VTF-2 Reviews Lowest priced subwoofer to receive a "Class AA rating." Stereophile Guide to Home Theater, March/April 2004. With a 100 dB tone, the nearfield distortion at 50 Hz was 0.63%. At 30 Hz, it was 1.7%! "On a per-dollar basis, direct from the factory, the VTF-2 is the best subwoofer known to me." Peter Aczel, Audio Critic Magazine, 2002 "made my jaw drop....the overall performance of the VTF-2 (in the 25Hz tuning configuration) could be reasonably compared to the performance of the $3,000 B&W ASW 4000....a performance benchmark to which other under-$1,000 subwoofers must be compared." Richard Hardesty, Widescreen Review Subwoofer Buyer's Guide Fall/Winter 2000. Over 50 glowing recommendations on AudioReview.com Best performer in a comparison test. Tom Nousaine in Sound & Vision (May 2000). Reviewer's Choice Award 2000. Sound & Vision. Over 50 glowing consumer recommendations on Google Groups Usenet Archive. "[A] best buy in subwooferdom." Robert Deutsch, Stereophile Guide to Home Theater, December 1999. "...may be the best-bang-for the buck "true" subwoofer you can buy." Howard Ferstler, The Sensible Sound, Nov/Dec 2001 "...if you're looking for more bounce from your audio bucks, the Hsu Research VTF-2 powered sub has no equal." Steve Guttenberg, Audio, November 1999. "awe-inspiring...I enjoyed more soundstage depth, more thereness, more realism. This spoke louder about the VTF-2's bass quality and inherently low distortion than thunderous SPL output levels (of which, incidentally, it is also quite capable)...a sure-fire recommendation for anyone who has superior monitors or even tower speakers and wants to add quality and quantity bass." GoodSound! July 2001. Read longer excerpts from some of these reviews

Bass. It harmonizes music, sets the mood in movies, and lays down the sonic foundation of a sound system. Typically, studio quality bass has been outside the grasp of consumers. The VTF-2 changes that.

Most subwoofers are lucky to receive any positive recognition. The VTF-2 enjoys a long tradition of good, professional reviews. Excerpts are available in the the "Reviews" section. Usually, the reactions are similar. Those new to subwoofers exclaim that it reawakens their collection with new layers of sound. Owners of lower quality subwoofers remark that their old featureless boom is replaced with tight, enjoyable notes and textures. Experienced listeners are surprised by the product's superlative bang for the buck. If history is any guide, your system will also sound remarkably better.

The VTF-2 delivers the best quality bass in medium sized rooms or smaller. For larger rooms, we recommend the VTF-3. Even though the VTF-2 is not a huge subwoofer, like some of behemoths out there, Sound and Vision rated it as one of the loudest, cleanest sounding subwoofers ever. Unbelievably, the VTF-2 produced more clean output than most subwoofers with 15 inch drivers, 1000 watt amplifiers, and high end price tags.

The Key to Uncompromising Bass Is Listener-Customization

Harnessing the unique Variable Tuning Frequency port technology (VTF), each port uses the air generated from the long throw woofer to dramatically boost the deeper frequencies. With both ports open, the VTF-2 doesn't seem small anymore. This kind of port design is extremely tricky to engineer, and the VTF-2 succeeds down to a very deep 25 Hz with one port open (in maximum extension mode).

All subwoofer designs, especially consumer-level subwoofers, involve tradeoffs in design. You cannot have a small subwoofer that goes very low, plays very loud and costs very little. Traditionally, the engineer decides what tradeoff he or she thinks is best for the consumer. The consumer has to take it or leave it.

The VTF series changes all that. It allows you, the user, to choose the tradeoff. If you enjoy music that is loud but does not have much deep bass, set the VTF series for max output. That way, you get maximum dynamic range with the lowest distortion. If you like music with deep bass, set it for maximum bass extension to reproduce the deep bass accurately. You can even switch between the two modes depending on what you play. That means effectively you get a subwoofer that can play loudly, and can play low, all in one, at one reasonable price!

Easy Installation and Seamless Integration

VTF subwoofers include special built-in amplifiers for easy integration with your system. Plug the subwoofer into the surround sound processor's 'subwoofer output', or run it inline with your speakers, or use the left and right line-outs of a stereo preamp. Whatever the source, a signal sensing, defeatable auto-on/off feature lets you turn it on the first time, set the volume, and forget about it. VTF subwoofers offer an understated, minimalistic, form-follows-function appearance. They are also small enough to be placed into many entertainment center cabinets and behind televisions.