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expired Posted by iconian | Staff • Mar 21, 2025
expired Posted by iconian | Staff • Mar 21, 2025

12" 800W Klipsch RP-1200SW Reference Premiere High Excursion Subwoofer

+ Free Shipping

$529

$999

47% off
Adorama
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Deal Details
Adorama has 12" 800W Klipsch RP-1200SW Reference Premiere High Excursion Subwoofer for $529. Shipping is free.

Thanks to Deal Editor iconian for finding this deal.

Key Features:
  • 12" Spun Copper Cerametallic Woofer
  • 800W Peak Dynamic Power / 400W RMS
  • Class-D Amplifier
  • 16.5 to 138 Hz Frequency Response
  • Aerofoil Slot Front-Firing Port
  • Wireless Capable with Optional WA-2 Kit
  • 1 x RCA/LFE Input
  • Low-Pass Crossover
  • Variable Phase Control
  • Scratch-Resistant Vinyl Finish over MDF

Editor's Notes

Written by citan359 | Staff

Original Post

Written by iconian | Staff
Community Notes
About the Poster
Deal Details
Community Notes
About the Poster
Adorama has 12" 800W Klipsch RP-1200SW Reference Premiere High Excursion Subwoofer for $529. Shipping is free.

Thanks to Deal Editor iconian for finding this deal.

Key Features:
  • 12" Spun Copper Cerametallic Woofer
  • 800W Peak Dynamic Power / 400W RMS
  • Class-D Amplifier
  • 16.5 to 138 Hz Frequency Response
  • Aerofoil Slot Front-Firing Port
  • Wireless Capable with Optional WA-2 Kit
  • 1 x RCA/LFE Input
  • Low-Pass Crossover
  • Variable Phase Control
  • Scratch-Resistant Vinyl Finish over MDF

Editor's Notes

Written by citan359 | Staff

Original Post

Written by iconian | Staff

Community Voting

Deal Score
+18
Good Deal
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Price Intelligence

Model: Decorative High-Excursion Subwoofer

Deal History 

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Sort: Lowest to Highest | Last Updated 5/15/2025, 12:08 AM
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26 Comments

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Pro
Mar 26, 2025
11,101 Posts
Joined Jul 2010
Mar 26, 2025
supermanrob
Pro
Mar 26, 2025
11,101 Posts
Quote from MostBased :
2 of these will be better than 1 RP1400. 2 RP1400s would be glorious (what I have in my 14x16 theater)

With only 1 sub, you will have dead zones where some parts of the room have weak sound from the sub. having 2 subs is a lot more forgiving with placement, and you won't have to do that "sub crawl" to get good sound in every listening position.

that is why, generally speaking, 2 smaller subs outperform 1 larger sub.

I would add some clarity with this.

Yes finding the best placement is crucial for optimal performance and those "dead zones" may or may not land on your seating position(s).

You still need to consider optimal placement when adding a 2nd sub which makes it a challenge.
For one, you can actually make those "dead zones" worse at your seating position(s).

These have a big footprint so placement can be quite limited.
Last edited by supermanrob March 26, 2025 at 05:14 AM.
Mar 26, 2025
7 Posts
Joined Jan 2019
Mar 26, 2025
Sandeep505
Mar 26, 2025
7 Posts
I would rather add extra money and buy an SVS sub.
1
Pro
Mar 26, 2025
6,338 Posts
Joined Sep 2014
Mar 26, 2025
MostBased
Pro
Mar 26, 2025
6,338 Posts
Quote from supermanrob :
I would add some clarity with this.

Yes finding the best placement is crucial for optimal performance and those "dead zones" may or may not land on your seating position(s).

You still need to consider optimal placement when adding a 2nd sub which makes it a challenge.
For one, you can actually make those "dead zones" worse at your seating position(s).

These have a big footprint so placement can be quite limited.

That hasn't been my experience. I simply put them both in front, nice and symmetrical, and the entire room feels like one giant subwoofer. It's glorious! Couldn't find a dead zone if I tried.

Chatgpt explains it well:

Using two subwoofers instead of one large subwoofer in a home theater has several advantages, particularly in terms of bass distribution, room acoustics, and overall sound quality. Here's why:

1. More Even Bass Distribution

A single subwoofer can create uneven bass, with some areas booming while others have weak bass due to room modes (standing waves).

Two subwoofers help to even out bass response across the room, reducing peaks and nulls caused by reflections.

2. Fewer Dead Spots (Nulls)

With a single sub, certain seating positions may experience bass dropouts due to wave cancellation.

Dual subs can fill in these gaps, ensuring consistent bass no matter where you sit.

3. Increased Output Without Overworking One Sub

Instead of overloading a single subwoofer, two subs share the workload, reducing distortion and allowing for cleaner, deeper bass at higher volumes.

