputs for the high frequencies. Instead they're using a single 1/4" TRS to carry the stereo channels on one jack.
Why are you using the headphone ouput as opposed to the line out? Typically headphone outs have only a few millivolts of output.
IB subwoofer FAQ page
"Complicated equipment and light reflectors and various other items of hardware are enough, to my mind, to prevent the birdie from coming out." ...... Henri Cartier-BressonComment
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Well, I guess it has to be a TS since the cable was only a two-wire and ends were mono. I don't have an external sound card as of yet but by your comment I assume that the output voltage from them is higher. I've got the TS 1/4" going from the mono low output from the Samson to the XLR input on the Carver amp.Comment
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Headphone outs have a very low drive voltage. You should be using a line out.
You can't get stereo high frequencies using 1/4" TS plugged in to the HF out of the Samson. Did see the cable picture in the owners manual? Their quirky design has 1/4" TRS out for stereo playback. This probably saves them a whopping $0.50 jack for the second channel and probably confuses everyone using the XO since it's completely illogical for a piece of prosound gear....
FWIW, a mic cable has 3 connections, two separate leads and the braided ground/shield.
In the case of the Samson TRS connectors, they're using the two separate leads as stereo left/right, and the braided shield as a common ground.
Since you've posted no specific info about the Carver it's a little difficult to comment as to whether the problem is in it or the connection to it.
You should be able to take the headphone out directly to the Carver and run the woofer fullrange as a test. If that works the problem is in the Samson, or the connections to and from it.
All this is process of elimination so you start with the minimum to make noise and add in until the problem starts. If the problem exists without the crossover you know where the problem is..
IB subwoofer FAQ page
"Complicated equipment and light reflectors and various other items of hardware are enough, to my mind, to prevent the birdie from coming out." ...... Henri Cartier-BressonComment
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Hmmm... Thanks for all the suggestions and explanations. I think my problem must be in my connections then. I will have explore it systematically as you have suggested. Will post again when I have it worked out, i'm anxious to get it cranking.Comment
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