As any fella worth his salt knows, when it comes to listening pleasure it's all about the bass. So welcome into your hearts the Pro 50. This beautiful black cube hooks up to any standard hi-fi to beef up your tunes, your DVDs and even your games console. But it's not just about decibels; this tiny wonder adds depth to your "sounds" you never knew were missing.
Just don't expect the neighbours and Environmental Health to agree with you.

The subwoofer awards category so very nearly saw the perfect “plucky newcomer beats established name” story beloved of sports pages and Hollywood scripts. MJ Acoustics, a new company based in Wisbech, Cambridgeshire, has blasted on to the sub-woofer scene with a range of bass boxes that have each pulled in favourable reviews in the past year. The most impressive challenger to REL’s subwoofer supremacy is the highly affordable Pro 50.

This is a black satin finished miniature sub that nevertheless packs in a 20cm long-throw driver and a 50w MOSFET amp designed for good power reserves even at high levels.

And it sounds great: whether with the floorshaking basslines of dance music, the slam of rock or an orchestral swell, when correctly set-up, the Pro 50 provides a subtle underpinning even of big loudspeakers.

The bass it delivers is well extended and tightly controlled with both music and movies, giving a subjective impression of greater clarity across the frequency range, the added low-end complemented by better midband focus. It’s truly thrilling stuff.

Another plus is that the Pro 50 never sounds like it’s doing its thing independently of the other speakers. Indeed, the joy of this sub is its ability to blend in, sonically and visually - there are even real-wood veneer versions (£379) to suit your decor.

The Pro 50 doesn’t quite do enough to win the ultimate Product of the Year accolade, but has come from nowhere to win a highly justified Best Buy.

So no Hollywood happy ending for MJ Acoustics this year, but who knows what could happen in 2003’s subwoofer Awards category...

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MJ Acoustics Pro 50 - £299 - BIG SOUND SMALL SPACE.
June 2002

Due to the nature of the market and the swift shift to AV, there are now more sub-woofers around that you could shake a dirty stick at but from my experience there are only a few brands whose products really cut the mustard in this field. Specialists such as M&K. Velodyne and, of course, REL produce products that stand out from the crowd. Now there’s another contender for the King of Bass crown. New boys MJ Acoustics have recently launched a range of subs that promise to give the big boys a run for their money.

At £299 the Pro 50 is a serious bit of kit for the money. A 50w DC-coupled MOSFET amp is the muscle behind the 8” long throw woofer found in the sensibly proportioned chasis and a manageable weight of 8kilos - there’s no hope (or fear) of doubling it up as a dining table. Connection, ala REL, is vis a Neutrik Speakon and a set of unbalanced phono sockets. The crossover is between40-240Hz in variable increments and there is a phase control adjustable between 0 - 180 degrees, as well a gain control for each type of input. Black finish is standard but there are attractive real wood veneer options available.

Sound wise it’s a fine performer with both music, and especially music. It has real depth and perspective and when used with an ambient acoustic recording, adds space and clarity to the midrange, really demonstrating its quality. For out and out clout, the sub’s dimensions belie its powerful and taut sound. Underworld’s pumping bass line in “Push, Upstairs” had the Pro 50 delivering some really fast and powerful low frequencies, hitherto the sole traits of the likes of REL. Rarely do you get this quality of bass from such humble dimensions, and if this is anything to go by the larger models will be crackers.

With a hoard of subwoofers out there hardly worth the effort I think the Pro 50 could well be responsible for a handout of P45’s.

Verdict -

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MJ Acoustics Pro 50.
Group Test - winner of the "Best Mid-range subwoofers money can buy"
Issue 11 - April 2002

MJ ACOUSTICS. SOUNDS LIKE AN EIGHTIES COP SHOW, BUT THIS IS A 21ST CENTURTY PERFORMANCE.

MJ Acoustics is relatively new to the battleground of growling subwoofers, but early indications suggest it may make quite an impact. With a deliberately competitive (and highly attractive) price of £299, the Pro 50 is the cheapest sub from the company's continually evolving collection, but this is no hindrance to the quality of its performance.

The smooth veneered sub is instantly attractive and we were drawn in by its charm well before the film had even started. If beauty can also be held in the ear of the beholder, then the Pro 50 may just be love at first sight.

