Ask Engadget HD: What's the best home theater subwoofer under $500?
By Darren Murph 
posted Dec 3rd 2008 12:00PM
posted Dec 3rd 2008 12:00PM
"I'm in the process of assembling a 5.1 system for my den, but I'm really concerned about making the right decision on a subwoofer. I'm putting a cap of $500 on it, but I want the most boom (and tightest boom) for my buck. I haven't purchased my towers or surrounds yet, so I'm open to any brand / model / etc."
Ah, starting with the low-end, are we? Probably not a bad place to begin, quite honestly, and we're hoping that you readers can chime in with a few recommendations for this here bass lover. Rumble away in comments below.
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Try the elemental Designs ones. http://www.edesignaudio.com. My A3-350 rocks.
I second ED. I have an A3-300 and I love it.
Good recommendation. ED is generally considered one of the best values in subs these days.
There's also Craigslist, but I've found that while it's fairly good for home theater speakers, it mostly sucks for HT subwoofers. Everyone on there is selling car speakers, or so it seems.
Another vote for eD. I've got two A2-300's from when they had their Two-fer $600 sale, and they're amazing!
Wow I thought I was going to be original jumping on here recommending eD but behold other people have heard of them now.
Truly amazing products. Their store is about 30mins from me and you can tell they are truly dedicated to this stuff.
Elemental Designs is absolutely the best bang for your buck for tight, controlled, deep bass. My A2-350 fills my living room with bass almost like the house is "breathing".
I'll vote for ED as well. While past the price now due to a hike, you can often find the MFW-15 for under $500 from AV123 if you look for a B-stock model. So, a slight imperfection, but after listening to my friends Dual MFW-15 setup, they'll knock your socks off.
For that budget you could use 2 of the Velodyne Impact-10's and not only deal with a number of mode issues but have louder yet tighter bass.
I bought a Velodyne DPS-12. It's fannnnnntastic and comes in just under $500 depending on where you look.
I have an old Velodyne and it is the second best thing I have ever purchased. The best piece of Home Theater gear I have ever bought. I would definitely recommend one of these!
I have en entry-level Velodyne, VRP series I believe, and I am very happy with it. Big upgrade from the Sony HTiB subwoofer I had been holding onto. Easily under $500. I will probably upgrade to one of the better Velodyne's in a couple of years.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my Paradigm subs that I have had through the years, PDR-10, PS-1000 and PS-1200.
I would recommend Paradigm, but I would also check out Velodyne and possibly SVS, though I am not sure if SVS has subs in the $500 or so range.
Forget the sub man, get you a pair of these bad boys. Definitive Technology BP7004. These towers have a bulit in powerd 300w sub in each of them. I own their big borther the BP7002. Add the center CLR2300, again with a 150w powerd sub, and you wont want a stand alone sub. If thats a over you price range, there is always the step down BP7006.
I am not a fan of built in powered sub in tower speakers for the reason that I do not think they produce as good bass as a dedicated sub. I have heard various models, including definitive tech, throughout the years and I I have been more impressed by my Paradigm 10" sub.
The enclosure for the sub is very important for the bass quality and the enclosure for tower speakers just is not conducive for subs. I am also not convinced that it is good for the sound quality for the mids and highs.
One other thing to factor in with Definitive Technology speakers, the speakers mentioned are Bi-Polar and speaker placement is even more critical, mainly that enough room is given behind the speaker. I am not saying these speakers are bad, I have liked Definitive Technology when I have listened to their speakers, just pointing out a few things to look out for.
I agree with the DefTech option. I own the BP7001SC and have demoed the BP7002 and BP7004. I didn't feel like either the 7002 or 7004 lacked in bass and was very pleased in what I heard from. Also having full range speakers up front will allow for better sound quality because you wont be forcing your mids to play a frequency they cant handle.
A benefit you would get with one of their towers with a powered sub is you wont have to get a stand alone sub so you can hold off and wait for funds to get that more expensive sub you would have been happier with.
In general, if you are looking for tight, impactful bass, you should look at a sealed enclosure sub, or at the least, sealed with a passive radiator. Do NOT buy a ported sub, these will give you more VOLUME but less control. A sealed enclosure sub will usually take more power for a given volume but will be tighter and much more controlled (also more musical and will blend better with your main speakers).
