Audio & Video Lifestyle Magazine
69
T e c h n o t a l k
Product Type:
Active subwoofer
Driver Complement:
1 x 10-inch (265mm) woofer
Impedance:
Not specified
Power Amplification:
150 watts RMS
Cabinet:
Bass reflex, rear firing port
Frequency Response:
20Hz-150Hz
Cabinet:
Internallybraced, magnetically
shielded with floor spikes
Crossover Adjustment:
Variable 45Hz -150Hz
Cabinet Finishes:
Beech, black
Connections:
Stereo RCA line level and
speaker level inputs
Technotalk specifications and recommended
retail prices are supplied by the manufacturer
grade Beech vinyl finish. The other
available finish option is black.
In terms of connections the SW-200
will cater to most users. It has line-level
and speaker-level inputs and speaker-
level outputs which have been high-pass
filtered at 80Hz so a stereo feed can be
passed on to the users main speakers
(but minus the bass below 80Hz). This is
particularly handy for owners of small
main speakers that may only have
limited low frequency capabilities. There
are no line-level outputs which allow
users to do the same thing with a low
level connection such as exists between a
power and preamp. I doubt this will
affect many people.
There is a rotary volume control and
a rotary crossover control that governs
how high in frequency the subwoofer
will go. The marked range is from 45Hz
to 150Hz. There are switches for
power; (with an auto setting so the sub
turns itself on an of when signals are
sensed), phase (to make sure your
speakers cones are moving in and out at
the same time as your sub and not
cancelling each other out around the
crossover frequencies), and a bypass;
(to allow you to bypass the subs internal
crossover). The power cable supplied is
a detachable two-pin IEC lead. The
subwoofer comes complete with
detachable
screws, rubber
feet and a well-
written manual.
The SW-200
was set up
around 130cm
from the corner
and a some
30cm out from
the rear wall.
This is the same
spot that all the
other subs I
have tested sat. I
used a
Video
Essentials
DVD
and my sound
meter to adjust
its volume
control to the
same level as my
main speakers.
After playing
Halo 2
on my
Xbox and then
leaving it on for
a few days
whenever I was
watching digital
TV, the Aaron
was soon run in.
I started with tests to see how low
and how loud the SW-200 would play in
my room. This room gives plenty of lift
to the frequencies around 35Hz and
thus it was no surprise that it was at this
frequency where I recorded the highest
clean peak of 110dB on my SPL meter.
In this regard it was only a couple of
decibels shy of the figures achieved for
the recently reviewed Richter Thor Mk.
IV (see issue AVL-141), which is
physically larger and has more power
and a larger driver.
Bass from the Aaron SW-200 was
strong down to about 27Hz in my room,
measured in free space four metres
from the sub. This was typical of
subwoofers of its size, price and
enclosure type - where the
manufacturer has to juggle bass
extension versus output. There is of
course output below these frequencies
but it is at a reduced volume. However,
subs such as this now perform at the
level of more expensive models from a
few years ago and there really has been
a sizable upward shift in all the
performance parameters.
When it comes to music listening I
started off with a music DVD,
Diana
Krall - Live In Paris
. It’s a great sounding
disc that features not only the fantastic
voice and piano of Diana but also a
great band with some first rate double
bass playing from John Clayton. Tracks
like
The Look Of Love
and
Deed I Do
showed the little Aaron to be nimble
with the well-plucked bass. It held a
tune and was able to differentiate the
different bass notes very well for a $999
subwoofer.
The cleanliness and tightness of its
presentation was confirmed by my
playing a Sheffield Lab test CD with a
couple of drumming test tracks and the
well recorded track
Boxenkiller,
which I
often turn to when I want to hear how a
sub handles a good kick drum. The SW-
200 got the room throbbing with the
high-energy electronic pulses from
Yello’s track
Resistor
(from the album
Pocket Universe
). The Aaron seemed to
thrive on this and other similar sorts of
stuff. Telarc’s
Great Fantasy and
Adventure Album
contains some
awesome low stuff and I enjoyed the
SW-200’s reproduction of the bass
drum in themes from movies such as
The Abyss
and
The Rocketeer
. Telarc
always does a great job of recording the
bass drum and the Aaron manages to
capture most of that weight and
