Which Subwoofer to get - Need much help!

[froggyliver]

OK I have bought two replacement subwoofers now and I don't like either one and I am very aggravated so I need all your help PLEASE!
A while back I use to work at Best Buy and with some program they had with Athena Speakers I was able to get a great deal.
What I had was:
-2 rear Athena WS-15 http://www.athenaspeakers.com/v2/pro...hp?ident=WS-15
-2 front Athena WS-100 http://www.athenaspeakers.com/v2/pro...p?ident=WS-100
-1 center Athena http://www.athenaspeakers.com/v2/pro...hp?ident=WS-60
-Sub Athena AS-P6000 down firing 800 watts http://www.athenaspeakers.com/v2/cla...ident=AS-P6000
-Receiver Yamaha HTR-5850 http://www.yamaha.com/yec/products/p...l?CNTID=200019

I put it all together myself and after a lot of manual readings and playing around with receiver settings I got it all configured and LOVED everything! I could turn the volume way up and play music CDs and movies and the sound would be crisp/sharp and the bass on the sub could go low and be loud and when I turn the sub even just half way would rattle my house walls and things would shake, but the quality was good and not distorted. I usually had the sub volume at 4 out of 10 and max would be 6 out of 10. Was very happy with everything and then after 3 years my Athena AS-P6000 subwoofer went out. It was one month passed expired warranty, but Athena fixed the amp and it was all good again until 6 months later it went out again.

So then I started looking and gathering all sub info. I could which totally confused me even more. Do I need 8" or 10" or 12". Do I need 800 watts like my last sub or 150 watts. Do I need a big sub or small sub? No idea! I finally found a JBL SUB10 10-Inch 250-300-Watt Subwoofer on Amazon for $200 that had a lot of good ratings so I bought it. It arrived and I hooked it up and woh! ... it sucked compared to my last sub. Its volume was not very high and the quality when turned up had a lot of "rattle" then a "thud". So I returned it. After visiting Best Buy and Circuit City and looking at their Polk Audio and their one Velodyne subs the sales guy said I should really visit a home theater store dedicated to high end speakers. So I did. I talked with a sales rep and listened to a http://www.bowers-wilkins.com/display.aspx?infid=2365&sc=ht. It sounded good in their small show room so I decided I was sick of trying to find a sub and spent $500 for it. Brought it home. It was a lot better then the JBL but still did not produce the volume of my last sub and not near the bass and rumbling as the Athena. You could hear the B&W from the other end of the house though, but in the same room it just didn't seem to have that nice thud bass sound. My old Athena sub, when turned way up, could be heard outside my home on the sidewalk. It would sound like a night club was going on inside my house. Even this B&W sub was not that great and it cost a whole $500! When I stand right over the B&W sub it sounds good and shakes my hair a bit, but when you step 15' away and sit on the couch it is just so, so.
So basically I need all your help, PLEASE.

My living room is about 25' x 20' with about 12' vaulted ceilings and it is partly open to the kitchen and on one side is an open hallway the bedrooms. The couch is about 12' from where the sub would go. The floor in the living room is carpet and tile in the kitchen. The walls are just regular ground floor house walls. My price range is really about $500, but if I REALLY have to spend more to get the quality of what I use to have then I suppose I could spend a bit more. I don't really care about the size of the sub as it has before been to the side of my entertainment center and somewhat by the corner of the room. Three B&W 608 subs could probably fit into the Athena sub I had so I don't care about the size too much. I will mostly be using the bass for 70% movies and then some for 20% music, but would like some bass for TV shows 10% I watch too. I was thinking of hiring someone to configure my receiver and speakers, but not sure if its needed or not.

I don't really know too much about speakers, Hz or crossover whatever, so please keep it simple, stupid for me. Thanks so much in advance!

[Mike P.]

You were originally satisfied with the Athena AS-P6000 which is a 12 inch 200 watt sub. The JBL SUB10 is smaller, being a 10 inch 150 watts sub. The B&W is smaller yet, being a 8 inch 200 watt sub. You will need a sub that has at least the output of the Athena, or better. I'm not familiar with commercial subs, as I build all my own, so hopefully someone here will recommend a sub for your needs.

[bobgpsr]

That is a big room for a sub to drive for enjoying movie low freqs (LFE). Hard to find a sub in a local brick & mortar store to match that room. Most of us with such big listening rooms buy over the 'net (SVS, HSU, eD, etc) to get a single (though often with dual 12" drivers) sub that will perform ok in such a room. Some of us try a DIY project to get reasonable price/performance in such a large room.

I would recommend giving SVS a phone call and ask what they would suggest for your needs. IMHO you need something like a SVS PC-Ultra to do a proper job with that room.

[dieselpower1966]

Everyone on here is pro SVS, I can appreciate that.
but for the money, you should check out the Outlaw Audio LFM-EX you can get 2 for $1000
I have 2 LFM-2 by outlaw and they hit hard, my room is a bit smaller than yours that's why I'm suggesting the top of the line Outlaws.

[Mike P.]

dieselpower1966 wrote:

Everyone on here is pro SVS, I can appreciate that.
but for the money, you should check out the Outlaw Audio LFM-EX you can get 2 for $1000
I have 2 LFM-2 by outlaw and they hit hard, my room is a bit smaller than yours that's why I'm suggesting the top of the line Outlaws.

Since his budget is $500, would one Outlaw Audio LFM-EX do it?

[salvasol]

have you checked online or at the store to get another AS-P6000???

Some of us use more than one sub in our HT ... maybe you can get two to balance the response you're looking for ... I found this online Amazon.com: AS-P4100 400 Watt 10-inch Subwoofer:... ...

... I was thinking of hiring someone to configure my receiver and speakers, but not sure if its needed or not. ...

Well the configuration (calibration) is need it to get the best response ... but don't hire anybody, is more fun when you do it yourself ... you can try to contact any member of the forum near you (I've seen some in Texas) i'm sure they can help you ... I guess

Look here http://www.hometheatershack.com/foru...ter-group.html ...

[jakewash]

For a room of that size you will need at least a 12" driver or larger and most likely around 300- 500W minimum. SVS makes some good subs in that price range as does HSU and Elemental Designs, but I do believe you will need to jump the price range up a bit to get a really good sub or go with 2 slightly smaller subs as has been mentioned.

[dieselpower1966]

Yes,
I believe that one Outlaw LFM-Ex would suffice nicely, you could also get a Hsu, or Svs these are all very good subs. The Hsu is not very different than the Outlaw LFM-1, Dr. Hsu was working with Outlaw to design this sub.
Let us know which one you go with, post photos and do a review.
Dieselpower1966

[tcarcio]

This could be an option. I have the A5-350. It is a little bigger but this one is in your budget.




http://www.edesignaudio.com/product_...roducts_id=102

[Ron Temple]

With a room your size I'd up your budget to ~ $700 shipped and get one of the new big 15s, the MFW15, Epik Knight or eD A5-350. All are quite capable. WAF advantage to the MFW15 sub due to it's slightly smaller size and better finish. I think the Knight aces the other 2 for performance, however, that's a guess based on box size, driver and a couple of private conversations. There's a wait for all 3 subs. Subs from SVS, Hsu or Outlaw will be better than what you've previously owned by a large margin, but again, with your room, I'd go with the most sub you can afford.

[funky_waves]

Our FW12.1 would outperform the athena, we have a demo on sale shipped to you for $470, $670 with the reckhorn A-400 ampifier. But if you realy want to fill that size of room the FW15.1 would be very nice, but a fair bit over your budget.

You can contact me if you have any questions, or if you think you might want to go custom.