Subwoofers

What the D215s brought to this sequence was a presence across the low-frequencies that felt both utterly natural and occasionally terrifying. For example, Hans Zimmer's score oozed from the speaker array with an extra sense of scale and weight to the low brass instruments, putting you right in front of an orchestra pit. Meanwhile, the German troops' rifles and machine guns offered blistering retorts, short and snappy to the point I began wondering how the sub's 15in driver pairing was being kept on such a tight leash.

There follows some common or garden mortars, shells hitting with a robust punch to accompany the high-frequency sprays of mud and bark. Then it's time to 'introduce Little Hansel', and Perlisten's sub puts in a shift as Ritchie's camera dives inside its mechanism, the pure-sounding lows giving the gun a physical presence in the room. The ensuing blasts are as deep and forceful as you could wish for.

The LFE is even more riotous in the opening scene of war/horror caper Overlord (4K Blu-ray), the sound team using it to turn the inside of the plane cabin into a living, moving space. There's all sorts of localised and steered effects here, and the ambience of the surround speakers is matched by a physical feeling of air and movement from low-end rumbles.

What's remarkable is how cohesive it all sounds, and how much control Perlisten has brought to its two 15-inchers. Arguably, this makes the D215s less immediately exciting, as there's none of the overblown, insistently boisterous bass that some models can showcase; the impression instead is of supreme accuracy. The UHD Alliance likes to say its Filmmaker Mode is all about giving the viewer what the director intended, and this woofer appears aimed at giving the listener what the sound designer intended. There's hard-hitting, carpet-flattening bass when required, subtler details at other times. The D215s becomes as invisible as a 92kg, 80cm-high cabinet can possibly be.

There's also the feeling that it has plenty in reserve. So, when the guns start in Overlord, the sound is distant at first. Yet these effects become more distinct and threatening as the plane heads further into enemy territory, and are accompanied by a voluminous, textured roar of engines as it rolls and yaws. The scene reaches fever pitch when the vehicle's door is blown off, and the D215s leaps into this effect with a startling level of slam.

Other material shows off a thrilling all-round ability. Demo fave U-571 (Blu-ray) elicits deep, room-shaking rumbles as the depth charges go off, while the songs of The Greatest Showman require a tuneful, tonal touch in the upper-range bass, not to mention an even decay of those stomping feet in Chapter 1.

Boss-Level Bass
Bigger than most home cinema subs, and better than them too, Perlisten's D215s matches its premium price point with a performance that's about depth, slam and output, but also balance and articulation. This is a grown-up woofer destined for high-end systems and with the tools to be properly integrated within one. Simply brilliant.

HCC Verdict

Perlisten D215s

Price: £8,100
www.perlistenaudio.com

We say: An obvious partner for the brand's biggest S Series speakers, or any largescale AV setup, Perlisten's D215s is a real treat of a subwoofer. Performance is immaculate.

Overall: 5/5

Specifications

DRIVE UNITS: 2 x 15in long-excursion carbon fibre woofers ENCLOSURE: Sealed, push-pull configuration ONBOARD POWER (CLAIMED): 3,000W ('short-term RMS') Class D FREQUENCY RESPONSE (CLAIMED): 13Hz-210Hz (-10dB, Boost EQ) REMOTE CONTROL: No. Smart device app instead DIMENSIONS: 805(h) x 500(w) x 650.5(d)mm WEIGHT: 92kg

FEATURES: Stereo/LFE line-level on both unbalanced RCA and balanced XLR; RCA and XLR line-level output; 0-270-degree variable phase; 30Hz-160Hz low-pass filter; 32-bit ARM Cortex M4 processor; 48-bit TI DSP engine; 2.4in LCD touchscreen display; iOS and Android app with preset EQs (THX, Boost and Cut) and 10-band parametric EQ; Certified THX Dominus; 12V trigger; auto-on