Atlantic Technologies makes a very nice sealed 10" Sub, the 212SB that retails around $500. See if you can give it a listen, I think you will be very impressed at its performance for the price!
I think bang for the buck you can't go wrong with the Outlaw LFM series. My neighbor has one and compared to my deftech prosub 1000 well, there really is no comparison. His sub kicks the hell out of mine. A little more at $549 but still an awsome value.
+1,000,000.
I got the LFM-1 EX on a last minute sale for 100 off making it $549, matching the normal price of the LFM-1 Plus. This thing ROCKS. I have it mated to 2 Boston Acoustices HS series 4-way floor standers, plus matching satellites and center all running off of a Denon 688. WOW.
I have a 25 X 20 living room, and have the level of this sub at approx 40%, and sometimes it has to be lowered.
For bang for your buck (literally), I highly recommend Outlaw. On top of eliminating the middle man on the sale process (saving the buyer money of course) their service is world class. I couldnt have the sub delivered to my house, and had to pick up at the FedEx facility. They were kind enough to run to their warehouse to get me the box dimensions of both the Plus and the EX so that I could determine which would fit in my car before ordering. After that, I caught the sale, and that made my decision for me.
Hope this helps.
I have a Mirage's Omni S10, but that's probably considered old by now.
HSU VTF-1 $495.00
I would suggest saving your pennies for a few more months and getting a Rel Acoustics sub. I haven't gotten one yet, but demoed one a couple months ago and they are amazing. Small and ridiculously powerful. The opening scene in Transformers with that chopper... 'wop wop wop wop' yeah... you get the idea. It's awesome. So save up some more and get a Rel Acoustics T-Series. As far as speakers...
I have the PSB Image B25's on the corners and a Image C40 for the center. I'm in a pretty tiny Manhattan apt, so I don't have a sub yet, but I hooked up bass shakers instead to my couch. The PSB's provide some really good bass though with some tweaking on your receiver and have been able to handle anything I can throw at them, with plenty of room for more. I'm driving them with a Sherwood Newcastle R871 which is more than enough for my space.
If you really are on a budget though for a great sub woofer, check out the Axiom EP125 v2. But please, don't buy a sub woofer from a big box shop, it's sacrilegious.
Building a new home theater is always fun, I wouldn't start with the sub, I researched speakers for months, and after dozens of demos I settled with PSB. I felt the brand had the best performance and sound for the value for my ear. It's all subjective though. Demo anything you look at. Then demo it again in a week with something different.
My ultimate solution for your scenario - a Rel Acoustics T-1, PSB Image T45's for the front, B25's for the rear, a C60 center and probably a Sherwood Newcastle, NAD or Rotel amplifier/receiver depending on the budget.
Good luck. Rock on.
Bass coming from 3 different directions is more pronounced as well as more deep and have much more definition then bass coming from one direction. Before I had this set up, I owned the Klipsch RF-82 Home Theater System with the Klipsch RSW-10D sub. The DEF TEC is far better. The bass is much richer and fuller, because it is coming for 3 directions not one. One bad thing about the DEF TEC is you need a very good receiver to push them. I own the Yamaha 3800. Again far better than the Klipsch.
Most frequencies below 80hz are non-directional. As stated above, and dedicated sub enclosure is going to be better than running your front two towers as your sub...there are signals sent over the LFE channel and not in the front two speakers signal, meaning you're missing part of the audio track (albeit probably not too much).
Clearly for very close to $500, this sub cannot be beat. Test it, know it, live it. I have no affiliation with this company, but I do own 2 of their subs.
http://www.svsound.com/products-sub-cyl-pc12_nsd.cfm
Klipsch Synergy SUB-12 Subwoofer is a great choice. It is reqular $500 but if you look hard enough you find it for $300
Companies to look at:
Elemental Designs
HSU
SVS
Not a single mention of SVS yet? What's up with that? I'd take the PB10-NSD in the under $500 category.
I second the recommendation for the SVS PB10-NSD
Martin Logan Dynamo - think it runs ~$600. It's a sealed 10in sub. I've enjoyed mine for 3 years now. It's built like a tank, sounds wonderfully musical and it's plenty loud.
