You don't say how much you want to spend. The Sunfire subs use a class D amp which is great for loud, boomy, SLOPPY bass - which works fine for movies. When I had it in my home, I tried to listen to some jazz music with string bass and couldn't stand it. Any of the others mentioned, especialy M&K, Bag End, REL, RBH are great for both movies and MUSIC because of their tight accurate bass reproduction. I have listened to many and chose the M&K MX5000THX because I found it very, very difficult to distort at any volume. Dual 12", 750 watts, $2700. Pricey but excellent.

On the other hand, If your music preferences are Nelly, DMX or any other RAP, the Sunfire should BOOM just fine.

I think Matt either had his Sunfire set up wrong (They are hard to set up and contrary to belief should not be in a corner but farther in along the wall) or is just biased. The class D amp doesn't mean a thing if it is made right and the damping factor is high enough which it is. Generally the Sunfire along with many other subs which go down very low will sound boomy and sloppy if put in a corner. Another reason is people do not use the feet or spikes properly and the sub actually moves around which is a no-no. When set up properly the Sunfire Signature will run with the best of them. I have a friend who plays bass and he loves his.

I have had two different models of M&K and I cannot begin to speak highly enough about them. Very tight and musical, but they also do some serious crunching on movies. I have heard many others, including some very nice ones, but for my coins, it's M&K every time. You can certainly spend less but you will get a lesser sub. Whatever you do, spend some time setting it up properly before you make a decision. Don't just stick it in a corner and expect it to be "right. Subs take some tweaking. Actually a few feet of mounting distance can make a world of difference.

I can comment on two I have experienced directly: Energy 8" (100 W) and Klipsch Synergy 12" (440 W). Of course, there is a huge difference in size and power. But, for $700 Cdn (or something around there), the notable difference to the ear is an incredible richness and fullness at the low end of everything, both in music and DVDs. Whereas the Energy was great with movies (all things--like size-- in perspective), it was rather boomy and bassy with music.

The Klipsch is just pure as the driven snow with all sources. There is no hint of boominess. The low-wnd passages are truly rumbles and house-shakers. But I can't compare it to any other brand. It is truly phenomenal to me, though.

I should add that I set a 22 Hz test tone through the sub the other day, and cranked it all the way up to 130 W. While the sound was so low as to be nearly inaudible, the whole darn foundation of the house rattled; the wood in the wall unit was actually creaking. ... Mike

If you want a really smooth, clean bass response, I'd check out NHT. They make some really great subs. They don't go as low as say a Velodyne or M&K, but they are defiantly more musical!!

Which, IMHO, make a great difference.

(not the same matt as above)