Comparison of various subwoofers for 2 channel audio


I have a 2 channel audio system, and I appreciate how subwoofers have augmented the sound quality of my system (with electrostatic speakers).  I currently am using a pair of Martin Logan Balanced Force 212 subwoofers, but I’m thinking about adding more subwoofers for a total of four in order to help balance the low frequency sound waves.  I’m considering adding a pair of Rythmik, SVS, or perhaps Velodyne subwoofers to the system.  Does anyone have experience with many of those brands, and how well they integrate with electrostatic speakers in a 2 channel system, or perhaps should I just get a second pair custom built with certain specifications?  
Thanks.

drbond

Showing 1 response by terry9

I too am running an ESL system: 2 Quad 2905's and 2 Quad 2805's perpendicular to the 29's (all modified). I am running an isobaric sub with a 50 Hz cutoff, but frankly it doesn't do very much. Almost all of the bass augmentation comes from Magnepan DWM bass panels, powered by big Brystons (a 7BSST3 per DWM). The 7B's are potent, fast, and clean enough to drive the DWM's flawlessly - overkill, really.

The DWM bass panels use the latest push-pull technology favoured for the big panels. They are very fast - basically indistinguishable from ESL's at 500Hz, an octave above middle C. The stock crossover is at 200Hz, but it's easy to bypass that and do it right with an electronic crossover. The DWM's are fairly flat to 2 Kz and still produce a decent signal at 5KHz, so they are ideal for mid-to-upper bass augmentation in the critical region of 40-300 Hz.

I like them very much. YMMV