Sonance i10

Sonance i10, wireless subwoofer from the Impact series

A subwoofer often ends up next to the amplifier because the cable is not long enough, even though this is almost never where it sounds best. This 25 cm model eases that constraint with a built-in wireless receiver, then adapts its bass to the room through acoustic correction configured from an iPhone. Its piano-black lacquer finish allows it to remain on display in a living room or blend into a dedicated room.

A 25 cm long-excursion driver

The 254 mm driver fires forwards behind a black fabric grille, and pairs a fibreglass cone with a rubber surround. Its long excursion, meaning the distance the cone can travel back and forth, matters as much as its diameter when reaching low frequencies: the further the cone moves, the more air it displaces, and it is this volume of displaced air that produces deep bass. Fibreglass gives the cone the rigidity it needs to retain its shape at these amplitudes rather than deforming and colouring the sound.

The enclosure is tuned with a Laminar Flow Port. A bass-reflex port reinforces the bass by using the air oscillating inside the enclosure, with one well-known drawback: at high volumes, the air rushing through it can cause chuffing or whistling. This port’s profile limits turbulence so the bass stays clean as the level rises. At 356 × 407 × 362 mm (width, height, depth), the enclosure retains the proportions of a small piece of furniture, suitable for a corner of the living room.

300 watts and electronics isolated from the enclosure

The built-in amplifier delivers 300 W RMS continuously and 600 W peak, a reserve that handles the brief peaks of a film explosion or a kick drum hit. It provides low-distortion, wide-bandwidth amplification, two qualities that matter in the bass range, where distortion adds unwanted harmonics that the ear perceives as a “muddy” sound.

The frequency response extends from 24 Hz to 250 Hz at ±3 dB, meaning that level variation is limited across this entire range. 24 Hz sits below the lowest note on a piano (27.5 Hz), in the range of large organ pipes and cinema effects that are felt as much as heard. The upper limit of 250 Hz leaves room to support small satellite speakers, which need the subwoofer to take over at a relatively high frequency.

The amplifier module is mounted on a sealed plate, airtight against the enclosure. The inside of a subwoofer undergoes significant pressure changes with every movement of the cone, and this separation keeps the electronics away from these stresses while preventing air leaks that would make the enclosure hiss.

Three ways to connect it to your system

The line-level input receives the subwoofer output from a home cinema amplifier or a stereo amplifier equipped with one, often labelled LFE, Sub Out or Pre Out Sub. When the amplifier has no dedicated output, the speaker-level input takes over: the subwoofer connects to the amplifier’s speaker terminals and extracts the bass signal itself, opening the door to older stereo systems.

The third option uses the built-in wireless receiver, paired with the optional Sonance Wireless Transmitter. Connected to the amplifier’s subwoofer output, this transmitter sends the signal up to approximately 9 metres, without compression, at up to 24 bits/192 kHz. It operates on three frequency bands (2.4 GHz, 5.2 GHz and 5.8 GHz), a design that makes it largely resistant to interference from Bluetooth, Wi-Fi or a microwave oven. Latency remains below 20 ms, a delay that a home cinema amplifier’s distance setting easily compensates for. Pairing is performed by pressing a button on each device.

Acoustic correction configured from an iPhone

In a room, bass waves reflect off the walls, floor and ceiling, then reinforce or cancel one another depending on the location. The result is quickly audible: a subwoofer that booms on one note and seems to disappear on the next. The SONARC (Sonance Automatic Room Correction) digital processor built into the subwoofer corrects these variations with an automatic 16-band equaliser, each band acting on a specific portion of the bass range.

Setup is handled through the free SonARC for Subwoofers app, which connects to the subwoofer via Bluetooth and guides calibration in seven steps. The same app provides access to the active crossover (the frequency above which the subwoofer rolls off to let the speakers play), phase (which synchronises the movement of the cone with that of the speakers so their bass reinforces rather than opposes each other) and the bypass function, which disables the internal crossover when the amplifier already manages the crossover frequency. The app works on iPhone 6S or newer and on iPad, in English, with no Android version.

Its place in the Impact series

The Impact series comprises three subwoofers that share the same finish, wireless receiver and app. The i8, with its 20 cm driver and 200 W, reaches down to 30 Hz in a more compact enclosure. The i12 steps up to 30 cm and 400 W, reaches down to 22 Hz and takes up considerably more space. The i10 sits between the two: it gains six hertz of extension over the i8, an audible difference in cinema effects and the lowest notes, without imposing the bulk of the i12.

Technical Specifications

Physical Components

• 254 mm long-throw speaker
  • Fiberglass cone
  • Rubber surround
• Dimensions (W × H × D): 356 × 407 × 362 mm
• Weight: 27 kg

Audio Performance

• Frequency response: 24 Hz - 250 Hz ± 3 dB
• Power: 300 W RMS, 600 W peak
• Low-distortion, wide-bandwidth amplifier
• High-excursion fiberglass woofer

Connectivity

• Inputs: line level, speaker level, low-latency wireless
• Built-in wireless receiver
  • Optional SWT transmitter available

Signal Processing

• SONARC digital signal processor (DSP) with automatic acoustic correction
• 16-band automatic equalizer
• Settings: active filter, phase, bypass

Installation

• Easy installation
• Three connection options
• Dedicated app for acoustic correction