RSL Speedwoofer 10S Subwoofer Review

The folks at RSL were pretty frank about their goals when they developed the Speedwoofer 10S subwoofer, available for only $399 with free shipping.  They looked to the competition, starting with the best subwoofers in the $500 range and “didn't stop building until we had one that substantially outperformed the rest.” The result is a serious contender for being the best value sub available today.

What our YouTube video review below before reading on to see the RSL 10S in action in our own listening room.

 RSL Speedwoofer 10S Subwoofer Review

It's What's Inside That Counts

The Speedwoofer 10S subwoofer has all the DNA of a high-performance subwoofer including a cast-basket 10” driver, well-braced cabinet, and an appropriately beefy 350 watt amplifier.  Additional functional standouts include a full-compliment of crossover and phase controls, and inputs/outputs including speaker-level.  There’s even a wireless audio receiver built-in for cable and clutter-free connection with the optional $50 wireless sender.  From a purely aesthetic standpoint, the Speedwoofer 10S is a compact cube measuring about 16 inches, finished in a basic black vinyl with square edges.  The face does add a little gloss black around the slotted port and some curves in the removable grill, but looks aren’t going to be what helps this subwoofer stand out from the pack.

No, where the Speedwoofer 10S pulls away from the competition is in the price to performance ratio.  At a hair under $400, the Speedwoofer 10S offers a solid foundation for music or movies that, as you can see from the measurements below (provided by Brent Butterworth, brentbutterworth.com), easily meet the Bassaholic Medium rating, and fall just shy of our Large rating.

RSL Speedwoofer 10S CEA 2010 Measurements 2 meter, RMS 

(courtesy of Brent Butterworth, brentbutterworth.com)

RSL Speedwoofer 10S with Optional Wireless Transmitter

What this means is that the Speedwoofer 10S is an easy recommendation for folks looking to put together a value system with components that won’t be easily outgrown.  In fact, the low price of the Speedwoofer 10S makes one of our favorite audio upgrades, multiple subwoofers, even more attainable.  We tested the Speedwoofer 10S in both a single and dual-sub configuration.  Our benchmark single sub is a high-value model that retails for about $800.  If pressed to decide between a single $800 subwoofer, or two $400 RSL Speedwoofer 10S, we’d lean towards the multiple RSL option.  Heck, at this price, you could buy four, and thanks to the wireless capabilities and analog inputs/output, have a lot of fun stacking or splashing these subs in your rooms corners or wall midpoints to really smooth out multi-seat bass response and yield tons of dynamic headroom.

Two RSL Speedwoofer 10S stacked for +6dB of gain in a small footprint.

RSL Speedwoofer 10S Subwoofer Sound Quality Tests

My listening took place in a large open room.  The majority of my listening consisted of two Speedwoofer 10S running in tandem, one placed in each front corner.  Compared to a single subwoofer, this provided slightly more dynamic headroom and, of course, better seat-to-seat bass consistency.  That said, the overall sound character of a single sub remained similar to my notes for dual sub listening.

For movie listening, I fired up the final installment of the Hunger Games series, Mockingjay Part 2.  There’s nothing like a futuristic war movie to offer up some punchy, impactful bass thanks to explosions big and small.  I found the Speedwoofer 10S to provide a tactile experience, with dynamic bass that you can feel in your chest.  It’s that “feel” that imparts realism in a movie going experience, and RSL delivers.  While the Speedwoofer 10S may not have the deepest rated extension with a -3dB point at 24Hz, the low-end reproduction is better than expected at this price point, and the quality and quantity of the midbass is superb.

 The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2 Official Trailer – “We March Together”

My music listening started with one of my favorites, “Be Brave” by My Brightest Diamond.  I choose this track because a solid kick drum and tom beat allow me to hear how accurately subwoofers reproduce organic sounds.  Subwoofers that value big dynamics at the expense of articulation will reproduce a dull “thump” instead of a clean, fast, “real” sounding instrument.  The Speedwoofer 10S was properly weighty with the aforementioned impact that you can feel, but also had a nice tight decay and could handle more subtle bass microdynamics.  In short, it sounded “real.”

 My Brightest Diamond - ALL THINGS WILL UNWIND: Be Brave

Still, there’s nothing quite as exciting as a big, in your face, bass line, which is why I went through several spins of Bjork’s “Hyperballad.”  No only does this track feature a huge, powerful chorus, but there’s a steady, low 3-note bass pattern that is just this side of a sine wave torture test for subwoofers.  Thanks to the use of multiple subs, no one frequency rang noticeably louder than another, either at the main listening positions or at the secondary positions.  Having a compact and capable, yet affordable sub like the RSL Speedwoofer 10S dramatically drops the entry price for multiple subwoofers setups allowing more audioholics to get accurate, even sound in every position.

 Björk - Hyperballad

RSL Speedwoofer 10S Subwoofer Conclusion

We’ll cut right to the point: there’s very little not to like about the RSL Speedwoofer 10S.  Sure, it could be little more finely finished and dig just a touch deeper, but both of those are tall asks for a $400 sub that, in addition to being full featured to the point of including a built-in wireless receiver, offers some of the best performance we’ve heard at this price point.  The RSL is not only a nearly automatic recommendation for audioholics on a budget, but even if you can afford more expensive subs, you should probably consider buying multiple Speedwoofer 10S to stack and spread around your room to your heart’s content.  With a 30 day no-risk trial and free shipping, there’s never been a better time to experiment whatever your setup needs might be.

 RSL Speedwoofer 10S Subwoofer Review

The Score Card

The scoring below is based on each piece of equipment doing the duty it is designed for. The numbers are weighed heavily with respect to the individual cost of each unit, thus giving a rating roughly equal to:

Performance × Price Factor/Value = Rating

Audioholics.com note: The ratings indicated below are based on subjective listening and objective testing of the product in question. The rating scale is based on performance/value ratio. If you notice better performing products in future reviews that have lower numbers in certain areas, be aware that the value factor is most likely the culprit. Other Audioholics reviewers may rate products solely based on performance, and each reviewer has his/her own system for ratings.

Audioholics Rating Scale

• — Excellent
• — Very Good
• — Good
• — Fair
• — Poor

Metric	Rating
Bass Extension
Bass Accuracy
Build Quality
EQ System
Fit and Finish
Ergonomics & Usability
Features
Performance
Value