NXG Technology NX-BAS-500 12"

I own the NXG Technology NX-PROSUB300 and I'm planning on buying the NX-Bas - 500... From my experience, NXG makes one of the best affordable sub-woofers out there. The 300 I have now has a very good sound signature; very well controlled and it's not boomy so it's very musical to me ---- that's why I'm upgrading to his big brother. The BAS 500 goes down to 18hz so I can't wait to listen to it and I would give you an update. It might take a few weeks though!

What I would also recommend is just buy it and then try it out... AV house sells it on Amazon for $259 with a free shipping and 30 days return policy too.

I have one of them, and will be doing a review on it shortly.

I'd be suspicious about that 18Hz number though; there's no way a $250 subwoofer is able to achieve usable output that low. That's very deep.

Please do...., because NXG has never lied about specs before. NXG makes subs that are affordable and that's good for people like me.

Also, please post some images so we could see what the sub looks like....

Yes, they have a 30 day return policy. However, I read they also have a 20% restocking fee ("Returns for reasons other than product defect or AV House mistake may be charged a restocking fee of up to 20%."). Looks like you're paying the freight on return shipping, too. Kind of an expensive way to try it out.

And I'm betting it will never get to 18Hz. The cabinet dimensions read a bit smaller than a BIC F-12 (but it's three pounds heavier?). Dunno what it's RMS wattage is, since it's not stated, but it appears to be good dynamically for 25 more watts than the F-12. It's a nice looking sub (at least the one image I've seen of it) and actually resembles, perhaps, a nicer-looking F-12 or PL-200. Who knows?

Have you ever had a problem with your NXG and how did the company treat you? I wrote BIC one email, asking about why the cones on my PL-89s looked different in-person than their advert images and received a fairly curt response from their customer service rep.

Looking forward to Jim's review since I have money now burning a hole in my pocket for a new sub (ha!).

I emailed them once before to ask about the new sub and got a reply in less than 24hrs... One thing is for sure, I have never had any problems with my NXG Pro-sub 300 and I bought it a while ago (still rock solid even after almost 3yrs). It's not made of cheap materials and this thing is just freaking gorgeous to look with the grill on or off. I just like their bass though; very deep and tight so I hope this sub works out because I want to stick with something that doesn't cost too much instead of spending money on SVS for now....

I know this isn't the same sub but I just got the nx-prosub8 two days ago and really like it. It is a very nice looking and well built. It fits in perfectly with my energy take classics. I am still letting it break in before cranking it but so far I am very pleased with the sound. It is a tiny sealed sub about 10 by 10 by 11. Will update later when broken in more.

J_Matthews,
I think we've only ever actually charged a restocking fee about three times in the past few years - it's in our policy to 'keep people honest' - you'd be amazed at what (a very small percentage of) customers try to pull.
We do ask that customers pay for return shipping on non-defective items that are being returned for reasons other than a mistake or error on our part - we work on pretty thin margins and some items like big TVs cost well over $100 to ship so we try to avoid shady buyers that 'rent' something like a TV for the 'big game' and then want to return it without covering any of the costs. The vast majority of our customers are great, but policies have to be written for the ones that aren't.
Edited by avhouse - 1/24/13 at 2:14pm

Hey, straight from the horse's mouth, so to speak. Thanks for popping in and letting us know that. So if one were to buy something from you, and it just didn't fit the application or wasn't personally satisfactory (i.e. a return for something other than a product defect or anything of that sort), you wouldn't be charging a re-stocking fee and the purchaser would pick up the tab for return shipping? That sounds quite reasonable.

Here is the manual for this sub:

http://www.nxgtechnology.com/images/manuals/NX-BAS-500_manual.pdf

Okay, I just got the Sub from AV-house and I'm so surprise about how nice the sub looks and it's made with excellent materials... I would be updating shortly!

The photos I saw of that sub looked very nice. Sounds like you're impressed, happy and that's what counts. Really hope you enjoy it!

After doing some more reading I ended up going for the Klipsch RW-12D from Newegg and got it while it was still on-sale (this month... I'm sure it'll go back on sale next month, and again a month or so after that...etc.). Still looking forward to what you and Jim have to say about the BAS-500 though (...even though it might spark a moderate amount of buyer's remorse in some manner. Ha!).

(Why does BAS-500 conjure memories of Dan Akroyd and the Bass-o-Matic? It's probably just me....)

Hi All
I purchased this Sub on 23 Feb this year & I am quite impressed with the performance & look of it. The materials used in the construction of the Sub are top shelf. It is quite the looker. Performance wise it does very good on both movies & music. I have not heard any booming or rattle. I have this Sub hooked up to a Harmon Kardon HK 3490 with Energy RC 10 speakers. All I have to say is WOW!

