# Adam A7s need more bass?



## stonzthro (Jul 15, 2011)

Hi all. I have some A7s and really like the sound, but seem to be lacking bass. Does anyone else who uses A7s regularly (please no flamers - I'm not looking to get a completely new system) feel the need for a sub? I'm not looking for earth-shaking lows, it just seems to be a little light on the low end.

Thanks!


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## Theseus (Jul 15, 2011)

stonzthro @ Fri Jul 15 said:


> Hi all. I have some A7s and really like the sound, but seem to be lacking bass. Does anyone else who uses A7s regularly (please no flamers - I'm not looking to get a completely new system) feel the need for a sub? I'm not looking for earth-shaking lows, it just seems to be a little light on the low end.
> 
> Thanks!



Yes, of course : the frequency response goes from 42hz to 50Khz. The low frequencies below 40hz are fundamental if you're looking for earth-shaking growling lows. I wouldn't recommend the Adam Audio subwoofer though. There are other offerings that would complement the little A7 in better ways (Focal for exemple).


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## c0mp0ser (Jul 15, 2011)

Stonz,

I think just adding a sub to A7's will just make your room shake, more than offering clear low-end monitoring.

I have the A7's and certainly felt that the low end was lacking. But they are a small monitor. I recently upgraded to a pair of the discontinued ADAM S3A's. Those offer some incredible detail in the low end (especially compared to A7's). I will use the A7's a Surround monitors.

Mike


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## Theseus (Jul 15, 2011)

I was hesitating to bring the S3X to the table, since the price difference is really steep, but yeah, that's definitely the way to go for clean mixes.

The usual downside of mixing with a subwoofer is that the mix will play nicely on equivalent systems, and not so much on standard 2 speakers systems (unless you're a great mixer and know your way around those shortcomings, but that's another story). Setting up the right cut-off frequency between the extreme lows from the subwoofer and the lows from the speakers is especially tricky, and unless you've a very well treated room and great hears, it will often result in a poor blurry image of the lows that might affect the balance of the overall mix.


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## mducharme (Jul 15, 2011)

I love the low end on my A7X's.. I don't feel the need for a sub, except when I start getting down to bass trombone pedal notes etc. I don't know what the difference is there vs. the original A7 though.


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## toddkreuz (Jul 15, 2011)

I have a pair of the original A7's.

I had to move my set up around the room a bit to find "the spot" that works.

The drivers just arent that big. I dont think anybody can expect much more from drivers that size.
I find they do exactly what i need. I check sub bass on headphones, and other references.


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## stonzthro (Jul 15, 2011)

Thanks for the replies. I'll look into a sub but yeah, I too check the low end on headphones.


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## John Rodd (Jul 17, 2011)

How much bass treatment (traps) do you have in your listening environment?

I would STRONGLY recommend putting as many bass traps in corners as you can fit in before even thinking about adding a subwoofer.

A good bang-for-the-buck would be GIK 244 traps. Or possibly the Real Trap "bare" traps.

:wink:


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## Stephen Baysted (Jul 18, 2011)

John Rodd @ Mon Jul 18 said:


> How much bass treatment (traps) do you have in your listening environment?
> 
> I would STRONGLY recommend putting as many bass traps in corners as you can fit in before even thinking about adding a subwoofer.
> 
> ...




+1.


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## Nick Batzdorf (Jul 18, 2011)

My Blue Sky System One includes a subwoofer, and I kissed it and liked it.

But subwoofers are only for slightly more than the rumble range; if you need "more bass," what you're hearing is mostly above the range they reproduce. And bass trapping will help with that a lot...but I've said it again and I'll say it before: a big part of the answer to hearing the bass sound right is bigger speakers.

"My" theory is that it's because of the acoustic compression you get with a small box. The small monitors we all use and love do a lot of things really well (like reveal the image and details), but they have some inherent limitations. And to me they all sound like you're listening to a speaker.

Whether that's the answer for stonzthro is not a slam dunk - I'm just throwing it out there to be argumentative and show off how smart I am.


