Do I need a subwoofer?

originally posted by: dug88
The 15" cones are probably good enough for movies and such.

A well mixed movie will likely benefit more from proper low frequency reproduction than any music out there.

And, cone size alone really isn't enough to determine if it will sufficiently meet wants/needs in an audio setup. Its a pretty common misconception though.

originally posted by: ManFromEurope
In the timeless words of one of the greatest componists:

Translation: Sure, why not! More sub = good sub!

LMAO!!!!!

originally posted by: trollz
I spent a bit of money turning my first car into the scourge of the streets. I put 2 massive MTX subs in the trunk and covered the trunk with Dynamat. I'd set off car alarms of cars I drove past, and one time I even pulled up to a convenience store with the subs blasting and noticed they were flexing the windows across the front of the store. I kid you not. That thing was an absolute beast. It felt so good sitting inside the car, but it probably killed some of my hearing. Worth it though.

So, to answer your question, yes. You always need a subwoofer. Make those booms count.

I like.....
When I was young , I had my Chevy Van decked out with a home stereo system. 6 regular home speakers powered by a 1500w kicker. Had to have dual heavy duty alternators.Even then , when I hit the old kicker button the headlights got very dim and the inside light would go off.
Guaranteed to wake the neighbors up . Even though my neighbors were 2 miles away.

originally posted by: VictorVonDoom
Wasn't sure where to put this, I figured Music was as good as any.

I'm working on upgrading my audio system. The subwoofer I intended to use is not compatible with the amplifier. Four of my speakers in a 7.1 system have 15" woofers. Is it worth the money to add a subwoofer?

15" woofers ARE subs.

a reply to: VictorVonDoom

If your thinking about a sub for watching movies or tv. You really should consider a smaller sub. 15" woofers usually have a slow response rate due to the physical size and mass of air being moved which can lead a boomy subwoofer. A boomy sub can render lower voices unintelligible and can mix them in with background noise depending where you set the crossover and the ability of the amp to control that woofer also the quality of said woofer. I suggest two 10"woofers In the same enclosure. That will be just a loud with a much clearer sound. I run two seperate enclosures with two 10" woofers in each for a total of four 10" subwoofer drivers. A 500 watt plate amp in both enclosures. I never had to turn them more than half way up. The crossover is set at 150hz. Although I have been considering a 15" or 18" horn subwoofer for listening to music. Two different approaches for music and movies. That's why it's so hard to have a system that can play music exceptionally well and double as a tv and movie system.

I really appreciate the responses. Thank you everyone. Special thanks to Sergiam and Meniscus.

Neighbors are not an issue, but I don't want my dogs to go deaf. It's just when there is a thunderstorm or siren in the movie I want to check my security monitor to make sure it's not happening outside.

A little info for the audiophiles. The larger speakers are Pioneer CS-922A and the smaller ones are Optimus Pro XL5. They may be older, but still sound great. I've had to re-foam the Pioneers twice and the Optimus once.

The amplifier is a Denon AVR1913. It seems to be able to recognize the capabilities of the speakers connected to it. One really nice feature is that it comes with a microphone that you put in various places in the room. Then it sends tones to each speaker and runs a calibration program to adjust the output for each speaker.

So far, I'm really happy with the sound from HDTV programs. Tonight I'll try out an appropriate bluray and give it a listen. But the general consensus I get is that it's better to have a subwoofer than not. That coincides nicely with my particular tech-quirk: if a piece of equipment has a place to plug something in, I need to plug something in to it. Call it electronic OCD.