Best Budget Home Theater Subwoofer (2023 Update)

My Tanoy subwoofer died after about 7 years of faithful service. I have a Sony STR-DN1080 and operate it as a 7.1 system with small Tanoy speakers. I ordered the Polk Audio PSW10e as a replacement subwoofer and I have to say I’m thoroughly impressed. Watching Lord of the Rings 4k with Dolby Atmos has been a wonderful experience. We could almost feel Sauron’s armies stomping through our living room! Well worth the money!Tincata

I'm currently playing around with a Chinese tube amp which struggles to produce any sort of bass out of bookshelf speakers (and I've tried a few). A suggestion from another owner of the same amp was to hook a subwoofer between the speaker outputs and the speakers. Since my old Mordaunt Short Alumni had suffered the dreaded "thunder crackle" fault, I took a chance on the cheapest sub that RS had in stock that could handle speaker level input. I wasn't expecting much for the price, it was delivered within two days of ordering which is always a bonus at the moment. Initial examination proved rather disappointing. The build quality and controls were well below the standard I was used to on the Alumni, with everything pared down to what I presume is the lowest possible cost. Not a good start! However, once installed and set up, the unit really confounded my skepticism. Without the sub, while the amp was fine with music on the folky side of the spectrum, anything with more prominent bass and drums really suffered. The little Polk brought the missing basslines to life but didn't cause them to overwhelm the rest of track the way that car subwoofers often seem to do. All in all for the price, you can't fault the unit. I could have spent an awful lot more to get the esthetic niceties that I had previously been used to but, under the circumstances, I'm more than happy with the purchase from an audio perspective.1CheesePasty

I bought this a few weeks ago as a temporary stop gap until I can build something that little bit special. Thinking price is representative of quality in this market I thought it was good enough to be decent for now, but wow were my expectations exceeded. The sub is well built and sturdy, coupled with multiple inputs and tone adjustability which I've not personally seen at this price point. The sound is decently punchy without going overboard and drowning out the mid and highs. It's so much better than I expected that I think it will be a permanent mainstay as I see no need to swap it for something else. To that point the design is decent enough to fit in with most setups without looking too flashy l. Overall very impressed with the Polk and I'd recommend this for anyone wanting decent bass for sub £200brad b

Pros: Good value unit. Sound is good. Using with Sony AV receiver. Power output is fine for a living setup. Cons: Unit is a lot larger than kef unit it replaces.Paul

I'm a computer guy, not an audio technician, so I'm not qualified to compare this to other subwoofers, but I can say definitively that I am very happy with the results I got when I added this to my two existing stereo speakers. Both those speakers are those old-school 3 foot tall beasts, and they appear to have decently sized woofers. This particular subwoofer has its own amplifier and takes a straight analog signal through an RCA jack. Because it is a low frequency signal, I assume that any old RCA cable will do, and I would not worry much about spending extra money for gold connectors, shielding, or that sort of thing. This subwoofer has its own gain/volume control, and it took a little while for me to figure out how I wanted it set.Greg

Treat this as a direct replacement for your home Yamaha sub. Gets the job done. Mine had quit working completely and this was all that I needed. You get what you pay for and if I wanted a louder sub I would have ordered a more expensive one. This does just fine for meAndy

I purchased one of these several months ago to replace an older 12" sub for my home theatre setup. I was pleased but wanted a bit more. So I recently purchased a second one to balance the system out. The bass is very real and balanced. It now handles everything from movies and every type of music i have tried on it. They pair very well with my older JBL HLS810 (8" low and horn mid/high) sitting right on top. I don't think I could get a better powered sub without spending many, many times more money. I have a very critical ear and have worked with both home audio and live sound for years. I also have spent a lot of time mixing live sound so I think I know what sounds good. After running my DSP and EQing the room I am beyond pleased with this powered sub and the price is a bonus. Both were purchased from Parts Express. The last one I ordered on a Thursday evening and it arrived on Monday! Your ears deserve this sub and Parts Express deserves you business.Rodger

