I have two kinds of subs, each in a different system. One type is a 'small cube' with active and passive transducers back-to-back. The other type is the Outlaw LFM-1 EX, in my case with ports rigged for extension rather than amplitude.

(Before continuing ... I have found that the sense of 'tightness' (if you mean quick response) of most good subwoofers has more to do with the way they are blended with the rest of the system, including system delay setup, than strictly on their own IF this is the case: the crossover point is no higher than 80Hz and increasing attenuation above 80Hz is in a rather steep curve. How 'quick' should a subwoofer sound if it's not reproducing anything significant at 'quick' frequencies? Of course there shouldn't be significant lag either.)

Both types of subwoofers appear to accomplish something similar in different ways because, at lower frequencies, the active transducers need 'help'.

In the case of the 'small cube', the passive radiator is somewhat 'tuned' to the lower end of the sub's frequency response curve, hardly having any response in the upper octave of the subwoofer's range. On the other hand, the passive transducer sees a huge increase in excursion when frequencies at the low end of the lower octave are present. Basically, as the active transducer's frequency response starts to fall off, the passive transducer plays an increasing larger role.

In the case of the ported enclosure, the active transducer also needs 'help' at the lower end of the frequency range. In this case, the enclosure is 'tuned' to assist the active radiator as frequencies head lower, with a mix of resonance behind it to help the active transducer maintain a larger low-frequency excursion, and acoustic energy exiting any ports.

Which am I more happy with? Hard to say because they're in different rooms and the behavior of sound waves in a room plays a very significant role in what the listener hears. The Outlaws were lower cost, down to about 1/2 or 1/3 the cost of the 'small cube' when one is pricing each type as new. If such savings are preferred, and one is not trying to 'hide' the subwoofer, I heartily recommend subwoofers of the Outlaw LFM-1 EX type. For the size though, the small cube's passive radiator 'goes lower' than the ported cabinet of the LFM-1 EX, even at the LFM-1 EX's size. If I send a 16Hz signal to the 'small cube', the active radiator shows a greatly reduced extension, but the passive radiator is moving quite well - I don't directly hear the sound, but stuff in the room vibrates and, depending on how I'm standing, my blue jeans (pants, not cables) 'wobble' on my legs. Very little recorded material has intentional frequency response anywhere near that low, but if you want to 'feel it' without cabinets larger than the LFM-1 EX and have the extra coin to spend (or patience and maybe many months' time to hunt for used bargains*), and if you want to keep the size as small as possible, I can recommend the 'small cube' type as well.

* how bestbang4thebuck went about it :-)