I am very happy with this Sub& would recommend it to anyone looking for a good Subwoofer for under $300.00.

I published my review on the NX-BAS-500. If you're interested in reading it click on this link.

I wonder how this sub stacks up against the Klipsch RW12d

I had a similar thought myself, but unfortunately I've never heard the RW-12d myself so I can't really comment about that one. Seems to be fairly well liked though.

I did a little avs reading tonight, I saw you 'upgraded' from the HSU STF-2 to the NX-BAS-500 ~ could you compare the 2 subs?


Excellent review Jim, you've got me wanting one for music!

Thank you. It's no Rythmik, of course, but it was pretty darn good for music.

Jim,

How would you say this sub compares to some of your other subs you've reviewed in the same-ish ballpark like the pb-1000, csub-12, etc.....if you had 2 of these NXG's? I know it's hard to really say since you didn't listen to any of these like that, but just making convo lol

For depth the PB1000 is tops; that little 10" driver can play pretty low. For total output it would the Cadence, because it's not at all afraid of volume. For overall sound quality I would have to give the SVS a slight edge, but the NX-BAS-500 is not too far behind. When it comes to value for your dollar I think it would be tough to beat the NXG.

Thanx! for the review,Jim...and for helping me decide.

Agree with Graphicism: your review on it's music capabilities sealed the deal.

I hope it works out for you. After you've had the chance to break it in and get it tuned be sure to come back and post your thoughts.

Thanks for the review Jim. I was considering the BIC PL-200 vs SVS PB-1000 before, and I have a small room (15'x13'X9' ceiling) and I am doing 50/50 for music/movies. Now I found this and it seems to be a great deal for the money.

How would you compare NX-BAS-500 with the BIC PL-200 ?

By looking at the graph on your review, seems to me NX-BAS-500 drop off rather quicker below 30hz (just like most other sub-$300 subwoofers) and tops at 120hz, and the PL-1000 can hold down to 20hz and can also go up to 180hz as needed. Would you agree based on your experience ?

Thank you,

Vincent

Not having heard the PL-200 myself I can't really compare the two, but from what I've read it seems the PL-200 might be about average for the class. Personally I would consider the NXG above average.


When you sum the output of the driver and port you'll see if has pretty solid output to the mid-20's, so it does provide some of that elusive (for inexpensive subwoofers anyway) "feel". It can't quite get as low as PB1000 though, which is another sub I'm very familiar with because I also did a review on that one.

Depending upon what you're going to use as a crossover the upper range may be irrelevant. If you use the typical 80Hz then it really doesn't matter if a sub can get to 120Hz or 180Hz, because you aren't going to be anywhere near either of those points. The lower F3 point is significant, but the upper one isn't always so.

I purchased the NXG BAS-500 and it arrived yesterday. Hooked it up and no output but the green light was on. I went into frenzy mode and switched receivers, sub cables, checked every setting on my AVR's, cable box setting and nada. Exhausted, I just sat down and couldn't believe I got a DOA. Then after about 10 minutes it started to come on. I had to turn the sub volume up half way to get any real sound from the sub and turned up the AVR LFE level. The sub seemed to produce only the very low hz, there was very little mid-bass. I'm assuming a bad amp or bad caps? My systems is a Pany XR55 digital amp and Focal Sib speakers

On another note, it was packed very well; double boxed and plenty of sturdy foam forms.

It's certainly possible, but there are a few other things you might be able to try...

* Which input are you using, Right, Left, both? If you're using just one of them maybe you can try plugging into the other. Make sure the power is off before switching inputs though.

* What do you have the crossover dial set to? There's no LPF defeat switch, so you'll have to turn it all the way up if the bass management is enabled in your AV receiver (which it should be).


BTW, is the amp warm? It's Class D, which don't really get too hot. If you're feeling a lot of heat that would be a bad sign.

I've tried a single cable from my AVR sub out to the Sub LFE and tried using a splitter- from my AVR using both terminals on the sub.
Good point on the xover setting. I will check tonight. My AVR xover is set at 80hz. The amp didn't feel warm. And, yes, I always turn everything off before changing cables........learned that the hard way many years back.

Thanks for your help. I'll let you know what happens tonight!

Well it's going back to hififorless.com for a replacement. It turned on (geen light) but only grunted for a bit then no sound. Auto on/off worked fine. I didn't take it apart to see if it was just a bad speaker connection or something obvious as being able to return it for a replacement saves me a lot of shipping $.

That sucks. I certainly hope the replacement works better for you.