Just saw this in an email.....  http://forum.recordingrev...0-no-holds-barred-374/ 

An attempt to answer the question...... which sub is better? The $150 best buy "el-cheapo" name sub or the $1800 designer name sub?    

I've been thinking this very thing, because, several years ago I bought a sub from Polk Audio on sale for around $200 If I recall correctly...... and of course with everything else in the subwoofer department being in the $500+ range, for a short time, I was second guessing my decision to buy something so cheap. 

...... then I saw this in my inbox today. It confirms what I had come to believe about subs. 

I like this sub     
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3C2tE7vjdHk

It seems crazy to me, spending a couple grand on a subwoofer. The matching sub for my main speakers would have been $2k. Two grand to handle less than one octave? I don't think so!

There are, however, benefits to buying a sub that's designed for monitoring versus one intended for home theaters. 

Figuring out where to put your sub is, IMO, much more important than which one you buy.

Yeah... when the difference between the $200 sub vs the $2k sub is so small that most people can't ID the sound of the cheaper one..... you really have to question the wisdom of the extra $1800..... especially in the home studio of the average Sonar* user. (*or any other DAW for that matter)

Location Location Location..... so important with so many things. 

Guitarhacker

Location Location Location..... so important with so many things. 

Yes, imagine if my moobs were up one foot or down three.


Changes everything, no?

I wouldn't put my faith in a $150 Wal-Mart subwoofer unless I knew somebody who'd been using one for a year or more. It could die on you at an inopportune moment, as has been the case with almost every cheap (and some not-so-cheap) self-powered speakers I've ever had. 

Whenever I power up my audio interface, it defaults to full-blast volume. I have to turn it down to -30db to suit my powered speakers. If, heaven forbid, I forget to adjust the volume before playing something, those speakers blast out a volume level comparable to standing in front of a rock band's PA. Ouch! And I've lost count of how many times I've done it. Each time it happens, I thank those German engineers for thinking of me when they designed those amplifiers and speakers.

I would not, however, want to try that with a Best Buy special.