This month, Matt from our Cardiff store — Hi-Fi enthusiast and all-round music nerd — talks about a recent event he organised with REL Acoustics at one of Cardiff’s most prestigious venues, Llanrumney Hall. The aim was simple: to showcase REL’s all-new Serie S subwoofers, in this case a stereo pair of S/850s. Over to Matt.

Hi there to all you music lovers and Hi-Fi fans. It’s me again, talking about one of my favourite things to do in this industry: organising events that let me share great music, great systems, and the products that genuinely excite me. This time, it was all about low end — proper, controlled, musical bass — and in my book there’s no better brand to demonstrate that than REL Acoustics, especially with their new Serie S subwoofers.

Why Llanrumney Hall?

Earlier this summer I was thinking about running another event, but wanted to do something a little different — somewhere outside the usual demo room environment. The idea for Llanrumney Hall came about through a bit of chance: my youngest son’s drum teacher has a recording studio on site. While my son was in a lesson, I got chatting to the hall’s manager, Kath Hinton, about the possibility of hosting a Hi-Fi event there.

Kath showed me the Kemeys Room, named after one of the families who previously owned the mansion, and that was that. It was perfect. With the festive season approaching, it felt like the ideal venue: atmospheric, historic, and a genuinely exciting space for a serious sonic demonstration.

A quick bit of history

Llanrumney Hall dates back to around 1450, with roots that trace even further to a chapel from 1066. That makes the current structure over 570 years old — a remarkable setting for a modern Hi-Fi system.

If you’re interested in the history of this beautiful venue, Llanrumney Hall has a brilliant website that’s well worth a look.

Building the system

With the venue secured, it was time to put together a system worthy of the space. The obvious starting point was REL’s new Serie S range, and the obvious person to call was our good friend Rob Hunt, sales manager for REL. Rob kindly agreed to attend the event, talk through REL’s philosophy, and bring along a stereo pair of the all-new S/850 subwoofers.

With bass duties covered, the rest of the system came together as follows:

Sources: Cyrus Audio 40 CD player and 40 Stream, with power supply
Amplification: Rega Research Mercury pre-amp and Solis power amp
Loudspeakers: Acoustic Energy Corinium floorstanders
Cabling: A full Chord Company Signature loom — interconnects, speaker cable, and power

Once everything was in place, it was time for careful positioning and fine-tuning. Rob worked his usual magic with set-up, using his trusted reference tracks to dial everything in. Running a system of this calibre — especially with a stereo pair of subwoofers — in a room of this size takes patience, but the results were absolutely worth it.

It’s not all about bass

Before diving into the music, it’s worth clearing something up: subwoofers aren’t just about big bangs and explosions. In a two-channel system, a properly integrated subwoofer does far more than add weight at the bottom end. It frees up the main speakers, improves clarity through the midrange and treble, and expands the soundstage.

REL’s story has always been rooted in this idea. Founder Richard Edmund Lord (yes — that’s where REL comes from) was frustrated by how little information conventional loudspeakers could reproduce in the lowest frequencies. A fan of organ music, he knew how difficult those notes are to recreate convincingly at home, so he set out to solve the problem himself. The rest, as they say, is history.

For me, it’s all about recreating the feel of live music — the scale of a guitar amp, the physicality of a drum kit, even the breath on a microphone. With today’s technology, and with the right subwoofer integration, that goal is more achievable than ever. I’ll admit it: I’m a convert.

The evening itself

With customers settled in, tea and coffee flowing, Rob kicked things off by talking through REL’s history and the thinking behind the new Serie S range. He explained subwoofer matching, room interaction, and demonstrated just how much difference correct set-up makes.

Then came the music.

We started with J.S. Bach’s Toccata in D, a nod to Richard Lord’s love of organ music. First, the track was played with no subwoofers — already impressive. Adding one S/850 brought extra texture and definition to the lowest notes, and with the second sub engaged the soundstage opened up dramatically. The scale and depth were genuinely startling.

Another standout moment was Magic Bus from Live at Leeds by The Who. With both subwoofers running, the track took on a real live energy. Hand percussion, vocals, and — most memorably — the sheer size of Pete Townshend’s guitar sound filled the room. Eyes closed, it genuinely felt like a Hiwatt stack had appeared in Llanrumney Hall.

In conclusion

Sonically, the event was a knockout. The room, the system, and especially the stereo pair of REL subwoofers worked together beautifully. But more important than any piece of equipment was the chance to connect with everyone who came along and to see how much enjoyment the system brought.

As for whether I’ll be adding a subwoofer to my own system — absolutely. It won’t be an S Series, but a REL T/9x SE is firmly on the horizon, ideally in French Racing Blue. And yes, there will be another event at Llanrumney Hall in 2026. It may involve a certain brand whose amplifier and phono stage I already own… you guessed it: Cyrus Audio. Watch this space.

Thanks, as always, for taking the time to read.

Matt Aaron
Audio T Cardiff

REL can be found at the following Audio T stores