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## synthetic (Aug 1, 2011)

I think you need a sub for scoring. I mixed without one for a while (I have the big brother S2As, still 7" woofers), but pulled out my JBL LSR12P sub when I got Drums of War and a Minimoog. Get a SPL meter or even an iPhone app and run tones to set the balance.


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## Danny_Owen (Aug 4, 2011)

I have Adam A7's as well. I bought the Sub8 because my low end on other monitors was coming out quite unpredictably.

The Sub8 alone made things worse- then I got some acoustic treatment the week after, and things overall were 5x better. I'd advise getting both at the same time if you can.


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## scoris (Aug 16, 2011)

I have had a pair of Adam A7 for a year now and I don't think it needs a sub woofer, unless mixing for club music I guess.


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## maraskandi (Aug 16, 2011)

+1 sub/subs and bass traps  Why not enjoy the beauty of full frequency sound! 

A sub that purrs!


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## stonzthro (Aug 16, 2011)

Thanks all. I have a few (real, not foam) bass traps and have the material to make more, so I'll add more and then a sub.


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## Dietz (Aug 17, 2011)

FWIW - I just finished the mix of a reggae-ish pop tune (which needed a _lot_ of bass) on the newer A7X, and we were all very lucky with the bass response of these speakers. This was without a sub.

Admittedly the room was acoustically very well treated.


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## rayinstirling (Aug 18, 2011)

As someone who has a small 15ft x 10ft spare bedroom as a studio/music room.

I would think the temptation always when using a sub is having it too loud.
Using as many different genre as I have available as reference from classical to reggae I ended up with my bluesky sub output attenuated by 3 or 4dB. With this setting the full audio frequency range I'm hearing sitting at my 60deg triangular position from the satellites never sounds like it's coming from anywhere else but above the desk.

Just my amateur 2 cents worth.


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## Dietz (Aug 18, 2011)

Re: BlueSky - Technially, all the smaller BlueSky-systems are not using a sub in the actual meaning of the word, but they are 3-way monitors with a seperated bass range speaker shared by all channels.


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## rayinstirling (Aug 18, 2011)

Dietz @ Thu Aug 18 said:


> Re: BlueSky - Technially, all the smaller BlueSky-systems are not using a sub in the actual meaning of the word, but they are 3-way monitors with a seperated bass range speaker shared by all channels.



Thanks for that Dietz
It is what it is....... spec


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## Dan Mott (Aug 18, 2011)

I love my sub so much. As soon as I got it up and running I was in heaven.


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## synthetic (Aug 18, 2011)

I don't think you would need a sub for rock mixing, but for scoring (deep Moog bass, taiko, etc.) or dance it is nice to have that bottom octave. Or you can upgrade to the S3A, S3X, S4X, etc. Though there is an argument to using bass management in a small room. (Thom Holman argues for this)


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## whinecellar (Aug 18, 2011)

I've used - and LOVED - my A7's for years, mated with an NHT B-20 sub system. Couldn't be happier, but couldn't live without the subs either.

As others have mentioned, you really should know what's going on down in the nether regions especially with film music. The trick (also as mentioned previously) is to have the sub(s) properly matched with the mains in terms of crossover, volume, phase, etc. It takes some experimentation to get those things right, but when you do the rewards are worth it. This is all assuming the first & most crucial aspect to your monitor chain: your room


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## germancomponist (Aug 18, 2011)

Dietz @ Wed Aug 17 said:


> Admittedly the room was acoustically very well treated.



A best speaker can sound bad if the room is not acoustically treated, and visa versa. That is what I have found out many times. 

And, I am with Nick about the bigger speakers. Can someone "feel" the bass via using this small speakers? A good test to compare speakers (in an acoustically very well treated room) is by experimenting with deep rumble sounds and synth basses.... .

Listen to this: http://www.box.net/shared/uu0bnsr7l6


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## muziksculp (Aug 18, 2011)

I use ADAM A7 monitors + ADAM Sub-10 subwoofer 

It is a great sounding monitoring system in my studio. 

The A7's without the Sub-10 sound like they are missing some of the umph, and fatness factor which bass frequencies provide.

Hope this is useful.

Cheers,
Muziksculp


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