Sub Woofers Test

Reviews on Sub Woofers

"685 system has real star quality"

Issue: 6/2008

On test: B&W 685 Theatre

Bowers and Wilkins' stereo speakers are something of a hit in hi-fi circles with the manufacturer being one of the most respected in the business. The 685 Theatre, is a surround sound speaker package which includes the Product of the Year Award-winning 685 standmount speakers and a powered subwoofer. → More

"Velodyne MicroVee Subwoofer"

Published on: 5/2008

On test: Velodyne MicroVee

You should never judge a book by its cover or its size and the same goes for the Velodyne MicroVee Subwoofer. Can a small subwoofer kick it with the big boys? → More

"Boston struggles to win friends"

Issue: 2/2008

On test: Boston Acoustics TVee Model Two

We've tested a number of soundbar speaker systems over the years, such as the ones mentioned in our 'Also consider' section. The products are designed to fit snugly beneath a flatscreen TV, and provide either a basic sound boost (this one), or some form of virtual surround by bouncing sound around your room (those ones). It seems Boston Acoustic's TVee is handicapped by the off by only being a 2.1 system. → More

"Boston Acoustics TVee Model Two"

Published on: 1/2008

On test: Boston Acoustics TVee Model Two

We all know that the sound quality of most flat-panel TVs isn't great, simply because the sets are too slim to house adequately powerful speakers and amps. But if you want to boost sound quality without forking out for a 5.1-channel system, then a soundbar could be the ideal solution. These clever devices are basically a bunch of speakers built into a single compact unit, which are designed to be mounted on the wall beneath your plasma or LCD TV in order to preserve the clutter-free aesthetic. Boston Acoustics is the latest to launch one of these soundbars, but the difference with the TVee is that it doesn't aspire to be a 5.1-channel system like some others do. → More

Sub Woofers

A subwoofer is a speaker especially designed to reproduce deep bass sounds. In an ideal implementation, the subwoofer would work in frequencies so low as to not be fully appreciated by the human ear. It would instead create a bass blanket around the room which would appear to fill the whole space. Something which is used often in films, thunder and explosions for instance. The subwoofer is best placed in a corner or behind a sofa, close to the listener. The long sound waves will bounce off the walls and fill the room in all directions. The size of a subwoofer is the decisive factor when buying one. The bigger the cone, the deeper the sound. There are also different ways of getting the sound waves to the listener. In a normal set-up the speaker will be mounted on the side of the box and the sound waves will project outwards. A downfire subwoofer has the speaker facing downwards, the sound will bounce up from the floor and fill the room in that way. Many high end models have the option of selecting which frequencies the subwoofer will take over from the main speakers. This is important to prevent any 'holes' in the sound, (when the frequencies are too low for the main speakers to play but still too high to be transferred to the subwoofer). For a good home cinema system, a subwoofer with over 100W of continuous power output is recommended.