Unsound,
My understanding (but i'm not an authority on the subject) is the 1st Octave frequency range is 16-32 Hz. Low C on a pipe organ, bottom C on most other keyboards and the large orchestral bass drum live here.
I take your point about bass reinforcement but unless care is taken the room can also diminish the bass effect as well.
I respect Thiel as a designer but i feel speakers of this price range should reach into the 1st Octave so not to lose the enhanced experience the low end can provide.
The employment of speaker ports is probably motivated by consumer demand for smaller speakers. I like you prefer sealed designs.
Thiel has lots of competitors. The latest to join is Le Contourne a French sister company of Lavardin. Their new Stabile 160 is prefered by some to the 3.7. Its cheaper (but not much) and enjoys 17Hz-30KHz range with similar physical dimensions. Side by side you quickly apprecriate how impotent the bass of the CS3.7 really is.