I didn't want to spend $500+ for a sub, so did a lot of investigating, reading reviews, etc. Everything kept pointing to the BIC as I was looking for a great value. This sub lives up to the 'hype'. Incredibly powerful, and after tweaking it via my receiver, and balancing my 5.1 set-up, not really too 'boomy' at all. For those who may have issues with the 'auto setting', turn the volume dial way down on the sub and use the receiver to set the volume level. Mine comes on immediately this way, even at lower volumes levels. For me, a steal at $160 shipped in 'like new' condition. I've always looked for good deals/values when purchasing AV/audio components, and this was a great pick. My only real negatives are the 'cheapy' vinyl laminate finish, and the fact that it looks like a boring big box, but given the bass that comes out of this unit, I'll live with it. Many have stated it does not do well for music and more a 'movie' sub, but I have no complaints with the bass produced for music, but yes, it is great for movies and TV. If set-up correctly and not expecting SVS quality, it's hard to beat this sub for twice what I paid.bkeske1

I have been waiting for a few years to find a great price on the BIC F12 and finally Parts-Express came through. My 22 year old KLH 15" sub finally gave up the ghost after a power surge knocked out the plate amplifier. I shopped around for a replacement AMP but then ran across the F12 and was reminded how much I wanted this particular sub for a while now. I am not an audiophile, but the F12 fits my needs perfectly. Sounds good with TV, Movies and the genres of Music that I listen to most. IMHO the 12" driver and amp in the F12 are more than capable of providing the low end umph! I want. The cabinet is solid, the rubber feet are a nice touch and I can not hear a hint of funky resonance in the port design. One bonus is that auto-sense actually works on this sub as long as your input signal is strong enough. I never could get the auto-sense to work reliably on the old KLH. The cabinet is reasonably sized for a 12" sub, not overly large, but large enough to allow the driver to breath. In fact the cabinet looks downright dimunitive when set next to my old sub, but don't let the size fool you. I'd also like to comment on small features that scream quality. The switches for the power and phase control both have metal levers, which I thought was a nice touch. They could have easily used plastic switch levers, but the choice of metal levers is just overe the top. I'm very happy with the purchase. Price was excellent and shipping was very fast. Great job all the way around. Denon AVR S730H Pair of really old Pioneer floor standing speakers KLH surroundsJerry

Well, this product was quite a surprise. I was planning to build my own powered subwoofer when I saw the PartsExpress offer and price on this unit. Changed plans and have this installed. We just used this outdoors for a dance party. Went most of the night! Excellent build quality, comprehensive controls, deep bass response controllable by varying the input level and the gain and crossover controls on the subwoofer. Phase reverse switch is quite handy, too. I use the L & R RCA inputs to drive this subwoofer and am very pleased all around.THOR

I have both the 8" and 10" version and that extra $20 goes a long way. The 8" has surprising output but doesn't get very low. The 10" is quite a bit larger and that extra 10hz of frequency response makes a huge difference, even for just music. I am hearing low bass notes in some of my songs that were completely inaudible on the 8" (I listen to allot of trap/bass heavy edm). I assume this is even more beneficial for home theater. One thing I did notice on this is there is a hard cut off at 30hz. So if you were hoping to stretch the frequency response a bit with EQ, thats a no go. The two main downsides of these subs is they have a cheap foam surround that will likely disintegrate after 10+ years, but the internal amp will likely die long before than. The other downside is the bass is kind of slow, especially at lower notes, there is a slight build up delay after the bass hits. Others have pointed out the crappy auto off feature but I have always just run it with always on mode since this is a class D amp so it draws next to no power when there is no signal, so basically a non-issue for me. Even with these slight drawbacks, this is seriously the best bang for buck sub you can buy, nothing else even comes close. Of the whole line up I think the 10" is probably the best value. I am using it with some Dayton MK402x bookshelfs for a mind blowing and powerful PC setup for a mere $260 including an amp. And with the 5 year warranty, you can hardly go wrong with Dayton stuff. Huge fan of Dayton audio products after my experience.Jacob

I have this hooked up with some monitor speakers in a bedroom on a computer. It's overkill for bedroom for sure. I have it at 1/4 volume and it's still way too much. These are on the boomy side as others have stated and in a small room. I think two of these would cost less than the sub woofer I have in my theater and probably be louder. That's sort of sad because of how much I spent on my own diy sub. Dayton always puts out quality for a cheep price. I had a cheap velodyne subwoofer before in my room that I couldn't stand and sold it. The whole kit seems to work together and not an extremely cheap press board box. It's however not a 3/4" mdf box either. Can't be beat for the price though I am sure of that. Just don't expect a great musical sub for this price.Sandy

