Most Aestheticaly Pleasing Subwoofer - Page 2

I mentioned Salk and Funk. Someone has already posted a pic of the Funk 18.3 which is beautiful. Salk can build you a sub made of virtually any wood you migh like. Rosewood, maple, walnut: all beautiful. Here is a Salk:



And here is an attractive sub from Funk. They too can use exotic woods like Macasscar Ebony, Sapele, Bubinga, Zebra wood, and others too numerous to mention.

The Funk audios are absolutely gorgeous.....and pretty compact considering what they are capable of.

That's what's so distracting at this price/quality level.

Let's see, which one?

Guys I already won this thread with the KEF 209, why is this still being discussed? Are you all blind?

I'll give the Funk 18.0 a second place. I would give it first place if it came in a piano black.

That is YOUR opinion. Obviously many of us think otherwise thank goodness.

No drama here BeeMan and certainly no offense intended. It was a general commentary not directed at anyone specifically.
Hope you find what you are looking for ...

I agree, piano black 18.0s would be sweet. I actually emailed Nathan not 2 hours ago asking if it's possible to change my finish to piano black. I don't believe it is though.

Thanks! My question regarding the cost of the subs is strictly based on curiosity and nothing else. Currently, once I have the monies, my attention is being directed towards either SubMersive or Funk. The closest I know of that replicates the Bosso Bass subs is Martin Logan's, Descent i subs.



Kinda plain looking when compared to the Bosso Bass subs.

Gloss black is available, but costs extra.

But I have to say so far these were my personal favorite, looks even better in person.

Wow, Nathan, those are gorgeous. What finish/veneer are they?

Guess I don't have to go looking on Nathan's site for my favs, he's already posted them (the dual subs)....just the thought of owning a pair of those makes me drool.

Those are mahogany crotch veneer with clear finish, and 3/4" thick clear anodized brushed aluminum plate tops.

Simply beautiful. Wow....suddenly black oak vinyl seems so crude and primitive.

What's that ole saying......"chrome doesn't get you home". (reminding self)

Agreed. Simply beautiful.

Out of curiosity, are those active or passive 18" radiators: 18.2's or 18.3's? Online, I get the impression, each of these (18.3) subwoofers consist of a single 18" active woofer and a pair of passive radiators and I don't see the 18.2's on your website. Would love to see the price of one of these (18.2) with a pair of 18" active woofers.

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Edited by BeeMan458 - 11/17/12 at 6:15am

+1

If a single driver can use all of the 2.4 watts of amplification from Funk's top amps, there wouldn't be enough of a benefit from using multiple drivers. You would have to have an amp that uses two regular circuits or a 240 volt circuit to warrant another heavy duty driver.

Thanks for the heads-up. The realism of it all is sad. I'm just curious as to a price as I see this as an 18.2 and the website only mentions an 18.3. At best, I can only rationalize and afford a pair of 18.0 C as I also look to a pair of SubMersive HP's. But if I lost it and went with a pair of dual actives in the form of an 18.2, if necessary, I'd have no trouble having the electrician install a dual outlet, dedicated 240V 30A breaker.

On Funk's website, Nathan posts an image for a custom 18.2.




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Edited by BeeMan458 - 11/17/12 at 6:34am

For what its worth, I think Nathan did some ground plane testing of his 18.0 and 18.3. There were some awesome numbers. But I believe in the 15-35hz range the 18.3 had something like 3-6db more output than the 18.0 with minimal extra cost. That's pretty impressive I think. On top of being gorgeous (as per this threads requirements).

Agreeing with you, yes these are very impressive subs because you have both form and function. The best of both world's.

Those are 18.3's, with a single TSAD18v1 and dual passives, one on the front the other opposite to it on the rear.

On a custom order basis we can do double height with dual drivers of the 18.0C, like the one pictured, and the 18.0. On custom order we can do almost anything you can imagine, for example curved tops in addition to the curved sides, all aluminum construction, the list goes on.

FYI we are working on an "18.2" dual opposed 18" that will feature an as yet un named driver, with twice the motor strength and much higher power handling than the TSAD18v1, it will be 21" wide 22" high 24"deep(curved front and back), and have outboard amplification with the option of dual 2.4kW, or quad 2.4kW amplifier(s).

Oh my. Those models will definitely set the trade floor abuzz.



(Thanks!)

Ok now we've seen Funk, and I like it. Still, what about Salk (when it comes to wood-work)?

There are some really good looking subs pictured on this thread and I wouldn’t argue that the DD Plus series is most aesthetically pleasing but the ebony finish is quite remarkable. It looks like high gloss black from a few feet away but as you get closer the Chinese ebony wood patterns become apparent. A nice visual surprise. What I’m impressed by is that this is produced in rather large volumes and they have developed a repeatable process for the finish. I have 2 DD-15’s and they are both flawless.

For quite some time my dream subwoofers were Maple DD-18's, however, they would have broken the bank

Pics?

Of course aesthetics (like sound appreciation) are a very personal matter. I think that calling a box with big or small drivers in it aesthetically pleasing is a stretch. This may be heresy around here but IMO, the best looking subwoofers (and speakers) are the ones you never see.

I'm sorry, but it is more than opinion, it is an objective fact. It has been proven in a laboratory setting, and I have spoken with the scientists who conducted the studies- believe me their credentials are impeccable. The JL audio subs are boxy looking compared to the KEF sub, and this is a peer reviewed conclusion.

I don't see this at all. You might as well say a car is a box with wheels so calling it aesthetically pleasing is a stretch- nevermind that box with wheels is a Ferrari Testarossa. Some speakers and subwoofers are just drop dead gorgeous, and can hold merit for form alone, regardless of function. That aesthetically pleasing forms tend to lead to better function is all the more reason to appreciate speakers as a visual as well as aural delight. Hiding speakers is no way to appreciate that which gives us so much joy.

Most people don't park their Testarossa in their living room .

I said IMO, perhaps I should have said IMHO ... Obviously, I have a different take (outlier) on this. In a past life I built sailboats and made some custom furniture where virtually anything made with cheap veneer is heresy (see Fine Woodworking magazine). So, I find nearly all commercial speaker cabinets nothing more than low to mid-grade furniture quality (a shiny skin does not impress me). I get that others (most) here disagree and some like you, do so vehemently .

I'm lucky in that I was able to create a dedicated space where the aesthetics (or lack thereof) was secondary or actually, not a consideration at all. It was and is all about performance. So even in this dedicated space I like my speakers hidden, but I also like them to sound great. These are not incompatible concepts.