Transients, Frequency Depth

Internal crossover

This is a wonderful subwoofer. It has a fast, musical 12" driver and it projects deep bass transient sounds quickly into the room. It plays sounds well below 20Hz with nil sign of strain. It is only very slightly less "dry" than the Velodyne HGS-12 series II, meaning the Velodyne is slightly more true to the original signal passed to the subwoofer. The B&W has a sonic signature, not found in the original signal. The B&W adds a slight smoothness or warmth, which makes it easier to listen to in a home theater vs. the Velodye. The B&W does not hold bass notes quite as long as the Velodyne. It seems to release each note more quickly, almost in anticipation of the next note, or perhaps because it has less reserves to work with. If those were the only differences between my Velodyne and B&W, I could switch easily between the two and this would be a non-review. But in my stereo setup, I have problems with the B&W. My setup uses 6 full-range analog signals to feed the amplifiers, 3 left channel signals and 3 right channel signals. The first signal feeds the tweeter. The next signal feeds the midrange. The last signal feeds the subwoofer. I use B&W 805S speakers and 4 amplifier channels. The internal crossover between the tweeter and the midrange is immaculate. The problem I had with the ASW 800 is a lot of bass sound leaks out above the crossover point. Thus I hear a muddy bass mix of the 805S midrange playing the same notes as the ASW 800. Play any subwoofer sweep test disc with only the ASW 800 playing to verify this yourself. In my theater room, my Denon AVR-5803 has an internal crossover. I run the ASW 800 full range employing the external receiver crossover, and the subwoofer sound is dead on. I actually prefer the less-harsh sound in the theater vs. the "dry" accurate sound of the Velodyne, particularly true given how sound engineers mix movie soundtracks today. I give this subwoofer 5 stars with the assumption that an external crossover is used.

Similar Products Used:

Velodyne HGS-12 series II

Deep deep bass. Looks good, THX certified, very musical.

Weight.

The most audiphile subwoofer I have ever listened to. Perfect match with the Nautilus 805.

Similar Products Used:

B&W ASW2500, ASW4000.

I bought the B&W AS6 sub and lived with it for two monthes....I then bought the Sunfire True Subwoofer Mark 2 and lived with if for four monthes...
I traded it straight over for the 800ASW and will live with it forever...

Musical!
Powerful Home Theater!
It's wonderful. The last sub I'll ever buy....

What more can I say...
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MY SYSTEM:

Equipment:
Denon 3200 Receiver
B&W 602 Mains
B&W CC6 Center
B&W 601 Surrounds
B&W 800ASW Subwoofer
Pioneer CLD-D504 (w/AC3RF)
Sony CDP-CX90ES 200CD Jukebox
Sony SLV-575UC VCR
Proscan 60690 60" RPTV

Interconnects:
L&R-DH Labs Silver Sonic T14 Biwire
CTR-DH Labs Silver Sonic T14
SUR-AR Home Theater Pro 12 Gauge
DH Labs Silver Sonic BL1 (CD to R)
Monster SVideo 2 (All)
Audioquest Turquoise (LD to R)
Wavecom Senior (to rest of the house)

purchased asw 800 on reviews only. to much boom, great sub for beginners. sold asw 800 and purchased the bag end infra 18 after two weeks of careful auditions last sub i will ever own

The B&W ASW 800 is the sub of choice for any audio fan.To achieve the sound of the Matrix 801, just add a pair of Matrix 805s.
B&W has announced its new line of subwoofers, including the model 3000, to replace the ASW 800.
It is well known that subs are mainly used for home theater applications. B&W's new line of subs cater to this market. Meaning, they did the best they could to produce a "musical" subwoofer, with the ASW 800.
The model 3000 will have a 15" driver compared to the 12" in the ASW 800. Meaning even more lows, with a tendency to bloom. Pure home theater. No doubt the model 3000 will do very well in the home theater realm. But the ASW 800 will still be my choice. Putting audio before home theater as an importance. You'll be surprised how easy setup is, and how good it sounds in a home theater setup.
My recommendation to any audiophile requiring a sub for two channel listening, get an ASW 800 before they are out of production. I think January '98 will be the deadline.

