REL R25 good ?

jjss49,

"The caps in the amps get old and crap out, not very hard to fix. There is even a guy on eBay who advertises the service, so these are NOT dead end products."

Good update, and a timely reminder when buying vintage amps or loudspeakers which may need servicing.


"There was some criticism several years back when REL moved their production from the UK to China."

Oh, I hadn’t realised they’d also moved production to China. Still, it’s quite impressive that they’ve stuck to only making subwoofers - no branching out Rega style.


"Top to bottom, they are very musical subwoofers, not wall pounders like some of the others."

Yes, I can’t recall hearing criticism of the sound of any REL product. 


Quite unusual because even almost universally respected companies like ATC, B&W, Harbeth, KEF, PMC and Rega get the occasional bit of flak thrown at them once in a while.

On the other hand renowned companies like Magico, Linn, NAIM and Wilson have received almost a torrent of abuse over the years for some of their products -mainly from consumers I should say.

I expect it’s at least partially related to the hugely elevated expectations these premium products might invoke. I’ve never heard a Magico, but when I do, I’m already expecting an awful lot.

Reviewers only tend to be tepid in their disapproval. Conversely no product ever gets a perfect review, and it’s that one lone sentence, usually somewhere towards the end that will often tell you more than the rest of the review.

I mean does anyone recall reading a review which really took a product to pieces in print?

Yes those older REL plate amps are no longer supported by the US distributor. That is more a comment on the lame distributor who does not run a repair facility to fix what are very simple and basic amps in those nice older models. Still, many electronics shops work on them, restore them. The caps in the amps get old and crap out, not very hard to fix.  There is even a guy on eBay who advertises the service, so these are NOT dead end products.

There was some criticism several years back when REL moved their production from the UK to China. I think some early products lacked QC and failed, caused negative buzz for the company.  Since then I think they have their act pretty much together again, and the new models work and sound as great as the older ones.

Top to bottom, they are very musical subwoofers, not wall pounders like some of the others. Especially using their high level input with Speakon connectors.

No affiliation here, just a happy REL user for 25 years, over a half dozen models for various systems.

For nearly the same cost easier setup, better speaker integration and remote control fun. 

http://syzygyacoustics.com

Here's a criticism: REL sent me a note indicating they would not repair my Q150e or my Q108MKII...luckily they were both bought used and at relatively low cost and still work perfectly, but RELs lack of support and lack of interest in recommending somebody who may repair these things put me off REL big time. I'll be looking elsewhere if I ever need another sub.

Can't offer much other than say that REL are one of the very few companies I've yet to read or hear any criticism of whatsoever.

Quite rare in my experience.