Price Paid:  $699.00 from Stereo Types Charlot

Summary:
I have always been a fan of good sound for both music and home theatre, but it wasn't until recently that I discovered what good sound was. I had been running a polk Rti system with a denon integrated amp. I had researched speakers all summer and finally this winter I decided to go with the B&W 600 series. I added the 602 bookshelves and the lcr60 center and they sounded amazing. What did not sound amazing however was my polk sub. So i went back to this store stereo types and the owner introduced me to some subs. I listened to a few klipsch subs and a few B&W's. I was amazing at how the asw650 blended when listening to music. I picked it up and I am so happy with the performance. Finally I am able to listen to music with deep clear bass that isn't boomy. The sub is much more active that any sub i've had before. The first movie I watched with the new set up was Crash and i was blown away. I don't need my music or my movies too loud and what i like best about the asw650 is the bass response with only the 200W amp. It is just enough bass. At the same time I enjoy throwing on Big Tymers and maxing out the system, and trust me this sub gets the job done. I completely recommend this subwoofer to anyone who is stepping up into entry level high end sound. There is a drastic difference between this and any polk, mirage, or other mid range sub I have ever listened to.

Strengths:
Bass response at lower volumes is perfect, I can keep the volume down and feel my bass without the boomy sound.
When I do push the sub, my dishes rattle.
I appreciate the auto-on feature as well.

Weaknesses:
The 200W amplifier isn't going to knock pictures off the wall. The 12" driver is perfect for movies and music in medium to large rooms, and 200W will suffice. But if its that ground breaking bass you're looking for I'd recommend one of its bigger brothers such as the asw700.

Similar Products Used:
Polk PSW404, PSW1000 - not nearly as smooth and accurate as the asw650

Huge

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 1.00 votes

Price Paid:  $419.00 from Stereo Exchange NYC

Summary:
My May 29 2005 review has to be updated: The subwoofer was still sounding great. The only problem was that a friend overloaded the sub with a sudden loud peak of sound. Since the Denon reads volume as minus xx dB, he thought he had to go into the plus range. The amp switched on at the plus setting, blowing loudly. I had the auto-ON setting enabled and ever since the sub switched auto-on at a higher sound input level. Furthermore, I am going to have to return the sub because after a power out and a reset to power on due to next door construction (on Manhattan) the sub does not work anymore. I suspect the auto-ON circuit is cheap and not suited for power peaks so I am getting a surge protector. Still want to stay with this box; my system sounds quite thin without it right now.

Strengths:
Sound and punch without too much sigh.

Weaknesses:
The auto-ON circuit seems to be of mediocre quality.

Similar Products Used:
None

ciscokid1970

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 2.00 votes

Price Paid:  $600.00 from home theater store

Summary:
I am a big B&W Fan. I have B&W 601s with asw300 in my listening room and also have ceiling speakers in my bedroom. Normaly you can buy B&W in any price range and you will be assured of best sound and value in that price range. I was shopping for a new sub for my home theater room. Since I have B&W ceiling speakers and center channel...might as well get a B&W sub to match. Went to local shop listened to the following: ASW 600 ASW 650 ASW 675 ASW 700 After listening I took home both the ASW 650 and ASW 675. I do this all the time...guys at store know me. Burned them in for 24 hours using stereophile test cd. Hooked them up to my system and this is what I found. ASW 650 was less expensive, sounded smoother, richer, better dynamic range with music, Miles davis, Led zeppelin. It was even more obvious with movies such as jurassic park 3 and Independence day. Yes this sub is better suited for Home theater but you will not find a sub this big that can reproduce music as well as this one can. What gives with the ASW 675 ? Well after looking carefully at the specs I noticed that it has a class D amp (as in Digital) These amps "claim" more accurate controlled sound while also consuming less electricity and making less heat. It also allows them to customize the frequency curve of the signal so that they can "squeeze" more bass out of a smaller driver. Now the thing that bugs me is that the ASW 675 is almost twice the price yet I KNOW that the material to make this is cheaper that the ASW 600 so this is a expensive Ripp off. What happens is that D class Amps do not have anywhere near the richness or dynamic range of good old fashinoned Class A or Class B. And when driven hard they distort and sound thin. After further investigation I realized that ALL of the B&W line from ASW 675 up to the ASW 855 has digital amps !!! I wanted to cry. SO IF YOU WANT A B&W WITH CLASS B AMP THIS IS THE LARGEST ONE YOU CAN BUY. The units below are also class B amps. Buy this sub today...before they replace it with some cheap D amp sub.

