Audio Video News

The great advantage of a home theater system in a small room is the nice feeling of intimacy it offers. The disadvantage is that most suitable loudspeakers don't offer good bass response, depriving you of many of the visceral thrills built into movie soundtracks.

B&W Loudspeakers has the cure for what ails you if lack of low bass is the problem. Barely more than one cubic foot in volume, the ASW 2500 features a 700 watt amplifier coupled to a true 10" woofer, for true deep bass reaching as low as 25Hz. Finished in black ash or cherry wood veneer, the ASW 2500 accepts line-level signals from preamps or suitably equipped receivers, has two equalization settings and a crossover bypass switch to let you relieve your main amplifier of bottom-end duties. An auto-on/off circuit puts the sub in action when signals are present and puts it in standby mode when your system is not in use.

A phase-inversion switch makes installation easy: just hook up the ASW 2500, play a movie or some music with good bass content, and compare the bass response with each setting. The louder one will be the correct setting with the sub in that location. A level control and adjustable low-pass filter let you match the ASW 2500's output to your main speakers. As with all subwoofers, moving the ASW 2500 toward a corner will improve its output. Users with smaller rooms will find that the little powerhouse actually performs better for them than it will for folks with larger spaces. The ASW 2500 lists for $1400 and is available at B&W dealers everywhere.