The Guitammer Company Inc. Buttkicker LFE
Posted in: Hardware Reviews by Jeremy Frost on May 3rd, 2007
With the growing popularity and commonality of Home Theaters, many people are now looking to expand their audio/video experience to include a third dimension – that of motion. To achieve this new dimension, tactile transducers (also known as bass shakers) have been developed to add this much desired motion to the home theater experience. These seat mounted shakers take the .1 LFE channel from home entertainment audio tracks, and transform it into a non-audible rumble… making you actually feel the films action.
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Initial impressions and build quality
Upon opening the ButtKicker LFE kit, one realizes that everything you need to get started has been included – from the ButtKicker LFE shaker, to a 1100-watt amplifier, all the way to the mounting accessories and cables. The ButtKicker itself is built like a tank; heavy and solid while still keeping a small enough form factor to fit cleanly under the seating area (in this instance a couch). The power amp is also very heavy, with a pretty basic look/feel to it (power indicator, toggle switch, volume level, etc). The couch mount, which attaches to the ButtKicker, is a single thick piece of metal with feet that also is very well constructed. All-in-all, every piece in the kit has a feel of quality – no lightweight materials will be found here.
Set-up
Hookup was essentially a breeze. Directions are clearly laid out, with only a few steps required to have everything up and running. The included cable is terminated nicely, allowing for an easy install by just sliding the terminated end into the Buttkicker receptacle. The screening room in which this ButtKicker was installed was rather large, so the included cables were not long enough. Thankfully, I did have alternate runs of cable that I could use. The one problem I did encounter when using alternate cabling was the connection box. When using non-terminated speaker cable, small plastic “doors” need to be opened to attach the cable. These “doors” are a little difficult to deal with – but this is not an issue when using the supplied terminated cable included in the LFE kit.
I then turned my focus to mounting the Buttkicker (I almost used the word “unit” here, but “mounting the unit” just sounded wrong) to the couch. The Buttkicker itself, once attached to the mounting plate, just sits under one of the back legs of the couch. The other three legs get small rubber feet attached to them. The installation was very easy, and the unit (wording seemed to fit better here) is not even noticeable.
All that was left for the set-up was plugging in the amp, connecting the speaker wire (from the Buttkicker) to the amp, and then running a sub cable from the processor to the amp. For those processors/receivers that only have a single subwoofer output, the LFE kit includes a splitter which allows two cables to attach to the single output. After tweaking the crossover and power level, and powering up the amp, I was ready to see the Buttkicker in action.
Performance
To get this evaluation underway, I threw in World Trade Center on HD DVD. During the first few chapters the couch shook marginally, but nothing too overwhelming. Initially, I can say that found the rumble a little distracting. It was not until the towers came crashing down that I really understood the power of the Buttkicker. It truly felt as if I was there, right in the middle of the wreckage. This is where I started to appreciate the third dimension that a tactile traducer can add to a movie viewing experience.
Next, I gave the Blu-ray of Behind Enemy Lines a spin. During the action sequences, the Buttkicker really came to life. You could feel the rumble of the jet engines, the gun shots, and every explosion. Again, the rumble really places you in the middle of the action. Being the second disc I screened with the transducer, I found myself less distracted, and more enjoying the experience.
While the Buttkicker is essentially a non-audible subwoofer, you can still hear this little beast in action. As the sub channel sends the frequency to the unit, the unit shakes (and thus does the couch), and a rumble sound does come from the unit. While it is not distracting during most sequences, it can be noticeable during BIG action scenes if the amps power level is turned up too high.
Final Thoughts
The Buttkicker is really a fun way to expand the Home Theater experience; it really brings the action to life in a way that you cannot duplicate solely with audio/video. The most important thing to do to maximize the enjoyment of this transducer is to set the levels to a happy medium – you don’t want to feel every little element of the film, but you do want to feel the action elements. The build quality of the Buttkicker is very good, and the setup is extremely simple. If you are looking for a new experience that will have your friends lining up to watch discs at your place, the Buttkicker is the way to go.
Screenshots
