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which woofer do you prefer

I am in the market for a subwoofer (again) and have narrowed my choices down to the "A-list". I have used several subs over the years, some that lived up to their billing and others that fell short and I am alway curious to see what other audiophiles have found to be their woofer of choice. I have noticed recently that REL subwoofers are consistantly coming up in the used market. I was always under the impression that REL is essentially state-of-the-art and found it curious that so many of them are traded second-hand. so what woofers do you like? DIY, REL, Velodyne........I know there is a tremendous amount of smaller companies that make high-quality, high-end woofers and if you won one of those woofers, I would like to hear about it. Thanks
kgb540
sugarbrie
3,854 posts
 
Yes, a lot of REL's are traded second hand. It is because they sell a lot of them, and a lot of people start with a Strata or Storm, then decide to upgrade to the Stadium, Stentor, etc. Note the used ones listed for sale, usually sell in a day or less.

No different than a lot of Camry's and Accords are traded second hand on the used car market.

The Vandersteen is also a very nice sub. The REL is a little more setup friendly.
mt10425
1,138 posts
 
Art of Sound
snappy
5 posts
 
I have only one reference between 2 new woofers one was the REL Q401 and the Sunfire EQ 11". I have been running the Sunfire for 4 days or so and I know that is a short time but every time I switch it on I get a grin from ear to ear. One of the few times I feel that I made the right choice.

PS. I thought it would be as hard to setup as my meridian equipment was to get the best out of them. but the EQ series comes with a mic. to configure it. "nice touch"
kgb540 OP
125 posts
 
Thanks for your responses!! I would certainly like to hear the Vandersteen, seems as though its owners are always very happy. The Tumult is very interesting and I have thought about making a custom project out of it. Kgvetern....did you make a sub out of the Tumult and if so what design did you use? I have also given the North Leviathan a great deal of consideration, but it does cost a good deal more money. I have heard older versions of the Sunfire sub before and was very impressive for its size. No exp. with Art of Sound. I did notice that most of the Rel's are gone within a day or 2 but it leaves me wondering what those particular subs lacked (spl, depth, ???) in order for the owner to think he needs more. I certainly know that within this hobby it is usally more of a want than a need when we upgrade, so I will take that into consideration as well. Thanks again guys!
kgveteran
377 posts
 
I purchased two of them and had on hand a pair of cabinets that are 2.5cu. ft. sealed.Larger cab's would yeild a better F3.I run Adcom GFA 555mkII's in bridged mono on each.Go to Acoustic-visions forum and look at the pic of them.The cabinets are a little rough but are made quite well.Two inch thick MDF.Any skilled cabinet maker could put them together for peanuts.My subs crush,they have unlimited reserve but,I owned a Vandersteen 2W and for music that thing was unreal.I know it would take multiples to pull off hometheater.With a pair of monsters like I own you will need a parametric.I use a behringer 1124p and it cleaned up room modes just fine.Good luck.
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