[FidelitySeeker]

As noted in my other thread, I am looking for a subwoofer for 100% music. Actually, I am now looking for a pair. I also have WAF concerns and big black behemoths would not work. I don't especially care about earth-shaking "impact" or "slam". Peaks in the low 90dB range is as loud as I listen, and it wouldn't bother me if the sub didn't extend below the mid-upper 20Hz range. I have a pair of Focal Solo6 Be speakers which are very accurate and articulate and would like the subs to maintain this precise tightness/damping into the lower octave.

1) SVS SB12-Plus at $1350/pair
2) Rythmik F12G at $1350/pair (Is there a less expensive option? I don't want to build cabinets from scratch, but would not mind assembly from a kit. Cut-outs for amp and driver would not be a big deal.)
3) Epik Vanquish at $1100/pair
4) Martin Logan Abyss at $975/pair

I would appreciate your thoughts and advice on these.
Thanks!

 

[Jon Liu]

Q, since you are looking for a sub that is 100% music, the Rythmik would be my choice for recommendation. Rythmik also has fully built and completed F12G's as well.

Speaker designer, Danny Richie, who designed the F12G driver, ALWAYS recommends the Rythmiks because they are very, very quick and very musical. I also think that they would be better for the WAF concerns. Epik makes fantastic subs, but they are relatively ugly beasts. SVS makes great subs, but they are not small. The ML Abyss is good as well, but I don't think provides the best bang for the buck as the other three.

 

[FidelitySeeker]

Q, since you are looking for a sub that is 100% music, the Rythmik would be my choice for recommendation. Rythmik also has fully built and completed F12G's as well.

Speaker designer, Danny Richie, who designed the F12G driver, ALWAYS recommends the Rythmiks because they are very, very quick and very musical. I also think that they would be better for the WAF concerns. Epik makes fantastic subs, but they are relatively ugly beasts. SVS makes great subs, but they are not small. The ML Abyss is good as well, but I don't think provides the best bang for the buck as the other three.

Thanks! You are right about the ML's - I was just attracted to the >50% off deal at Frys, thanks for keeping me on track!
I have certainly read much about the Rythmik's being quick.

Probably my biggest interest is the Epik which has little history. I would suspect they used the Fathom as a product to emulate and wonder how well they have done.

Your comments about Epik and SVS surprised me. Both the Epik and the SVS I listed are sealed designs and more compact than the Rythmik.
The newish Epik Vanquish is pretty compact at 14.5"x14.5"x14.5" the finish may not be especially nice, but black and small are both positives.
The SVS SB12-Plus is 15"x14"x14".
The Rythmik F12G is slightly larger at 15.75"x15.75"x17".

Thanks again!

 

[Jon Liu]

My mistake about the SVS! I thought you were referring to the PB12-Plus instead of the SB12-Plus.

As for the Vanquish, while I think that it's a good sub, I think musically, the Rythmik still will best them. You are most certainly correct about the overall size, though. I apologize for not doing thorough research before hand!

Anyway, as somewhat of a background, Danny Richie designed all of my current speakers and I am a firm believer in his work. When I had the SVS PB13-Ultra, even when I put it into sealed mode, the quickness of the sub was just not up to par with my mains, the LS-9's. I asked Danny what he recommended and he whole-heartedly recommended the Rythmik, not just because it is his designed driver, but because it's one of the very few subs that he felt could keep up with the LS-9's overall speed and more importantly the low frequency speed.

Ultimately, though I don't think you can go wrong with any of them. I think any of SVS, Epik, or Rythmik subs will serve their purpose very nicely for you.

 

[subwoofernut]

Out of left field thought here. The older Velodyne F-series, with the faux granite bases are very quick and accurate subs. All models can be had on Ebay for reasonable prices. A pair of the F-1000s or the F-1200s would do very nicely for music indeed. These units are servo, and when I've heard them, very tight and fast. Just a thought. Thanks for your time. I do have a new SVS PB12-Plus in rosenut, and it's very fast, but hit the cash register pretty hard, such that a pair would run a lot.:hsd: