Best Subwoofer Package - under $1,200 1 or 2 subs
I know there are a lot of simillar threads out there so I apologize. Some of the subs I have listed I am unable to find good revviews on and many of the reviews say the same thing. I haave put a list of contenders. As you can telll i have just started my search.
I am looking for the best 1 or two subs foor under $1,200 for my room.
Here are the possible contenders and I am open to other suggestions.
Apherion Bravus II 12 D X 1
Atlantic Technology CSB Corner Subwoofer X1
Atlantic Technology 444sb X 2
Klipsch RW-12d
Polk DSW Pro 600 X 2
DSW MicroPro 4000 X2
B&W ASW 610XP X 1
Outlaw Audio LFM-1 EX X 2
Epik Empire X 1
Epik Legend X 2
Infinity Cascade 12 X 2
Velodyne DLS-4000 X 2
Velodyne DEQ 15 X1
Sunfire TS-EQ12 X 1
Elemental Designs A5-300 X 2
First off Current Sub:
I have 2 polk PSW 505's. It can go fairly loud, and ssounds Ok for most music. It does llack the true punch during Rap music. My main isssue is that in movies, when there is fairly quick and tight basss it flubbs out. For example, when race cars go by in the ovie Cars or when the fiireworks are going off in KKung Fu Panda (I have a two year old, so my home theater is used more to pllease him than me really). This drives me nuts. I am going for good clear bass. It does not have to be perfect, but I want a littlle more umph for bass ad not flubbing out i faiirly basic scenes in movies. I watch 50% movies 50% music.
Here Is what I am looking for with this thread:
(1) Feedback from those that own these subs?
(2) What sub did this replace and what were your impressions? (Comparison of the two)
(3) What other subs did you compare it directly to?
(4) Why did you select the one you did?
(5) Do you wish you would have gotten a different one
(6) Are there scenes in movies or songs that make it 'flub out"?
(7) How is it musically
(8) How is it for HT?
(9) What would you have liked to know before buying it that you did not
(10) Would you buy the same one again if you could.
By the way, My room is About 25x25 with 20 ft cceilings. Also, i know a lot of you have brand loyalty and like to coonvince yourselves that you have the best product out there. please be honest.
I am looking for the best 1 or two subs foor under $1,200 for my room.
Here are the possible contenders and I am open to other suggestions.
Apherion Bravus II 12 D X 1
Atlantic Technology CSB Corner Subwoofer X1
Atlantic Technology 444sb X 2
Klipsch RW-12d
Polk DSW Pro 600 X 2
DSW MicroPro 4000 X2
B&W ASW 610XP X 1
Outlaw Audio LFM-1 EX X 2
Epik Empire X 1
Epik Legend X 2
Infinity Cascade 12 X 2
Velodyne DLS-4000 X 2
Velodyne DEQ 15 X1
Sunfire TS-EQ12 X 1
Elemental Designs A5-300 X 2
First off Current Sub:
I have 2 polk PSW 505's. It can go fairly loud, and ssounds Ok for most music. It does llack the true punch during Rap music. My main isssue is that in movies, when there is fairly quick and tight basss it flubbs out. For example, when race cars go by in the ovie Cars or when the fiireworks are going off in KKung Fu Panda (I have a two year old, so my home theater is used more to pllease him than me really). This drives me nuts. I am going for good clear bass. It does not have to be perfect, but I want a littlle more umph for bass ad not flubbing out i faiirly basic scenes in movies. I watch 50% movies 50% music.
Here Is what I am looking for with this thread:
(1) Feedback from those that own these subs?
(2) What sub did this replace and what were your impressions? (Comparison of the two)
(3) What other subs did you compare it directly to?
(4) Why did you select the one you did?
(5) Do you wish you would have gotten a different one
(6) Are there scenes in movies or songs that make it 'flub out"?
(7) How is it musically
(8) How is it for HT?
(9) What would you have liked to know before buying it that you did not
(10) Would you buy the same one again if you could.