I purchased these speakers for my basement home entertainment system to replace my front Infinity Studio Monitors. The sound dispersion, clarity and musical accuracy is great. The only real area that I think they are lacking is in low end bass response which I believe is less than what is delivered by my old Infinity Reference Six four-way towers in my family room system. The mid-bass performance of the JBL's is fine. I purchased and installed a new Infinity Reference SUB R12 subwoofer to go along with the Stage A190s that does a very good job in taking care of the low end bass. I also have the Stage A190's used with a JBL Studio center channel speaker and Infinity Reference bookshelf speakers for the rear surround. All combined these speakers sound great when watching movies and deliver a theater-like experience. The JBL Stage A190s also sound great when listening to classic rock. I highly recommend the JBL Stage A190s.Kevin J

The directions for using the binding posts as provided in the included owner's manual are not possible for using banana plugs. The plastic nut cannot be removed from the post and yet the directions have this removal as the 1st step before removing the plastic plug that blocks the banana jack's socket. It is possible using a knife edge to remove the plastic plug without removing the plastic nut. The manual does not inspire great confidence.DavidmisseshisThunderbird

Looked around for the right speakers and had a few demos, I went with gut feelings as I was unable to hear these as they were too new for the stores. I took a gamble and ordered them from my previous experiences with JBL speakers. The best choice I have made they are perfect and my ears are just coming back to me. If you like your bass then these are the ones for you, deep warm bass that you can feel. Better than the comparisons and cheaper too, can’t go wrong with JBL.Generator77

It is a nice compact subwoofer. I got one 6 years ago but it failed soon after the Polk 5-year warranty expired. I had to wait quite a long time for another one to go on sale. I didn't want to pay more than $200. didn't want anything larger. This subwoofer is a decent relatively-lo-cost item. I use mine for watching TV through an amp and in-ceiling speakers. The subwoofer makes all the difference.rkmb

I bought this 5 years ago. It was my first sub moving grudging into Home Theater from the 2 channel full range "Audiophile" approach that I was raised on…and which can rarely deliver the full movie experience as we now all know. First off, I still own it and it does not overpower or unduly call attention to itself almost anywhere I put it. This little "8 inch wonder" is easy to hide about the house and still feel the vibrations, to a point. Just enough I would say. Just deep enough to give real body and accuracy to music. Just enough not to vibrate the neighbors which is a big plus but will also throw vibes into my chest (Mark Stevens "Imagine" 2011 puts it all there!!) I believe 32Hz because I have done the sweep and heard/felt it without port noise also a huge plus. However, compared to the 500W 12" sub I recently purchased to compliment my first 4K TV, it's no way up to that task in a movie environment. Sure, it vibrated the couch arms and stayed true to the overall theme but when Hulk really smashed hard, PSW111 did not and I believe it was not designed to. But it got most of the movie right with honest effort at 1/2 full volume. I do not believe in overdriving any speaker system to distortion or thermal shutdown but may have cut this sub short by not going for full output for movies. Moving forward it now stays with my dedicated audio system and even compared to the 12 inch, is more musically enjoyable in the smaller space and will not be replaced in my lifetime in that regard. High praise indeed, I love this sub, the size, the extension, lack of boom, tightness, bottom port floor coupling, just right and so far, reliable every single day!PolkSmiles

Sounds great at medium to low volumes. Has port noise when getting into the upper volumes. If it didn't do that, then I would give it 5 Stars as the bass is clean and powerful until pushed a bit. This being said I tested it solo, so maybe you would not even notice with your mains going. Did I maybe get a bad one??? At the great sale price Visions had it for when I got it, I decided not to return it as it is a second sub to lightly fill in a flat spot in the room and doesn't get pushed. I am picky so I would listen to it at the store before dismissing it.Nito

I wish I could give it 5 stars but there is a persistent hum at 60hz. This is present even when the sub is not attached to any other device at all. I returned the 1st one thinking it might be defective but the replacement is the same. I think it is literally the physical vibration of the transformer and not a signal being introduced to the speaker. I did get this at a major discount and am keeping it. It works well enough at enough volume to cover the hum, but at low volume listening or in quiet spots it can be annoying.Arnie

Decent sub at a decent price, and an absolute steal when on sale. Won?t shake the plates in the China cabinet, nor will it make your mains ?disappear? or your walls ?fall away? on your 2-channel stereo ? but it?ll certainly add some oomph to most TV soundbars or computer separates. Sure, there?s a slight 60hz buzz as others have noted, but so far it?s only audible when you?re ear-to-driver w/no signal playing. Hookup to my powered stereo speakers w/RCA sub-out was a snap. Best attribute, no question, is the bargain price. Totally worth it.Rob