With the sound of clashing metal ringing in our ears, the arrows thudded home with a convincing impact we felt in our feet as much as the gladiator's chest. The mid-range rumblings certainly grabbed hold of our imagination, but when we wound things up even further, the down-firing Pro 50 took to the challenge like Russell Crowe with a shotgun. With a bass extension hitting an impressively low 15Hz, the sub hit out with a smooth, dynamic clarity. The speakers suffered slightly as a result, but some quick 'fine-tuning' soon put each effect back in its righful place.

The Pro 50 shakes, rattles and rolls like a young Elvis with a pneumatic drill, and if it can maintain such high standards, MJ Acoustics' future looks so bright they'd better wear shades.

FINAL VERDICT
Ease of use: *****
Looks:          *****
Features:        ****
Sound:           ****
Value:          *****

Overall:    ***** - Best Buy.

Sits on the shelf with many £500+ models. Sits by itself for under £300.

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"Editors choice"
and
" Product review of the year"
2001

Gramophone - January 2002.

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MJ Acoustics PRO 50 Compact subwoofer proves highly addictive.
December edition 2001.

A very room-friendly subwoofer
from a new British name gets
James Vesey's attention, but
proves rather moreish

It's probable you've never considered buying a subwoofer, and for a number of reasons. If you've ever attended an audio show where home cinema systems are being demonstrated, you'll have heard large subwoofers driving the walls of the room with every footfall and thought, 'No, I think not...', while a look at most of devices designed to add bass extension would have you wondering how you could ever accommodate them in a normal domestic environment.

With a very few exceptions, most subwoofers are too large, too ugly and usually played too loud -enough to put off most music enthusiasts! Indeed, to judge from many people I've spoken to, the feeling is that a subwoofer only exists to provide the crunch with action films on DVD - where the 'low frequency effects' channel is the 'point one' in the Dolby Digital 5.1 specification. It's something of an uphill struggle to convince them that the addition of such a unit can benefit music, too, and not mean the whole room shaking all the time.

I took a little persuading myself at first, but since then have been using subwoofers in my relatively small home listening room. I got my first one way before I made the move into surround sound.

So what exactly is a subwoofer? Well, for most users the most useful kind is an active version, which comprises a dedicated cabinet housing one or more bass drive units an amplifier, and the controls needed to integrate the system with existing speakers. Connection can be via a high level input, fed from the speaker terminals of an amplifier in parallel with the main speakers, or on a low-level input should the amplifier have preamplifier outputs or in the case of an AV amplifier, subwoofer output terminal.

This connection is in stereo or mono, the majority of subwoofers offering both options, while controls usually extend to gain, crossover frequency (ie the upper limit at which the subwoofer is 'rolled off') and usually a phase adjustment. With these and some careful positioning it's possible to set up the subwoofer so that it disappears; in the sonic sense, just seeming to give additional bass extension from your speakers.

Trouble is, few subwoofers can be made to disappear in the visual sense: though there are exceptions, such as the REL Q150E, most are fairly bulky black finished boxes the size of a small coffee-table, and take up valuable floorspace. The Pro 50, from new British company MJ Acoustics, aims to change all that; a diminutive near-cube around a foot on each side (sorry, but I still think in 'old money'), making it even smaller than the REL, it really can be hidden away. Yet its combination of a single 20cm driver in a sealed box with an onboard 50W power amplifier allows it to give convincing bass extension down to 15Hz in-room. And it's highly controllable too, having all the adjustments I mentioned above plus a very clear user manual to help you set it up.

MJ Acoustics is a new company founded by partners John Jefferis and Phill Mason, who between them have experience in acoustic engineering, engineering and cabinet-making along with backgrounds as professional musicians. The Pro 50 is the baby of the range, with larger models going up to the Pro 1650 which has twin 25cm drivers and 500W amplifier and is designed to be used for music as well as in home cinema applications. It's a rugged little box, made from 18mm MDF and sits on short feet designed to allow the bass to vent out.

Performance
I was able test the Pro 50 with both music in stereo and in home cinema usage coupling the unit to the preout sockets of NAD C370 amplifier as well as the subwoofer out of my TAG McLaren OVER Processor, and have to report that it's highly effective in both applications. With the recently released Philips DVD box set of the centenary Ring from Bayreuth (reviewed last month - a recording reprocessed into 5.1 channel Dolby Digital - the ability of the unit to appear to extend the bass of my Monitor Audio speakers was impressive, adding weight and dynamics to the orchestra. And weight and dynamics do tend to come in handy for Wagner!

