Bass takes space
Bass takes space. That?s the immutable law of nature that has frustrated man since the dawn of time. Two 21st century products — the Infinity BassLink and Kenwood?s wOOx — set out to disprove this law, incorporating interesting technological twists and unusual construction to maximize low-frequency output. How successful have these little giants been in their efforts to fool Mother Nature? For two weeks, I lived with these two compact powered subwoofers, playing my favorite test tracks and pushing them to the limits in an effort to gauge the performance characteristics of each.

Two compact subwoofers — Kenwood's "wOOx" and the Infinity BassLink — prepare for battle by kicking back with a great CD.

First, let's get one thing straight. Everybody has different tastes, drives different vehicles, and listens to different music, so everybody has a different opinion on what constitutes great bass. I like to crank up the music LOUD in my Jeep Cherokee, and I like lots of bass. But I don?t like big, boomy bass that imposes itself on the rest of the music, and I like my car system to sound as much like my home system as possible.

Second, I?m comparing these two products against my usual modest system — a well-used, late '90s Polk db 10" subwoofer in a small sealed box, powered by a Rockford Fosgate 200-watt amp. If you are accustomed to a pair of 15" subs driven by several hundred watts, believe me, the two products in this review won't do it for you. These powered subs are designed strictly for the person who wants to add significant bass to a car system without losing a lot of space. I love the way my sub sounds, so I was curious to see how it would stack up against these two products.