Scan Speak Discovery 30W/4558T00
Choosing a woofer for this project to fit my needs made me look at the Scan Speak 30W. I needed a pair of small subwoofers, about 40 x 40 x 40 cm, that could augment my arrays in the bottom end. After reviewing many possible drivers that could potentially reach my goals, I went with the Scan Speak. For the arrays I had chosen the Vifa/Peerless TC9 FD 18-08 and one of the reasons for picking that driver was that it was designed in a period that the Vifa/Peerless brand was still very much a part of Scan Speak Denmark. Despite its low price it is a very good driver with an honest spec sheet. Those measurements are confirmed by several third party measurements through the years.
The Scan Speak Discovery 30W/4558T00 is another affordable gem. For a long time it was the biggest subwoofer in the Scan Speak line up. These days there is a bigger and better 32W woofer line available, however that one does come at a higher price of entry. Peerless has a woofer line that is comparable to the 30W, like the Vifa TC9, it was originally created by the Scan Speak engineers. An older model from that Peerless line with a paper cone was the one used in Siegfried Linkwitz’s TOR subwoofers.
For my specific needs the 30W would add 2 times the volume displacement capacity to the arrays own volume displacement. It is a woofer that can perform in a rather small sealed enclosure (with a little help from EQ and the room). I looked for a driver with low enough Fs and not too much moving mass. This woofer simply is a good fit for my project and is related to the full range drivers I used in the arrays.
Look at this test from a German HiFi magazine: Scan Speak 30W/4558T00. Compare it to it’s bigger brother here: Scan Speak 32W/4878T00. Even in a direct comparison, it certainly doesn’t look bad. Even though we’re talking about a woofer from the (budget) Discovery line, not a Relevator or Illuminator, you’ll be surprised where these Discovery woofers turn up. Take a closer look at the Bang & Olufsen Beolab 90, in this video right here…
It is quite remarkable where they turn up, let’s look at another example. A photo posted on Facebook and Instagram showing the woofers from the Goldmund Logos Highsub, shown here and here…
So choosing a woofer like the Scan Speak Discovery 30W/4558T00 , it seems we’re in pretty good company. Aside from it being a solid choice it does help that it resembles the Vifa TC9 in looks. Sound quality comes first, but I do think the looks deserve some attention as well.
The specs:
