Don't put a houseplant on top of the subwoofer (1 Viewer)

[Ken.L]

I've got the three fronts and the sub sitting on top of the four feet high entertainment center. Last Saturday I was in the bedroom on the computer while the stereo was playing The Who's Behind Blue Eyes. All of a sudden I hear this crashing noise of from the living room. I go out there to find the houseplant that the wife had sat on top of the 15 inch high sub had fallen off and the porcelain plate under the plant had shattered and a dirty mess on the carpet. Well, I caught hell from her when she came home from work that evening. She said it's only three day pass new year (Chinese new year) and it was bad luck to break something like a plate (she's quite superstitious).
Lesson learend: sub enclosure's vibration is violent enough to displace objects place on top of it. Must remember to remove plant next time I crank it.
Hope this will help someone from experiencing the same fate.

 

[John S]

Hmm did she ask if it was ok to place it there????? lol


For a measily $5000, I will come over and ward off all ill effects of the breaking of the plate so soon into the new year for you guys. Blows my weekend, but I am willing to help.

 

[craig_curtis]

i was cranking something (can't remember now), on the old stereo in the living room. It had a 13 inch tv sitting on it... i heard a loud BOOM in the other room. came in to find the tv sitting on the floor on its side where the speaker vibrations bounced it right off...

 

[JasonMA]

While I don't like to put things on top of my speakers, there is a solution if you absolutley must place something on them. Get a roll of gripliner and place it on the speaker and put your plant on top of that. Here's a link in case you have no idea what gripliner is: http://organize-everything.com/gripliner.html.

I used to have some Aiwa book shelf speakers in college and when cranking my music they would fall off the shelfs (I broke one once, but it was under warranty still, so got a replacement.) Anyway, I bought some of this gripliner stuff at an OscoDrug, cut a piece to match the footprint of my speaker, and placed it under the speakers. They never fell again, as a matter of fact, they wouldn't even budge, no matter how loud I pumped that little Aiwa (I know it's a small system but back then they packed some punch.)

So, look into some gripliner and do some test while playing music as loud as you'll usually listen to it. You'll be surprised how great this stuff works.

Of course, if it's a really small plant and it's not very heavy, then it may still bounce around. This solution is for things that have some weight to them, not a flimsy little thing that only weighs about a pound or 2, though it may still work.

 

[BrianWoerndle]

Sorry to get off topic, but did you say that the sub is on top of the entertainment center??? It really needs to be on the floor, preferably in a corner. Not only is the sound probably well below what it should be, but also the same vibrations that broke the plant are going to shake the entertianment center and all the equipment in it, which is not good for any moving devices like DVD players.

 

[Ken.L]

Brian: I sat the sub on the floor and, wow, I can hear a lot more bass. Thanks for the suggestion. Due to space constraints the sub can't sit on the floor next to the entertainment center that's why it's on the top. Well, now I'm thinking I can put the sub on the floor beside the couch under the end table that one of the surrounds is sitting on. That is if putting the sub to one side of the couch will not affect how one is going to hear the sub(versus sub in front of the listener).

John S: if you can also putting the broken plate back together, you're hired!

 

[JasonMA]

While you may get a different sound from your sub as you move it around your room, it won't affect the way you actually hear the bass. Our ears can't really localize where low frequency sounds come from. That's to say, if you put it next to your couch and adjust the level accordingly, you won't feel like the bass is only coming from one side of the room. You will however get better bass in certain areas of your room, it just takes experimenting with placement to find what you like best.

One thing I hear alot of people suggesting is putting the sub in your listening position (i.e. you couch), and then move around the room and listen to where the bass sounds the best. Once it's sounds good in the position you're standing in, then that's where the sub shoud go. Now keep in mind, that may mean that the best bass you get is when you place it in an odd place like the middle of your room, but use your best judgement and compromise the optimal placement with a spot where it won't be in the way. Next to your couch should be fine, just please please please don't put it back on top of your entertainment center!