Vandersteen or REL or.......?????? Think small

Small and musical - makes me think of MJ Acoustics. New company. All the rage in England. Perhaps a slight step below REL, but cheaper and smaller. I would recommend checking out the Pro50 or Pro100, depending on your listening levels.

CD

I talked a friend into ordering an ACI Force. Since he's still putting together his system we've been using it in my system for the last couple of weeks. My main speakers are Sapphire III LEs which replaced a pair of Concertos last year. I'm running an ACI Titan II LE sub. Anyway, the Force is one terrific sub. Very close to the Titan II LE in sound. At this point we have a very tough time telling the difference between the two. A good thing because the Titan has really proven itself against a lot of contenders. The fact that the Force sounds virtually identical at around $800 and 1/2 the size is pretty amazing. The Titan II does have a bit more ultimate output. So I'd still go for the Titan II if I had the room and the extra money. But if space and money are an issue, the Force is a "must hear". Back to the RELs, I'd stay away from the Q series, they are just not as musical as the Stratas. BTW, I found the Titan II to be superior to the Strata. Based on that comparison I'd also say the Force is superior to the Strata.

The Rega Vulcan is made for Rega by REL. The REL designer claims that it is one of their best efforts yet. It has an 8 inch woofer which is very tight and fast. I had a Paradigm Servo 15 which was slower and lethargic by comparison, this due to the 15" driver. The Vulcan is very detailed and musical. It's the best I've heard yet.

How about REL Q400E/Q401E? Are they musical with punchy?

The Rega Vulcan is very small 14" by 14" and was designed for Rega by Rel. It uses a very fast 8" driver. Higky recommended.

Maggieowner may be getting REL confused with Vandersteen I think. The Vandersteen 2Wq is an audio sub, but we are talking about the REL Q subs (Q150E, Q200E, Q201E) which are their HT subs. I own both kinds. The REL ST subs are the audiophile subs (ST as in Stratus, Storm, Stadium, Stentor and Studio).

Karls,

Just to clarify, the Q is the music sub. The V2W is designed for HT. It includes a 12" passive radiator for more output.

I've never owned a Q series, but my impression of the Qs from talking to various people and reading various things is that they aren't quite up to the musical fidelity standards of the ST series; they are more designed for HT use where output levels vs. small size is a consideration. Still way better than Velodyne, Carver, etc., but not quite as good as an ST for music use (but then nothing is...)

I'm using a Rel Strata III with Magnepan 1.6QR
It integrates well and is very flexible.

They are both very nice subs. The REL will be the easiest to integrate with your system. Search other threads and you will find that RELs are the most popular audiophile subs on the planet.

I have never tried of heard the REL subs but I use a Vandersteen 2wq to my Maggie 3.6. The crossover is handled by a Theta CasaNova. For me, this provides a seamless blend between the sub and the 3.6 while extending the bottom end.