Musical subwoofer under $2000

@sparksgja 

FWIW I have an Arendal 1723 1s. I use it in my modest 5,1 HT. It is a fantastic sub, two for music would fit you very well. I consider them the equivalent to an SVS SB 4000-in specs.  They have a 45 day audition period. You had mentioned it on your list of candidates. 

Strong recommendation for a pair of used Vandersteen 2Wq subs.  I bought one, then a second, and eventually bought the M5HP battery biased crossovers.  They are, to me, ideal.  Deep, tuneful bass when it's present in the source material, and not heard when it's not.  The only caveat is that your mains must go down to about 40Hz in order to blend properly with the 2Wq.  They are designed to sit in the corner, where most people put them anyway.  I mass load mine with floor tiles and ammo.  When bass heavy stuff is played, I can feel the bass, with the room energized.  But there is never any boominess or bloat, or obscuring of the frequencies above the Vandy subs.  I like them so much that when I last shopped for speakers, being a good match for the 2Wqs was a major requirement.

I own 2 JL e110’s in my setup and they work wonderfully with my Raidho XT-2’s.

Highly recommend them. Bought them in high gloss for around $1,500 each several years ago, I think the price has gone up to about $2,000 each.

I think you are right not to spend too much, as Class D amps (I think all subs use Class D) can’t be repaired once they fail. I spent about $2,500 on a Paradigm sub for my home theatre setup and it failed after about a decade of use. It’s why I’d never buy active speakers. Who wants to buy a pair of speakers that will only last a decade? JMHO.

I’m using two Rel, T/7x with Magnepan 1.7i speakers and they work amazingly well in my large room. I started out with just one, which sounded very good, but adding a second one took the bass to another level. They blend so well with the Maggies, that you can’t tell your listening to subs. They’re fast & tight & keep up with the speed of the Maggies.  I personally don't see the need for the Rel S series. 

Here are some videos from Paul McGowan of PS Audio, giving his take on connecting subs to amp outputs vs pre-amp outputs. Also, his take on one vs two subs.

The best way to connect a subwoofer - YouTube

Two subwoofers vs one (youtube.com)

 To everyone who has responded to my search for advice I cannot overstate how grateful I am for all the links, personal experiences and knowledge being shared. I don’t know if it’s making the task any easier as it looks like there are so many options to explore. The audiorusty link to the sounddoctor articles is eye opening and thank you soix for your insights.