Home Theater Review

It should come as no surprise that Klipsch, a company famous for its in-your-face, dynamic sound, offers a wide variety of subwoofers. Seventeen, to be exact. One of its more affordable offerings, the SW-350 ($349.99/MSRP) utilizes an 8-inch fiber-composite, down-firing woofer, driven by a 150-watt Class D digital amplifier, fitted in a rear-ported enclosure. The SW-350 provides both high-level inputs (via gold-plated, five-way binding posts) and low-level inputs (via stereo RCA jacks, one of which can be used for an LFE signal), but no high-pass crossover outputs. The SW-350 provides a low-pass crossover control from 40Hz to 150Hz (with a convenient bypass control), a volume control, and a phase control. So those with small speakers or a need to match a subwoofer to the system's speakers will have to use the processor's crossover, an external crossover, or simply use the SW-350's controls to fine-tune the bass response to the system's other speakers.

Measuring 15.5 inches high by 12.5 inches wide by 17 inches deep and weighing in at 27 pounds, the SW-350 is compact and solid. The SW-350 employs nice claw-style feet which help with moving the unit around, and is finished in a smooth black vinyl. The quality of construction and parts is of good quality.
Additional Resources

• Learn about other subwoofers at HomeTheaterReview.com
• Discuss subwoofers at HomeTheaterSpot.com
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Sound
The SW-350 sounded good with movies and games. It was tight, relatively deep, and full of power. As with the SW-450, the SW-350 sounded bigger than its size. On music material, the SW-350 offered enough speed to nicely complement a lot of different material without getting in the way. While it could have used some more refinement overall, the SW-350 had a musical quality with smaller main speakers that created some pretty good presentations overall. The SW-350 matches very well with micro-type satellite systems, keeping things tight and controlled but also kicking some butt when required. The SW-350 sounded better with rock and electronic tracks than with acoustic, classical and jazz ones. The SW-350's lack of a high-pass crossover and inclusion of a low-pass crossover bypass could be a factor in systems lacking bass adjustment control, while the latter could help bass performance in some systems by eliminating a needless crossover. It should also be noted that the SW-350 provides a phase control. Of course, it all depends on the user demands, system, material, etc.