OK I have finally decided to go in for a sealed sub.
After a few days of searching and re-searching, here is my wishlist for what I am looking for subjectively :licklips:
1a. Musicality
2a. Tight
3a. Resolving
4a. Articulate and Agile
5a. Integration with fullrangers - add subtle body, mellowness and warmth on upper bass harmonics around 120 to 240hz. My speakers are thin sounding

6a. Not produce more bass but fill the room with lower harmonics. I dont want thuds and pounding sound.
7a. Invisible - I don't want to hear the sub, but its absence should be felt when switched off.
8a. Punch and Slam
What I am looking for practically :licklips:
1b. Dynamic power and bass transient capability in low 30 to 60hz and mid-bass 60 to 120hz ( see 8a above). Resonance of previous note should not overlap next transient (2a 3a 4a).
2b. Speaker level inputs (5a for better integration with FRs) + 0.1 LFE input
3b. Capable of 30hz @100dB without compulsory corner placement (optional and speculative). I will not be playing loud, but the human ears hearing (lowest) threshold curve rises at about 18dB/octave from 50Hz to 20Hz. At 20Hz, an 85dB SPL is barely audible in an average room.
4b. 12dB to 18dB per octave slope not 24 - for the low pass filter. Hopefully this will not create a sucked out frequency hole with abrupt cut-off of upper harmonics (for 5a above)
5b. Very very fast upper bass in 120 to 240hz range. i.e while the cross over will be set much lower, the upper octave harmonics (12db lower) albeit at barely audible volumes should not be more sluggish than the speedy fostex drivers (for 4a and 5a above)
6b. Phase angle switch (continuously variable is optional)
Application is 80% Music 10% movies.
Did I miss anything? :licklips:
I have actually narrowed down my choice to REL T5 as the most promising AND possibly affordable-with-a-streeeeetchhhhhh!
If you research a bit, REL products have the design focus of integrating with wideband drivers. They will probably not excel for explosions and machine gun type of noises over other HT subs (maybe some models do at thrice the price?). Hence the choice. But I will really have to loosen my Naada er.. purse strings for that to happen
Therefore I want to consider other more affordable choices and if possible DEMO them over this immediate weekend (I move fast .. like Phantom, Gobble-who-walks

hyeah

.
Would like some tips about
1. What might fulfill the promise the best
2. Where I can demo them
3. What highly rated HT/Movies subwoofer product I can demo even if it will not meet my wish list, to understand WHY not to buy certain budget gear
Edit : The
keyword is
Integration with the fullrangers. Everything else I can compromise on more than on this one requirement ... the added low frequency harmonics should appear to come from the 2 speakers not the sub.
I didn't want to open a new thread and contribute to spawning the runaway threads syndrome. So lets keep it all in the old thread here.
Any tips, suggestions guys?
Edit: Oh! the budget - 25K approx. (the REL is +1.5x times that price). @25K my pajamas will stay at my waist. Else the loosen'd Naada .. er purse strings will have unimaginable consequences.
-G0bble