By the way, My room is About 25x25 with 20 ft cceilings. Also, i know a lot of you have brand loyalty and like to coonvince yourselves that you have the best product out there. please be honest.
Post edited by BtrSound on
Comments
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Thats quite the budget. I can say that I have an LFM-1+ and love it, the ONLY issue I've ever had with it is near the end of the movie Pulse, I get some port noise, but that's the only time I've ever had an issue like this. Most of the setup's you are looking are are VERY serious. I'd like to be the first one to say if you have the funds to do a dual setup, do it. Your ED, Outlaw and Epik setups would be my best bet, if I would have had the cash, I would have gone dual ED, Legend (or empire if you can streach it, and last of all, but not least, the LFM-1 EX x2. Good luck, I know plenty more will chime in!
-Cody -
The Epik Empire or maybe two SVS SB12-NSD for HT.Linn AV5140 fronts
Linn AV5120 Center
Linn AV5140 Rears
M&K MX-70 Sub for Music
Odyssey Mono-Blocs
SVS Ultra-13 Gloss Black:D -
The Epik Empire or maybe two SVS SB12-NSD for HT.
^That would be my recommendation along with Cody's dual Empires, Ed or Outlaw subs.
If nothing else get one of them now, wait a month or two to get the difference and get a second.
Also something to think about with port noise is the SVS PC-12NSD. They take up less floor space, weigh less and due to their layout tend to have less port noise."....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963) -
You'll want the headroom in a room that size. I'd say spend the extra $200 for the dual Empires also. Use Audessey in the Denon to tame any nulls or peaks in your room.Shoot the jumper.....................BALLIN.............!!!!!
Home Theater Pics in the Showcase :cool:
http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showcase/view.php?userid=73580 -
Also, try to get better cables. I only have tried monoprice and tera labs on my emotiva ultra sub. There's a world of difference between those two cables, which i never thought would be the case until I tried them.Living Room 7.1 HT Rig:
M70 | CS2 | M60 | Atrium5 - Surr. | SUB - Emotiva ULTRA12 + Tara Labs sub cable | Pioneer Elite VSX-52 | Parasound HCAs 1000A | Sony BDP-S790 | Belkin PureAV PF60 | MIT Exp2 Wires
Bedroom 5.0 HT Rig (Music/Movies/Gaming) :
LSi9 | LsiC | Lsi/fx | Marantz SR7002 | NAD T955 | Sony BDP-S360 | Belkin PureAV PF30 | AQ Blue Racer II ICs & AQ Type 4 wires | PS3 -
EndersShadow wrote: »If nothing else get one of them now, wait a month or two to get the difference and get a second.
Plus one to that, I'm pretty sure Epik will give you a discount if you order a second within so many months, call them, Chad is a good guy to talk to about subs too. If I we're you, I'd call them, ED, Outlaw and HSU, at that range its good to have a phone conversation with some so called experts. I think with that kind a budget, if you have the space (seems like you do with dual's already) your pretty much stuck doing duals. I don't think you'd be happy running a single, even if it is a heavy hitter. Good luck, take your time! -
I found my bass needs dont match my wallet , I like it loud clear and musical .
So I build my own and go with a externall amp , I have $80 in the sub seen here its 2x12 woofers (cones face each other ) .
The speaker does 109db at 20 hz , it covers the 20-80 hz very good actually better than the single 15" it replaced .
I agree its ugly but the wood was free and the speaker sits behind the tv .
The reason its so big is I need a smaller amp and dont need any bass boost .
One time I was standing by it adjusting something while it was going good the bass was so low I felt a wave in the floor and it turned my stomach .
It wont win any contest for looks but since I build cabinets I can build it for looks also . -
Thank you all for your responses. I has not heard much about the EpiK's so I will definately look further into them. I have heard great things about the HSU's, but it looks like they have not been upgraded since around 2005. I know technology in subs and amps has not changed a lot, but that is the only thing that makes me hesitant about them.
