The Best Subwoofers for Deep Bass for Home Theater and Music 2024

Let’s cut to the chase: If you have a Sonos Arc or Beam sound bar, should you add this subwoofer to your rig? Definitely. With that out of the way, let’s talk about why you should get one.

The Sonos Sub has been ranked number one in just about everyone's best subwoofers list out there at one time or another. It's also been a global best-selling sub for years. That should say a lot right there. But let's look deeper..

Looks aren’t everything in a speaker, but the brilliant design of the Sub (gotta love the name, too) is as functional as it is eye-popping. The hole in the middle hides two ports, inside of which are identical drivers, aimed to fire directly at each other and configured to cancel out excess vibration while enhancing response. The result is that the Sub has almost no rattle or vibration, even when it’s pumping EDM. Another feature of this unique design is that you can stand the Sub vertically or lay it on its side, with no change in performance. You can even slide it under a piece of furniture and still get full response.

Not only does it add serious theatrical thumps to your movie night, but when you’re grooving to music it’ll make your Sonos system sound even better, by letting the Sub handle the low end while the sound bar renders the mids and highs with even more clarity.

The Sub connects wirelessly with the push of its connect button, and your Sonos system automatically configures the Sub optimally for whatever you’re playing. You do have a little control via the Sonos app, which allows you to flip the phase of the Sub and reduce or increase its volume. While the Sub is ideal for the Arc and Beam sound bars, you can add the Sub to any Sonos system that’s running the S2 version; it won’t work with S1-equipped systems, however.

Let's face it: SVS rules the low end. SVS is one of the leading manufacturers of high-performance subwoofers, and we’ve been highly impressed by the advances and improvements they continue to make. The PB-1000 ported sub is ideal for medium-sized rooms, and it delivers powerful effects and warm bass at satisfying and wall-shaking levels. Going against conventional wisdom that says ported enclosures make for sloppy bass, the response is quick and tight, making the PB-1000 one of those ported subwoofers that excels at music as well as movies, thanks to advanced speaker design and pairing with the amazingly efficient and powerful amplifier. Making this subwoofer an impactful addition to your home theater system or home stereo system. And if you want to put the PB-1000 in its sealed mode and make its response even tighter, just close the ports with plugs that are available at no charge.

Not many subwoofers in this price range offer this much flexibility with configuration. Using the controls on the rear panel or with the app, you can adjust the level and crossover, and with the app, you have parametric EQ and adjustable low pass, phase, polarity, room gain compensation, and port tuning control for best alignment with speakers. Add the optional SoundPath Wireless Audio Adapter for wireless connectivity.

Watch our full video review of the SVS PB-1000 Pro.

This is one powerful little box. Just as its ported cousin the PB-1000 delivers tighter bass response than many other ported subwoofers, this sealed cabinet sub exceeds expectations by delivering bass well into the extended low end range below 20Hz, putting it in the running for any size home theater project. This sub’s exceptional performance is a result of SVS’s engineering achievements with their speaker and amplifier technology as well as their cabinet design and configuration. The long-throw 12" driver is designed to be highly efficient, dissipating heat quickly and responding instantly to content.

With the SVS BLE smartphone app, you have tremendous tuning control over the SB-1000, including level and crossover, parametric EQ, low pass filter, phase, polarity, room gain compensation, and port tuning control. If you have a system that has a dedicated Low Frequency Effects (LFE) channel, just connect it via the RCA LFE port. Add the optional SoundPath Wireless Audio Adapter to the SB-1000, and you can add the subwoofer to your rig, but skip the cable. Glossy black and white finishes are available, too, for an additional $100.

Watch our full video review of the SB-1000 Pro, here.

If you have a big room and love big bass, this just might be your subwoofer. The SB-3000 has a sealed enclosure, but with 800W of continuous power and with a driver designed to accurately transmit very low frequencies, it can deliver sounds well below the range of human hearing. It’s one of those rare beasts that excel at theatrical effects as well as music.

Besides having a beautifully engineered power amp and driver, the SB-3000 gives you an extraordinary amount of control over audio and tuning parameters that do more than just make it sound good: You can tweak it to sound good in any location in your room. With the SVS BLE app, you have control of crossover frequencies, parametric EQ with adjustable frequency and Q, polarity, and room gain compensation control with adjustable frequency and slope. The app and the SB-3000’s display give you visual confirmation of your adjustments.

For a sub with this much power and output, it is remarkably compact. And with a choice of two finishes, you won’t mind having it on display with the rest of your furniture.

Also check out our comparison review of the comparison review of the SVS PB3000 vs. SB3000.