4. Better Immersion & Impact

Having two subs creates a more immersive soundstage, especially for Dolby Atmos and surround sound setups.

Explosions, deep rumbles, and low-frequency effects feel more realistic and powerful.

5. Placement Flexibility for Best Performance

With two subs, you can experiment with placement (e.g., front/back, diagonal corners, or mid-wall) to find the best possible bass response.

A single sub often forces compromises based on room limitations.

6. Reduced Localization (Bass Feels More Natural)

If a single sub is too directional, you may "hear" where the bass is coming from, making it less immersive.

Two subs balance the low frequencies across the room, making bass feel like it's surrounding you, rather than coming from one spot.

7. A Large Sub Can Be Overkill or Harder to Integrate

A single massive subwoofer may be difficult to properly place in a room without overwhelming the sound mix.

Two smaller, high-quality subs can match or exceed the performance of one big sub while offering more control over room acoustics.

Conclusion: More Subwoofers = Better Bass
Last edited by MostBased March 26, 2025 at 06:52 AM.
4
Mar 26, 2025
2,299 Posts
Joined Jul 2017
Mar 26, 2025
fintlewoodlewix
Mar 26, 2025
2,299 Posts
There is a place in hell for those who post AI summaries into conversations.

The 1200 is great. Get two if you're insane. One if you're just abnormal.
Pro
Mar 26, 2025
11,101 Posts
Joined Jul 2010
Mar 26, 2025
supermanrob
Pro
Mar 26, 2025
11,101 Posts
Quote from MostBased :
That hasn't been my experience. I simply put them both in front, nice and symmetrical, and the entire room feels like one giant subwoofer. It's glorious! Couldn't find a dead zone if I tried.

Chatgpt explains it well:

Using two subwoofers instead of one large subwoofer in a home theater has several advantages, particularly in terms of bass distribution, room acoustics, and overall sound quality. Here's why:

1. More Even Bass Distribution

A single subwoofer can create uneven bass, with some areas booming while others have weak bass due to room modes (standing waves).

Two subwoofers help to even out bass response across the room, reducing peaks and nulls caused by reflections.

2. Fewer Dead Spots (Nulls)

With a single sub, certain seating positions may experience bass dropouts due to wave cancellation.

Dual subs can fill in these gaps, ensuring consistent bass no matter where you sit.

3. Increased Output Without Overworking One Sub

Instead of overloading a single subwoofer, two subs share the workload, reducing distortion and allowing for cleaner, deeper bass at higher volumes.

4. Better Immersion & Impact

Having two subs creates a more immersive soundstage, especially for Dolby Atmos and surround sound setups.

Explosions, deep rumbles, and low-frequency effects feel more realistic and powerful.

5. Placement Flexibility for Best Performance

With two subs, you can experiment with placement (e.g., front/back, diagonal corners, or mid-wall) to find the best possible bass response.

A single sub often forces compromises based on room limitations.

6. Reduced Localization (Bass Feels More Natural)

If a single sub is too directional, you may "hear" where the bass is coming from, making it less immersive.

Two subs balance the low frequencies across the room, making bass feel like it's surrounding you, rather than coming from one spot.

7. A Large Sub Can Be Overkill or Harder to Integrate

A single massive subwoofer may be difficult to properly place in a room without overwhelming the sound mix.

Two smaller, high-quality subs can match or exceed the performance of one big sub while offering more control over room acoustics.

Conclusion: More Subwoofers = Better Bass

Well actually the conclusion is you're reading that ChatGPT explanation the way you choose.

IT(ChatGPT) often says "can" and IT even pointed out "With two subs, you can experiment with placement (e.g., front/back, diagonal corners, or mid-wall) to find the best possible bass response"!

Even you called for doing a "sub crawl" and "forgiving with placement".

You must understand the reason, that doesn't automatically disappear adding another sub, that's why your ChatGPT called for you to "experiment"!