20 Hz,
I did consider building my own and using an external amp. I have built several elaborate boxes for my car in the past and thought it might be fun. Also, when doing so, You can make them as elaborate or simple as you want. I actually can not see the link to your pictures. I would like to check it out if you would repost it. -
Craigsub SS-18.T - the "DUO" $1,370.00
Type:Sealed, three piece, dual driver, active modular subwoofer system
Frequency Response: 23Hz – 200Hz +/- dB
In-room extension (room and placement dependent): 15Hz or lower
Drivers: Two 18”, 8 ohm drivers each its own separate, passive, down-firing enclosures
950 Watts into 4 ohms external amp that feeds both subs.
Great setupengtaz
I love how music can brighten up a bad day. -
For the fun of it you can take a look at this shootout made from some guys at AVS and they are on your price range .
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Craigsub SS-18.T - the "DUO" $1,370.00
Type:Sealed, three piece, dual driver, active modular subwoofer system
Frequency Response: 23Hz ? 200Hz +/- dB
In-room extension (room and placement dependent): 15Hz or lower
Drivers: Two 18?, 8 ohm drivers each its own separate, passive, down-firing enclosures
950 Watts into 4 ohms external amp that feeds both subs.
Great setup
Those subs would destroy the bass in your system. Those should definitely be on your list~"....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963) -
EndersShadow wrote: »Those subs would destroy the bass in your system. Those should definitely be on your list~
Destroy the system? Try the house! :eek: I've heard nothing but great things about Craigsub. -
That shootout is great.
http://72.9.159.100/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1313176
I like how they charted them on top of each other. It really shows their capabilities.
It looks like the Chase Home theater CS18.1 was the most consistent.
I have a question for those that have two subwoofers. With the size of my room, would it be better to have two decent 12's, one on each side of the room, or one monster 15 or 18 as used in the shootout. -
BTR- why not save and get the best of both both.... the subs Engtaz is talking about are TWO 18" subs.... so you get duals and 18 inchers as well...."....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963)
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I have to draw a line in the budget. I figured I could get some decent bass for 1,200 to 1,400
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I love to see those videos over and over , in your budget if it was my $$$ i would get the Dual Epik Legends . But its not :biggrin:
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I did consider building my own and using an external amp. I have built several elaborate boxes for my car in the past and thought it might be fun. Also, when doing so, You can make them as elaborate or simple as you want. I actually can not see the link to your pictures. I would like to check it out if you would repost it.
You have the skills why spend $$ to have a box built ?
I started by building car speakers when I was a teenager , the great part of building your own (besides saving tons of cash) since you have a externall amp you can change the setup when ever you want or change the box to fit other places .
I loaded the picture ( it would not take earlier because its in the polk forumn elsewhere) .
I figure the cabinet sizes with Win/isd (thats a free box program) not only it gets a box but it shows you how much power you need for it and shows you what it will sound like .
Mostely all I built was sealed subs never tried a bandpass , this is the first isobaric (cones face each other) the advantage with this type of cabinet the speaker reacts like the cabinet is twice the size , build a box wont be dissapointed ! -
Where did you get the sub and how do you know if it is any good?
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Where did you get the sub and how do you know if it is any good?
I built the sub (its scrap wood) I knew it was good because I got the cabinet specs on Win/isd (free speaker box program) you enter all the perameters of the driver and it shows you a graph of what exactlly the sub will produce , this sub dips down only 9 DB to hit 20 hertz , (that is very good) .
It also shows me how much power is needed to drive the speaker to XMAX (thats 100%) , it needs 150 watts per 12" since there are 2 drivers I drive it with a JBL 150 WPC amp , one side of the amp to each speaker . -
I have dual epik legends in and 18x16 room with 18 foot ceilings. They do well but it took some placement and eqing to get it to sound good. The sound is just sucked up in rooms that big. If I were you, I would go with dual empires or the "duo" from chase hometheather. In a room that size, you need some beast that has the headroom in that room. That is a lot of space to fill. Stretch your budget, it will be worth it in the end. Though I am satisfied with the dual legends, I now wish I had just sucked it up and got the dual empires first.