I initially order this sound bar as a used item via a different vendor thinking that I could get an open box deal. Set the soundbar up and it worked ok…until I noticed the distortion. The left channel had a bad audio distortion issue. Since I just received the unit and was able to return it that's exactly what I did. I then ordered a second unit, brand new this time. Same issue but in the right speaker. I chatted with Mackie tech support and the person I got mentioned a possible manufacturing defect with the early run and that if I returned the unit and ordered another I should be fine. I decided that was not worth my time or aggravation so I just returned it and moved on with life. Otherwise the speaker did work well. All inputs worked well, and the EQ modes were useful. It fit nicely on my desk. The Power On sound when the unit powers on is rather annoying but maybe could be fixed with a firmware update. There is a firmware update out there which I performed on both speakers I received but it didn't seem to do much. I'd consider purchasing again, but after it's been on the market for a while and after Mackie sorts out some QC issues. Anyway, that's my two cents. My only recommendation is if you purchase it in 2022 make sure your vendor has a good return policy, which B&H does.Jake

A must have for music production! Glad I chose these monitors than any other. They provide the crisp sounds a producer need and want to hear. The self powering speaker is loud enough for a small venue (bar) only downfall it doesn’t provide any slots for a speaker stand (tripod). But I know it’s meant for music production and to stay stationary in a studio. But overall the best monitors out.DJ lostwon

Does the job but try's to continuously connect to Bluetooth Vocally until you turn it off by pressing a button for 6 seconds. As you have guessed I am using it wired, plugged into a KVM for sound on 4 PC's…. Even with the volume maxed, the volume doesn't come near as loud as the Voice blaring out when the device is turned on. The Loud Audible "ON" and "OFF" voice is many times louder than the Volume Knob settings. I guess one can get used to it, but it is a Startling jolt when in use. Certainly better than a Monitor Speaker but at this price point you can find much better sound on a Wired/BT computer speakers.Terrence

This sub is phenomenal. You can either have super clean bass or rattle your neighbors windows. Its the best of both worldsUWWU

I used this for music only , have not tried for movies. Following the recommendation from The Next Best thing studio and PS Audio to add a subwoofer to stereo listening, I gave it a try. I was already contented with my pair of Klipsch bookshelf speakers, adding this greatly enhanced the bass. Bass goes down deeper and fuller. The sub disappears physically, the added lows seems to come from the 2 bookshelf speakers. Listening to Diana Krall and Norah Jones would never be the same. It's more livelier than without the subwoofer.Mikelo

Paired these up with the edifier R1280DBs. The sub really gives them a huge punch a little too much maybe but pretty sure I just need to tweak it. Little pricey but it is what it is the quality is amazing.BestBuyer

I recently changed my Dali floor speakers for a Sonos Gen 2 Beam and Sub combo. I wanted it to link to the other Sonos speakers I have in the smaller rooms in the house and to be better for watching TV. My old speakers were great for music but terrible for TV (effects too loud, dialogue too soft). For TV the setup is brilliant and did exactly what I wanted. For music it has taken some fiddling but Im happy with it now. If you like bass and have a big room then the Sub is a must. Many people wont need it though so buy your other Sonos speakers first and see how you go before outlaying on the Sub. It is a beautiful piece of engineering and design and really adds the low end. I had to tweak some of the levels though as I had strong bass from the Sub and highs from the Beam but not enough mids. Cranking up the sub is not the answer as it is really a blunt instrument. If you have the same problem, I recommend dialling back the treble on the EQ a couple of notches to get a more balanced sound. After a week or so of wearing in the drivers I am very happy with the setup. Its a cleaner, more modern sound than my Dalis but the quality is on a par plus I have the functionality of room linking and a stronger wifi connection.anonymous

First let me say that this is an expensive sub. Of course you already realize that if you are looking at this. Heres what you get. Rich full base that really fills out the soundstage. Of course it seamslessly links to your sonos system for convenient setup and use. The sub is compact to help with placement if you want to tuck it away or put it under your furniture but interestingly it has a high gloss expensive looking finish that really makes it look like a piece of modern art. I was very surprised by that. Realistically if you are in the sonos family you are wondering whether to add a sub or use this or the mini. I cant speak to the mini but i do know that the sub was a dramatic improvement to my arc soundbar. It really boils down to how much you value a full audio experience vs a more limited but still really good sound experience. Obviously for me it was worth the money but one reassuring thing about Sonos is that you can be confident that you can always add the expanded pieces later. First time experience with Sonos and i have to say i have been impressed and i think you will be too.Beastmode

