Subwoofer Reviews

Bottom Line
Take one look at these subwoofers and it’s obvious they were designed for different types of buyers. No one of sound mind would ask, “Gosh, should I buy the Paradigm Monitor SUB 10 or the Power Sound Audio XV15?” That’s like asking, “Should I buy a Fiat 500 or a Ford F-150?”

Geoff reinforced this idea when, after I revealed the subs’ identities, he concluded, “I could make a good case for buying the NHT or the Power Sound, but for completely different reasons.” These two subs exhibit nearly opposite strengths and weaknesses: one small, décor-friendly, and audiophile-oriented, and the other huge, décor-hostile, and home theaterphile-oriented.

That said, some of these subs are better buys than others. For raw home theater power, our pick is the Power Sound Audio XV15. If you don’t like that model’s bulky form factor, you’ll lose little or nothing sonically by going with the SVS PC12-NSD. For audiophiles who want precision and finesse and don’t care about powerful, ultra-deep bass — or who need a décor-friendly subwoofer to preserve domestic peace — our pick is the NHT B-12d.