Even more striking however was how much the subwoofer improved music in stereo - and not just the bass. It's long been acknowledged that adding a subwoofer to a system can have the effect of enhancing apparent clarity in the midband, and so it is with this excellent little unit in harness. The AV32R allows the user to switch the subwoofer it and out at will, and doing so showed that music from string quartets to big choral works, gained not only confidence in the bass with the subwoofer in circuit, but a noticeably improved sense of body and focus further up the frequency band.

The presence of instruments and voices is greater when the subwoofer is running, and even the feeling of space around them in the soundstage picture gains. And remember I'm talking about recordings with no overt low bass component - even solo violin sounds considerably more real with the subwoofer in use.

Alright, so I hardly need telling of the benefits of subwoofers in music-playing systems, but all the same the Pro 50 proved a highly addictive addition to any system, to the extent that it has now suplanted the large and very old REL I've been using for years. It's smaller, certainly less visually apparent and delivers bass which is both extended and tautly controlled. Even if I never watch another Hollywood all-action blockbuster again, in the current climate that seems likely the Pro 50's ability to give greater enjoyment from whatever I seem to play makes it a very convincing product. And the small matter of the price, which is considerably less than that of some rival products, means this could be one of the audio bargains of the year.

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MJ Acoustics Pro 50 £379 - Veneered Cherry Finish.
Supertest - December edition 2001.

For - Great dynamics; good power;
          stylish design choice of finish.

Against -No crucial flaws to report.

Verdict - 5 stars

A new brand sets new standards. This sub is smart enough to be furniture, but good enough to be great hi-fi equipment.

Newcomer MJ Acoustics sets the pace with the smallest and cutest sub here. The MJ Pro 50 was reviewed last month, but this model comes with a lovely wood finish. Small though it is, you won't hide this.

It offers a Neutrik Speakon connection for high level input, standard LFE inputs and tweaking controls including gains for both sets of inputs and a frequency roll-off from 40 to 240 Hz.

The MJA Pro 50 majors in precision and dynamics and for its size is stunning. Even when pushed hard with the chase sequence from T2 it doesn't show any signs of discomfort, while with the demanding DTS soundtrack of Saving Private Ryan it shows just how dynamic it is: one moment chugging along in the background before instantly coming to life for a deeply satisfying explosion.

Only the pricier REL can match its agility and precision with Ryan Adams's Gold and give it some techno from Man With No Name and the MJ shows it can thump out deep rhythms as well.

Even with the extra cost of the cabinet over the basic model, this subwoofer is a very fine piece of kit for movies and music.

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Best of British bass in a smaller case -
MJ Acoustics Pro 50 Subwoofer £299.
November edition 2001.

For - Awesome clout from a tiny enclosure; easily controlled

Against - There really is nothing, given the size and price.

Verdict - A fine debut from a new name in subwoofers. If they're all this good we can't wait. Subwoofers add impact to movies and music but are also big beasts that take over a corner of your room and lurk there rumbling. UKHi-Fi debutant MJ Acoustics aims to address this.

The Pro 50 is a miniature sub - just 28x28x33cm that nevertheless packs a 20cm long-throw driver firing downwards from a sealed box and a 50W MOSFET amp designed for good power reserves even at high levels.It hooks up via a stereo Neutrik Speakon connector for high-level input from your amp's speaker output, and a pair of RCA line ins for use with kit with a dedicated sub out (like just about every AV receiver).

The Pro 50 is good - very good infact. Whether with the floor shaking basslines of some Michael Jackson remixes, the slam of vintage- period U2 or the Berlin Philharmonic at full throttle when dialled in correctly the sub provides a subtle underpinning even for big speakers such as Monitor Audio's Studio 20SE's. Even with TAG Mclaren Audio's 100X5R running the main speakers the sub is never outclassed and the bass it delivers is beautifully extended and so tightly controlled.

The subjective impression is of greater clarity across the frequency range the added low end being complemented with better midband focus. It's truly thrilling stuff!

And the little box does it with movies too, giving a superbly controlled extra extension to everything from the overblown sci fi Of The Abyss to the drama of Snow Falling On Cedars.

The sub never sounds as if it's doing its thing independently of the other speakers. Indeed the joy of the Pro 50 is its ability to blend in scenically and visually, that plus highly competitive pricing should seal its success.

See the magazines "star" / "globe" ratings.