In this review, we will be comparing Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer and SW-15, two Powered Subwoofer speakers from Aperion and Wharfedale. Being Powered subwoofers, they both have built-in amplifiers so you don't need an external power amp or an integrated amp to power them. Let's have a brief look at the main features of Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer and Wharfedale SW-15 first before getting into our more detailed comparison.
The sections below take each area in turn: driver and amplifier, frequency response, physical size and connectivity.
Drivers
The efficiency of a subwoofer is directly proportional to the total radiating are squared hence the woofer quantity and diameter.Both Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwooferand Wharfedale SW-15 have a single woofer setup however the Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer's woofer is 10-inch whereas the Wharfedale SW-15 features a 15-inch woofer.
Frequency Response
Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer has a frequency range of 28-350 Hz whereas SW-15 has a frequency range of 30-120 Hz. With a minimum frequency of 28Hz, the Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer can go slightly deeper then the SW-15's min frequency of 30Hz.
Below graphs depict how these two speakers compare with the max, min and average values of the Min and Max Frequencies of other speakers in the Subwoofer class in our database.
Low Frequency
Subwoofer Speakers
Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer
High Frequency
Subwoofer Speakers
Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer
Cabinet Type
The Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer has a Acoustic Suspension type cabinet. Acoustic Suspension aka Sealed type subwoofers have enclosures that are sealed hence no ports or holes exists on the cabinet. Sealed designs helps to provide more accurate and tight bass responses compared to ported designs. On the other hand the Wharfedale SW-15 have Bass Reflex type enclosure. Bass Reflex type subwoofers (aka Ported, Vented or Reflex Port) have enclosures that uses a port, hole or vent cut into the cabinet. Ported designs are generally more efficient than the Sealed designs.
Physical Specs
The size of a speaker can sometimes be an important decision factor due to space constraints or in some cases purely for esthetic reasons. In this section, we are going to compare Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer's and Wharfedale SW-15's external dimensions. Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer has external dimensions of 381.0 x 342.9 x 342.9mm (15 x 13.5 x 13.5inch) whereas Wharfedale SW-15 has external dimensions of 570.0 x 493.0 x 615.0mm (22-7/16inch x 19-3/8inch x 24-3/16inch).
Wharfedale SW-15 is clearly the larger of the two speakers. Its body is 150.1mm wider, 189mm taller and 272.1mm deeper than Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer.
Size, drawn to scale
Both speakers and both views share one scale, so everything here is directly comparable. Hover a box for its dimensions.
One scale for both, standing on the same surface and pushed back to the same wall, so the deeper one visibly sticks out further.
Wharfedale SW-15 needs about 158% more floor or shelf area. Wharfedale SW-15 is 272mm deeper, so it stands that much further out from the wall. Wharfedale SW-15 is 189mm taller.
Base Surface Area Comparison
Base surface area of a loudspeaker may become a determining factor when the space in your room or desk is limited.
The base surface area of the Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer is approximately 1175.8cm2 / 182.2inch2 and base area of the Wharfedale SW-15 is approximately 3032.0cm2 / 470.0inch2. The Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer requires 61% less surface area than the SW-15 which gives it a small advantage on placement in tight spaces.
Weight Comparison The weight of a subwoofer may become an important factor if you need to move and reposition the unit often to find the optimal positioning, also known as 'Subwoofer Crawling'. The Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer weighs 17.24kg / 37.9lbs and the Wharfedale SW-15 weighs 31.57kg / 69.5lbs. This makes the SW-15 83% heavier than the Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer.
Here is a comparison of how Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer and SW-15's weights compare with the average, max and min weights in Powered Subwoofer class.
Weight
All Subwoofer Speakers
Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer
 Low Frequency Response |
28 Hz
vs
30 Hz
|
Generates deeper bass |
 High Frequency Response |
350 Hz
vs
120 Hz
|
Generates higher frequency |
 Height |
381mm
vs
570mm
|
Easier to fit in smaller spaces |
 Base Surface Area |
1175cm2
vs
3032cm2
|
Takes less floor space |
 Price per pair* |
899USD
vs
1199USD
|
costs less (*prices may change depending on the seller, location and time) |
| Woofer Size |
15 inches
vs
10 inches
|
Larger woofer |
Size, drawn to scale
Both subwoofers and both views share one scale, so everything here is directly comparable. Hover a box for its dimensions.