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HEHE.... yeah this thread has made me rethink my 2 SVS subs and am thinking about going with either the Chase Home Theater "Duo" or dual Epik Empires. The Empires were already on my short list, but now the "Duo is too""....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963)
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Two Velodyne SPL-1200R subs & call it a day!!! Within your budget on the used market. Stick with the big Dawg...Velodyne!"2 Channel & 11.2 HT "Two Channel:Magnepan LRSSchiit Audio Freya S - SS preConsonance Ref 50 - Tube preParasound HALO A21+ 2 channel ampBluesound NODE 2i streameriFi NEO iDSD DAC Oppo BDP-93KEF KC62 sub Home Theater:Full blown 11.2 set up.
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The dou subs do seem pretty sick.
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The dou subs do seem pretty sick.
Yup, I am looking at Empires now though as someone pointed out to me that you could have each one EQ'd individually via Audysee since you can run 2 signals one to each sub.
The Craigsub is one amp (i.e. signal) to 2 subs. So for EQ purposes the AVR would only see one sub not two. It still EQ's it but it might not be as good as running two distinct LFE signals to 2 different subs.
That and for me since they are based in the Chicago area I could pick em up (4.5 hours each way) and save the shipping costs ($230)...."....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963) -
That shootout is great.
http://72.9.159.100/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=1313176
I like how they charted them on top of each other. It really shows their capabilities.
It looks like the Chase Home theater CS18.1 was the most consistent.
I have a question for those that have two subwoofers. With the size of my room, would it be better to have two decent 12's, one on each side of the room, or one monster 15 or 18 as used in the shootout.
Go for 18"'s you will waste money to upgrade later. pick up a SMS1 also. It will do wonders for room correction.engtaz
I love how music can brighten up a bad day. -
EndersShadow wrote: »That and for me since they are based in the Chicago area I could pick em up (4.5 hours each way) and save the shipping costs ($230)....
I think you have to pay sales tax if you pick up directly from Epik, not sure how much that would be though. -
I think you have to pay sales tax if you pick up directly from Epik, not sure how much that would be though.
Gotcha. The site doesnt show that when you checkout but its probably true as I just glanced over that and then noted where they were located.
Its probably ~7% which is what it is in Indiana.
**edit** just noticed when you checkout and select pickup, tax shows 0 dollars.
If I go that route I would prob give em a shout to find out so I can figure in the cost there..."....not everything that can be counted counts, and not everything that counts can be counted." William Bruce Cameron, Informal Sociology: A Casual Introduction to Sociological Thinking (1963) -
The dou subs do seem pretty sick.
So BTR did you decide to build your own ??
I have always run 2 completes subs , seems to fill the room better , looks cool to .
My newest sub will be twice of the isoberic one pictured down below , so its four 12's .
I originally was going to build 2 seperate boxes but I have room for one large . -
I had the nerve to take a vacation and have been freaking swamped at work. I have not had enough time to do my due dilligance yet, but I do like the craig sub duo or hsu, but kind of want to build my own just to build a cool unique and astetically pleasing box. I do think think I will go with two of them. When the dust settles a bit at work I will make my decision. This forum has gotten me excited so I may squeeze it in in a week or two. I do greatly appreciate everyones imput and will post an update with my final decision and my review of the equipment.
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I had the nerve to take a vacation and have been freaking swamped at work. I have not had enough time to do my due dilligance yet, but I do like the craig sub duo or hsu, but kind of want to build my own just to build a cool unique and astetically pleasing box. I do think think I will go with two of them. When the dust settles a bit at work I will make my decision. This forum has gotten me excited so I may squeeze it in in a week or two. I do greatly appreciate everyones imput and will post an update with my final decision and my review of the equipment.
Good luck and let us know!
