Sony SA-WM40 Subwoofers

Sony SA-WM40 Subwoofers 

DESCRIPTION

powered 12" subwoofer with 120 watt amplifier

USER REVIEWS

Showing 71-80 of 334  
[Feb 07, 2002]
breck42
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Price, Hometheater, Reliability

Weakness:

a bit boomy for some types of music if not setup correctly

As if this sub needed any more good press I find it necessary to add my positive comments. Like everyone else I was a bit skeptical about just how this sub would perform, given the Sony name and Cheap price. After receiving the sub I lined the inner walls with one layer of 1/2 inch polyfill. You don''t want to just open up the sub and throw pillow stuffing into the sub because the "loose" polyfill would interfer with the driver. Also, I would advise being conservative with the polyfill-too much will enormously decrease the subs output. This increased the loudness a bit, and decreased latent vibrations. I then loaded Terminator 2, turned the volume up to reference, and was literally blown away! The revved up Harley sounded like it was in my living room, shotgun blast hit you in the chest, explosions felt like an earthquake...The canal chase and minigun scenes were breathtaking. The greatest thing about the Sony''s perfomance was there was not even a hint of distortion! I got the greatest performance out of my sub by turning the sub crossover all the way up and setting my receiver crossover to 100 or 80. I also turned the sub volume up to +8 dB on my receiver, and the actual sub volume between 1/4 and 1/2 depending on the source. This sub works well for music, but has to be tweeked quite a bit to get the right sound. Experimenting with the x-overs, volumes, placement, and modifications(polyfill, spiked feet) will make this sub enjoyable for music as well as HT. For Hometheater it probably wise shop for quality first and cost second, but we all know how good if feels to get quality at a bargain. The Sony sawm-40 is an absolute steel for under $200. Buy this sub for your hometheater if you don''t have $500 to throw around.

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Feb 07, 2002]
Bret
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

price, hometheater, quality, reliabilty

Weakness:

slightly boomy for some music if not tweeked correctly, an irrelevent flaw for a sub under $200

As if this sub needed any more good press I find it necessary to add my positive comments. Like everyone else I was a bit skeptical about just how this sub would perform, given the Sony name and Cheap price. After receiving the sub I lined the inner walls with one layer of 1/2 inch polyfill. You don''t want to just open up the sub and throw pillow stuffing into the sub because the "loose" polyfill would interfer with the driver. Also, I would advise being conservative with the polyfill-too much will enormously decrease the subs output. This increased the loudness a bit, and decreased latent vibrations. I then loaded Terminator 2, turned the volume up to reference, and was literally blown away! The revved up Harley sounded like it was in my living room, shotgun blast hit you in the chest, explosions felt like an earthquake...The canal chase and minigun scenes were breathtaking. The greatest thing about the Sony''s perfomance was there was not even a hint of distortion! I got the greatest performance out of my sub by turning the sub crossover all the way up and setting my receiver crossover to 100 or 80. I also turned the sub volume up to +8 dB on my receiver, and the actual sub volume between 1/4 and 1/2 depending on the source. This sub works well for music, but has to be tweeked quite a bit to get the right sound. Experimenting with the x-overs, volumes, placement, and modifications(polyfill, spiked feet) will make this sub enjoyable for music as well as HT. For Hometheater it probably wise shop for quality first and cost second, but we all know how good if feels to get quality at a bargain. The Sony sawm-40 is an absolute steel for under $200. Buy this sub for your hometheater if you don''t have $500 to throw around.

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Feb 04, 2002]
Phred Flintstone
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Cheap and Loud

Weakness:

Too boomy out of the box.

This is my first sub for my home theatre set-up. I didn''t think I needed one because I have 2-12" drivers on my front speakers, but after hearing the difference a sub makes I strongly encourage anyone with a home theatre to add a good powered sub. After reading the reviews on this site, I decided that this was the one for me. Cheap and loud. After a few days of use, I also found it too "boomy" for my taste. I stuffed two pounds of polyester fiber fill (pillow stuffing) into the box. The result was terrific. The sound is tighter and responds better to music. I don''t understand why others used spray adhesive, because I just stuffed the entire box with loose fiber filling. "Stuffed" being the key word, because it filled up the box pretty good. Perhaps the others were using the rolled up type of stuffing. 10 minutes and a few bucks for better sound. I thought the mods were worth it.