Strengths:
Class B amp...ahhh Sealed...helps control the bass Good sound for music Excellent sound for movies Good price

Weaknesses:
Big...yeah so what

Similar Products Used:
All kinds of B&W products, HSU, Klipsh

Huge

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
Less than 1 month

Visitors rate this review
1.00 of 5, 1.00 votes

Price Paid:  $429.00 from Stereo Exchange NYC

Summary:
Paired this sub last week with a pair of B&W 602 S3s that I have used for 4 months. I have used this setup mainly for stereo listening, using a Denon AVR2805 receiver and a Denon 1910 DVD/CD player. The Denon player is connected only through the digital interconnects, since analogue quality is supposed to be mediocre. Sound through the B&W speakers was already excellent, but pairing this set with the ASW650 sub complements the systems' low range perfectly for stereo listening. The sub does not have a reflex port hence no "sighing" bass effects; this actually makes the bass sound tight and naturally sounding. Even at low levels ("9 o' clock") the bass is deep; turning it up would only annoy the neighbours. The sub was extremely easy to set up. There was actually no tweaking involved at all. The sub was placed behind the TV set (Philips 32" CRT HDTV) between and 3 feet behind 603s, with the woofer pointing right, connected with single cable + Y adapter and I didn't need to change anything; setup sounded beautiful. CDs listened to: Orbital 1989-2002 Daft Punk - Human After All Tupac Greatest Hits Snoop Dogg Greatest Hits Ministry Of Sound - Annual 2005 Guns and Roses Greatest Hits U2 - How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb Barry White - All Time Greatest Hits Some other electronica CDs. The set performed excellent on dance, rock and rap. Barry White sounded a bit dull, but I think the quality of the recording plays a major role in this as well. I haven't tried any jazz or classical music, but if it is really bad, I will follow up. Despite their genres, the aforementioned CDs contain many vocal passages that sounded brilliantly. TV/movies are equally good. Voices are clear, sound effects (knocking, telephone rings) sometimes make my head turn because they sound so natural. Overall the sub added a great deal of depth to the satellites, making music and movies more involving. The sub manages to shake the glasses on the shelves 24 feet away at relatively low volume. I haven't been able to compare this sub to any other subs, but nevertheless I would highly recommend it.

Strengths:
- Tight, clear, deep bass - Compact - Easy to set up

Weaknesses:
- None so far

Similar Products Used:
N/A

sactohye

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 1.00 votes

Price Paid:  $700.00 from Audio/FX, Sacramento

Summary:
The B&W ASW650 is currently being driven by a Sherwood Newcastle R-725 receiver and a Technics SH-AC500 processor. It makes up the subwoofer in my home cinema system along with the DB604S3 for the left and right channel, DM602S3 for the rear and an LCR600S3 for the center. Once I decided on its final location, I fitted the floor spikes to it as well as to the DM604S3s. With it coupled to a slab floor, the sound improved. The bass is tighter and cleaner. While the ASW650 does not have the power to shake the walls, it goes loud and low enough to feel the bass when it’s called for as in the cannon firing scene in “Immortal Beloved” or the Firebird Suite from “Fantasia 2000”. The stampede scene from “The Lion King” rattles the shutters on my windows. Whether reproducing movie sounds or music, the sound from the ASW650 is always clean and undistorted. After four months of using this subwoofer, I can find no real weaknesses. If one wants to rattle walls, B&W makes more powerful (more expensive) subwoofers. But for the price, the ASW650 is hard to beat.

Strengths:
Tight, clear bass no matter the level.

Weaknesses:
Could use a more powerful amp.

Similar Products Used:
None.