Who Makes the Best Performing Subwoofers?

[Ronbro]

Hi-
I've never owned a subwoofer but I'm starting to shop...I'm wondering if matching a sub to your main speakers is like matching a center channel for the center channel "voicing" characteristics.
I own Axiom Audio M80's.
Thanx !

[timoteo]

Ronbro:
No, you don't need to match a sub to the speakers. In fact, it's typically recommended not to because even the best speaker brands have only mediocre subs. Find a sub from the list of brands in this poll that meets your budget/room size needs. A good sub is detailed & accurate. This type of sub will blend with any & all speaker brands. A good sub will make a decent speaker sytem sound much better.

What you need to think about when choosing a sub:
1. Budget
2. Your room size
3. The amount of space you have available to actually place the sub itself (floor real state)

Get the best sub you can afford, it's one of the most important pieces of a sound system. Once you get one, make sure to locate the best sounding spot of the room to place it. You do that by doing the "bass crawl". Remember, a new sub won't sound it's best when brand new. They need a solid 30-50+hrs to "break-in". So don't judge it until then because it will improve noticably in that period.

I would look at HSU, SVS, Rythmik. Those give you the best sub per $ IMHO!!!

[ratm]

I voted for the Empire as it is my sub. I have not heard any of the other brands so I suppose that I shouldnt even have voted in what amounts to a popularity contest. I will agree on a few things. My Empire is built like a absolute tank; the pb13 ultra is one of the most beautiful subs Ive ever seen (was in rosewood) and sounded amazing; the VTF15 was my choice 1A but I just felt that the Empire fit better in my room and situation.

All that said, its very hard to take any best performing sub thread/poll seriously when Axiom and Velo are included, but not Seaton or JTR. No disrespect to Axiom and Velo, but I cant imagine anyone posting in this thread hasnt heard about Seaton or JTR and their rep for producing (in many circles) the best subs you can get outside of the DIY route.

[stillchasin]

id go with JL audio

[sterling shoote]

I vote for JBL

[sterling shoote]

Forgot to mention, it's the JBL 4641 which I am passionate about. I've been thinking about replacing my JBL B380 with the 4641. Really no complaint about the B380, just figurin' the 4641 will be more of a good thing.

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I would say Funkywaves, Rythmik, SVS.

But again, with polls like these, a lot of people will just vote for the brands they own. So it's more like "which sub brands do you own?"

Since I own Rythmik, I voted for SVS.

[jonnythan]

I would say Funkywaves, Rythmik, SVS.

But again, with polls like these, a lot of people will just vote for the brands they own. So it's more like "which sub brands do you own?"

Since I own Rythmik, I voted for SVS.

Well most people decide which sub to buy by first researching which one would perform the best

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Well most people decide which sub to buy by first researching which one would perform the best

Of course. We all do. But there are always other factors to consider at the time.

For example, my next purchase will probably be dual Funk Audio 18.3 subs.

18.3

[dgkirkman]

Velodyne all the way.. currently running (2) old school (96') servo series F-1200Rs paired with an Onkyo HT-S9300THX 7.1 3D system..total of 3-12" subs in a room thats 21'x18'..it sounds pretty good puts a smile on everyones face