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Has anyone used this inexpensive sub. There are few reviews but the ones I have found are positive if used in a small room. I could use a sub for bass augmentation in my music system. Thanks to all responders....
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No sub listed in this thread so far will even come close to the bass articulation that this unit is capable of. The servo technology used by Rythmik makes a ported sound as tactile as an acoustic suspension sub.
I would get this.
I have one and it really delivers both musical bass and a punch when needed.
I agree not to use them. The only inexpensive brand that I might use is KLH. A bigger driver is definitely needed for movies. But if it sounds good to you, go for it..
AudioSoul,
if you can afford a used REL sub, this is the one to add to your system. Simply the best out there.
I have a pair of their SW-8 subs. I bought them to supplement a pair of their highly reviewed SP-BS41's a couple of years ago. I packed all of them away when I got my Tekton M-Lore's, but I still drag out the SW-8's every once in a while to experiment with.Not much wrong with these inexpensive little subs, as long as you don't try to push them past their limits. They're well made and offer good 'bang for the buck'. Here are my thoughts, gained from actual experience and not from conjecture or price prejudice.
Utilizing a ratshack SPL meter (yeah, I know, but this is strictly for grins) and the bass tracks from the Stereophile Test CD 2 the M-Lore's, when pulled away from the walls and well out of the corners of my small room will comfortably go down to 40Hz -3dB. Adding a pair of SW-8's (connected to the line level pre-outs of my Cronus Magnum integrated) resulted in a flat output to 40Hz, a -3dB output @31.5Hz, -11dB @25HZ, and -12dB @20Hz. A small but desirable improvement, especially if it goes along with your musical preferences and listening style. I had to run the phase switches on the SW-8's @180 degrees out, and adjusted the frequency knobs to come in slightly above the minimum setting of 40Hz, with the volume knobs set at twelve o'clock.
Please bear in mind that this was a very informal experiment performed in my rather small room, so YMMV. Naturally, the SW-8's are not big boomers and IMO are of limited use for HT applications (I use a 15" Velodyne ULD-15 II for that in an entirely separate room) but they work well if a little bottom-end reinforcement for music listening might be what you're interested in.
I've no experience with the mk2 versions of this sub, so I can't be of any help there.
Cheers,
Al
Edits: 08/19/14
I helped each of three non-audiophile friends set up their home theaters using the Pioneer Andrew Jones speakers, including the SW-8 subwoofer. They are all extremely happy, and there is no doubt that the SW-8 makes a significant contribution.
However, if they were to ask me, How can I improve my system? I would say, replace your subwoofer with a better one. The SW-8 delivers every dollar of its cost, but it's not in the same league as an $300+ subwoofer. In other words, you would have to spend more than three times as much to do better.
...about the value of mid-fi gear, and gear at any price range really.
"In other words, you would have to spend more than three times as much to do better."
Yes, for $150 the Pioneer sub probably has unquestionable *value* considering what it does, and to get something demonstratively better, you would most likely need to spend $450, or three times as much.
I was thinking even a kit from a place like Part Express, which can be had in the $500 range.
(I was simply assuming his 2-channel system warranted a better sub that one for $150 could offer.)
In any case, the law of diminishing returns always applies, but with subs I don't think one hits that range until you get into the $2K range. After that, the sky is the limit.
Cheers,
Presto
about $100 for non-audiophiles like my friends. For audiophiles, a $500 sub is a bargain!
Actually I was going to use one of the sw-8 with my M-Lores. Just to augment the bass not necessarily to go lower, just to give the base more punch.........
AudioSoul,
I wanted to try stereo subs with the BS-41's, and since the SW-8's were also an Andrew Jones design and I was able to get them from newegg.com for (IIRC) around $150 for the pair I decided to go for it. What the heck, if I didn't like them I didn't have a whole lot of money to lose anyway.
Switch to over a year later - they were sitting around in my garage packed up in their boxes when the weather outside was bad and I was bored so I decided too hook them up to the M-Lore system and was pleasantly surprised at the results. They were inexpensive and don't do anything wrong when used the way I run them, in fact they actually compliment the M-Lore's after I spent half a day tweaking their placement, phase adjustment, frequency controls, and volume knobs. The M-Lore's don't really NEED the subs, but they certainly serve to successfully augment the bottom end when I feel like turning up the volume for some kick-ass music.
But don't let my comments sway you! The SW-8's are not AUDIOPHILE APPROVED and certainly don't cost enough money to garner any respect from the knee-jerk crowd who probably never even took the time or had the opportunity to check them out. ;-)
There's absolutely no doubt in my mind that there are far better subs out there, especially if you don't mind spending five or ten (or more) times the price, but as I read your OP it occurred to me that you were specifically inquiring about these Pioneers. Oh well.
Cheers,
Al
I asked Jim Smith about mis matching subs. For some reason he said NEVER do that..
"I asked Jim Smith about mis matching subs. For some reason he said NEVER do that.."
cloudwalker,
Would you please explain this statement in regards to the content of this thread? :-)
Cheers,
Al
Simple. I asked Jim about using 2 different subs in a system. He said not to do it. It still seems like it might work to me...
a little more on mismatched subs... I guess his reasoning was "would you use mismatched mains?". I guess I was thinking bass is bass. I thought maybe one sub would be better in some areas than the other. Maybe he can tell us why not...are you reading this?
cloudwalker,
I still wonder what your remark about using two mismatched subs has to do with this thread? Nowhere did I read any posts in this thread that mentioned using two mismatched subs other than what you posted.
Am I missing something?
Cheers,
Al
This was the post that led me to make that comment
"Actually I was going to use one of the sw-8 with my M-Lores. Just to augment the bass not necessarily to go lower, just to give the base more punch........." .. I read this post to fast. Now I see that they are mains, not a sub. My mistake. This now makes perfect sense...
....... for clearing that up for me. :-)
Cheers,
Al
I would not put $150 towards that sub. It's entry level mid-fi. If you have a decent system you've put time money and energy into, this thing is not going to cut the mustard. I would save your bucks until you can afford a decent unit, I'd say $450 would be a good starting point.
In that price range you can get a good quality used sub or a new kit from a place like Parts Express. In that kit you'd be getting a subwoofer driver and amplifier that are much better quality and have far more power.
I've never heard a cheap sub that didn't sound like a cheap sub. An 8" driver with that little power behind it won't cut it unless you listen at very low levels.
Cheers,
Presto
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