Looking for a subwoofer

[new10quest]

I'm looking for a subwoofer for my home theater and it is roughly 16x20 with 11ft ceiling height and the floor is tile. The theater area is open to kitchen, dinning and entry way. It is known as open floor plan. The surround sound speakers are Klipsch center speakers and JBL ceiling speakers. The A/V receiver is Pioneer Elite VSX-72XV.

I come across Klipsch Synergy Sub-12 for very good price. I think that it is good enough for 80% movie and 20% music. Is it worth it to step up to the smaller Klipsch XW-500D, Elemental Designs A3-250 or Outlaw LFM-1 Plus? The other three subwoofers are smaller but packs with more power and slightly better quality, and they are physically heavier too. It is roughly $100+ more money than sub-12, and I'm trying to stay under $500. With 2yrs old twin sons, it is definitely safer with the down firing subwoofer.

Is there any suggestion?

 

[sholling]

I would stick with a sub from a subwoofer specialist and forget the Klipsch. By my calculations that's 3500cuft so I'll toss out some just barely over budget alternatives. SVSound has a b-stock PB12-NSB for $529+S&H. I'd also call Hsu research and ask if they have any b-stock VTF-2 MK3. They don't have any listed on their site but not all their b-stock get's listed on the site either. Finally Elemental Designs had some old style drivers for the left over for their A3-300. If so you might be able to get one (they call them b-stock as well) for $550 shipped. Any of those should go great in a 3500cuft room but may struggle if your total space is much bigger. The HSU is down firing while the other two are front firing.

Oh and for a down firing sub I'd budget a few bucks for a subdude or gamma to put under it.

 

[shadyJ]

I'm looking for a subwoofer for my home theater and it is roughly 16x20 with 11ft ceiling height and the floor is tile. The theater area is open to kitchen, dinning and entry way. It is known as open floor plan. The surround sound speakers are Klipsch center speakers and JBL ceiling speakers. The A/V receiver is Pioneer Elite VSX-72XV.

I come across Klipsch Synergy Sub-12 for very good price. I think that it is good enough for 80% movie and 20% music. Is it worth it to step up to the smaller Klipsch XW-500D, Elemental Designs A3-250 or Outlaw LFM-1 Plus? The other three subwoofers are smaller but packs with more power and slightly better quality, and they are physically heavier too. It is roughly $100+ more money than sub-12, and I'm trying to stay under $500. With 2yrs old twin sons, it is definitely safer with the down firing subwoofer.

Is there any suggestion?

Between the ones you listed, the best there is going to be the LFM-1 Plus, however, it would be closer to $600 after shipping. It has both down-firing driver and ports, which would be the best kind of arrangement for small children. If you can swing the extra cost, that is the one I would go for if I were you.

 

[new10quest]

Internet direct subwoofer

Everyone seems to favors the internet direct subwoofers than the store brands. It seems that the Klipsch Sub-12 and XW-500D are highly favored and rated among its owners according to their reviews.

Is the internet direct subwoofers that much better than the store brands? Is it worth it for the extra cost? I never own the internet direct brand, because it is not convenience to return the item and there is nothing for me to listen to at my location before I buy it. I will be relying solely on input from websites and forums.

If I go with the internet direct brand, I'll go with the down firing subwoofer. I think that it will be safer around my 2 years old twin sons. I'm interesting in the LFM-1 Plus and VTF-2 MK3. If I can get a good deal on it, I'll probably go for it. What is a b-stock? Is it some kind of back room deal?

Is there any other input? Thanks.

 

[bread29]

Everyone seems to favors the internet direct subwoofers than the store brands. It seems that the Klipsch Sub-12 and XW-500D are highly favored and rated among its owners according to their reviews.

Is the internet direct subwoofers that much better than the store brands? Is it worth it for the extra cost? I never own the internet direct brand, because it is not convenience to return the item and there is nothing for me to listen to at my location before I buy it. I will be relying solely on input from websites and forums.

