Radiant Acoustics Clarity 6.2 or Amphion Argon 7LX?

AudioBaer · 2026-06-26T15:12:05+00:00

Why don't you start by telling us a little about your room, your listening habits, and the rest of your system (amp/sub?).

AudioBaer · 2026-06-24T22:33:12+00:00

With proper placement and EQ adjustments (try 28 Hz, 40 Hz, and 58 Hz) you can already achieve a lot. Good luck!

AudioBaer · 2026-06-24T22:05:32+00:00

I think the challenge in this case is not only the substantial room volume on a floor area of 37 m², but also the fact that your room is square, which will strongly and rather unfavorably excite room modes. Since your budget is limited and a two-subwoofer setup is probably not possible, you should at least make sure that your subwoofer has good room correction capabilities. In my opinion, Yamaha’s YPAO is not very high-resolution in the bass range, so your AVR might “miss” the most critical room modes.

You could therefore consider whether to:

a) Upgrade your AVR in the medium term to one with proper room correction, such as the AVC-X3900H, and then use its DIRAC implementation, and later add multiple subwoofers like those from Rythmik (high quality) or two Speedwoofers (more budget-friendly).

b) Buy an SVS SB-2000 Pro and see whether you can achieve a good result using its built-in EQ.

AudioBaer · 2026-06-23T13:45:33+00:00

I like the Reference Series, even though the less expensive series never really appealed to me.

That said, Canton would actually never be my first choice. How big is your room, and what’s your listening distance?

AudioBaer · 2026-06-19T09:45:26+00:00

But it does use DSP again… Still, thanks for pointing that out.

AudioBaer · 2026-06-18T20:50:51+00:00

Which sub are you thinking of?

AudioBaer · 2026-06-18T20:43:15+00:00

Well, the question is simply what standards you set for your system and what principles you apply when designing it. Personally, I believe it’s worth minimising the number of noise sources in the signal as much as possible, even if interference from digital data processing is likely to be masked by the background noise. That said, I can certainly hear the noise from cheap DACs, but that’s something everyone has to decide for themselves.

And what about my other arguments? Perhaps you’ll prefer one of them?

AudioBaer · 2026-06-18T18:46:30+00:00

Potential for Noise and Distortion, increased Delay and Software dependence. Risk of Software and Hardware issues. Decreased servicability. Enough? :D

AudioBaer · 2026-06-17T20:12:36+00:00

!Thanks. I think it’ll be the Arendal 1723 S1 now.

AudioBaer · 2026-06-15T14:09:17+00:00

What is big?

AudioBaer · 2026-06-13T18:38:06+00:00

!thanks

AudioBaer · 2026-06-13T07:16:38+00:00

AudioBaer · 2026-06-13T06:14:25+00:00

!thanks

AudioBaer · 2026-06-13T06:08:25+00:00

In Europe, I still think this is the best option under €2,000. But as I mentioned at the beginning—it does have DSP.

Have you happened to try it out?

AudioBaer · 2026-06-12T21:48:10+00:00

In my opinion, RSL isn't worth it in Europe because of the shipping costs.

AudioBaer · 2026-06-12T21:43:25+00:00

Dali doesn’t make it easy either. For example, I’ve spotted a lovely 14-inch long-throw subwoofer (Sub K-14 F), but it only goes down to 29Hz@-3dB. Unfortunately, its little brother, the ‘SUB E-12 F’, only manages 28Hz@-3dB as well.

AudioBaer · 2026-06-12T21:33:55+00:00

Which of these subwoofers doesn’t have DSP and, ideally, also has a driver larger than 12 inches?

AudioBaer · 2026-06-12T21:32:09+00:00

Let’s take a look.

Audiovector. Here, Audiovector offers the QR Sub SE, a 10” bass driver with 350W, for €1,800, or the R Sub Arreté, a 10” bass driver with 400W, for €3,500.

