can't help ya w/ht, but for music, ya *have* to get a *pair* of subs. this does two things - doesn't muck-up the soundstage, & also allows much less distortion, cuz ya don't have to drive 'em as hard for the same apparent volume. both of these are critical for music. re: actual subs, i know lotsa folks like the cheaper rels, all i know is i borrowed one from a relative, & i could only use it for ~5 minutes - sounded like typical mid-fi one-note boom. perhaps, if i had a pair, it might've been different... personally, i think ya can't beat a pair of vmps (the largest that will fit in yer room - they have 3 sizes), combined w/a good active x-over (i recommend marchand or db systems - can't beat 'em for the $$$), and a good used solid-state amp. adcom, rotel, aragon, bryston, sumo, parasound - whatever ya can get cheap! my sub set-up consists of a marchand x-over, two vmps larger subs, and a pair of adcom gfa555's. the subs-n-crossover were bought new, & i still came in at less than $2400. yule have to spend that to get *one* decent powered sub. the only exception mite be the top-line hsu subs, but ya still need two... and, i like the flexibility of having separate amps-n-crossover. the marchand is also *wery* flexible - plug-in frequency modules, adjustable volume for bass/treble/x-over point.
