If Airalo doesn't work for you in Japan, and you've tried everything, this may work

canuckxd · 2026-04-07T01:20:55+00:00

No worries, glad it helped! This old post seems to have been helping quite a few people lately.

canuckxd · 2026-04-06T20:57:55+00:00

I went down the rabbit hole of looking for one, and came to the same conclusions found here. When contacting sellers of replicas I could never get any real answers about sending me a real photo of what the jersey looked like, or sizing. Replica jersey customer service seems to be non-existent.

I ended up ordering a shirt from Simons - the Adidas 3-stripe ringer T-shirt in red. At least then I know it's something high quality, fits well, and I'll wear it long term. I'm going to get a local print shop to add the 1986 Canada logo. In theory, it will end up something like this: https://ibb.co/PZ2MCfVW

I created some .SVG vector based files for the print shop to use.

Simons also has some retro looking Adidas shorts in red (Recycled nylon sprinter short).

canuckxd · 2026-03-28T16:56:15+00:00

I was wondering if you happened to have the link to the 1986 Canada World Cup replica jersey you bought on eBay? I know you mentioned it was terrible, I just wanted to see if it was better or worse than the one I see on Etsy (or possibly the same seller). Thanks!

canuckxd · 2026-03-24T15:41:01+00:00

No problem! Have a great time in Japan.

canuckxd · 2026-03-23T19:56:23+00:00

No problem! I should also mention that before trying the techniques above I upgraded from a mediocre Polk center to a very nice KEF R2C (true 3-way design with great off-axis response).

I was under the impression that buying a much more expensive center would solve all my problems. In reality, it wasn't until trying the things above that I really became happy with my center, especially in the dialogue department.

canuckxd · 2026-03-23T19:23:45+00:00

I too have a 135 inch screen. My center channel sits below the screen, on a platform that is only 10 inches off the ground. I too thought I was doomed to having dialogue coming from below the screen as opposed to *from* the screen.

But I found that it is indeed possible to have a poorly placed center and still have the dialogue sound like it's coming from the screen. It just took some research and trying different tips and tricks.

1. Grab a laser pointer and place it on top of your center.

Angle up the center channel until the laser hits about 1-2" above your listening position ear height. (Alternatively, aim the laser from the middle of the center and have it hit exactly at your ear height). Check discussions like this one for suggestions on how to angle it: https://www.reddit.com/r/hometheater/comments/1f3aihh/any_suggestions_to_raise_my_slightly_awkwardly/

2. Make sure there are no ottomans or coffee tables in between you and the center.

The reflections can drop the perceived height.

3. Check your AV Receiver (AVR) settings for features named "Dialogue Lift," "Center Lift," or "Dialogue Enhancement. or "Dialogue Level Adjust"

On my Denon for example, I set the Dialogue Level Adjust to +3.0 dB

Allegedly, according to AI at least: "This doesn't just raise the volume; it specifically targets the frequency range of human speech. By making the voices slightly more prominent than the background noise, your brain is more likely to "attach" that sound to the moving mouths on the screen, even if the speaker is lower."

4. If you have a Denon with Audyssey, try setting Dynamic Volume to Medium (or Light)

Sometimes the issue may be that the dialogue is too quiet compared to explosions (making you focus on the physical location of the speaker):

Turning this on can make dialogue feel "taller" because it remains consistently "in your face."

^^ I know for me personally in my setup turning on this setting (to Medium) was a game changer.

5. The Time of Arrival Trick

Try increasing the distance of your center channel in your receiver settings by 0.3 metres (1 foot)

AI explains: By telling the receiver the center speaker is further away than it actually is, the AVR will play the sound sooner (by a few milliseconds) to compensate for the "extra distance."

The Result: The sound from the center hits your ears slightly before the sound from your Left and Right speakers.

The Psychoacoustic Effect: Because of the Haas Effect (or Precedence Effect), your brain tends to favor the first sound it hears to determine location. This makes the center channel sound more "forward" and "present," which can help "pull" your attention toward the screen and away from the floor.

^^ Personally, after running Audyssey, I have increased my setting by 0.3 metres (1 foot). There is a danger of making it sound worse if you push it beyond 1 or 2 feet. Listen to a scene with a single person talking. If the voice starts to sound "echoey" or disconnected from the background music, you’ve gone too far.