One scale for both, standing on the same floor and pushed back to the same wall, so the bigger one visibly takes more of the room.
Wharfedale SW-15 needs about 158% more floor area. Wharfedale SW-15 stands 272mm further into the room. Wharfedale SW-15 is 189mm taller.
| General |
Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer |
Wharfedale SW-15 |
| Brand |
Aperion |
Wharfedale |
| Speaker Type |
Powered Subwoofer |
Powered Subwoofer |
| Max Amplifier Output |
500 watts |
400 watts |
| Impedance |
4 ohms |
n/a |
| Frequency Response |
28-350 Hz |
30-120 Hz |
Amplifier |
|
|
| Watts RMS (Continuous) |
500-watt RMS |
400-watt RMS |
| Watts Peak (Max) |
n/a |
850-watt RMS |
Drivers |
|
|
| Woofer Quantity |
1 |
1 |
| Woofer Size |
10" |
15" |
| Woofer Composition |
|
Paper |
| Tweeter Size |
- |
- |
| Aimable Tweeter |
No |
No |
| Midrange Driver |
No |
No |
| Firing Direction |
n/a |
rear |
Physical Specs |
|
|
| Height |
381.0mm (15") |
570.0mm (22.4") |
| Width |
342.9mm (13.5") |
493.0mm (19.4") |
| Depth |
342.9mm (13.5") |
615.0mm (24.2") |
| Weight |
17.24kg (37.9lbs) |
31.57kg (69.5lbs) |
| Enclosure |
Acoustic Suspension |
Bass Reflex |
| Grille |
Yes |
Yes |
| Moisture Resistancy |
No |
No |
Connections |
|
|
Other |
|
|
| Parts Warranty |
|
3 Years |
| Labor Warranty |
|
3 Years |
A sealed subwoofer against a ported one. That is the most consequential line on this page: it decides how the bass rolls off, how it behaves in a small room, and how much output you get for the size of the box.
| Area | Better | Why |
|---|
| Bass depth | evenly matched | Effectively the same reach (28Hz vs 30Hz). |
| Amplifier power | A | Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer has the bigger amplifier - 500W against 400W RMS, about 1dB more on tap. In a large room that is headroom before the DSP starts limiting. |
| Driver area | B | Wharfedale SW-15 moves more air: 15" against 10" is 2.25x the cone area, not the 1.5x the diameters suggest. More area means the same output with less excursion, and less distortion with it. |
| Enclosure | depends | Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer is sealed - a sealed box rolls off gently and is usually the easier one to integrate in a small or awkward room; Wharfedale SW-15 is ported - a ported box gives more output low down for its size, at the cost of a steeper roll-off below tuning. Neither is better in the abstract; ported tends to suit films and sealed tends to suit music, and both generalisations have exceptions. |
| Cabinet size | depends | Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer is about 74% smaller by volume. In a subwoofer that is a real trade rather than a preference: box volume is how you get output low down without a bigger amplifier. |
| Price | A | Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer costs less - $899 against $1,199, about 25% less. |
A Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer B Wharfedale SW-15
depends neither is better in the abstract - it turns on your room, your system or how you will use them. Only specs published for both subwoofers are judged; anything missing on either side is left out rather than guessed.
Which should you choose?
Neither runs away with it - they trade advantages. Let your room size and where the box can actually stand settle it. Films or music? If this is mainly a home cinema, Wharfedale SW-15 will hit harder for the money; if it is mainly for music in a normal-sized room, Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer is usually the easier one to make sound right. If placement is the constraint - a corner, behind a sofa, under a desk - Aperion Bravus II 10D 500W 10" Powered Subwoofer is the one that will actually go there, and a well-placed small subwoofer beats a badly-placed big one every time.
One thing outweighs everything above: where the subwoofer stands. Room modes can add or remove 10dB or more at a given seat, which is far larger than any difference on this page. Before spending more, try the sub in two or three positions - the crawl test, where you put it in the listening seat and crawl the room to find where the bass sounds best, costs nothing and usually beats an upgrade.