I searched for the perfect subwoofer on and off for about 2 months and finally settled on the B&W ASW600. I wanted a sub that could perform well for both music and movies exceptionally well. Upon auditioning the following subwoofers: M&K's MX150THX, Paradigm's Servo15, NHT's SW3P and the Velodyne's F1500R. I found that B&W had the best combination, powerfull enough for home theatre and refined and tight enough for music. A close 2nd was the M&K. Paradigm and Velodyne were in my opinion sufficiently lacking in the sound quality department but excelled in the boom for your buck department, especially Paradigm's Servo15(400w can move sufficient air). The NHT is clearly just for music and cannot deliver in the rumble dept.

The B&W ASW800 is a THX certified 200w rms sub that offers 1st rate cabinet design and construction. B&W utilizes a single 12" driver with a front bass reflex. At $1500.00 retail it's a steal!

I have been using the ASW800 for two years now and is very satisfied. If you are looking for a subwoofer that is well constucted, balanced, smooth and one that is best suited both for audio and home theater the ASW800 is perfect. It's a pity that B&W does not make them anymore. They have aimed their recent models to the home theater market. I have listened to the recent models (ASW3000,2000 and 1000). They do very well and are excellent choices for home theater applications. I actually own a couple of the 800's blending perfectly well with the B&W Matrix 803 Series II for the mains, driven by a couple of B&K EX4420M Monoblocks, two (2) B&W HTM Center Speakers (one on top of the screen and the other below) driven by a B&K EX4420 stereo power Amp and B&W 805 for the surrounds, driven by a B&K ST3030 power amp. The processor is a B&K 4090 AC-3/DTS capable. The bass is deep, smooth and earth shaking on special effects on movies. On two channel listening the ASW800 hides itself and refuses to be seen versus box like bass from other subs I have heard.

I've had the 800ASW for some time now. They work in conjunction with the 805 matix speakers. All I can say is an 801 matrix for half the money. the subwoofer dissappears in my room (19x23). tight bass and very musical. One can't ask for more.

Fast, Tight bass

Size and weight. It is so huge and very heavy. Cannot move it by myself.

After enjoying my entry level HT system for almost a year consisting of Energy Take-5's and eXl-S10 sub also from Energy, it's time for me to move on. I'm satisfied with my energy's in HT but not with music. Most of the time i could hear my sub sounding boomy and a bit slow in response. I tried a lot of positioning already and do a lot of tweaking but maybe it just doesn't have it. The thing is that i listen to music 80% then 20% watching DVD's.

So i assembled a stereo system in my bedroom using Yamaha Rx-595a 85Watts and B&W 602 S2 ($450). Since i'm listening to my energy's with sub for a year now, my B&W 602 S2 sounds a bit lacking. It turns out to be that it is harder to find a musical sub than a sub for HT. It so happen that the retail shop where i bought my 602's have still 1 800ASW and willing to sell it to me for $1000.

So i asked the supplier for a demo at my place. I was shocked with the size. It's huge and there are 2 persons that are actually carrying it. When it was put into action, whoa!!! That's the best sub that i've heard so far, i think! Deep, fast, solid bass performance considering that the filter of Yamaha 595a is at 90Hz. All the speaker connections are gold plated binding posts. And it has all the inputs and outputs that you could put in a sub.

For $1000 i think it is hard to beat.

Similar Products Used:

Energy eXl-S10; Velodyne CT-120; Velodyne VA-X

controlled, subtle, non localised bass

2 needed for home theater, quite large

I bargained this sub to complement my B&W Nautilus 803 speakers. As I recently acquired a second ASW sub I decided to post a review here as I now feel my front speaker/sub setup is complete.

Compared to my old Klipsh KSW-300, a single ASW sub drastically improves the bass extention (well below 20 Hz), but doesn't have the power of the Klipsh 15' woofer on a 300W@4 Ohm amp in terms of rattling and shaking.

For music usage, a single ASW is more than enough and really adds low level bass detail, in contrast to my Klipsh, which only added thump but no detail. I never found the right crossover/volume setting on the Klipsh as I had to change them depending on the kind of music I was playing :-( With the ASW crossover set to 40 Hz and volume 4.25, the sound now perfectly integrates with my Nautilus speakers and I can just forget them. Each front Nautilus speaker is wired (using speaker wire) to it's dedicated ASW sub. In my configuration the LFE effects in AC3 are rerouted to the front speakers.

I you have enough room, I would not hesitate buying this sub when offered as bargain.

Similar Products Used:

Klipsh KSW-300