Definitive Technology ProSub 80 vs. BIC vs. Velodyne vs. Energy vs. BA vs. ???

So here's the sitch:

I'm creating a new listening setup in my living room by removing my bulky-yet-brilliant floorstanding KEF Q Series speakers and replacing them with a pair of Mirage Omnisat V2s that I also love, despite them being a bit more high-maintenance (proper placement is of utmost importance). This is mostly to placate the wife, though I admit I like the minimal look as well. ;-)

The one issue, as is to be expected, is bass. The Omnisats really produce great mid's and high's and an expansive sound stage, but almost no bass, so a subwoofer is needed. Here are the criteria:

* Bargain budget - $200 would be the absolute most I would want to spend and only for some outstanding value; $125 is the sweet spot.

* Small form factor - there is very little room for a cabinet (hence swapping out the KEFs), so the smaller, the better, for sure. Small size is critical.

* Large, open-floor-plan-type room with hardwood floors, approx. 30 x 20 with lots of broken space. It's basically a U-shaped room, with a stairwell and bathroom forming the middle of the U and a wall extending out a few feet from the bathroom to provide room for kitchen (at least, kitchen pantry and refrigerator) on the opposite side.

* Listening will be 100% music. Don't need at all to rattle the windows or feel the music, just want enough bass to round out the sound and to relieve the satellites. Given that, some of my listening is electronica that utilizes LFE, so good bass extension would be a big plus.

Now, here's where it gets interesting.

My home theater setup is currently running a 3.1 set up of two Mirage Omnisat V2 Floorstanding speakers, an Omnisat V2 CC, and a Def Tech ProSub 80. The Def Tech certainly has one of the best performance/size/cost ratios that I can find out there, so I'm considering moving it to my living room and finding a replacement for it in my home theater. The advantage of this is that I have no size requirements for my home theater, so I'm hoping I have more options.

So here are the parameters for a replacement HT sub:

* My home theater is in a 28 x 11 finished basement with carpeting. I find the Def Tech is currently plenty powerful for that space.

Side Note - I rarely ever turn the gain on the Def Tech above 50%, and still the neighbors tell me they can hear the rumble of my sub. From my basement. In a free-standing house. Through the ground. Into their free-standing houses. Crazy.

* Budget can get bumped up a bit, given I'm buying for my primary system. Still wouldn't want to go higher than $250.

* No size constraints.

* Almost 100% movie watching.

So my question is this - is there anything out there in the sub-$250 price point that I will like as much as my Def Tech for watching movies? Doesn't have to be better - just equally enjoyable.

Or should I keep the Def Tech where it is and find a small, cheap sub for listening to music on the main floor?

And FYI, here are a couple of quick specs on the ProSub 80:

* 8" Woofer
* 21Hz-150Hz Frequency Response
* 250 watts RMS (I think 400 watts peak? Can't confirm...)
* 12.5"h x 9.5"w x 15.25"d

It's been hard to find inexpensive subs that drop to 21Hz and run 250 watts RMS, but maybe someone can shed some light for me. :-)

Thanks in advance for your help!

Agreed. Although, if I had $350, I could get all of the performance I'm looking for in another ProSub 80 (or 800, with the new model). ;-)

I'm definitely intrigued by the BICs (1220 and F12). Everyone seems to love them. What I want to know, though, is will they have comparable performance to the ProSub 80? It seems that the Def Tech has the best specs of any sub in it's price/size range (250 watts RMS looks hard to beat at that price point), but I'm figuring there may be more to a sub than the sum of its specs. At least that's what I'm hoping someone will tell me, lol...

If there isn't anything comparable to the Def Tech in the sub-$250 range, then I'll probably just get a cheaper sub for the upstairs music listening, as my musical demands aren't that great. I'm just always looking to max my value. ;-)

And thanks for the heads up on Jamo. I hadn't come across their subwoofers before. They are a little more pricey than I was hoping for, but are definitely small and would look great in my living room even if I couldn't find an out-of-the-way spot for them, which is always nice.

So, I guess my question comes down to this:

Is there anything in the <$250 range that can stand up to the Definitive Technologies ProSub 80 when it comes to Home Theater? Lava LSP10? BIC F12? Energy ESW-C8? Premier Acoustic PA-10?

If not, I'll just plan on finding the smallest form-factor sub with the highest power rating and necessary connections (speaker in/out would be useful) in my "second sub" budget (which is <$150) to accompany the small speakers in my living room.

Thanks again to everyone for the insights! :-)

Should have said Premier Acoustic PA-120, not PA-10. The PA-10 might be good for upstairs, tho'...

So, I finally made the decision - move the DefTech upstairs for the small system, replace it in my HT with an Outlaw LFM-1 Compact.

Yes, I upped the budget, lol.

It came down to a choice between the Outlaw (on sale, $339 shipped) and the ED A2-300 (B-stock for $375).

I was initially trying to decide between going with my initial budget (circa $250) and accepting some compromises or getting the HSU STF-1 ($392 shipped), which seemed to be a sure thing.

I had decided that I'd bite the bullet and get the sure thing with the HSU STF-1 and be done with it when I learned that the Outlaw is a very similar subwoofer to the STF-1, is significantly less expensive right now, and is kinda pretty. :-)

Then I saw that the A2-300 b-stock was within range of the HSU STF-1 budget, so I looked long and hard at that one, too, especially since it is supposed to be particularly good for HT.

I went with the Outlaw for it's looks, reputation as a "well-rounded" sub, and lower price. I figured the money I didn't spend on the A2-300 can now be put into buying a Subdude or similar product (whole 'nother research project there - ugh!), and I'm still right about on target for what I was resigned to spending for the HSU STF-1.

Looking forward to seeing how it all works out. :-)