How Important Is the LFE Subwoofer to Home Theater?
This, And Other Questions About Home-Theater Bass by Doug Blackburn Years ago, I was convinced that main left and right speakers that went down to 25Hz, or which had subwoofers that went down that low, were all you needed for good home-theater sound. Then Dolby Digital came to town with 5.1 sound that had much more complex bass-management issues. With today s 5.1 sound incorporating an LFE channel, I have swung the other way. You really can t get all the thrills of home-theater surround without a good LFE sub even if you already have a pair of subs on your main left and right speakers. Who s on first? There are a number of reasons for the LFE sub being a key to good home-theater bass. First there is Dolby Labs themselves. In an interview with Dolby Labs personnel, I honed in on the issues around bass management in Dolby Digital 5.1 decoding equipment. I knew that many products with Dolby Digital decoders were not following Dolby Lab s rules for bass management, yet they were still able