My Tanoy subwoofer died after about 7 years of faithful service. I have a Sony STR-DN1080 and operate it as a 7.1 system with small Tanoy speakers. I ordered the Polk Audio PSW10e as a replacement subwoofer and I have to say I’m thoroughly impressed. Watching Lord of the Rings 4k with Dolby Atmos has been a wonderful experience. We could almost feel Sauron’s armies stomping through our living room! Well worth the money!Tincata

I'm currently playing around with a Chinese tube amp which struggles to produce any sort of bass out of bookshelf speakers (and I've tried a few). A suggestion from another owner of the same amp was to hook a subwoofer between the speaker outputs and the speakers. Since my old Mordaunt Short Alumni had suffered the dreaded "thunder crackle" fault, I took a chance on the cheapest sub that RS had in stock that could handle speaker level input. I wasn't expecting much for the price, it was delivered within two days of ordering which is always a bonus at the moment. Initial examination proved rather disappointing. The build quality and controls were well below the standard I was used to on the Alumni, with everything pared down to what I presume is the lowest possible cost. Not a good start! However, once installed and set up, the unit really confounded my skepticism. Without the sub, while the amp was fine with music on the folky side of the spectrum, anything with more prominent bass and drums really suffered. The little Polk brought the missing basslines to life but didn't cause them to overwhelm the rest of track the way that car subwoofers often seem to do. All in all for the price, you can't fault the unit. I could have spent an awful lot more to get the esthetic niceties that I had previously been used to but, under the circumstances, I'm more than happy with the purchase from an audio perspective.1CheesePasty

I bought this a few weeks ago as a temporary stop gap until I can build something that little bit special. Thinking price is representative of quality in this market I thought it was good enough to be decent for now, but wow were my expectations exceeded. The sub is well built and sturdy, coupled with multiple inputs and tone adjustability which I've not personally seen at this price point. The sound is decently punchy without going overboard and drowning out the mid and highs. It's so much better than I expected that I think it will be a permanent mainstay as I see no need to swap it for something else. To that point the design is decent enough to fit in with most setups without looking too flashy l. Overall very impressed with the Polk and I'd recommend this for anyone wanting decent bass for sub £200brad b

I decided to upgrade my computer speakers and decided on the A2 and this subwoofer. The reason I chose this one over the s8 one is I believe this has an option to turn off standby mode where the s8 does not. Plus, for my space I really did not need that big of a subwoofer. Could not be happier, this thing just simply rocks, The combo between the A2 and this s6 subwoofer is perfect. Great Great sound, like others have said, takes a bit of volume, not much but in order to kick on the subwoofer, you just need a quick bump on the sound. Not at all an issue as when you want to hear the sub, odds are you will be turning up the volume anyway. Could not be more happier about my new upgrade.patrick

I picked up the S6 to accompany my existing HD3 speakers. They are a perfect pair of products and the sound quality is stellar. The only problem I've been having is the auto-sleep functionality doesn't seem to wake up most of the time. I have gone through troubleshooting with no luck and have just manually switched auto sleep off to save me the trouble of having to mess with it every time I want to use the sub. Once this is fixed, this would be a solid 5/5.Stephen Z.

I purchased the S6 because I have a small space for it under my desk, and it fits perfectly. I pair it with my HD3 speakers, and use the RCA inputs from the HD3s. It sounds great, and didn't take too long adjusting the crossover and volume of the sub to get it just right. I do use the "auto standby" mode, but one thing is that the signal going to the sub has to be loud enough to "wake" the sub, and normal, not-very-loud music doesn't usually trigger it to turn on. I could leave the sub just ON all the time, but I'm OK with the standby. I usually just bump the volume on the music for a second to get the sub active, then return to a normal volume. The sub is absolutely worth it, and I'm glad I got it. It's compact and provides exactly what I was looking for with my HD3s.Doug B.