If I go with the internet direct brand, I'll go with the down firing subwoofer. I think that it will be safer around my 2 years old twin sons. I'm interesting in the LFM-1 Plus and VTF-2 MK3. If I can get a good deal on it, I'll probably go for it. What is a b-stock? Is it some kind of back room deal?

Is there any other input? Thanks.

new10quest,

I am a former Klipsch Sub-10 owner and I agree that it's a good and reliable product; however, when you compare price to performance, internet direct brands can give you SO much more! I now own 2 HSU subs and swear by them. You won't find a klipsch sub that can drop below 20hz for the same price, period. In regard to B-Stock, I believe it refers to refurbished or older models.

Sholling,

I have a down-firing Hsu MBM-12, do I still need a subdude? I have carpeted floors and it's located between the couch and chair.

 

[adwilk]

I'm a pretty big Klipsch fan. Except their subs. Even their reference line subs leave a lot to be desired based on what you're spending to get one. I would highly recommend avoiding them.

 

[krzywica]

Everyone seems to favors the internet direct subwoofers than the store brands. It seems that the Klipsch Sub-12 and XW-500D are highly favored and rated among its owners according to their reviews.

Is the internet direct subwoofers that much better than the store brands? Is it worth it for the extra cost? I never own the internet direct brand, because it is not convenience to return the item and there is nothing for me to listen to at my location before I buy it. I will be relying solely on input from websites and forums.

If I go with the internet direct brand, I'll go with the down firing subwoofer. I think that it will be safer around my 2 years old twin sons. I'm interesting in the LFM-1 Plus and VTF-2 MK3. If I can get a good deal on it, I'll probably go for it. What is a b-stock? Is it some kind of back room deal?

Is there any other input? Thanks.

That Klipsch sub is complete and utter crap...I have heard it. Where are you located? Your welcome to come over and listen to my VTF-2 MK3. Its a fantastic sub.

 

[sholling]

new10quest,

I am a former Klipsch Sub-10 owner and I agree that it's a good and reliable product; however, when you compare price to performance, internet direct brands can give you SO much more! I now own 2 HSU subs and swear by them. You won't find a klipsch sub that can drop below 20hz for the same price, period. In regard to B-Stock, I believe it refers to refurbished or older models.

Sholling,

I have a down-firing Hsu MBM-12, do I still need a subdude? I have carpeted floors and it's located between the couch and chair.

I don't now anything about the mid bass modules so sorry I can't help there. However I suspect that isolation isn't as big a deal but again that's a guess. Why not start a specific thread and see if someone else has experience with it?

 

[new10quest]

I'm very glad to get feedback from the former Klipsch owners. All of you have convinced me to go with the internet direct subwoofer route. I believed and trusted all of you on it.

How convenience is it to return the subwoofer to HSU and Outlaw? In case it is not working when I received it, I want to be able to return it without refusal and run around BS.

I will contact HSU and Outlaw to see if they have any b-stock LFM-1 Plus and VTF-2 MK3 subwoofers. The cone of these two 12" subwoofers seems to be identical. Are they the same company?

I like the looks and the spec of the eD and SVS subwoofers a lot, but it might not be able to take the beating from my twin sons.

 

[shadyJ]

You shouldn't have any problem getting a full refund, as long as the sub is still in good shape. From what I have heard, returning these things in the first month of ownership is pretty painless. The customer service at both companies is very good. I'm not sure if the cones are the same, but the design is mostly the same, which is not surprising since they are designed by the same guy, Dr. Hsu.

 

[new10quest]

It makes me feel better that it is designed by a well known Dr. Hsu, and it is not by a cowboy from Texas as the Outlaw name suggested.

 

[chris357]

It makes me feel better that it is designed by a well known Dr. Hsu, and it is not by a cowboy from Texas as the Outlaw name suggested.

he designed both subs, but for the outlaw he put a cowboy hat and boots on.

