Solid sub for decent price

A

Alai

2[H]4U
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I noticed that a number of you guys were looking for good budget subs... so here's one to consider.

Premier Acoustic PA-120

Good reviews and ~$200 price tag for new. There's a guy selling one used for $150 on Audioholics. Reaches fairly low, has plenty of wattage, and apparently it plays smooth (for the money) for those of you who use subs for music.

Best of all, it looks real sleek and sexy.

Black: http://tinypic.com/view.php?pic=11scx7o&s=4

Cherry: http://forums.audioholics.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57864
http://forums.audioholics.com/forums/showthread.php?t=57360

Personally, I am holding out for the Mirage Omni S10 or S12 or the Energy S10.3 or S12.3... but this one looks like a great budget subwoofer for those of you looking to get great LFE for a low price.

Specifications:

12" Active Subwoofer

Sensitivity: 85DB 1 Watt 1 Meter

Ohms: :8 Ohms

Frequency Responses: 24HZ-180HZ

Wattage: 200 (rms) - 650 Watts(peak power)

Product Size: 18.7" x 14.3" x 17.1" (H X W X D )

Shipping Size: 21.7" x 22.7: x 17.7" (H X W X D )

Weight: 60 pounds each

Warranty: 5 Year Warranty On Woofer, 2 Year On Amplifier

Color: Cherry or Black
 
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Alai said:
I noticed that a number of you guys were looking for good budget subs... so here's one to consider.

Premier Acoustic PA-120

Good reviews and ~$200 price tag for new. There's a guy selling one used for $150 on Audioholics.

...

Weight: 60 pounds each
Click to expand...

Shipping and handling on 60 pounds is going to cost a mint compared to the $150 price. (UPS Ground is $26 from Phoenix to LA) Packaging will be an issue too if the seller doesn't have the original box.

An amazon seller has it new for $229 + free shipping.

But I'd be wary of this sub since there are no reviews of it from an audio magazine nor audio blog/website. Plus the company specializes in selling to the "new home construction" market which screams to me "looks good" and "cheap" are the priority for design. The audioholics website itself has not reviewed the unit as well and there are no frequency response graphs for the sub available.

I'd stick with subs reviewed by the audioholics website, rather than one that only has forum reviews unless it was a really good deal. $176 used when one can get it for $230 new isn't a great deal, especially when return shipping and risk for potential damage is so high for something this heavy. On avrant, Tom Andry has actually explained why he would never recommend and hence review a subwoofer below a certain quality level and as a result price point since they're trading off too much for price.
 
The Speaker Company is making great budget subs too. I have their 250 and that one, well it goes down to 19 hz. It does a great job for gaming.
 
thetruth said:
The Speaker Company is making great budget subs too. I have their 250 and that one, well it goes down to 19 hz. It does a great job for gaming.
Click to expand...

19Hz at what dB? According to the standard +/-3dB graph and their own specifications, that sub goes down to 23Hz. Which is really awesome for the price they sell it at. And at a high output too. Their T250 sub looks to be another great budget subwoofer to consider. Their ASW series, however... I would avoid. Lol.

As for reviews on the PA-120... I say, "MEH". Reviews are overrated for the most part, especially in the audio world. The specs look solid to me so I have presented the product as a valid option. Also, if it was such a terrible sub, I doubt the current sellers of the used subs would be selling at such a high price as you have noted. I've seen equal specced AND highly rated budget subwoofers go for $100 (like the Dayton 12" [ferget the model number though]), easy.
 
The rolloff in my room is really around 24-25hz. I believe it crushes down to 26hz and then gets progressivley softer down to 19hz where the cone moves quite a bit but you do not hear or feel much.

However, man does it punch you in the chest. Fast too. Very agile but somewhat directional? You can tell where the sub is still. I have not spent much time tweaking the placement yet. Satisfactory as is though. I have it to my left firing across the middle of the room on a 3" platform of rubber matting and 2" hardwood. I have hardwood floors that vibrate/resonate otherwise. My house was built in 1901 and is very solid but some boards are a bit loose.
 
That's called roll-off because the subwoofer isn't outputting as much volume as it gets really low in frequency... because it's a subwoofer that is unable to do so. Also, you can't hear 19Hz at all. It's just not possible. You can feel plenty though. That's when your room starts vibrating but you can't hear anything (from a good subwoofer).

Anyhow, the T300 can reach 19Hz at -3dB. It seems like that subwoofer is a pretty amazing buy. Awesome power at its disposal too. At a fairly cheap price. It's probably not the smoothest subwoofer, but I doubt anyone would be unhappy with such a cheap price tag and so much output and frequency range.

EDIT:
Just found this review on the T300: http://www.audioholics.com/reviews/speakers/subwoofers/tSc-t300/t300-measurements-and-conclusion

It probably applies to the T250 even more.
 
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My room is not treated at all. It is a near field 2.1 setup. Walls are two normal, one bookcase, one all windows. Size is about 12x12x12x12 with a 10 ft ceiling. I do have a nice thick Turkish rug covering 80% of the floor. However, the sub plays across bare wood floor.

Since I sit fairly close to the sub, approx 4 feet, the level is at half and it is crossed at 100hz since I use bookshelf speakers with 6.5" drivers.

One thing that is strange. The sub is pretty light weight. Like 20lbs? But the build is tight and solid feeling all around. Very smooth and it has decent but tiny rubber feet and the port is in the front. It is on the bottom and is a very thin slit going from one side to the other. I am surprised that it moves much air at all.

I do hear a bit of port noise when the sub goes really low but 95% of the time it is pretty much invisible and seamlessly blends in. I paid $220 shipped for it and know it was a very good deal. I would prefer a high end HSU or MFW?-15 from av123 but I am not made of $$ lol.

Hope that helps. I know you can find several decent subs under $300 these days. I think mine is the best in this category.
 
What about the PA-10W? Any thoughts on it's performance? I think the PA-120 might bring down my apartment.. and I have to consider the people living above me...
 
In 2007, I bought a BIC Acoustech H-100 subwoofer from that eBay reseller (Sound Distributors). They were very easy to deal with - fast shipping, packed very well.
 
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