Left / Right Sub Setups | Everything You Need To Know

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We all want a killer low end, right? Something that’s consistent, tight, and powerful. Deploying subwoofers the right way sets yourself up for success so you’re not chasing your tail on the kick drum the entire gig.

One of the most common setups is a left/right sub setup. One (or several) subs on each side of the stage, very similar to where our mains placement would be.

Live sound is a game of tradeoffs - it’s easy to simply throw some subs on the deck and call it a day, but are you *fully* aware of what’s at play here? Do you know what you’re both gaining AND losing by choosing this method for deploying subs?

Today I’ve got 5 pros, 5 cons, and 2 workarounds for you. What are the benefits of going with a LR rig, some of the major drawbacks, and two strategies for mitigating those drawbacks.

We’ll cover:

- What’s my favorite LR configuration
- Why left/right sub setups are incompatible with immersive mixing
- How to cut down on rigging points

00:00 - Intro
01:24 - Five Pros
07:23 - Five Cons
15:20 - Two Workarounds & Opportunities
22:09 - Verdict & Conclusion

[kylekemp]

I appreciate you speaking as an audio engineer with a room that is TREATED!

[iuliantimar]

with every video I watch I realize how little I actually know and how much enjoyment there is in learning new things! thanks Michael for all the effort and hard work you put into teaching or debating everything, cheers mate!

[jeremiachavarria]

I did 4 subs in the center of stage and used two tops each side and 2 fill speakers this was at a venue that had 20ft ceiling and and very long venue with stage in the center. The tables also wrapped around stage so i had to use fill speakers in the corners it sounded great thanks for the advice of coupling subs. And ur definitely correct i got judged with the eyes first but when the sound was spot on i got alot of compliments of the complete system

[santiago-kqnd]

I’m a Dj and I find this so intriguing. Great information, thank you 🙏🏼 🔊🔊🪩

[mojoemurphy]

If I'm playing an outdoor gig, or there's a stage that I can put the subs together in front of it, that's my favorite choice, small clubs where we're on the floor or real close to it, subs on the sides are just really convenient

[jantsbenzproaudio]

what software are you using to visualize the pattern? good video by the way!!

[nickaimz]

Your a blessing MR Curtis, thanks for ur videos🙏🏽

[stevenmata]

Question, for this video im assuming the signal is mono for the subs?

[mogglie]

Whats the software you use for drawing the pink boxes on top of your presentation.

Love your content btw! Amazing content.

[aaronaustin]

Lovely demonstration. What is your experience with putting your sub(s) in the middle of the stage on the ground with 2 tops on the LR?

[louisjos]

Hi Michael, I would be curious to know your opinion about "Dave Rat's technique" for LR subs, which consists of sending different signals to both sides (for instance kick in + bass DI to sub Left and kick out + bass cabinet to sub Right) to minimize the interactions between both stacks and so minimize power alleys and valleys. I personally use that when I have to go subs LR, and find it quite efficient concerning wide tonal inconsistencies, but I'd like your input about that.
Thanks
Louis

[basdenchris]

In a small club environment with only two subs (low stage so impractical to make a center cardioid array) would you bite the bullet and roll with the L/R spaced pair, or would you prefer, assuming it could be done without ruining the aesthetic or compromising stage space, to stack both (either in a cardioid array or in a simple omni stack) on one side of the stage?

[jthunderbass]

My new gig is where it’s either my Yamaha 2 DXS15XLF subs or the bands two QSC 18 in subs.
The subs are always on each side of the stage because aesthetics are more important that optimal audio.
One time I went into ease focus and I modeled a room with the Yamaha subs.
It showed that if I put a delay on one side I got a full coverage of low end.
I personally own four dual 15 inch subwoofers.
In the past I’ve used two dual driver subwoofers on each side stacked, and then spaced out single driver subs across the front.
I was unable to do any kind of measuring with it, but with having single driver subs spaced across the front I had the best low-frequency coverage ever.
It would be cool if you did a video about the two different ways. A pair of two drive subwoofers on each side of the stage with single driver subs space across the front, abs also using delay on a side to compare what the difference is.

[soundsationsweddingdjservi]

I'm a DJ and I often have to do big school Grads with 1500 plus guests. Schools don't have huge budgets, so I can't charge them enough to allow me to rent extra gear and have to make the best of what I have. I can cover the mid/highs no problem but of course kids that age want lots of hip hop and lots of low end. I have 2 older QSC hpr181i subs that I usually put together side by side in front of center stage with the mid/high's at the left and right. It sounds OK (even though I have to spend all night removing peoples drinks from the subs). I also have 2 older Mackie SWA1501's. Is there any way I could incorporate those into the setup for a little more bass coverage or would that cause problems? Any feedback would be appreciated!

[djgazaaka]

Happy new year, can you make a video about good pa speakers.

[minarellipower]

Hey. I was wondering... what manufacturer do you prefer if you have a choice to pick one to work with their sound system. I personally am fan of L'acoustics but never had a chance to actually find out which one is the better overral product... So top tear brand if you have a choice what ever you can choose...

p.s.

I do realise that top tear brands have fine margins against each other and picking one doesn't mean other brands are no good... just out of curiosity I want to hear opinion of an unbiast professional :)

Cheers :)

(sry for eventual typos, if you speak croatian it would be much easyer for me haha )

[sylvaintricotet]

Hi Michael, first let me thank you for all the passion and the hard work you put into your videos! I spend a lot of time watching them these days and learn a lot !!
I have a question about my L/R sub setup. I work in a small venue (500 audience) equipped with 2 subs (flown) each side of the stage in the same cluster as mains + I have one sub on the ground still on each side placed vertically at about the same position.

I wonder about the routing of the stereo mix. Do you think it's better to feed left subs with Left source of the master and Right subs with right or is it a better choice to send a summation of L+R to both sides in the subs?
Thanks in advance for your help

[armand_v_cpt]

Wow, incredibly informative videos on your channel!

[stevenoliver]

Hi, fantastic videos! With a traditional either side of stage LR 2sub 2 top config I normally just run a single L output to the `L sub and single high pass to my L top and vice versa for the R. However I recently started experimenting with cluster my 2 subs, with some cautious success; and now have bought a 3rd sub which I hope to try this weekend as a small outdoor festival. My question is how best to connect the subs from the desk when clustered. Is a L sub L top / then a R sub R top still best (with a full range pass through from one sub to the extra 3rd sub) or is it best to run dual L&R signals from the desk into one sub, high pass L & R to the tops but then pass through both L&R to the additional subs? I generally run mono mixes for the bands but if a stereo source (DJ) I guess the single to each subs could be different if only running a `L or R from the desk. I’m looking to get the subs to work in harmony together, take full advance of the clustering benefits which I guess is only really achieved if all subs are getting exactly the same signal? And that would mean both L&R in and more cables! Thanks in advance

[BencomoNegro]

What setup do you suggest for 2 speakers and 1 sub or 2 subs when there is no stage but a dj booth facing the crowd and at the same dancefloor level, as you said people sometimes talks about what they see instead of what they hear, is it ok to setup 1 sub behind the dj booth or will it be messing the audio quality considering that the dj booth is a led display and putting a sub in front of it may not be a great idea for a visual quality-aestethic feel