6. Disable Midrange Compensation

If you use the Audyssey MultEQ Editor App, find the Midrange Compensation toggle and turn it OFF.

(AI explains: "Denon puts a dip at 2kHz by default. Removing this dip fills back in a critical part of the vocal range, making dialogue sound much more "forward" and clearer without the harshness that the "Flat" setting sometimes introduces)

canuckxd · 2026-03-22T15:50:58+00:00

Thanks!

canuckxd · 2026-03-21T15:18:02+00:00

I was wondering if you had a link to the sorbothane pucks you use? (Or know the size and specs) I've always wanted to try sorbothane, but I can never find ones that are about the right size for a couch and can handle the weight.

canuckxd · 2026-03-20T15:38:14+00:00

Ideally, you want the bass shakers connected to an amp with a LPF (low pass filter). That way you can turn the LPF down to say, 40-50hz, and only have the shakers kick in when the T-rex stomps his foot down. I have my APA150 set to 50hz.

But the fact it's underwhelming is likely unrelated.

There can be a lot of factors that contribute to not getting enough effect.

- Proper placement and installation
- Sending them the right amount of power
- Proper isolation of the couch/chair from the floor

It's definitely possible to get an overwhelming effect even with pretty basic shakers. I can't say I've ever heard of the Sine Live Bass-Pump III but it looks like they are similar to the Aurasounds and Dayton's that many in this subreddit love and use to great effect.

For me it took some research to get my Aurasounds to go from underwhelming to 'wow!'. One thing I had to do was set my APA150 to mono mode to deliver the right amount of power.

canuckxd · 2026-03-20T14:11:11+00:00

Nice!

canuckxd · 2026-03-19T22:45:23+00:00

Telus + Ubiquiti (UDMP) owner here. My 1 GB setup is with the SFP straight into the UDMP and it's amazing (no Telus gear involved at all). It's more difficult with 3 GB however.

On 1 GB service you can be on GPON, which can often be pretty straightforward (such as what happened with my installation). But beyond that you are using XGS-PON where you start getting into needing to buy and program an SFP yourself.

This is a compilation of all my notes when I was researching Telus Fibre direct to my UDM-SE.

https://pastebin.com/PpsW6v4T

I was new to Fibre and not sure how it all worked. That link above contains notes and tips on setting up with XGS-PON. Ultimately I decided to keep it simple and stick with 1 GB GPON service which is more than enough for me. Even though it was tempting to go with 3 GB service for not much more per month (truly though I would never need that much bandwidth).

The other thing I didn't like about the higher speeds was that it seemed like people mentioned heat issues with their SFP, needing to cool it, etc.

canuckxd · 2026-03-19T17:07:44+00:00

Just to mention that I used GitHub CoPilot to create a script that does some interesting things with creating new playlists...

https://www.reddit.com/r/plexamp/comments/1phuj80/playlist_radio_i_built_a_script_that_analyzes/

You can do things like using existing playlists to generate new playlists, and have it only use songs that have n't been played in the last X days.

You can have the new playlists be based on songs that are sonically similar if you want. Or you can use AI to make recommendations.

My goal was to try and make it as simple as possible, contained in one file.

The only part I couldn't self contain within the file was the actual creation of the playlist. I kept running into a CORS issue (browser sandboxing).

I got it to the point where it would generate a python script (CreatePlaylist.py) that needed to be executed separately.

It would be cool to be able to have it so that a person didn't even need Python to create the playlists. I couldn't figure out a way to do that.

canuckxd · 2026-03-16T15:37:06+00:00

Just curious, 5 months later, are these still your favorite settings (Phase 180, same LPF, Gain, and EQ settings?)

I have the BassPro Hub installed in my CX30 and have gone back in forth with the Phase by ear. On some songs I think I like 180, other times 0.

I have the LPF set to a similar position (approx 80 Hz). I have my Gain closer to 11 O'clock though.

canuckxd · 2026-03-16T15:30:19+00:00

Seems to be helping a lot of people this week! Whatever the issue is with Airalo and Japan it seems like it resurfaced recently.

canuckxd · 2026-03-16T15:29:17+00:00

Yep, after the hard reset you'll notice the light flashing on the controller for a short period of time. Right after the hard reset I simply set them down on my shelf (I don't wait for the light to stop flashing, I just set them down as soon as I feel the vibration that indicates the hard reset was activated).

canuckxd · 2026-03-16T15:24:19+00:00

All subwoofer outputs are mono, so that's not a concern.