EVERY environment and person is different.
A 2nd sub "CAN" be helpful but doesn't necessarily mean it's always necessary imo.
Last edited by supermanrob March 26, 2025 at 10:26 AM.
Mar 26, 2025
12 Posts
Joined Jan 2017
Mar 26, 2025
privateshao
Mar 26, 2025
12 Posts
Klipsch has three series of subwoofers. The cheapest one has a circular port at the back. This type of subwoofer produces decent bass, but the sound isn't very tight or clear. It's great for movies, but not ideal for music, as the bass tends to linger and feel like it has a delay function, with some lingering reverberation even after the sound ends. The second one is a bit more expensive, with a flat port at the bottom front. The bass is much clearer and tighter, making it great for music, though it works well for movies too. However, if you prefer the bass to rumble constantly, the cheaper one might be better. The more expensive one delivers very punchy and explosive bass. The third one, which was released about two years ago, is said to perform even better. It's longer in size.
Mar 26, 2025
1,329 Posts
Joined Oct 2020
Mar 26, 2025
CalmMitten9192
Mar 26, 2025
1,329 Posts
Quote from privateshao :
Klipsch has three series of subwoofers. The cheapest one has a circular port at the back. This type of subwoofer produces decent bass, but the sound isn't very tight or clear. It's great for movies, but not ideal for music, as the bass tends to linger and feel like it has a delay function, with some lingering reverberation even after the sound ends. The second one is a bit more expensive, with a flat port at the bottom front. The bass is much clearer and tighter, making it great for music, though it works well for movies too. However, if you prefer the bass to rumble constantly, the cheaper one might be better. The more expensive one delivers very punchy and explosive bass. The third one, which was released about two years ago, is said to perform even better. It's longer in size.
Only consider the RP ones (if at all) is all you really need to know. Same for their speakers. They make a lot of crap but RP is generally ok.

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Mar 26, 2025
372 Posts
Joined Dec 2007
Mar 26, 2025
burgerbob
Mar 26, 2025
372 Posts
Quote from MostBased :
That hasn't been my experience. I simply put them both in front, nice and symmetrical, and the entire room feels like one giant subwoofer. It's glorious! Couldn't find a dead zone if I tried.

Chatgpt explains it well:
[...]
Conclusion: More Subwoofers = Better Bass
Then I suppose we should listen to chatgpt and buy half a dozen $100 subwoofers since that will sound best
Mar 27, 2025
1 Posts
Joined Mar 2018
Mar 27, 2025
jasonhong1998
Mar 27, 2025
1 Posts
Quote from AnonYmous129 :
Is the 1200 RP line much better than the 120swi previously posted a few weeks ago? It certainly weighs twice as much but isn't the frequencies range near the same on both units. I also wouldn't drive these to anywhere near max so is the 800W unnecessary as well?
R-120swi was only $150 for reference was a Costco deal. Easy return policy.
Just wondering if it was be substantial upgrade and worth it.

Easy way to answer this is "Yes". Frequency isn't everything. The quality of a bass makes a big difference and you will understand when you hear both of them side by side.
Mar 28, 2025
2,299 Posts
Joined Jul 2017
Mar 28, 2025
fintlewoodlewix
Mar 28, 2025
2,299 Posts
Quote from privateshao :
Klipsch has three series of subwoofers. The cheapest one has a circular port at the back. This type of subwoofer produces decent bass, but the sound isn't very tight or clear. It's great for movies, but not ideal for music, as the bass tends to linger and feel like it has a delay function, with some lingering reverberation even after the sound ends. The second one is a bit more expensive, with a flat port at the bottom front. The bass is much clearer and tighter, making it great for music, though it works well for movies too. However, if you prefer the bass to rumble constantly, the cheaper one might be better. The more expensive one delivers very punchy and explosive bass. The third one, which was released about two years ago, is said to perform even better. It's longer in size.
You have a rich fantasy life based on advertising and what you read on forums. Reality, however, begs to differ.
Quote from CalmMitten9192 :
Only consider the RP ones (if at all) is all you really need to know. Same for their speakers. They make a lot of crap but RP is generally ok.
RP subs are great. RP other stuff is mostly miss. Their nines are excellent.
Quote from burgerbob :
Then I suppose we should listen to chatgpt and buy half a dozen $100 subwoofers since that will sound best
The swarm idea has been done, with some great success too. However, controlling several subs is a lot of extra engineering. Two are hard enough. Also, if the sub cannot make meaningful sound at a low enough frequency, 12 of them still won't do the job. 12 10" subs aren't going to give you infrasonic performance.

Also, if you have a sub that does 85 db at 20 hz, two will do 88 db, 4 will do 91 db, 8 will do 94 db, and 16 will do 97 db. Meanwhile, you can easily go buy a single sub that does 97 db or more at 20 hz. Better to get 2 or 4 bigger but not too big subs, if you want a swarm's smoothness.
Quote from jasonhong1998 :
Easy way to answer this is "Yes". Frequency isn't everything. The quality of a bass makes a big difference and you will understand when you hear both of them side by side.
Quality is measured through the CEA-2010 tests and a few other ways. How low can it go with a certain amount of distortion. Then there's port chuffing, which is usually only an issue when driving near maximum volume. Then there's frequency response, like many subs are peaky instead of flat. SVS and this Klipsch are quite flat, thanks to DSP control. RSL and others are often hump-shaped in response, which sucks. All the stuff about speed and such is essentially make-believe. Given two subs with the same parts, one ported and one not, the ported will do better at any volume level the sealed can do, as it won't be working nearly as hard. Then the ported will keep going to much higher volumes, all for the cost of a larger box. The only reason to get a sealed sub is if you have space concerns.
1

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