Elemental Designs A7S-450 Subwoofer Review

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by david — last modified July 22, 2009

Summary

Product Name: Elemental Designs A7S-450 Subwoofer
Manufacturer: Elemental Designs
Performance Rating:
Value Rating:
Review Date: March 04, 2009 14:00
MSRP: $ 775 - $860

Specifications

Enclosure: Front firing sealed enclosure
Amplifier Type: n/a
Amplifier Power (RMS @ 4ohms): 550/1300 Watts
Amplifier S/N Ratio: > 90 dBA
Bass Extension (+/-3dB): 22 Hz
Woofer Nominal Diameter: 18 in
Driver Excursion (+/-): 0.85 in
Total Linear Displacement: 358.4 cubic in
Motor Structure Diameter: 8.20 in
Crossover Frequency: 50 Hz to 100 Hz
Crossover type: Continuous variable low pass filter with bypass
Crossover Slope: n/a
Phase: 0 or 180 degrees
Dimensions: (HxWxD): 22.25" x 22.25" x 22.25"
Shipping Weight (lbs): 149 lbs.

Pros

Potent subwoofer that won’t break the budget
Surprisingly nuanced, musical presentation

Cons

Industrial finish with minimal WAF
Will not be easy to hide
Large inrush may trip common household lines when powering up

Introduction

The A7S-450 is a lot of subwoofer for the money. It performs well, blatting out a lot of deep bass, but not at the expense of musical nuance and subtlety. Contrary to its considerable size, it is also fully capable of disappearing, sonically, blending well in a properly calibrated and tuned system, handling quiet bottom end detail, and belting it out when called upon without giving it position away. If the room to board this beast is available and the wife won’t kill you for bringing it home, it is definitely a worthy subwoofer to consider at anywhere near its price point. Highly recommended!

Recent Forum Posts:

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gorillacooch posts on November 01, 2009 17:24

I am really pulling my hair out here, I think the A7-450 and the SVS PB-13 Ultra would be the best choice, but the only reason why I'm skeptical from buying the eD is the power rating. I"m using one 15 amp breaker for my bedroom, and my high powered gaming system, which uses 500 watts, and my xpa-5, integra dtc-9.8 and mirage OMD system, are all on the same breaker. So far it says I'm using 4.6 amperes on my power conditioner. When I game its at 7. I'm worried about using the eD cause of the 1300 watt draw. eD told me that it uses 500-800 watts on low to medium volumes. But still when you turn on the sub I'm worried about the large inrush that Audioholics mentioned. And electricians today are ripping people off like crazy just to install a 20 amp breaker, which only takes 20 min in my house to install. They want to charge something like $1000. which is ridiculous. But they quote me on the phone at 300 but then they see the house they say $1000. No offense but electricians aren't worth more than $50/hour let alone $1000 for 20 min. And this also includes me providing the breaker and the cable. So he's just charging me labor.

djreef posts on November 01, 2009 10:22

gorillacooch;641815
And buy a subwoofer that is one year into the warranty? If it was 1200 with shipping I'd say yes, but 1350? id rather spend the extra 350 and make sure i get my full 3 years.

Also 3 years doesn't really seem that long. If you look at eD they have a 5 year warranty. Now thats a warranty, that shows they really stand by their product.

That's true, but then I wasn't sure where you are. It could've been a short road trip. Then at $1200 it would've been a steal.

DJ

gorillacooch posts on November 01, 2009 03:15

And buy a subwoofer that is one year into the warranty? If it was 1200 with shipping I'd say yes, but 1350? id rather spend the extra 350 and make sure i get my full 3 years.

Also 3 years doesn't really seem that long. If you look at eD they have a 5 year warranty. Now thats a warranty, that shows they really stand by their product.

djreef posts on October 31, 2009 23:41

gorillacooch;641632
Hey I read the part about the large inrush of the 1300 watts, is this just a theoretical thing or did you actually discover this when you were turning it on? Because I cannot decide between the AV123 Dual MFW-15s(I keep reading that their amps are failing even though they claim they fixed the problem, price isnt too great too when you factor in shipping), Epik Dynasty(Seems like the best choice, most efficient power usage, depth, output, but price isn't that good seeing as how i can get an A7-450 for $100 more including shipping), Elemental designs A7-450(Probably the best choice its just the power usage has me worried because I'm on a 15 amp breaker in my bedroom), and the SVS PB-13 Ultra(Seems like one of the best choices but the A7-450, conquest equivalent, is better for less including shipping.).

Please help

http://forums.audioholics.com/forums/showthread.php?t=59702 [forums.audioholics.com]

You may want to PM him and see if it's still available.

croseiv posts on October 31, 2009 17:19

TheFactor;641635
Being a SVS PB13 Ultra owner I couldnt be happier, with that being said its a very well rounded sub for music and HT with plenty of power . If I had a chance to pic another one I would of picked the same sub again.

Yep, same here. Wait a minute, I did...