 

[new10quest]

Hsu vtf-2 mk3

I want the down firing subwoofer so it will be safer around kid. For the size of my theater room, I went the 12” subwoofer. The box of the VTF-2 seems to be smaller than my 12” Polk anyway. I ordered the HSU VTF-2 MK3 subwoofer today, and they are sending it on the same day. HSU sale rep is very responsive and very helpful. I want the Outlaw LFM-1 Plus, but they never response to my request. I notice the VTF-2 is rated at 250w RMS and the LFM-1 is 350w RMS, but the VTF-2 can dig lower than LFM-1. I don't think that I will hear very much different between the VTF-2 and the LFM-1 extra. I went with the more responsive sale rep. I didn't contact SVS because they don't have any down firing subwoofer at this price range. I'll update everyone on how it turns out next week..!

 

[krzywica]

With a tile cloor make sure you get a subdude with that downfiring sub. Mine helps out a lot even with a carpet floor.

 

[ParadigmDawg]

Boy...watch what you say about Texas around here...

Just for the record I hate Ohio (I have my reasons) but I wouldn't own a consumer level sub by any other company except the one based in Ohio...

It makes me feel better that it is designed by a well known Dr. Hsu, and it is not by a cowboy from Texas as the Outlaw name suggested.

 

[new10quest]

HSU has superior services

I ordered the HSU VTF-2 MK3 earlier today. It took only a couple hours to receive the FedEx tracking #, and I'll receive it in 2 working days. I know their price is higher than the store brand, but I'm paying for good services and well made product.

Oh, I have no doubt that the outlaw LFM-1 Plus is a great subwoofer. Aside from the higher RMS output, it has almost identical spec as VTF-2. I wish that their sale rep reply to their customer. I never receive any reply from them..!

 

[new10quest]

With a tile cloor make sure you get a subdude with that downfiring sub. Mine helps out a lot even with a carpet floor.

Since I saw your message, I have been reading several reviews on SubDude Gramma. It seems that everyone is happy with their pad. You are right about the tile floor. It is very tough to level the subwoofer on it and the bass seems to bound all over the place compare to my previous dedicated carpet theater room. I took your advice and based on good reviews on it. I bought the SubDude Gramma from Amazon earlier. It will arrive next Tuesday, which is the same day as the HSU VTF-2 MK3 subwoofer. I hope that the pad will help keep the loudness and vibration to minimum. All I’m looking for is deep tight bass. It will make my wife and kid a little happier. They are Bose 6.1 surround sound speaker fan, and they don't like a lot of bass..!

 

[SJTrance]

It's coming today! Aren't you excited? Make sure you put pictures up.

 

[krzywica]

Since I saw your message, I have been reading several reviews on SubDude Gramma. It seems that everyone is happy with their pad. You are right about the tile floor. It is very tough to level the subwoofer on it and the bass seems to bound all over the place compare to my previous dedicated carpet theater room. I took your advice and based on good reviews on it. I bought the SubDude Gramma from Amazon earlier. It will arrive next Tuesday, which is the same day as the HSU VTF-2 MK3 subwoofer. I hope that the pad will help keep the loudness and vibration to minimum. All I’m looking for is deep tight bass. It will make my wife and kid a little happier. They are Bose 6.1 surround sound speaker fan, and they don't like a lot of bass..!

Yup....did you order the subdude or the gramma? Because the subdude fits the VTF-2 perfectly....I don't think a gramma would work as its square where as the sub is rectangular.

 

[new10quest]

Yup....did you order the subdude or the gramma? Because the subdude fits the VTF-2 perfectly....I don't think a gramma would work as its square where as the sub is rectangular.

Actually, Auralex GRAMMA is perfect size for HSU VTF-2 MK3 subwoofer. The Gramma is 23" (d) x 2.8" (h) x 15" (w) inches and the VTF-2 is 22"(h) X 15" (w) X 23" (d). I ordered the Gramma at it is delivered earlier. I'll check it out after work.