Bought this to replace my older JBL sub that was having issues. Even though this Klipsch cabinet is a bit smaller, the sound is incredible! I'm only running output level at 50%, yet is still rumbles my wall and makes a few of my hanging pictures rattle the wall, even though it's 10 away from wall.Creston

My litmus test for a subwoofer is listening to "On My Level" by Wiz Khalifa – loud. Many thousand dollar+ subwoofers don't handle this song, and I've never seen a sub-thousand dollar one that did. Much to my surprise, this one did an adequate job, no dropouts or major distortion with good punch and clarity (at least until it got to fairly high volume). It didn't get the extreme lows and couldn't quite get the full impact, but I'm extremely impressed. Great value.thealexisconnection

This sub is easy to hook up. It produces room shaking sound. It is in my 15×13 living room. I have lots of rugs and overstuffed furniture and it does not seem to diminish the sound. It replaced a10 sub and you can tell the difference.josvoyt57

Still trying to get it integrated with my KEF LS50 Meta speakers, so I might become more sanguine about it. The app (Martin Logan and ARC) sounded very promising, but didn't do much for my set-up. It almost seems like they're more useful for ML's marketing than real world benefits. I've tried also a KEF 10 Kube, which was sounding much better – I might go back to it and return the ML. The quality of the built is NOT that of a $900 sub. One of the feet already came out when I've tried to take it out to change the speaker orientation to front firing. It seems the body is made of cheap particle board, not MDF.VinylFan

I have 2 of these in my theater room. One wireless and one wired. Both ways work and sound great! Clear controlled tones. No annoying humming with a very simple app that makes it easy to control. Only annoying thing is having 2 apps to control the system. (pre-amp and sub app). Covers are a bit difficult to keep in place.SAW5

Wow, this subwoofer is powerful but highly accurate. Everyone says subwoofers are too slow to be played with Magnepan speakers. This sub is a match made in heaven with my Magnepan 1.7. It's very fast and accurate, plenty of punch when needed. I have this sub set up to front-fire with crossover set at 75 Hz with high level speaker wire, and it's just perfect and sounds way better than REL T9x. The bluetooth android app that let you control everything from your chair is a bonus that even my friend's $6,000 Paradigm Persona sub does not have. I highly recommend this subwoofer.Mochi

My Tanoy subwoofer died after about 7 years of faithful service. I have a Sony STR-DN1080 and operate it as a 7.1 system with small Tanoy speakers. I ordered the Polk Audio PSW10e as a replacement subwoofer and I have to say I’m thoroughly impressed. Watching Lord of the Rings 4k with Dolby Atmos has been a wonderful experience. We could almost feel Sauron’s armies stomping through our living room! Well worth the money!Tincata

I'm currently playing around with a Chinese tube amp which struggles to produce any sort of bass out of bookshelf speakers (and I've tried a few). A suggestion from another owner of the same amp was to hook a subwoofer between the speaker outputs and the speakers. Since my old Mordaunt Short Alumni had suffered the dreaded "thunder crackle" fault, I took a chance on the cheapest sub that RS had in stock that could handle speaker level input. I wasn't expecting much for the price, it was delivered within two days of ordering which is always a bonus at the moment. Initial examination proved rather disappointing. The build quality and controls were well below the standard I was used to on the Alumni, with everything pared down to what I presume is the lowest possible cost. Not a good start! However, once installed and set up, the unit really confounded my skepticism. Without the sub, while the amp was fine with music on the folky side of the spectrum, anything with more prominent bass and drums really suffered. The little Polk brought the missing basslines to life but didn't cause them to overwhelm the rest of track the way that car subwoofers often seem to do. All in all for the price, you can't fault the unit. I could have spent an awful lot more to get the esthetic niceties that I had previously been used to but, under the circumstances, I'm more than happy with the purchase from an audio perspective.1CheesePasty

I bought this a few weeks ago as a temporary stop gap until I can build something that little bit special. Thinking price is representative of quality in this market I thought it was good enough to be decent for now, but wow were my expectations exceeded. The sub is well built and sturdy, coupled with multiple inputs and tone adjustability which I've not personally seen at this price point. The sound is decently punchy without going overboard and drowning out the mid and highs. It's so much better than I expected that I think it will be a permanent mainstay as I see no need to swap it for something else. To that point the design is decent enough to fit in with most setups without looking too flashy l. Overall very impressed with the Polk and I'd recommend this for anyone wanting decent bass for sub £200brad b

