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When Pioneer ecided they wanted to get in the cd jukebox business they cam e out with 100 watt (when 100 watts was 100 watts)  and had a single 18" or maybe even a 20" sub in the bottom.. At a high volume all the glaases in the place were vibrating and the bass cone was going in and out about 2".. Rum and cokes would start dancing along the bar...

 Lonman what is the size of a club where its big enough and absolutely needs a sub sitting on the floor? I have been in small bars where the sub was nothing but an irritant.  But in a larger club it would have been perfect...

Or let me rephrase that so that everybody knows what the quesion is...  

  What general guidelines do you use to establish the necessity of having a sub according to the size of the club?  Knowing that certain factors such as thick carpets etc attenuate bass, these factors will vary but  when do you think a sub on the floor is absolutely required? Just generally speaking....

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If the speakers are right on top of your audience (no space in between), then a sub probably wouldn't be needed, however I have always used at least 1 - doesn't need to be pounding, but noticeable if it weren't there.   Size of the room don't matter to me.  Right now I have 1 18" running with 1450 watts, the club seats approx 200.  When I run outdoor shows with any kind of yard space, I will use 2 18", or 1 dual 18" or if I want to go all out, 2 dual 18" getting 2000 watts each (this was my heaviest complimented show I ever had as far as sound & get booked to do the same party every year).   Subs don't have to be overbearing, but will be an assett to any system if run correctly.

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What wattage on the mains? and how many?

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I don't have anywhere near the experience or equipment that many have here, but have to agree with the subs.  Even in very small areas I still use the sub.  I first started out with the idea I would only use it in larger rooms, but the quality of sound is just not where I want it without the sub, even just setting up and playing it in my basement.  I am not running a lot of power, but the sub adds to the sound, regardless of room size.

I run 2 tri-amped (with the sub) on the dance floor, mids receive approx 300 watts each, highs receive approx 225 watt each.  The 3rd is on a side wall to fill out the room, bi-amped as well mids get approx 225 watts & highs approx 125.  Everything is going through electronic crossovers for adjustability.
When I run the dual subs on outdoor shows, the mains will generally receive aprox 1000 watts each for the mids & 500 watts for the highs.  Generally only use 2 mains.

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I always say buy for the biggest room you anticipate.  Alot of companies when starting out just get a system to fit the room they are planning & when they decide to get into a larger room or do outdoor shows, they generally find out they need more.  But that's just my thinking.

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Lonman do you think the JBL Jrx 118sp at 500watts will be enough to make a difference. The room I do is pretty large but I do not have the funds to totally upgrade everything and I thought that this sub combined with the G2's would give me enough power and sound quality to do the job.

Well it would make a difference for sure. I have heard the combo & it sounds pretty decent.  My preference is to have at least double wattage from my sub over the mains.  For most rooms, all you would need is 1 sub (unless it's a very large room or outdoor show).  
You may consider the unpowered JRX sub coupled with a QSC RMX850 power amp bridged to it - that would give 850 watts to the sub while your mains would be pushing 400 each.  The combo would run about the same, however you would need an external crossover which would cost a little more.  dbx 223XL would be an ideal choice, it runs about $180.  This will be utilized for the entire system, not just the sub so you'll be able to adjust your mains as well while sending a mono signal (summed- both channels combined) to the sub.

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Initial speaker selection really is a time to be careful and look ahead.

We always start with a pair of mains that should be mounted on sticks/stands and then build from there.

If we are certain that all we will ever want is bass that kinda fills out the spectrum, but doesn't stand out, then it's best to buy main cabs that each contain two 15" cone woofers and a horn.

If we expect that one day we will want REAL bass for skirt-flipping hot dance music and some lively DJ stuff, then we want reqular 2 way main cabs and separate subs.


If due to limited $$ we buy only a pair of 2 way mains, then we need to take care we don't try to get them to reproduce too much bass while we save for the subs.

There is a good reason to eventually add at least one sub to any 2 way mains. Even if you only want mild bass.....The reason is that the 2 way mains will sound much better and require less amp power once you cross the bass freqs out of them into subwoofers.

Once you add and properly amp/cross the sub/subs, then you will discover a whole new sound from your tops. They will sound crisper and have more definition. The vocals will stand out better, too.