[terry parr]

have been using a pair of mmg's for months, and while i was happy for the most part (pleased with everything the mmg's do well), i was still looking for a bit more low-end reproduction, so i went and made the decision to order one magnepan dwm bass panel in order to hopefully add a bit more body to the sound of an acoustic piano and acoustic bass and hopefully get a bit more low-end reach while at the same time wanting a woofer (magnepan cites in their literature that the bass panel is not a "sub", but a woofer) that would integrate well with the sound that i already have.  i thought staying with the same manufacturer would make sense, along these lines. 

the problem i'm having is the overall sound is very disappointing.  i currently have the bass panel connected (per magnepan's directions) as a "pass thru", meaning i have it connected as follows:  out from the amplifiers to the bass panel then out from the bass panel to the mmg's.

my preamp does have a subwoofer out which i would like to try to do in order to power the bass panel directly (which would allow me to go back to having my mono blocks power the mmg's). 

however, the subwoofer out on my preamp is a line-out (rca jacks), whereas the input for the magnepan bass panel only accepts bare wire connections.  there are no rca jacks on the bass panel.   

the idea of cutting off one end of a pair of rca interconnects, and then hooking the bare wire end to the bass panel crossed my mind, however i know you can destroy equipment when you venture into this kind of experimentation and you don't know what you're doing.  what makes me hesitate before trying this is that i know that the sub-out on the preamp is "hotter" than the other rca line out connections.  i tired it, and heard a very brief but very loud burst of sound where i was afraid that i had just ruined some of my equipment, or at least blown a fuse.  (no damage, as far as i know). 

i'm obviously over my head here, so anyone who could take a few minutes to share their knowledge on this, i'm thanking you in advance.  i'll gladly defer and tip my hat to someone more knowledgeable and who can give me something to go on.  i'm stuck. 

i'm thinking right now, that my system actually sounded better without the bass panel.  it's certainly not enhancing or improving the overall sound.   

equipment used in this current setup:
 


rotel rcd 1570 cdp
amc av-81 (video control center)  using this as pre-amp
emotiva xpa-1L monoblocks
magnepan mmg's
magnepan dwm bass panel 

 

[SteveFord]

I'll see if I can't get the definitive answer on this for you.
It'll probably be call and ask for Wendell - I think he's a hunt and peck typist.
When I was loaned one I ran it directly from a separate amp from my main speakers which worked well.

[RDavidson]

You can't use the preouts from your preamp because the DWM isn't self powered. It's just a woofer, not a "sub" woofer.

What would work well is to buy a Crown XLS and hook it up to your preamp's sub-out(s). The XLS would power the DWM. They have crossover circuitry, have plenty of power, and they're quite inexpensive. Get the XLS 1500 or bigger. Then you'd be back to using your monoblocks direct to your MMG's also.

[SteveFord]

I should be a psychic: Wendell said give him a call, it'll be easier to help you that way.

[SwamisCat]

Have you tried connecting thes DWM to the second pair of speaker outs on the Emotiva amp? That is how most folks use the DWM with full range models. This runs both full range. When you do this you have to move the bass panel about 12 inches closer to the listener than the mains.

And just to clarify, the right Emotiva speaker out goes to one input on the DWM, and the left goes to the second input. Emotiva amps will have no problem running the load.

My experience with A single DWM is that it adds pretty much all the volume of two DWMS, but it narrowly restricts you on positioning flexibility, and positioning flexibility is  in some cases critical to making them work well. Two allows you to use side walls for reinforcement.

Do tell us what Wendell says, on both hook up and positioning.

[terry parr]

SwamisCat, that's exactly what i did.  you confirmed for me that my original thought of using the mono blocks (with all the available current that i had at my disposal with these two high-current amps) to power both the mains AND the bass panel was indeed, the answer. 

i have one set of speaker wires powering the mains and another set of speaker wires (connected with banana plugs on the amps, then, ending with a bare wire connection to the bass panel). 

this connection sounds so much better, now (noticeably so, that the average person off-the-street could discern a before-and-after difference!). 

i've always felt that using banana plugs restricted some signal and was less-preferable, sonically,  to other connection schemes, (and, i'm not pretending that my set-up is optimal), however, considering what my set-up is now, my options for connecting this bass panel was limited. 

now, i'm getting MUCH better low-end reach (the lows are extending lower), and the lower frequencies seem fuller and more "fleshed-out."  the results that i'm getting now, was what i was hoping for in the beginning. 

i feel that the bass panel is doing its' job. 

and the emotiva mono blocks arn't even batting an eye with the additional load that they're now carrying.  (only once, briefly, did i see more than one blue l.e.d. briefly flicker, in addition to the one that stays lit.)  and there is a row of these lights on each amp, indicating output / load demand.  after i made the different connections, i turned on the l.e.d. displays on both amps, just to see for myself if the amps would indicate a substantial power demand and current draw, compared to before.  nope.

what SwamisCat mentioned in the previous reply about the amps having no problem driving the additional load, they certainly don't seem to.  i probably had plenty of head-room to play with, with these amps.  i just didn't know how much more. 

going by the output indicators on the amps, i still have more available output that these amps would be capable of.



what i've always appreciated about everybody here on A/C, is that people are usually quick to jump in and help somebody struggling, and to share their experience, which helps other people make their systems better. 

thanks, SteveFord, RDavidson, and SwamisCat. 


finally got my magnepan system sorted.