lowrider said:
Steve's subwoofers are more similar to my REL than to your JBL, as is the xover frequency he uses...
Antonio,
test results show quite clearly that odd order harmonic distortion is a problem with many commercial subwoofers. It is also generally accepted that this type of distortion is both unpleasant (not occuring naturally) and destructive to perceived sound quality.
Now in Rel's case, 3rd harmonic distortion is greater than 10% even in their top models, and is even greater on the Strata. This problem exists regardless of playback level. If you are replaying a piece of music with say a low piano note at around 30hz, this distortion will be audible at 90hz (remember third harmonic) and like wise a 25hz organ note will produce annoying distortion at 75hz.
Thinking logically, it would make sense in this case to crossover below the point at which this distortion interferes with the music, so crossing over at 60hz (assuming a 4th order crossover slope is employed in the Krell) would make the distortion at 75hz a further 6db lower in relation to the main signal. As the majority of music contains no true notes below 30hz, the main distortion is likely to be at 90hz and above, so employing the filter setting you do would reduce the odd harmonic distortion to about -30db at 90hz and make it all but inaudible at higher frequencies.
So by crossing over at 60hz to you satellites, you are able to compensate for the distortion inherent in the design, producing a cleaner and more pleasing sound. Due to the high distortion measured in many commercially available subwoofers, this is accepted practice and indeed products are designed under the assumption that lower crossover settings will be used.
But what happens if you start off with very low distortion in the first place?
Just edited to add that having looked at the follow ups to Mr Greene's original response, you will see that provided one adheres to basic acoustic guidelines, there is no issue with higher crossover frequencies in a properly designed product. I hope that will clarify matters for you, but I will of course happily answer any questions you might have.