Need help deciding on a Sub

[Zorba]

I would like a sub that would be good for movies and music. I will watch more movies on it, but care more about music quality.

System: Paradigm Monitor 7s in front, CC-190 center, Monitor Atoms in the rear (5.1 system), powered by a Yamaha V659

Room: The living room itself is about 12 x 20 x 8ft. However, it is an open floor plan so the back wall is another ~25ft back, making the room roughly 12 x 45 x 8ft. There are also two ~5 opening in the wall, one going into the dinning room, one into the entry way.

Floor Plan - PDF My house is a little different than this, but this is a good idea.

Due to the size of my room I am thinking I need a 12" sub. I wanted to spend 400, but I think I am going to stretch that a little .

Right now I am looking at:
HSU VTF-2 MK 3 $553 Shipped
<a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&Partnumber=300-762">Dayton T1203K 12"
Titanic Mk III Kit</a> 537 and I would pick it up
Dayton RS1200K 12" Reference Kit 500 and I would pick it

Or should I wait for the Dayton HSU-12 for $400, it doesn't come out until the end of March. Or is there something that has a higher bang for the buck?

I would rather have quality sound than pure loudness.

 

[CalvinHobbes]

I would also put SVS on that list and visit avsforum for some more ideas.

 

[Muadib]

I vote for the VTF-2 MK 3. I have the original model,the VTF-2, and it it quite musical for the price. It was very well reviewed at the time.

Check Ebay for dealers that carry HSU. When I got mine, they were $75 cheaper than the HSU website & they are still backed by the HSU warranty.

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

Originally posted by: CalvinHobbes
I would also put SVS on that list and visit avsforum for some more ideas.

I'm not sure if SVS has anything besides the PB-10 that would be similar priced for shipping.

Epik also is above the budget as is AV123's new MFW-15

Elemental Designs would be another option to look at that offers good bang for the buck in this pricerange.

 

[Renob]

I would go with an Elemental Designs sub, I feel they are best bang for the buck at this time and have the best warranty 5 years on both driver and amp!

YOu can pick up the A3-300 for $475 shipped Oh and by the way there subs are all hand made in the USA

Sub

 

[Zorba]

Thanks for suggesting Elemental Designs. I hadn't really looked into them at all. I noticed on Craigsub's list over at AVS that the A2-300 scored a lot lower than the HSU on music. Do you guys have an experience with it and music?

 

[YOyoYOhowsDAjello]

I don't have any experience with them. I've used the budget dayton and then 3 SVS subs but that's it for Internet Direct subs.

 

[Zorba]

I drove up to Dayton today and I wasn't very impressed with the Titanic, especially for the price. There setup was very very bad for auditioning, so that might have been the problem, idk. It seemed pretty boomy on music.

I've heard a lot about SVS, but they don't have a 12" in my price range .

 

[krotchy]

HSU, SVS and eD are all great choices, though eD's stuff has a Wife Acceptance Factor of -Infinity. If you are going to go Dayton, I would recommend waiting to find out how the HSU-12 performs, as its been getting tons of buzz lately.

Another option if you want to fit back into your 400 dollar budget, the Cadence CSX-15 has been getting tons of good feedback at the avsforum lately, its quite the 15" beast. However it looks like its out of stock at the moment, due to some recent hype and a 30 dollar off promo that was circulating the avsforums.

 

[Dr. Detroit]

How about Outlaw Audio?

Their 12" is on sale for $549 http://www.outlawaudio.com/products/lfmEX.html

Their 10" is $399 http://www.outlawaudio.com/products/lfmcompact.html