REL T1 $500 & T2 $400 Subwoofer @ Vanns - half off - shipping included

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jarcher

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Vanns is selling two models of REL sub's at half off.  Prices include shipping, which is a good thing since these suckers are heavy.  I ordered & just got a T1 Black - which doesn't seem to be an option any longer.


T1 in Cherry for $500 :

http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/549998562/rel-t1-cherry?s_c=site_search

Or the T2 in Black for $400:

http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/549798122/rel-t2-black?s_c=site_search

Thirsty

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So, you're the one that bought the last Black T-1. :cry: I was all set to buy one on Monday and then saw it was only available in Cherry. The good news is that they had the T-2 in Black as the deal of the day for $349, so I couldn't resist and bought one. It showed up yesterday, and am looking forward to getting it set up and seeing just how this little sub will sound in my 12 x 22 ft. room. I think it will be fine since it will be used in my stereo music only system.

jarcher

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Hey Thirsty: don't feel to bad, you got the better deal - the T2 seems to do 90% of what the T1 does & you got it for $150 less. 

And amazingly despite Vann's double boxing, mine showed up w/ a chip on the cabinet + two chips off one of the brackets.  The outside box was fine - it was the inner original REL box that had some damage - making me believe that Vann's got it that way, but chose to box & ship it out to me anyway.  I'd return it wasn't the last one and half off.  As it's going to be behind the maggies, I can live w/ the cosmetics.

Otherwise a fantastic sub : one of the few I've heard that's really tight & fast.  The speakon / speaker hi level connection is something that all subs should do.

Oh: and they have another REL model up there now as well - a R205 in Cherry @ 33% off.  I believe the R series was the next step up from the T series. If & when it hits 50% off it will really be a good deal:

http://www.vanns.com/shop/servlet/item/features/549914472

roscoeiii

I have seen a number of these T1s and T2s for sale on eBay and elsewhere with the square metal bracket having come loose from the sub body. You might want to see about squeezing in something (4 blocks of wood?) between the bracket and the body of the sub to brace the sub. The look is great, but from an engineering perspective I think REL goofed on the square steel borders that lift the sub off the ground (something with so much vibration and no support underneath it   :?). Newer models do not have this design.

Enjoy your subs.

jarcher

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Fortunately for me the bracket hasn't come off - it's just chipped because it's actually plastic over, I think, particle board wood - NOT metal!

It also comes w/ spikes which can be added to the bottom - which I intend to do.

Sorta expected more from REL, but these are the "entry level" product.  Otherwise quite happy w/ the construction and look / sound.

roscoeiii

Yeah, when I was shopping for a REL around this price the advice I got was to get a used ST series (Storm, Strata, Stadium, etc). Better construction than a comparable new model in the same price range, and the ST often go deeper.

Glad that your square steel hasn't come undone. But I would still brace the RELs of that design with wood blocks so that the vibration of the sub doesn't lead to the eventual failure of those connectors to the steel squares.

Thirsty

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Luckily mine showed up without any damage, although the inner box looked like it may have been dropped as one side on the bottom was wrinkled, I'm only a few hours from Montana so there shouldn't have been much handling involved.
I've got it set up and dialed in where it sounds good but am still experimenting a bit with fine tuning the crossover and level, I can honestly say it has made a tremendous improvement in the sound of my system.
It seems to pressurize the room well and goes plenty low enough for me. I am getting a strong 30hz signal without any loss of db but at 20hz am down quite a bit.
Since I only need around 8-10 feet of line cable I'm looking into building a shorter one, I don't like having all the extra cable coiled up, can't be good for the sound IMO.
I'll look into some means of bracing the brackets, I also thought they were metal, guess I didn't pay enough attention to it. Thinking about buying another one to run in stereo.

roscoeiii

I think that the problem isn't the metal, but the MDF that the bolts are screwed into, and the vibrations of the sub may loosen the bolts into that MDF.

jarcher

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Hey  Thirsty : if you haven't tried it yet, I strongly recommend the speakon to amp connector vs the RCA connectors - it really keeps pace w/ the main two channels.  In fact, per the manual, they suggest connecting those & the LFE RCA, the former for two channel music, the latter for home theater low frequency effects. 

One of the main reasons I bought the REL was to keep up w/ Magnepans & Totem Arro's - both very fast speakers.  The amp level connections, the sealed construction, + a decent amp seems to achieve that goal.  Only disappointment is that the cabinet fit & finish didn't seem as nice as the new t-series, but at much lower the overall cost can't complain too much.

Thirsty

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I am using the Speakon to amp connection but don't like having all that extra cable coiled up and stuffed under my rack when I only need about 10 feet total, looks like I could throw together a 10 foot cable for around $20 using a 4 pole Speakon connector and Canare 4311 cable. The included cable won't allow me to use my tube monoblocks because the ends of the cable aren't separated far enough apart.

I'll definitely brace the brackets now that I know that the bolts are pulling out of the wood, thinking that several small wood dowels between the bottom bracket and the bottom of the sub will suffice.

jarcher

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Should add to this a somewhat less but still sweet deal : 20% off REL T-Zero & T5 subwoofer (demos) @ Music Direct.  I bought a T5.

Vann's still running the T1 & T2 at 50% off.

J-Pak

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How is the T1 or T2 with Maggie 1.7? Do they integrate well and can the subs keep up with the panels?

jarcher

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I haven't tried them yet with 1.7's, but will within a week - I'm redoing things a bit in that space. Will report back later.  I have run them with Totem Arro's, which are very fast speakers, and they've both integrated and kept up speed pretty well.  I've usually not been a fan of subwoofer, but the T1 seems pretty decent (particularly at half off).

The speaker level connections I think really help with the integration. That and properly setting the crossover & volume level.  I keep the former down close to 50hz, and the later at maybe a quarter. Better power cables vs stock helps with bass definition and depth.  The Shunyata Venom entry level cable works well, as does the entry level gut wire.