subs

Sonos shipping matte black Sub for $599

For those of you who've had your eye on the Sonos subwoofer -- or Sub, as it's officially called -- but have held back on purchasing due to its rather hefty $699 price tag, take note that Sonos has begun offering a matte-black version of the same speaker for $100 less, or $599.

When releasing the swanky-looking, glossy black version of the Sub last year, Sonos had promised to deliver a matte version, and here it is, albeit in limited quantities. According to a PR rep, "Sonos has made a limited quantity available for purchase via Sonos.com, … Read more

Dayton Audio's almost-too-good-to-be-true Sub-800 subwoofer

The best I can say about most cheap subwoofers is they make bass. The bass won't be the deepest, most powerful, or the clearest, or blend all that well with most speakers, but all subs make bass. Better subs, like the $449 Hsu Research VTF-1 MK2, generate deeper, less distorted sound, so you can actually hear distinct bass notes, and can play louder and fill larger rooms better than most cheap subs.

So my expectations for Dayton Audio's $79 Sub-800 weren't high. Still, I can't say enough nice things about Dayton's B652 bookshelf speakers. There'… Read more

For really deep bass, you need a real subwoofer

There are a number of terrific small subwoofers on the market, but all of the best subs are big. The little ones can certainly make bass, but the quality and quantity of the larger subs' deep bass is considerably better. You can literally feel the difference -- deep bass is as much felt as it is heard.

I remember the impact a big sub made when I reviewed the Outlaw LFM-1 (now upgraded to the LFM-1 Plus, $549). The LFM-1 weighs 58 pounds and measures 21.75 inches tall, 15 inches wide, and a whopping 22 inches deep. It had … Read more

How to set up a subwoofer

August 29, 2012: This is an update of my subwoofer setup article from 2008.

Merely buying a great subwoofer is no guarantee that you'll wind up with great bass. There are too many ways to squander its performance potential, and that's why putting in the extra effort to achieve proper subwoofer setup is crucial. This two-part guide will help you get the best room-shaking bass from your subwoofer.

Part I: Placement and positioning

Part II: Connectivity and fine-tuning

Subwoofer Setup Part I:Placement and positioning While a subwoofer's deep bass is nondirectional, it would be unwise to … Read more

Best printers under $100

Buying a printer on a budget is tricky -- if you tighten your belt too much, you run the risk of falling victim to the classic bait-and-switch purchasing model and spending more on consumables (ink and paper) in the long term.

That said, the $100 mark is a great place to start shopping for a low-cost printer. At that price, you have the option of getting an all-in-one multifunction device that incorporates a scanner and a copier in addition to the printing functions, and some models like the Epson Stylus NX430 even give you convenient extras like a 2.5-inch LCD touch panel and wireless connectivity.

Both laser and inkjet printers are included in the list below. The general rule is that inkjet printers are better for graphics-heavy documents and photos, whereas laser printers (especially the monochrome models) are better for producing speedy text documents in a business environment.… Read more

Sonos adds striking subwoofer to its lineup of wireless speakers

If you ever thought the Sonos Play:5 or Play:3 powered speakers sounded a bit thin, we've got some good news for you. Sonos has introduced the Sonos Sub, the latest addition to its growing wireless speaker family.

As you might gather from its name, this is a subwoofer, and it has a rather striking, modern design that fit right in at the hipster Cooper Square Hotel in New York's NoHo district where Sonos was demoing the product yesterday for the press.… Read more

Best portable Bluetooth speakers for less than $100

When it comes to Bluetooth speakers, small is hot. We have Jawbone and all the marketing it put behind its Jambox partially to thank for that. With its rechargeable battery and impressive sound for its size, the Jambox showed how you could take a tiny portable speaker and pair it with your smartphone, tablet, or laptop to create a mini wireless stereo system just about anywhere you were.

But some folks don't want to drop $150 to $175 on a portable speaker, which is why I've put together this list of less expensive alternatives. We'll be reviewing more inexpensive portable Bluetooth speakers as the year goes along and we'll continue to update this list as we listen to new products and earlier models we might have missed.… Read more

Olasonic PC speakers review: They're good eggs

The first thing you'll notice about the compact Olasonic TW-S7 PC speakers is that they have a unique, eye-catching egg-shaped design. As far as colors go, you can go with black or white, and both versions have a nice glossy finish and come with circular rubber stands that keep the speakers standing, cupping the speakers like an egg holder does. They stand a shade less than 6 inches tall.

We liked their design and also liked the fact that these are USB-powered speakers, which means you just plug them into a USB port on your Windows or Mac PC and you're good to go, no power adapter required. … Read more

The 404 827: Where Lady Gaga makes Amazon's cloud cry (podcast)

Amazon's cloud music servers cut out for a brief period yesterday after the world's "little monsters" flooded the site to download Lady Gaga's new album "Born This Way" for just 99 cents. Jeff and Wilson are two such fans, and we love it when Wilson gets all righteous about piracy because we get to throw it back in his face.

Today's episode of The 404 deals with Jeff's addition to Reddit, digital projectionists in Boston AMC theaters purposefully making 2D movies dimmer than usual, and the debut of everyone's favorite PB&J in a can. Yes, the Candwich.

The 404 Digest for Episode 827

Amazon's key weapon in cloud music wars: Lady Gaga. Many theaters misuse 3D lenses to show 2D films, squandering brightness, color. The Candwich finally goes on sale! Check out The 404 Podcast SubReddit!

Episode 827 Subscribe in iTunes (audio) | Subscribe in iTunes (video) | Subscribe in RSS Audio | Subscribe in RSS Video… Read more