Audio Video News

As you probably know, there's bass - and then there's bass. But for the few who really know, there's also BASS.

Definitive Technology's latest subwoofer, the SuperCube Trinity Signature, is the quintessential example of that last category. The new subwoofer was originally designed to replace the standard 5-foot x 5-foot x 8-inch bass boxes used to produce the lowest frequencies for the organ at Trinity Church in New York. (When they say that the Spirit moves you, they really mean it…) While this may come as somewhat of a surprise that Trinity Church would turn to Definitive for a set of subwoofers - silly me, I thought big church organs still used the old tried-and-true air-through-pipes method of producing music - it may be more surprising to discover the church uses a huge multiple array of Definitive Technology bipolar towers with one standing in for each organ pipe.

The Trinity Signature Subwoofer is no church mouse. Definitive Technology says it can produce a "prodigious" output in excess of 128 dB at 20 Hz and 116 dB at 16 Hz in a normal room. (I was originally thinking of referring to its performance as "over-the-top'" but perhaps "under-the-bottom" is a better description.) Packed into its 18-inch x 18-inch x 31.75-inch cabinet is a pair of 14-inch long-throw SuperCube Technology subwoofer drivers coupled to four 14-inch infrasonic radiators. The on-board amplifier is a 2000-watt digitally-coupled Class D behemoth. Write those checks for $2,999 each, please. (Plus tax, of course, unless you happen to be a religious organization and qualify for tax-free status.)

As if one new subwoofer weren't enough, Definitive has also announced the IWSub Reference in-wall powered subwoofer. A completely self-enclosed in-wall subwoofer that incorporates the company's SuperCube Subwoofer technology, the IWSub Reference hides flush in the wall behind a 15.5-inch x 26.25-inch grille in a non-resonant, sealed enclosure. Take that grille off, and you'll see that the sub combines a 13-inch shallow-depth long-excursion active driver coupled to a 13-inch infrasonic radiator. The new hidden sub joins Definitive's other in-wall model, the smaller IWSub 10/10. Amplification comes from Definitive's two-channel SubAmp 600, a $599 discrete component amplifier that's designed to slide into the rack with your other gear. The IWSub Reference is scheduled to sell for $999 each.

In case you're sitting there wondering, "Hmm, now what kind of speakers would go good with that new plasma HDTV I just had installed on my wall?" Aside from suggesting a refresher course on grammar, Definitive Technology might, just maybe, recommend a new single-cabinet on-wall model call the Mythos Solo. Measuring 40 inches in length, the three-in-one package combines the left main, center, and right main speakers in a single polished, aircraft-grade aluminum enclosure. Definitive says the Mythos Solo is neither myth nor fantasy but a real speaker that can be wall mounted, placed on a shelf, or slapped right on top of a TV. (Well, you probably wouldn't slap it on top of a plasma since they aren't really thick enough - which is why you bought the plasma in the first place, right? But you certainly could gently set it on top of a rear-projection set - unless it's one of those super-thin jobbers that…oh, never mind.) Whichever way you choose to place the Mythos Solo in your room, budget $699 for it; and if you want full-blown 5.1-channel surround, figure on shelling out a few more bucks for a good set of rear speakers and a subwoofer.