Dang, I can't believe I had to roll down the list this far to find a comment on the Martin Logan Dynamo. This is hands down the greatest sub in its class IMHO. Front firing or down firing, either way it looks sharp and tight and the sound simply can't be beat. If you've got a little more to spend, step up to the Abyss but either way you will NOT be disappointed!
I would strongly recommend the TR series from Anthony Gallo. The TR-1 can be had for under $350, and the TR-2 with 250 watts is slightly over your limit at $520. I've included a link below. They also just released the TR-3 (it was posted on Engadget a few weeks ago). It runs for $670 and is 300w.
The Anthony Gallo A'Diva series was rated best midpriced home theater system for 2007 by Home Theater Magazine. I have the A'Diva 5.1 system and have been very happy.
Good luck!
Sources:
Anthony Gallo: www.roundsound.com
Online reseller: http://www.audiophileliquidator.net/index.php?manufacturers_id=25&gclid=CLK7oLCIpZcCFQ0xawodCWcmow&page=2&osCsid=136cb465f71fc72d67b45f70d608c9fb
These are AWESOME.....I have heard a few (some cheaper than others) that my friends have and they are great !
http://www.svsound.com/
I have always loved cambridge soundworks. Best performance per a dollar by miles.
http://www.cambridgesoundworks.com/store/category.cgi?category=spk_subwoofer
I have a Hsu Research VTF2. GREAT 10" box sub.
Got my father in law a STF2 and VTF3. The VTF3 rocks the pool room.
No One has mentioned the AV123 MFW-15????
it is $600, but #8 and #3 (in dual form) on the craigsub list.
http://www.tweakcityaudio.com/forum/showthread.php?t=11
probably too much sub for most small setups.
Another vote for Outlaw Audio.
This thing is a monster and will shake you house to the rafters with the tightest and loudest bass!!!!!
http://www.outlawaudio.com/products/lfm1plus.html
There are a couple of SVS sub-woofers in your price range but I would suggest adding to the pot a little and getting a PB12 http://www.svsound.com/products-sub-box-isd2.cfm#driver If you plan on only buying one sub woofer for a long time then you might as well make it a very good one that also has the ability to change along your changing needs. The sound is great and it makes a perfect end table so no ugly box to worry about hiding from the wife because she doesn't want to see it in your living room.
The usual suspects (SVS, HSU, etc) are good choices in this price range. But the real key is buy two lesser powered subs instead a single bigger sub. You'll get much smoother bass response at more than one seating position, and tighter more articulate bass up in the crossover.
Spend a little more money on your subwoofer, you will be glad you did. No single speaker makes quite the difference that a good subwoofer adds to your system. You can get away with spending less on your surrounds. You dont quite provide enough details about your listening environment to make that decision yet anyway. You may be better off with 2 small 8'' or 10'' subs instead of a single 10'' or 12''. If it's an average size den, i'd recommend a dual subwoofer setup. This way you will provide better bass coverage throughout your room and minimize dead spots or the '' anti-nodes'' that soundwaves create by reflecting around the room. You will notice as you walk around a room with a single subwoofer playing that it is much louder in certain spots of the room. Some spots you will barely be able to tell that it is on. This is an example of the loud spots, ''nodes'' and dead spots, ''anti-nodes''. As for companies i recommend veloydne, Psb, Sunfire, or Paradigm.
I don't think they need to spend any more money on a sub, $500 is a pretty good starting point. Pretty much all the recommendations here for brands will all yield a solid sub. The best thing they can do now is do a little research on all the brands listed and see what they can audition and start listening to see what they like and then pick out the sub based on their personal preference.
If they feel they need more bass down the road, they can upgrade the sub or add another one. I have done both, which both solutions have given me great results. I first upgraded my PDR-10 to a PS-1000 and then added a PS-1200 into the mix.
I have the Martin Logan Dynamo which I got for $500 (or $550). I tried out basically all of the usual brands of subs and they all had major cabinet rattles, vibrations, or port noise at loud volume...probably because $500 bucks isn't a lot for a sub. :) Anyway, it was by far the best sub I auditioned.