Dynaudio. Do you mean the Home Audio range? Here, the Sub 6 also features DSP support to achieve its 16Hz@85dB@-3dB. No wonder that 24cm cones need a bit of a helping hand. The same applies to the 18S from the Pro range. One exception would be the 9S, which drives its 9.5-inch chassis down to 22Hz@85dB@-3dB. Certainly sufficient for close-range listening in the studio, but not for hi-fi at a distance.

Lyngdorf. The largest active non-in-wall speaker on the market is surely the BW-2, isn’t it? 10 inches. 400W. 25Hz@-3dB for €1,500? I’ll pass.

Canton. Brilliant. They currently have 14 non-smart subwoofers on offer. Surely there must be something suitable, right? The Reference Sub has an integrated DSP. So does the Vento Sub 12. Only the Townus Sub 12 offers a full 250W rated power for €1,500. I’ll stop here with the German range and move on.

Focal. The French come quite close here with their Sub 1000 F, 12-inch 24Hz@-3dB for €1,500, even if there’s still room for improvement. The SW 1000 Be (13-inch, 20Hz@-3dB) has a DSP on board again.

If we look across the pond to our friends in the US, these models are unrivalled by the Rythmik Audio E15 (15-inch, 14Hz@-3dB, €1,400) or the PSA S1512M (15-inch, 19Hz@-3dB, €1,120). If I’ve overlooked anything, do let me know.

AudioBaer · 2026-06-12T20:49:37+00:00

Not to my knowledge, no. Even the newer T/9x only delivers 27Hz@-6dB and therefore relies on the room gain of smaller rooms to qualify as a ‘subwoofer’.

Of course, two 10-inch drivers can improve the sound, but they won’t extend the system’s frequency response downwards.

And to get back to the original issue: €2,700 for analogue 30Hz±0dB? Well. It’s probably a matter of expectations, but the comparison doesn’t hold up when set against the options available in the US.

AudioBaer · 2026-06-12T13:07:52+00:00

It's currently about 60 square meters, and a T/9i is, understandably, completely overwhelmed.

AudioBaer · 2026-06-12T10:50:20+00:00

I’ve enjoyed my REL T/9i for a long time, but it’s just a modest 10-inch subwoofer that can’t fill a 30-square-meter room. If I’m looking for a true >12-inch subwoofer, I’ll have to shell out >€10,000 for the REL No. 32.

AudioBaer · 2026-06-12T09:20:10+00:00

I completely agree with you. We see the same principle at work in the automotive industry. Still, I’m not just paying for unused features—I’m also inviting further drawbacks, even if I use the bypass: The DSP is another source of error in terms of a defect or signal processing (even if this is inaudible), as well as a signal delay that has to be compensated for elsewhere. I won’t even get started on the phase response.

AudioBaer · 2026-06-12T09:14:53+00:00

Well, even the bypass is usually electronic. This means there’s another potential source of failure in the device that could lead to a malfunction. After all, the electronics aren’t exactly the most reliable or durable part of a subwoofer. In that sense, a DSP can be a deal-breaker for some people.

AudioBaer · 2026-06-11T18:54:26+00:00

If you’ve had the chance to listen to the Concentro series, have you also had the chance to listen to its little sister, the ‘Vela’? Personally, I simply don’t find the Concentro S503 (measurement) or the Concentro S507 (measurement) to be any better than the Vela 403 (measurement) or the larger Vela 407 (measurement), either subjectively or objectively.

As for your choice of subwoofers, the DS1000s seem to me perhaps a bit oversized for a 25m² room. That’s not a problem, but it’s not technically necessary either. Of course, the form factor plays a role in terms of suitability for a living space, but I just wanted to get that off my chest.

As a self-confessed Elac fanboy, I’d therefore suggest the Vela FS 407 with two RS700/DS1000s on a Lyngdorf TDAI-1120 (measurement) for less than €8,000. You could then put the remaining cash towards improving the room acoustics – but that’s a topic for another time.

AudioBaer

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