In a recent issue of Stereophile, you recommended the PSI Audio AVAA C20 active bass trap as a revolutionary solution to low-end issues in a room. Why do you think it’s a revolutionary device?
It seems to defy the laws of physics. It is a small trapezoidal box, about the size of a subwoofer, taking up a maximum power of perhaps 50 watts on sound level peaks with an average of 5 watts. It controls only the pressure peaks and deeps in the room from an amazing 15 Hz to 150 Hz, without artifacts and without overdamping the room. My system has moved from an A grade to an A+++ grade with the addition of three AVAA traps. I’ve never had such even, impacting, punchy, and clear bass. Measurements confirm that three AVAA traps are more effective than six 6-inch thick passive traps, and without the overdamping problems that the passive traps have. Unlike the AVAA, the passive traps have very little effect at extreme low frequencies and adversely affect the clarity and impact of the midrange and high frequencies.
