B&W ASW 750 vs Velodyne SPL 1200 II

[Ted]

Greetings B & W great-ones. As I have been in the process of switching my HT from Klipsch to a B & W CM7/CM-C based system, I've been wondering about also switching out my Velodyne SPL 1200 II for a B & W ASW 750.

My reasons for doing so are purely aesthetic. I love the Rosenut finish on the B & W's and figured I could get a matching 700 series sub. Sonically, I have never been disappointed with my Velodyne.

When I mentioned getting a B & W sub for the system instead of the Velodyne, my dealer said to keep the Velodyne, he feels it is much better than the B & Ws (he is a dealer for both B & W and Velodyne), he's not been too impressed with B & W's. Now, he has never steered me wrong, but I was just curious what everyone here thought.

I don't mind spending some $ to make a parallel move or obviously a set up, but I don't really want to go backwards either. The system is used for probably 95+% HT, very minimal music use. I'd like to stick with the 700 series, I could probably stretch to an 800 Series, but I have a feeling it will be overkill for my system. I also have a pair of 703 for 2 channel, so I figure I could always add the ASW 750 to that system and make it a 2.1.

Does anyone have any experience with B & W vs Velodyne subs, especially these two models? Is there anything else I should be looking at? Remember, really, I want to do this so the Rosenut finish matches, so that's one of my (admittedly shallow) requirements.

Thanks everyone!! ;x(

[NMG]

From what I've heard and/or read, subs are not B&W's strong point, especially for HT applications. Everything I've seen would indicate that they are on the polite side of things and while they are very accurate for music, they don't have the same output at lower frequencies as some competing subs, which can be a big deal for HT.

This is, of course, purely anecdotal because I've never actually compared them to other brands, etc. It will be interesting to hear the feedback that others have because I also considered adding an ASW-750 to replace my Paradign PW-2200 (although in fairness to the Paradigm, it's probably not a fair comparison).

[beden1]

I love the B&W ASW750 as a perfect match with the 703s for music. It just blends so well with these speakers. Before moving to the 803Ds as my front/main speakers, I was going to add a second ASW750, and place one next to each 703, for what would have been a very balanced speaker system for music.

For HT however, I felt the ASW750 was a bit lacking as compared to Velodyne subs like the DD Series, and their ability to be equalized.

I now use my 803Ds without subs for listening to music, and use the Velodyne Sub Contractor Series SC1250 amp and two SC15 subs to incorporate with HT. I use my 703s now for my surround speakers.

[hifiguymi]

For home theater the Velodyne will play louder than the B&W so you may want to stick with the SPL1200 in that system. I personally like the ASW750 quite a bit. It's very fast, articulate, and musical but it doesn't play as loud as some others in the same price range. It's no slouch in the output arena, but the SPL Series from Velodyne will play louder. Does your dealer have one on display that you can borrow for a couple of days? If so, give it a try at home and see what you think.

Eric

[bvk_houtx]

You may want to post your question on the Klipsch forum. There was a gentleman there who was very knowledgeable concerning subs. I think his userid was The Ear. I remember reading several of his posts concerning sub-woofers and there was a lot of good information to be gleaned.