Similar Products Used:

Many other speakers, but never a sub.

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
5
[Feb 04, 2002]
Rick
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Low cost, plenty of power for my listening level.

Weakness:

Boomy out of the box.

I purchased the sub and right away, did the polyfil mod. I noticed just a little difference. Mostly, that the boomyness was reduced. Also, on a tip from another review, I replaced the driver with a JL Audio driver, W0-12-8. That made quite a difference. It plays deeper and it''s tighter now. Also, I had noticed some distortion of the original driver at high volumes. I think it was the voice coil smacking the back plate of the magnet, but I can''t be sure. The JL Audio driver had an extrusion in the back to allow for more voice coil travel. The distortion is completely gone with the new driver. I haven''t had it long enough to see how it acts when the driver is "broken in" but right now I''m pretty happy with it.

Similar Products Used:

Pioneer & RF drivers in a vehicle

OVERALL
RATING
4
VALUE
RATING
4
[Feb 02, 2002]
yogo
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

A lot for the price.

Weakness:

Boomy until stuffing mod. A small price to pay for pretty good bass.

Saw many positive reviews for a good inexpensive sub so I bought it. Used it three weeks. I think I finally have found the right placement for it. Most important as with any sub. Took quite a while to find a sub position that didn''''t have a "dead zone" right in my couch. Oy! Original out of the box gave me plenty of bass but plenty of boom, too. Left it that way while I worked on positioning till I got that right. Did the polyfill mod and the boom is gone. This sub sounds so much better with the polyfill. I put 1.5 pounds of the stuff in there using spray adhesive on the inside walls. I avoided too much stuffing near the port. The sound is much tighter. Bass instruments are more distinct. Low strings now sound like low strings. Nice for 2 bucks and a little time. Easy too. 5 stars all the way because I doubt you can get better sound for the price and I was surprised how good this sub sounds after the mod. Great addition to a budget theater system.

Similar Products Used:

Rad Shack subs

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Feb 02, 2002]
Mhudson7
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Thunderous bass; useful controls

Weakness:

None

Oh Baby! Oh Baby!

Similar Products Used:

My first sub

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Jan 30, 2002]
Pat D.
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

Gobs of bass, effective crossover control. Great for action DVDs

Weakness:

Not tight enough for music.

Like just about everyone else has said, its not quite tight enough for music the way it ships. Havent tried stuffing the cabinet yet. But man, for under $200, i dont think theres anything that come close to the amount of bass this thing puts out. Highly recommended for the budget home theater builder.

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Oct 21, 2000]
Dennis
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

great sound and reliability

Weakness:

None

I just bought my system about a month ago (Sony) but BEST BUY had a package price with the KLH sub included. I went through 2 fu@%ing subs and told the manager I wanted an upgrade with this sub. So for an extra 50 bucks I got the sony and am a very happy camper. This sub rocks my house. If I had listened to this first I would never have tried the KLH. For the money this is the best sub on the market. Buy it, it is worth the money.

Similar Products Used:

KLH 120

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Jun 22, 2000]
YUN
Casual Listener

Strength:

deep and clear base, price

I got this Sony 12" massive powered subwoofer from a local dealer for less than $200. It produces deep and clear base, so powerful that rocks my whole apartment. I am very happy with it. It's another high quality product from SONY.

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
[Dec 20, 2000]
sixtox
Audio Enthusiast

Strength:

clean, tight, awesome bass. Auto-on works perfectly

Weakness:

not a thing

Anyone who says that subs costing under $300.00 are junk has not spent time with this one. It's amazing that this sub costs so little yet gives so much. It's a sub that sounds just as good with music as it does with movies. After replacing a KLH sub with this the difference was night and day. I've finally found the best position for it and it performs like much more expensive subs (at least from what I've heard at CC). Bass is accurate, smooth, and tight. I have yet to hear any trace of distortion. The auto-on works flawlessly without any irritating popping sound. I cannot recommend this sub highly enough for those on a budget, or do not want to spend mega-bucks on a sub for their system. Do not base the performance of this sub on what you hear at the store, take it home and audition it with your system. You will not be sorry!

Similar Products Used:

KLH ASW10

OVERALL
RATING
5
VALUE
RATING
5
Showing 71-80 of 334  

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