Thoughts about CSS 1TD-X 3-Way Bass Module Add-On

[captain_vibes]

I've built the CSS 1TDX bookshelf speakers. It was fun and the speakers sound nice. The lows seem a little stressed though. I feel like they would benefit from a sub.
CSS offers a add-on kit that adds two passive subs including crossovers. One for each channel. My amp is a dual mono Hypex Nilai with 2x 260 Watts into 8 Ohms. I guess it should be able to handle the augmented speakers.
Does this seam like a reasonable upgrade to you? Or am I better off buying a single active sub? Not sure which alternative has the highest WAF...?

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Thanks!
-cap

 

[voodooless]

For the money, it doesn’t seem too crazy. You get 4 high excursion woofers that are known to be good, 4 passive radiators and the crossover. It’s not too bad of a deal. You can however get 2 small active subs for the money as well. That will be more versatile, but will probably also not go as low or loud. With the kit you can always make them active afterwards.

 

[captain_vibes]

thanks @voodooless but I think there is only one woofer and one passive radiator per channel, so two in total, not four. does that change something for your verdict?

BTW, are analog crossovers preferable soundwise to lets say using the SUB Out of a preamp (set at the same frequency of course)?

Thanks!

 

[voodooless]

thanks @voodooless but I think there is only one woofer and one passive radiator per channel, so two in total, not four. does that change something for your verdict?

Yes, it changes it a bit, but it's still not a rotten deal. Only the woofers and PRs alone are roughly the asking price. The rest is basically for free.

BTW, are analog crossovers preferable soundwise to lets say using the SUB Out of a preamp (set at the same frequency of course)?

In general, probably not. Active crossovers generally use steeper filters, and they are not influenced by the woofer impedance. A pre-amp should be able to filter both the sub-out as well as the main speakers to make a proper integration. Having said that, with a decent analog crossover, this should work well, as long as you keep the speakers on top of the subs.

 

[captain_vibes]

has there any objective testing been done if superior crossover components (like offered by CSS) make an audible difference in a crossover?
I read that better quality capacitors are considered important but no data to back it up...

 

[voodooless]

I read that better quality capacitors are considered important but no data to back it up...

There is very little data to back up these claims. In bass crossovers where cheap bipolar electrolytics are used, there may be a benefit to better quality caps due to the distortion they (sometimes) induce. So just make sure to use film caps of decent quality and proper voltage rating and you’ll be fine.