I believe Elac/Best Buy is trying to unload these with the discount Best Buy is running. . 1. The app control app is very buggy, and it's aggravating as it can't keep a connection to the subwoofer. Especially since that's the only way to control/calibrate it. If it had knobs and switches as well I'd probably keep it. But why would I want a subwoofer that I can't control and adjust? 2. It really isn't that powerful. When I was able to access it after calibration, I tested it with some bass heavily movies. It was weak, and for the record I'm not wanting to shake my walls or anything. Just some bass to fill in for the low points. They say you get what you pay for. It's not worth the almost 50% off list even. Don't fall for it. Back it goes.Chaserx

in the United States on July 19, 2022 Most of the poor reviews of this unit are due to User Error. Bluetooth needs to be enabled on your phone. I've had ported subs that shake the walls. I've also had sealed subs. This is my first passive radiated and seems like the best compromise for music and movies. This is a cohesive sub that will blend with your mains, not a bomb going off in the corner. It's important to note that the EQ result of the app is stored in the sub, not your phone. You don't have to worry about losing your phone or deleting the app… Your sub will retain its calibration until another calibration is performed or a reset (hard button on back of sub). Other features I like are the EQ Modes for Night/Flat/Cinema/Music which are simply activated on your mobile device. Handy for "on the fly" efforts to be considerate to neighbors 🙂 EDIT: To update firmware download the update from Elac's webpage. Unzip it and drag the just the hex file to the usb stick. Unplug sub and insert usb. Wait until blue light stops flashing and remove usb. Current as of 8/22 is Firmware v1.1.956.18 You can confirm your firmware version in the app under "about". This is especially important if you have 2 subs too get equal in performance. I'm including this because I bought my subs a couple years apart and differing firmware has differing output.ImPicky

These sound awesome connected to my 2 channel Arcam SA20. I tweeted Patrick Norton and he recommended 3 different speakers in my price range and these DB62's were one of them. I've read he has a more expensive pair of Elac's and raves about them, so I chose these per his suggestion. Man, for the price, I don't see how they can be beat. The sound is really great coming out of two bookshelf speakers. I think the porting has a lot to do with it. It has enough bass to sound great while still giving me clear vocals, mid's and highs. It reminds me of listening to a pair or quad setup from the 80's or the adults in my life in the 70's (yeah, I'm old), lol. We didn't need a sub to shake the stucco off the house, just some great lows and these do that. I'll leave the sub to my Onkyo 7.1 surround sound while watching the latest flick! Thanks Patrick for the recommendation should you ever see this.RandallFlagg

It was time to downsize from a set of polk powered towers that I've had for a very long time. 4' tall speakers were just too obtrusive. I've installed Polk for people in the past and was impressed with the clarity and overall sound quality from a smaller enclosure. I made the switch and am happy I did. I will say, out of the box performance of the sub and speakers was not impressive right away. I do, however, understand that new speakers need a break in period. I left the system on streaming music at a moderate level while I was gone for a few days. When I came back and did the final system setup with the receiver, I was impressed. At this point, my system is set flat with zero equalization changes. The music is clean and clear and not lacking. Vocal presence is excellent and the subwoofer performs well without slop and unwanted boominess. Great with music as well as home theater. I definitely recommend!svil6407

My only "regret" is not searching for an "8 inch" subwoofer which Klipsch makes or did make. This one "overpowers" my small Klipsch tabletop speakers. It's taken a little while to adjust so that we don't hear only base, but it's really a nice piece. I like it but wish I'd looked for the smaller subwoofer to balance the sound a little better. If I had larger speakers, it's really a "movie theater" experience like the base in the music accompanying a film/movie. I'm impressed.Kurt

I paired this sub with a pair of AudioEngine 2+ powered speakers for my 200-sf. home office audio system. The AudioEngines are very clean and accurate to around 100 hz, and the Monoprice 8in. sub takes over perfectly. It's very musical and pops when you need some thump for playing games or videos. No boomy muddy output. It's a real value, at least as good as competing subs costing $250 or more.Eric

I went through all Q&A and Reviews before I bought this and did not see anywhere that you may not hear any bass from the subwoofer — for a while. So, after installing and expecting to hear something — the speaker was silent — initially. I had read that subwoofers need a break-in period, but nowhere did I read that they didn't make a sound for a day or so. Nothing in the manual either. I was prepared to contact Monoprice tech support, but after about three days, I started to hear pretty bad sound but it was clear that things were starting to loosen up. I am now getting some good low bass a good week into its use. Still not set right but at least I'm getting base. I will give it another week before I try to re-do the settings and get it to sounding more harmonious with my main speakers. I would think based on this that you may have to adjust them a couple of weeks in, and then maybe a couple of months in before you get the right settings. OTHER than that, great so far. Purchased with the Onix series CL2 rated subwoofer cable which was great.JOHN

