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Advice on sub-woofer vs upgrade of Powernode amp

alinaqvi

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Hi

I have a Bluesound Powernode (latest version) and Q Acoustic 3050i speakers (6 ohm, 100 wpc,) and I am very happy with the sound and performance. But...when I increase the bass to 4 and treble to 2 on the tone controls it sounds great but after an hour at very high volumes (75% approx of maximum volume) the Powernode goes into protection mode. It doesn't do this on the default tone settings so it's obvious that the amp can't drive the speakers at that heavy bass levels when it's at ear piercingly loud volumes. I only rarely have it this loud (party or our teenagers!) but it's still irritating.

So I was thinking of upgrading to a NAD M10 v2 which has 100 wpc but the price differential is huge and whereas a display is nice and I'm sure the dirac is good, they are nice to haves rather than essentials for me. The Powernode already has 80wpc so I doubt the listening experience will be that different. So I was thinking that perhaps getting a sub woofer would take the pressure off the amp and solve the problem and also add some more depth to the soundstage. But I don't have much space so it would need to be a small one. Any suggestions or advice? And any recommendations. And will a small one actually make any positive difference or just make it sound worse by taking the bass elements away from the floor standers which have two 165mm bass drivers on each speaker?

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Thanks

Ali
 

brandonhall

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I would activate the subwoofer crossover on the PowerNode at like 60hz to see if the amp still clips. That will answer the question about a subwoofer fixing the problem.
 

FeddyLost

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And will a small one actually make any positive difference or just make it sound worse by taking the bass elements away from the floor standers which have two 165mm bass drivers on each speaker?
IMO you'll need at least 12" sub and highpassed mains to get significant difference in lows while unloading existing amp.
Smallest one will be like 13" side cube.
If this is ok for you and you can allow this, i'd say it's a good solution.
For M10v2 RRP you can buy 3 SVS SB-1000 pro at Amazon. The solution is obvious IMO.
 

DMill

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I would activate the subwoofer crossover on the PowerNode at like 60hz to see if the amp still clips. That will answer the question about a subwoofer fixing the problem.
A quick glance at the manual for the PowerNode looks like it has a fixed crossover at 80hz. I don’t own it so can’t verify. If it’s still sending full range to speakers probably won’t help though at same volumes. Although OP might not have to crank it up as much to get the desired bass. SVS 1000 or 3000 micro are both smallish and I own both and like them. Others are good from Rythmik, HSU, JL and many more are good as well.
 

DMill

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So I was thinking of upgrading to a NAD M10 v2 which has 100 wpc
20 extra watts is not going to give you much for $2k more. So unless there’s something else you love about the M10 it seems like a lot to me.
 
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alinaqvi

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Thanks. That's the conclusion I'm coming too as well!
 
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alinaqvi

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A quick glance at the manual for the PowerNode looks like it has a fixed crossover at 80hz. I don’t own it so can’t verify. If it’s still sending full range to speakers probably won’t help though at same volumes. Although OP might not have to crank it up as much to get the desired bass. SVS 1000 or 3000 micro are both smallish and I own both and like them. Others are good from Rythmik, HSU, JL and many more are good as well.
Thank you. I've just checked and it has a range of 40hz to 200hz, although tbh I haven't a clue what this really means?!
 

DMill

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Thank you. I've just checked and it has a range of 40hz to 200hz, although tbh I haven't a clue what this really means?!
It means you have a good thing. I’ll try to keep this short and helpful. Your amp has sub out with a crossover point which you say you can adjust from 40-200khz. I don’t see this in the manual but ok. Thats great IF your amp will feed signal only above set frequency to your main speakers and only below to an active subwoofer. This would give you a bit of headway with your amp/mainspeakers combo. If your Amp is still sending a full frequency to your main speakers and sending only low frequency to your sub, nothing has changed and you will still go into clipping/protection at the same SPL Bottom line, if it can split the signal a sub will help.
 

brandonhall

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I can confirm that the PowerNode cuts the signal to the main speakers when the subwoofer option is checked. It does have a range from 40hz to 200hz. I suggested 60hz because @alinaqvi won't completely kill his bass while testing loads. Once you get a sub, a better value may be 80hz or 100hz depending on how the PowerNode handles the load. Typically, floorstanders don't want/need a high crossover point. Does that clear it up @alinaqvi?
 
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alinaqvi

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It means you have a good thing. I’ll try to keep this short and helpful. Your amp has sub out with a crossover point which you say you can adjust from 40-200khz. I don’t see this in the manual but ok. Thats great IF your amp will feed signal only above set frequency to your main speakers and only below to an active subwoofer. This would give you a bit of headway with your amp/mainspeakers combo. If your Amp is still sending a full frequency to your main speakers and sending only low frequency to your sub, nothing has changed and you will still go into clipping/protection at the same SPL Bottom line, if it can split the signal a sub will help.
Thanks so much that's really helpful. I will double check with them to confirm the crossover range as I suddenly thought just because it's on the BluOs app (which is used across a number of brands and models) doesn't mean it's actually on the Powernode. So you may be right after all.
 
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alinaqvi

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I can confirm that the PowerNode cuts the signal to the main speakers when the subwoofer option is checked. It does have a range from 40hz to 200hz. I suggested 60hz because @alinaqvi won't completely kill his bass while testing loads. Once you get a sub, a better value may be 80hz or 100hz depending on how the PowerNode handles the load. Typically, floorstanders don't want/need a high crossover point. Does that clear it up @alinaqvi?
That's fantastic and thanks for clarifying this. I'll test it out at 60hz when the house is empty(!) and see what happens.
 
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alinaqvi

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I can confirm that the PowerNode cuts the signal to the main speakers when the subwoofer option is checked. It does have a range from 40hz to 200hz. I suggested 60hz because @alinaqvi won't completely kill his bass while testing loads. Once you get a sub, a better value may be 80hz or 100hz depending on how the PowerNode handles the load. Typically, floorstanders don't want/need a high crossover point. Does that clear it up @alinaqvi?
Very much so. Thank you.
 
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