GoldenEar ForceField 40

Agile, powerful bass from a compact sub
GoldenEar has updated their space-efficient ForceField subs with upgraded electronics inspired by their impressive SuperSub lineup for cleaner, extended low frequencies. The ForceField 40 packs a heavy punch while revealing subtle low-frequency details, serving up bass that's perfect for dedicated music listening and movie night in equal measure.

The sub's long-throw 10" woofer has a computer-optimized, ultra-stiff fiber cone and a massive high-gauss magnet assembly. It's driven by a tremendously powerful 1,200-watt RMS amplifier, which uses DSP (digital signal processing) to minimize distortion in real time. And a down-firing 11" x 13" quadratic planar radiator extends low frequencies all the way down below the range of human hearing.

High-quality construction
GoldenEar's engineers have an eye for detail, and it adds up in the ForceField 40's construction. Thick cabinet walls and a curved, extended top panel keep resonance and distortion down to a minimum. The perforated metal grille is acoustically transparent, and soft, vibration-absorbing feet provide noise isolation. The feet also maintain just the right distance between the floor and the passive radiator to maximize low-frequency output.

Simple setup and control
The ForceField 40 has a dedicated LFE input that hooks up to the subwoofer output of your home theater receiver. That input jack also serves as one channel of the sub's stereo line-level input, which you can use when connecting to integrated amps and stereo receivers. Using the built-in variable low-pass crossover, you have control over what frequencies the sub plays when using the left/right line-level connections.

The ForceField Subwoofers’ unique and attractive cabinet shape, with its non-parallel cabinet walls (the top is narrower than the bottom when viewed from the front), helps the ForceField subs achieve extraordinarily deep and tuneful bass that is ideal for music and movies. Their cutting-edge amplifier design employs state-of-the-art DSP control for frequency shaping so the subwoofer produces accurate, consistent and musical bass performance.

Let's take a look at the ForceField subwoofers to see what makes them special. We'll start with two very common subwoofer design concepts and then we'll delve into GoldenEar's unique and better solutions. Many of today's subwoofers fall into either the ultra-compact high-output category, or the (larger) high performance, extended response, high-output category. These two design types tend to offer different performance benefits, the ultra compact having the ability to play extremely loud, but over a narrower bandwidth and the large subs having this high output plus more extended response.

GoldenEar's engineering team set out to accomplish the best of both worlds with the ForceField subwoofers: small size, yet with the smooth & wide response of a larger sub. There's no sleight of hand, just great engineering - all ForceField subwoofers share the same technologies, here is a list of their features. Read through these and then take a good demo disc into your GoldenEar dealer's sound room and listen for yourself.

• Custom-designed high-output drivers with very large motor assemblies. These drivers handle massive power, have very long excursions, and have ultra-low distortion.
• Rigid cabinets with non-parallel sides to minimize standing waves and distortion. The drivers are front firing in all of our subwoofers for optimal performance. The cabinets' possess a unique and understated shape and style that matches well with any décor.
• The driver's response is enhanced with a carefully tuned, down-firing, quadratic-shaped passive radiator (no noisy ports on ForceField subs). The quadratic shape allows the radiators to use maximum surface area on the bottom of the cabinets and gets even greater output from the slot-loading that results from the subwoofers' interface with the floor (see next point).
• The soft, energy-absorbing feet provided with every ForceField sub serve a number of functions. First, they hold the subwoofer at the correct distance off the floor so the passive radiator slot-loads with it for significantly increased output at the lowest frequencies. Second, the soft feet keep the subwoofer from dancing around on the floor.
• ForceField subwoofer amplifiers are designed in-house by GoldenEar engineering, so each is the perfect amp to power its specific subwoofer model. In addition, the amps all have powerful DSP sections to optimize frequency response, minimize distortion and prevent damage from overdriving. These amplifiers are all low distortion and extraordinarily powerful (up to 1500 watts on the ForceField 5) for reproducing seriously high-output AND low bass.
• ForceField subs all have speaker-level inputs and outputs (with a high pass crossover on the outputs) as well as a direct LFE input, too.

We realize there is a huge selection of subs on the market - but by incorporating the latest technology, and not a rehash of the last five years', we know ForceField subs offer a real value. There is nothing available at these price points that will play lower or louder, with less noise and distortion, than the ForceField subs. Our ForceField subs are almost as small as many of the ultra compact models, yet they outperform many of the big boys.

Finish on the subwoofers is an attractive matte black.