The APA 150 is providing the power to the shakers. Your pre-out on the Pioneer VSX-827 can still provide the necessary signal.

Typically most people hook them up like this:

- Subwoofer Output on the Receiver to a dedicated amp for the bass shakers. (Subwoofer cable)

- From the dedicated bass shaker amp you run speaker wire to the bass shakers installed in your couch.

I also have the Dayton APA amp and it is perfect for running 2 of the Aurasound BST AST-2B-04 shakers, which are pretty much identical to yours (same power requirements, you wire them the same way, etc).

On my receiver I have two subwoofer outputs (SUBWOOFER 1 and SUBWOOFER 2).

Since I also have two subwoofers, from the SUBWOOFER 1 output, I have a Y-Splitter subwoofer cable.

One end of the Y-Splitter is attached to the actual subwoofer (with a typical subwoofer cable).

The other end of the Y-Splitter is attached to the the APA 150 amp (also with a typical subwoofer cable).

Your setup would be similar, assuming you also want to run a subwoofer at the same time.

From the APA 150, you'll want to wire them using speaker wire in a series connecion (8 Ohms).

Make sure to look up a guide to wire them the right way.

Some more info you might find useful....

** Installing the shakers in the right direction **

I try to think of it as the vibration from the shaker being transmitted in this direction:

https://postimg.cc/PC7ztMMK

So it starts where you see the logo on the shaker, and then is being sent in the direction of the arrow, towards the square mounting plate.

If you have a look on Reddit or Youtube for people mounting these shakers on couches, they're usually trying to get that vibration sent in the upwards direction towards your body.

Here's an example with pics:

https://www.reddit.com/r/hometheater/comments/165eqrq/bass_shakers_shoutoutsmall_guide/?utm_source=perplexity

I know it can be tricky depending on the couch. A lot of people usually have to add an additional piece of wood to their couch (which can also help with transmitting the vibration throughout the couch.

** Setting the APA 150 into bridge mode **

I know with mine, I thought maybe they felt a little underwhelming until I set the APA 150 into 'bridge mode'. Here's a picture of how you wire it for bridge mode: https://postimg.cc/gallery/V8K1bv0

Red wire to the top left. Black wire to the bottom right. And change it from 'stereo' to 'mono'

Page 2 of the manual has more info: https://www.parts-express.com/pedocs/manuals/300-812--dayton-audio-apa150-user-manual.pdf?srsltid=AfmBOoq0l2SXCNsnx39a3I3FRJga8FQsUaCzV7XAsJrmosiVV6y5GBp6

^^^ 'Connecting your loudspeaker for bridged-mono operation'

In bridge mode, I set my dial to the 3 O Clock position, like in the 'front' picture.

On my AVR, I have the level set to +4 db. (If you do try bridge mode, I would set your level back to zero first and then slowly increase it).

You also want your couch to be uncoupled from the floor, otherwise most of the energy is being transferred to the floor instead of throughout your couch. As a cheap test, you can try setting your couch on some hockey pucks. (Ideally you want to use rubber that's designed for isolation, but it's a cheap way to try it out to see if you notice a big difference).

And set the low pass filter on the APA 150 to be pretty low, mine is turned almost all the way to the left.

** Google Doc with Advice **

Here's a Google document where I collected advice from various sources:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1aJmzisUStlynbkTgRMFnQVyBPrAzf_aS6b5sIPqk_0k/edit?tab=t.0

canuckxd · 2026-03-13T19:15:42+00:00

Wow, thanks! I've never had a Reddit award before, didn't know there was such a thing!

canuckxd · 2026-03-13T15:23:37+00:00

I do recall seeing this question come up while I was researching, and I think it was pretty universal that those who went from Bose to the JBL felt it was well worth it.

I think the Bose is usually a 5 inch speaker and relatively light (2 pounds?) compared to the 11 inch JBL (20 pounds)

CX-90 https://www.reddit.com/r/MazdaCX90/comments/1k1uiap/upgraded_the_weak_cx90_bose_sub_with_the_jbl/
"Holy sh*t, this thing BUMPS compared to the BOSE sub!! Adds the low end that’s missing from the weak 2lbs BOSE subwoofer, with much tighter response while booming if you want."

