Deciding whether or not to add Beolab 11 /Beolab 2, to a pair of Beolab 8002 speakers

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AP Posted: Tue, Aug 5 2014 10:31 AM

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I am currently using 2 Beolab 8002 speakers, connected to an analogue Denon pre-amp (PMA 720AE). I chose this pre-amp after trying the larger Denon digital pre-amps and this sounded way better. However, this pre-amp has only 1 set of pre-out jacks, which means if I want to add a subwoofer, it will necessarily need to be a B&O subwoofer (such that the speakers can connect to the subwoofer, and subwoofer to the pre-amp). I am fine with having to get a B&O subwoofer (in fact I dont want to match any other subwoofer to the Beolab speakers even if my pre-amp had more pre-out sockets).

here is the problem/question: I have been using the 8002s for a month now, and have tried various genres of music - from music that doesn't need any bass to music that sounds good only with excellent bass reproduction. I discovered that for my living room (which has naturally good acoustics) there is more than enough bass in the 8002s (the middle setting i.e. "close to wall", is more than enough). Western classical performs beautifully, but when it comes to regular pop, rock or house, the 8002s are missing "punch" or "thump"...they just have a lot of bass...and this extra bass creates a humming effect that clouds the mid-frequencies (I hope this is making sense).

Will using the Beolab11 (or beolab 2) together with the 8002s give me the "punch" or "thump" , and therefore use less of the "humming" bass of the 8002s ? 

many thanks!

AP

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Millemissen replied on Tue, Aug 5 2014 10:41 AM

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AP:

... Western classical performs beautifully, but when it comes to regular pop, rock or house, the 8002s are missing "punch" or "thump"...they just have a lot of bass...and this extra bass creates a humming effect that clouds the mid-frequencies (I hope this is making sense).

Will using the Beolab11 (or beolab 2) together with the 8002s give me the "punch" or "thump" , and therefore use less of the "humming" bass of the 8002s ? 

Sounds more of a problem with the recordings.

But the best thing would be to try it out at home - if possible.

By the way - are you using lossy files or CD's/FLAC files for playback?

MM

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Jeff replied on Tue, Aug 5 2014 11:21 AM

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Not exactly sure what you mean by "humming" but if it's a muddying and lack of clarity, bass lines running together, and midrange not being as clear, that's the usual downside of using small drivers to produce bass and midrange. As the bass/mid drivers are pushed harder, they lose clarity and definition. The solution is a subwoofer, but not any sub, you need one that has a high pass and low pass filter. The low pass filter is there on most subs, it passes only low freq to the sub, the high pass filter is not there on most aftermarket subs, but the B&O subs have it, and its designed for their speakers, that removes the deep bass from the main speakers. This greatly improves both bass performance and clarity of the main speakers.