Best Sub $1500 - $ 2000

[swgiust]

I know, I know, this has been posted before, but I'm close to buying and
wany some advice. I am currently looking at the Definitive Supercube Reference,
or the Sunfire True Sub EQ Signature. Have also considered Earthquake.
I will be using this 90% for home theater, 10% music. I want a great quality
sound with a good solid thump when needed.

[Bryan]

IMNSHO, the best, or close to it, you'll find in this price range is the SVS PB2-Ultra in black. $1,949 delivered but you need to order before October 1 or the price will jump up to $2,149. This has built in parametric EQ.

Of course, dual upcoming Rocket UFW-12s with R-DES software would do extremely well for you and, undoubtedly, you should be extremely pleased with their performance. More information can be found at the forum pages of AV123.com.

[N. Abstentia]

The sub that Bryan pointed to (SVS) is a great sub, and I also feel that it will outpeform all the ones you mentioned by a pretty good margin.

And just to add my 2 cents, I went with the Paradigm Servo 15 because my budget was more in the $1200 range. Of course I needed a sub that was top notch for both theater and music and the Servo was the best one I found. You might want to check it out, and if you buy 2 of them you might get in for under $2000 and THAT would be a scary setup. You could also check out the new Paradigm Signature and Seismic subs, but I have not seen them yet myself.

Other than Paradigm, I would probably go the SVS route.

[hershon]

This is a question not a put down so please take it in that light as I'm not an audiophile like you guys. What exactly are you getting from a subwoofer if not basically bass and bottom and if say a $300 sub produced excellent sounding results what is a $1,000 - $3,000 sub going to produce in terms of relative difference?

The sub that Bryan pointed to (SVS) is a great sub, and I also feel that it will outpeform all the ones you mentioned by a pretty good margin.

And just to add my 2 cents, I went with the Paradigm Servo 15 because my budget was more in the $1200 range. Of course I needed a sub that was top notch for both theater and music and the Servo was the best one I found. You might want to check it out, and if you buy 2 of them you might get in for under $2000 and THAT would be a scary setup. You could also check out the new Paradigm Signature and Seismic subs, but I have not seen them yet myself.

Other than Paradigm, I would probably go the SVS route.

[N. Abstentia]

The first thing I did when looking for a sub was a torture test. I used the beginning of Toy Story 2 to see how the sub could handle ultra low transients, and of course no $300 subs even came close to passing this test. The cheaper subs would break up way too soon, some would shut off, some would blow up, some would just sound like crap trying to do it.

In the end the Servo 15 was one of the few subs that would blow right through the Toy Story 2 test, and at the same time delivered the sound quality I wanted. It's the tightest sounding sub I tried, and very accurate. Plus it goes flat down to 14 hz..none of that will be possible with a $300 sub...unless you already have a high end amp and spend the $300 on a driver and wood to build a box

[swgiust]

This is a question not a put down so please take it in that light as I'm not an audiophile like you guys. What exactly are you getting from a subwoofer if not basically bass and bottom and if say a $300 sub produced excellent sounding results what is a $1,000 - $3,000 sub going to produce in terms of relative difference?

The difference that I am looking for is in #1 Clarity, the overall quality of the bass. Not a one note boom box. #2 Depth, how low can it go. $300 subs don't go anywhere near as low as a premium sub. and #3 power. I have a large room and when something explodes,
I want to hear and feel it. I hope that explains why I am willing to spent this kind of change
on a subwoofer.

[Geoffcin]

The difference that I am looking for is in #1 Clarity, the overall quality of the bass. Not a one note boom box. #2 Depth, how low can it go. $300 subs don't go anywhere near as low as a premium sub. and #3 power. I have a large room and when something explodes,
I want to hear and feel it. I hope that explains why I am willing to spent this kind of change
on a subwoofer.

There IS a difference. When distortion is taken out of the loop via Servo control, a subs performance can better match good speakers. I happen to like Velodyne, but Paradigm also makes a well respected servo controlled sub. Choose you weapon, but to me, the NEXT step, once you have the SPL is to clean up the distortion. A quick search on AudiogoN shows a DD-15 listed for $2050. I'm sure he'll take less, even though this is about 1/2 retail already.

[hershon]

[I should have clarified my question more. I can see where a sub, speakers, receiver, amp, etc., is going to make a difference in sound quality in a large room but will there be a noticeable difference in say a $300 and $2,500 sub that you can detect in an average size living room/family room?

QUOTE=swgiust]The difference that I am looking for is in #1 Clarity, the overall quality of the bass. Not a one note boom box. #2 Depth, how low can it go. $300 subs don't go anywhere near as low as a premium sub. and #3 power. I have a large room and when something explodes,
I want to hear and feel it. I hope that explains why I am willing to spent this kind of change
on a subwoofer.[/QUOTE]

[N. Abstentia]

No matter what the room size, a high end sub will outperform a cheap sub. If your room is tiny, you may not need a huge driver or huge amp but there is so substitute for sound quality, extention, and clarity. I remember when I was looking at subs I did a demo on a higher end Velodyne with a 10" driver and a Definitive with a 15" driver. The Definitive cost much less, but had a much larger driver, but the Velodyne (HGS10, I think it was) outperformed it in every way possible.

[Bryan]

I should have clarified my question more. I can see where a sub, speakers, receiver, amp, etc., is going to make a difference in sound quality in a large room but will there be a noticeable difference in say a $300 and $2,500 sub that you can detect in an average size living room/family room?

Absolutely. The difference in quality between a $300 Sony sub and a HSU VTF-2 can be very significant. The bass with the Sony will be boomy, often exagerated in the 35 - 63Hz range. The bass will be cleaner with the HSU, go deeper, and be more powerful. Even within sub companies there are some models that are better than others. For example, a SVS 20-39PCi is an excellent sub. However, it is bested by the 20-39PC+. A PC-Ultra is even better. The differences within those lines isn't very big but it is noticeable. Mainly you want a sub that will perform extremely well for you for years to come.

[KRiTiKaL]

Hey swigust, How bigs your room? You would do nicely with 2 $1000 subs, or 2 $750 subs or whichever price range you desire. Seriously though, pair em up or go light on side subs and mix a 15" center sub in for real time shake!


If you think $2000 is change, how bout giving me a few bucks?