This really is a wonderful piece of kit for those who love their bass. More than that though, it has the feel of quality in every way. The construction, design and finish are all superb, and sure enough, once you have it up and running the sound is of the same excellent quality. Whilst i wouldn't describe myself as an audiophile, I've owned or used a great deal of different kit over the years, and i'd have to say the bass from the RSW12 is easily the best i've experienced in a home audio setup. Deep, tight, precise and uncoloured, it also manages to preserve all these qualities up to phenomenal volumes (mind the neighbours with this one!), and it really is very powerful. There are 2 eq modes, one for music and one going slightly lower for movies. I'm using it exclusively for music, but i don't believe there's been a film sound effect made that could trouble this sub. It really is very capable. And it terms of music it's a delight (after careful crossover tuning) adding seemless and effortless bass extension to small speakers. It's a joy with Arcam Musos.

Size is extremely modest with a reasonable WAF - there are plenty of smaller subs out there, but i really don't know of much that could boast the RSW12's power and depth without being a fair bit larger.

My only modest criticisms would be on the features front. There's no high-pass filter on the line outs, which (as another reviewer said) is poor at this price point. There's also no way to connect a high level (speaker cable) input, with is quite limiting with some setups, besides this seems to be the way many audiophiles recommend attaching subs. Other features are also fairly minimal, with just a simple crossover dial, a volume dial (front top), phase and 2 eq settings.

Having said that, these are very minor concerns in the face of the sheer quality of sounds and craftsmanship that this sub offers. I picked mine up for a bargain £300 ($500) when they were discontinuing, but I definitely think it's well worth the original $750 ($1200?) price tag considering the all round quality. I haven't heard it's replacement in the MA range (the RXW12) but i find it hard to believe there's all that much room for improvement.

Strenghs: Design, build quality, power, near flawless bass, goes very low.

Weaknesses: Light on features, makes you wish you lived in the countryside

Works mint with music or movies.
Approx 77 lbs of wooden beef!
Amazing fit and finish.

Me.... I'm addicted to finishing my entire system to MA i have to have it u will be addicted!!!...just bought the RS LCR too!! RS6 here i come!!!! Need a pair in a rosenut finish if you have it!!!!

Ok... so yeah i paid $125 ... but i have to say it's well worth your money for upwards to $800.00 I liked this piece better than any of the supercubes by Deftech! Awesome just awesome

set up right you WILL belive it not to be in the listening room (your neighbors actually do)
second, this is because of the again unbelievable handy size (very high WAF)
awesome build quality
outstanding sound (depending on preferences, its not a "boom box")

seriously, a subwoofer priced 1k should not lack a highpass filter at the line out ports.
besides that, non discovered so far. anyway i have to admit id never pay 1000 € for a subwoofer, but i truely belive the sound and the build quality justifies the factory price.
if you look for a "audiophile" subwoofer, go listen to it or try it at home.
i had some large (so called) "audiophile" speakers at home, f.e. jmlab and lua, and i
would never want them back in exchange to this
subwoofer/any-good-small(basslack)-mainspeaker kombination.

this is one incredible subwoofer and i still cannot belive the luck i had pruchasing it for the price paid. new in box 300€... oh boy.

the rsw12 plays so deep and you still belive its your 120mm mid/bass driver
of your mainspeakers doing all the work since its so damn exact and precisious.
i connected the sub to the pre-out 60hz low passed, combined with a pair of phonar p20s and a 60hz highpass filter at the main-in. i swear i never heard so deep and precisious kontra bass before besides the local concert hall.

use a db peak meter and a tone generator to set it up right and you will be enlightened. =]

Similar Products Used:

canton karat, heco concerto, elac, magnat, acoustic research, non exactly "similar" to this device

Bass quality, amplifier strength, workmanship

none

I had been using an Monitor ASW 110 subwoofer for about 2 years with my definitive technology BP-10's. The sound quality was excellent and I was happy with the sub. However, when Good Guys was bought out by Comp USA they put all of their monitor audio stuff on sale for 60% off. I bought this sub, 2 RS8's and 2 RS'1s for my rear theater speakers. This sub is the best I've owned. I've tried quite a few. I'm hearing notes I've never heard before. Movies are unbelievable. It has a complete array of manual controls which makes it relatively easy to set up. The cabinet is very high quality materials and workmanship. The price made it a fantastic purchase.

Similar Products Used:

JBL, Polk, Infinity, Monitor Audio

Bass quality, amplifier strength, workmanship

none

I had been using an Monitor ASW 110 subwoofer for about 2 years with my definitive technology BP-10's. The sound quality was excellent and I was happy with the sub. However, when Good Guys was bought out by Comp USA they put all of their monitor audio stuff on sale for 60% off. I bought this sub, 2 RS8's and 2 RS'1s for my rear theater speakers. This sub is the best I've owned. I've tried quite a few. I'm hearing notes I've never heard before. Movies are unbelievable. It has a complete array of manual controls which makes it relatively easy to set up. The cabinet is very high quality materials and workmanship. The price made it a fantastic purchase.

Similar Products Used:

JBL, Polk, Infinity, Monitor Audio