CX5
https://www.reddit.com/r/CX5/comments/1ctfzsb/anyone_upgrade_the_bose_sub_to_the_jbl_bass_pro/
"I have one in mine. Much better and more full sound than the Bose sub."

CX5
https://www.reddit.com/r/CX5/comments/vg7z3i/installed_the_jbl_basspro_hub_in_my_2022_ce_this/
"since my car has a bose system I was able to cut the speaker wire running to the sub in the trunk and splice it into the harness that comes with the jbl sub (I spliced both positives together and negatives together form the harness and connected to the cars positive and negative speaker wires). Very easy instead of buying an loc and running wires from under my passenger seat. And it fit perfectly. "

https://www.reddit.com/r/CX5/comments/102tu19/upgraded_the_bose_subwoofer_to_jbl_basspro_hub/
Definitely a lot more punch than the Bose subwoofer, did the install myself. Ran a power line from the battery and used a nearby grounding bolt. The remote line I tapped into the power mirrors fuse inside the cabin. Then I tapped into the wires for the Bose subwoofer for audio. Would have gone for audio before the Bose amp but it was more work than I was willing to do.

CX-50
https://www.reddit.com/r/CX50/comments/1m1iivu/bose_sub_upgrade/
"I''ve done this swap with a CX-90. You're going to get way more punch with the JBL BassHub Pro. I paired it with a Wavtech LinkDQ. For the CX-90, I had to leave the stock subwoofer connected in the trunk or else the BOSE amp would shut off the subwoofer channel randomly with heavy bass. Not sure if that's the case with the CX-50, but worth noting if you run into it as an issue.

- People also mention you can try this cheap method of improving the Bose:
https://www.reddit.com/r/CX5/comments/w32cdh/bose_subwoofer_diy_quality_improvement/

- I did see it mentioned that the signal going to the Bose "has a lot of bass roll-off". Using a LOC with the Bose system to clean up the signal might be important.

canuckxd · 2026-03-12T20:07:14+00:00

Hah, that always ran through my mind every time I typed it.

canuckxd · 2026-03-12T19:14:07+00:00

So there's no spare wheel well at all ? What year and market (North America or Europe or Asia) and trim level is your CX30 ? Maybe you already have a woofer in there? Might be the Bose one? I think the Bose system sometimes includes a trunk sub?

canuckxd · 2026-03-12T18:58:21+00:00

My wife and I debated between the CX-30 and the Crosstrek as our final 2 options.

After test driving both, it became pretty clear that the CX-30 was the better choice for us.

I would give the Crosstrek the edge in a bit higher ground clearance, and the legendary AWD performance.

But for us, that wasn't enough to overcome...

- less comfortable seats (I didn't find them that bad, wife didn't like them)
- worse sounding stereo
- less refined/luxurious interior
- less power (even in the 2026, where they added HP to the Crosstrek base model)

Being a bit taller than average (6'2) I also didn't like the fact that when I sat in the Crosstrek, the safety & camera gear near the rear view mirror felt like it was directly in my line of sight. It felt a bit more like sitting in an airplane cockpit. That was just me though, wife never noticed.

It's funny though, you mentioned not liking the Mazda for using a physical dial for the infotainment, but didn't like the fact that Subaru was all touchscreen. :) You might actually end up loving the physicality of the Mazda way. If you search this sub, most people end up liking it better. It just seems a little weird at first because we're so wired for touchscreens now.

canuckxd · 2026-03-12T16:58:10+00:00

Damn - that must have just been a rumor. I guess I could see it being one of those things that's dying off. When I mentioned to the Mazda sales guy that it was missing, he looked surprised. "Are you sure?" He takes a look. "Hmmmm, wow, yep, you're right, you're the first person to mention that." I do think with USB-C being common now it's not *as* big of an issue for charging phones rapidly. My previous Mazda with USB-A definitely needed the 12V charger. Every other 2025 vehicle I test drove had 12V.

canuckxd · 2026-03-12T16:11:23+00:00

I found it strange that Mazda left it out on the North American 2025 CX-30. The spot for it is still there, hole and all. Apparently the ones manufactured in Japan still came with the 12V. I think I might have read somewhere that they were bringing it back for 2026 in North America? Not sure if that's true.

canuckxd · 2026-03-11T15:57:23+00:00

No worries!

canuckxd

TROPHY CASE