Boston Acoustics XB6 12 Inch Powered Subwoofer

Amazon Customer Reviews

(5 out of 5)

Near perfect clean bass for any one room speaker system.

I purchased this unit to replace a Boston CR400 powered subwoofer that had a failed amplifier after 10 years of use. The XB6 is about the same dimensions as the CR400 so it fit my space well. For comparison the CR400 has an 8" woofer and 100 watt RMS amp while the XB6 has 12" woofer and 200 watt RMS amp.

Immediately after configuring the XB6 I could hear a difference in clean pure bass. I fired up some of my favorite songs and movie clips and was wowed by the excellent response from the XB6. Oddly enough the bass does not sound as visceral as before. I think this is because the XB6 being quite capable does not distort under load the way my old subwoofer did. It would be difficult to imagine that you would need more bass for a living room of any reasonable size. I haven't actually pushed the XB6 to it's limits because even at moderate volume I'm sure it gets the attention of my neighbors.

The finish is very nice looking and matches the black ash of my other Boston speakers. The oversized volume dial is easily accessible on top of the unit fitting flush with the top plane. The removable grille is attractive but seems perhaps a little bit thin considering the excellent build quality of the rest of the unit.

Connections are a snap if you have had experience setting up a similar powered speaker. Options abound with speaker cable connections as well as a pair of RCA inputs, one filtered through the variable crossover and one not. I appreciated the ability to bypass the crossover because my Onkyo TX-DS696 surround receiver has a dedicated LFE output that would only be hampered by a crossover.

Unless you need to fill an exceptionally large room with rumbling bass this subwoofer will enhance your music and movie listening experience. Amazingly clean and without distortion even at room shaking levels. Highly recommended unless you have grown accustomed to hearing a little distortion in your bass frequencies.

(4 out of 5)

Quality Performer for Home Theater Video and Audio

The Boston XB6 Subwoofer sits just below the companies top offering in this speaker category. MDF covered in a nice vinyl with a metal grill, auto sensing or straight power on, LFE input, variable crossover, removable power cord, volume control easily accesible from front of unit. Nice! The unit provides an FTC rated 200 Watts continuous power and 675 Watts Peak Power. The given frequency response is down to 29Hz +/-3dB. With that in mind, the unit provides deep bass via its' 12" speaker with front porting, and provides exceptional authority to push the low end in high quality AV systems. Keep in mind it won't outperform units at twice its price, but it will round out even high end systems with the boom and thud and rumble that you're looking for. I tested this unit with an upper end Denon receiver and matching Boston Acoustics front towers, as well as BA center and surrounds. After originally purchasing a Velodyne VRP Sub and subsequently having problems with that unit due to impedance issues, I purchased the XB6 to round out a home theater. Although I haven't pushed it to it's limits, I used a medium high volume when making my assessment and found no audible hiccups or distortion. I was expecting it to complain when driven, it didn't. I used Norah Jones - Come Away CD to audition as well as the movie "Twister" for reference material. There's nothing that compares to the sound of tornado blasting through your living room. Now in all fairness, this sub doesn't keep up with my favorite sub, the Sunfire sub, that I'm accustomed to when it comes to extremely low rumble, nor does it hit you in the chest like the Sunfire. I've literally been in fear that my windows were about to shatter when using the Sunfire. However, what the Boston sub does do, it does very well. It provides extension and fullness to my tower speakers and depth with authority to soundtracks and movies that you otherwise would be lacking without a good subwoofer. The difference with and without this unit in the mix is night and day. If you live in a townhome or apartment... yes, your neighbors will be aware you have a hard hitting system. For the price you can get it at now, you would be very very hard pressed to find a better performer. I've tried Velodyne, Cambridge Soundworks, Infinity, Yamaha, Polk Audio, Advent, JBL and Klipsch and this came out a winner in sound quality, and value without compromise. To better this would require twice the money at least. If you can get your hands on one, do it. After a proper set up (READ THE MANUAL) you will be grinning ear to ear. If you're looking to fill up a much larger room, try SVS or HSU subs. But be willing to spend a minimum of twice as much.

(5 out of 5)

Great Product That Is Almost Impossible To Find

Tight accurate sound. Great layout and size for having a 12" driver. I wonder why it is almost impossible to find anywhere?

(5 out of 5)

Very Smooth Musical Bass Response

I didn't want a sledge hammer sub and guess what this ain't one. It is however a great subwoofer to support musical reproduction. Be sure it can bang and boom when called upon, but its performance when listening to music justify the very reasonable investment. Build quality is good. The Bash amp is tried and trusted. The porting makes it a bit directional, but all and all, I am glad I chose this subwoofer for my main music and viewing room. You can spend a lot more, but in a small to mid size room it supplies good boom for your buck.