This is great-sounding, cost-effective subwoofer perfect for desktop and small living room or office applications. I use the sub in conjunction with an iMac, a Schiit Audio DAC, a Class D amp, and JBL monitors. Since I don't have a sub out, I connect mine to the high level (speaker) input from my amp with a pair of CESS banana plug splitters which simultaneously feeds the subwoofer and mains. Super-easy, clean connection! I use my ear to adjust the crossover and subwoofer level with the crossover lower than the output level; the crossover is roughly 11 o"clock and the output level is a little more than half. I blend so it fills out the sound without being overpowering like a bad car stereo sub. When it sounds tight, it's alright! The sub looks great and was well-packed for shipment. The small footprint allows for easy placement and it's not particularly placement dependent for easy integration. And the Auto On feature works like charm. So what you waitin' for? Go get you some!JEFF

Goes deep enough to be satisfying for home theater and fulfills expectations of a large sub. I have the Klipsch R-12SW also which has 200 Watts and you can hear the difference (Klipsch is louder, faster transition and tighter bass). I raised the Dayton another 4 inches off the ground using furniture risers and the sound opened up more. The Klipsch R-12SW pops up on sale occasionally to rival the price of the Dayton sub, so if you're still shopping and have space for just 1 sub, go with the Klipsch. I have room, so I went with 3 Klipsch subs and 1 Dayton sub and it satisfies my home theater and music listening needs.NESTOR

I purchased two of these because the price was very good for a sub this size. Unfortunately they lack power/strength. I expected more dynamic output. I already have 2 12" Klipsch subs. They are strong and dynamic but lacked a bit of lower end punch. I mated these one with a Klipsch in my movie room and another with my other Klipsch in my office on near identical Yamaha receivers. At first I thought the first one was defective because even at high volume levels they were hard to hear over my existing speakers. It wasn't until I received the second one a day later that I realized it was the same. I almost sent them back. I guess this is why they were such a good price.Paul

Bought one of these from the Amazon store August 2020. Package was double boxed with thick foam top and bottom on the inner one as you would expect and consequently the sub appeared in perfect shape and was fine internally. I have been using it in conjunction with a 10" cherry wood JBL sub from my 2 story Townhouse living days, before retiring to a large Rancher with a finished basement a few years back. After a year now of these disparate sized subs working well enough together, I have just now bought a second 15" for my admittedly oddball speaker setup of 4 Wharfedale Emerald 97 towers and Polk CsiA6 CC. After the usual placement experimentation, I actually ended up placing the 15's under my Wharfedale front tower speakers and later will move the 10" JBL to a place under a table in the HT seating area and fire it toward the HT to help with cancellations. The tower speakers and 15" subs are separated by thick black foam panels to eliminate any unwanted SQ issues/vibration and work very well. This arrangement is very similar to what is offered in many tall and very pricey single cabinet speakers with subwoofers out there. While Audyssey has always selected all of my speakers as full range and run a 40Hz X-over (speaker preset 1), I choose to also adapt a manual setting of 80Hz X-over for each individually (speaker preset 2). I like to able to switch from one to the other, from Theater to Music. These subs are well known as being one of the best values in Audio for anyone not interested in spending a fortune for uber-quality subwoofers. They are extremely easy to calibrate for musicality and elimination of unnecessary boom and thump. Having recently replaced my Onkyo pre-amp (dead HDMI board) with a Denon X3700H used in pre-amp mode, the Audyssey setup for 2 subs worked very well. It is a pleasure to be able to dial in 2 large subs more or less permanently. When I bring the 10" JBL back into the mix I will have to run the front subs off of a Y and split the Mono and treat the 10" as subwoofer 2. Hopefully this will work with little fuss. FYI, I tend to run these subs with a high gain level in my setup, especially the underpowered-for- their-size Daytons, as my basement theater is quite a large space, which though finished, is not acoustically treated except for the drop ceiling panels. The correct High Gain level, even without Audyssey, is easy to find when listening to certain music or movie tracks to eliminate unmusical Boom or thump. Since all 3 subs have a relatively low 150W output each, I prefer the High Gain approach. Using the pre-amp to dial down the Channel level one click at a time always reveals when low Bass becomes truly Musical and not just bump and thump. Once the 3rd sub is properly in the mix, the basement HT will likely be a project completed.Paul