At the popular 12” woofer size, the Klipsch RP1200SW weighs in at $999. With the increased depth – an inch more than the RP1000SW in fact – its cabinet is nearly 30% larger than the SPL120. Again, this is a smaller front face with a depth increase, helping to make up cabinet volume and pack in all the tech.

Compared to the Klipsch SPL120, the Reference Premiere 1200 features a 33% increase in RMS power, translating to a 25% improvement at peaks. As a result, RP1200SW plays louder than the SPL120 (121dB compared to 118dB) and it also punches lower (17Hz versus 24Hz).

If the price point didn’t already give it away, those specs should: Klipsch is setting up the 12” RP1200SW to compete against the award-winning 13” SVS SB3000. Curiously, Klipsch didn’t chart out any direct comparison, here, but at a minimum, the Klipsch should be worth a look if you’re pairing your sub with Klipsch speakers. If you want a more detailed look at the entire lineup of Klipsch Reference Premiere subs, check out Chris' full review.

This subwoofer is almost in a category of its own. Remember the box your basketball or volleyball came in? It’s about that size, but it can put out 800W of continuous power. With that much bass output, how does SVS keep the 3000 Micro from bouncing downcourt and doing a layup? By brilliantly engineering two perfectly tuned 8" drivers to fire in opposite directions, canceling out all vibrations and unwanted resonance. That, and building a reinforced cabinet that feels as though it’ll withstand being run over by a Mack truck.

Though the sealed cabinet is unbelievably compact, the 3000 Micro can put out sound effects and kick drums at chest-thumping levels. The amp is virtually the same as the one in the SVS subwoofers that cost nearly $20k, and the quality of the sound will convince you of the amp’s lineage.

It’s totally cool-looking, too. The steel grilles are attractive and functional, and whether in black piano gloss or white gloss, the 3000 Micro will attract the eye as much as it delights the ear. Plus, you can add the wireless option and avoid the unsightly cable run.

Watch our full video review of the SVS 3000 Micro sub.

Sonos’ new Sub Mini fills a gap we’ve all been waiting for: an affordable subwoofer for smaller audio systems. With an entry level price point, it’s an easy conversation to talk about adding the Sub Mini to one of your systems. The Sub Mini comes in the traditional Sonos colors of white and black and weighs less than half of the Sub (Gen 3). Its smaller size makes it very easy to tuck away in your room, but its slick design isn’t something you’ll need to hide.

The Sub Mini is a sealed sub, which may not drop as low but can produce more accurate bass response. Sonos created dual, custom woofers to generate the full-toned low frequencies and advanced processing that further enhances the bass response. Both woofers are powered by class-D digital amplifiers and face inward to create a force-canceling effect, which combined with its sealed cabinet neutralizes distortion and enhances bass response. How enhanced is that bass response? Well, it can drop down to 25Hz.

Adding a subwoofer to your Sonos system will allow your amplified Sonos speakers to focus on the high-frequency and mid-range audio, and the heavy lifting of the low-end will be done by the subwoofer. Sub Mini is best for small to medium-sized rooms and is recommended for Beam, Ray, Era 100, Era 300, and Amp (with bookshelf speakers) when you want the bass to be present. Unfortunately, only one Sub Mini can be used with a Sonos system at this time.

We’ve waited a long time to have an affordable alternative to the Sonos Sub. With the addition of the Sub Mini to the Sonos catalog, you now have the opportunity to go from a $1,100 full surround system all the way to a premium Dolby Atmos system for almost $3,500 without having to run a single speaker wire. Make sure to watch Brian's video review on the Sub Mini to hear his full thoughts and testing notes to learn more!

Atop the Klipsch Reference Premiere subwoofer line is the 16” RP1600SW at $1,799. The flagship sub occupies 168L of space (40% more than the RP1400), supported by 27.35” of depth. Extra size and 800W RMS (1600W peak) help the RP1600SW deliver 126dB of output and plummet to 15Hz, both the best Klipsch offers with this line. Read Chris' review if you want to learn more about the rest of the Klipsch Reference Premiere subwoofers.

In terms of output at lower frequencies, the RP1600 plays louder than the RP1400 when you get below about 18Hz – it’s a subwoofer in the truest sense, delivering visceral bass that you feel, not hear. The RP1400 maintains a tiny edge in output between about 18Hz and 50Hz, but it’s not enough to dissuade a bass-head from wanting the better performance at the very bottom.

Klipsch is taking aim at SVS’s SB16 Ultra, with the stats to back it up. The RP1600SW just barely reaches lower, and it comes in $500 below the price of the SVS. Granted, the Klipsch is a ported sub, and even considering the SB16 Ultra’s grille, the Klipsch has more depth.