How to Wire a Subwoofer Home Theater
Subwoofers are designed to reproduce the very low bass frequencies and can make watching a movie at home even more exciting. The amount of time and effort needed to wire a subwoofer to your home theater is minimal if you approach it methodically.
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Instructions
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Setting up the Subwoofer
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Set up the subwoofer near a wall or corner and plug it in for power. Attach the RCA jack of the audio cable to the line input in the back of the subwoofer.
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Consult the subwoofer's instruction manual if there are stereo line inputs--it will tell you which input to use (or to get a "Y" adapter to bridge both inputs) depending upon whether the amplifier has one or two outputs.
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3
Attach the other end of the audio cable that is plugged into the subwoofer into the LFE or subwoofer pre-out jack on the back of the amplifier or home theater system.
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4
Turn on the subwoofer and adjust the volume to less than halfway to start.
Setting up the Amplifier
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Turn on the amplifier and navigate to a menu that lets you tell the system that there is a subwoofer connected to it.
Make any adjustments as necessary for the size of your speakers, room size, etc. as needed/desired.
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Balance the subwoofer to the rest of the speakers either by using a SPL sound meter, or by using an auto-balance program that is built into the amplifier or home theater system.
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7
Play a movie and adjust the volume of the subwoofer to suit your preference.
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Tips & Warnings
Try not to have a longer length for the audio cord than is needed, and avoid it being strained when plugged in to the amplifier or subwoofer.
Turn down the volume of the subwoofer when it is first being set up. This will keep it from sounding off too loud.
Powered subwoofers that have their own amplifier built in are the most common and practical to get because most amplifiers don't provide for bass amplification. It is best to get one of these for use with your home theater.
Using a good quality, properly shielded audio cable is a must, as an inferior cable could pick up EMI (electro-magnetic interference) from other electronic components or the A/C power lines.
References
Resources
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