Looking for best sub under 2000€

[tyhjaarpa]

Hi,

I'm new to these forums but I have some basic information about subject. I'm now looking for sub to pair with my current setup. My current setup is Marantz SR6007 (will upgrade this at some point) as receiver and 4* KEF R500 + KEF R200c as my speakers. KEF importer recommended KEF R400b and MartinLogan Dynamo 1500x to pair with my speakers. Any one here have experience from both of these and how they compare? Or if you own either of these, how you like it and what you pair with them? Or is there something else to consider to pair with my speakers in price range? If you have KEF R series speakers, what sub do you have and how you like them as pair? Would like to keep price under 2000€. The prices for these subs I got from importer are 1120€ and 1790€.

Will be used around 50/50 for music and movies. So I would like the sub to perform well with music. Music I listen varies a lot but mostly rock'ish. My room is not huge, around 25sq m.

Hopefully I got everything right and thank you!

 

[rojo]

Hello tyhjaarpa, and welcome. Where do you live? Are you opposed to a DIY project?

 

[tyhjaarpa]

Hello tyhjaarpa, and welcome. Where do you live? Are you opposed to a DIY project?

I live in Finland if it matters. And I would prefer plug and play way as I dont trust myself so much doing it myself with this price range/voltages.

 

[rojo]

For a 2000€ budget I'd give a serious look at the XTZ 3X12. They offer a 60-day in-home trial (or at least they do here in the U.S.). Or maybe consider a pair of XTZ 1X12 with some sort of electronic bass management -- a DSPeaker Anti-Mode (made in Finland!) for fully automated correction; or a miniDSP, Behringer DCX2496, or similar for manual correction.

Edit: On second thought the 3X12 is probably overkill for a modest-sized room. Two 1X12 would be plenty I think. If you're interested, there are some measurements available.

Also, check out SVS subwoofers. They're rather excellent. Two PB-2000 and a DSPeaker, miniDSP, or other correction and you'll be thoroughly pleased I think.

When you say you're planning to upgrade your Marantz SR6007, are you considering the 7008 or 9, or the Denon X4000 or some other receiver with Audyssey Sub EQ HT? If so, then you won't need any of the bass management devices I've suggested. Sub EQ HT will handle it.

 

[shadyJ]

SVS has a distributor in Scandanavia that ships to Finland, LSound, and you can get their PB13 Ultra for 2k €. That is what I would do, it just fits your budget and is a terrific subwoofer. Anything else would cost a fortune to ship and support across the Atlantic would be awkward.

 

[tyhjaarpa]

For a 2000€ budget I'd give a serious look at the. They offer a 60-day in-home trial (or at least they do here in the U.S.). Or maybe consider a pair of with some sort of electronic bass management -- a DSPeaker Anti-Mode (made in Finland!) for fully automated correction; or a miniDSP, Behringer DCX2496, or similar for manual correction.

Edit: On second thought the 3X12 is probably overkill for a modest-sized room. Two 1X12 would be plenty I think. If you're interested, there are some .

Also, check out. They're rather excellent. Two PB-2000 and a DSPeaker, miniDSP, or other correction and you'll be thoroughly pleased I think.

When you say you're planning to upgrade your Marantz SR6007, are you considering the 7008 or 9, or the Denon X4000 or some other receiver with Audyssey Sub EQ HT? If so, then you won't need any of the bass management devices I've suggested. Sub EQ HT will handle it.

Have been thinking 7008 as I like the sound of Marantz.

Not much info found for XTZ subs, how they do for music? For SVS I have read that they are amazing for movies, but not so great for music? As I use my setup around 50/50 for movies and music I'd like it to do great for music as well.

 

[rojo]

Have been thinking 7008 as I like the sound of Marantz.

Great choice! Audyssey XT32 + Sub EQ HT will handle your bass management very well.

Not much info found for XTZ subs, how they do for music? For SVS I have read that they are amazing for movies, but not so great for music? As I use my setup around 50/50 for movies and music I'd like it to do great for music as well.

I admit I haven't heard the XTZ subs, but they measure well and seem to have lots of overhead. SVS, likewise.

I haven't heard any complaints from SVS owners about music. They're grown-up subs, and anything 2000 series and up should have plenty of overhead for your needs. I would imagine the SB2000 would have a lower Q and tighter control than the PB, whereas the PB would potentially give you a more tactile thump for movies. SVS subs are DSP controlled, and will limit themselves before you ever hear them bottoming out. That could result in some dynamic compression, but I'd guess that's only at very high volumes (>100dB).

LSound offers a 45-day in-home trial for their SVS subs. If you got a pair of SB2000 and were disappointed, you'd only be out the cost of return shipping.

The XTZ sub can be run either sealed or ported. In the U.S. they offer 60 days in-home trial with free return shipping. I'm almost positive they offer the same in Sweden. Email them at info@xtz.se to see whether the same in-home trial would include Finland as well.

The SVS and the XTZ subs should all produce the Royal Albert Hall's lowest organ note with authority, and getting a pair of subs will let you smooth out the bass response in your room and give you a bigger sweet spot (more than, say, a single PB13-Ultra).

I think if you choose KEF or Martin Logan, you'll be paying a brick & mortar markup. You'll get a better bargain ordering an Internet Direct type sub.

 

[walter duque]

This sub was very impressive for both music and movies. Might not be up your alley, but it's a great all around sub.

Subwoofers | Vandersteen Audio

 

[mtrycrafts]

...

Not much info found for XTZ subs, how they do for music? For SVS I have read that they are amazing for movies, but not so great for music? ...

No reason why it would not be great for music as well. After all, it responds to electric signals not music types.

Just got to be aware all of the urban legends out there, this being one.

 

[mtrycrafts]

SVS has a distributor in Scandanavia that ships to Finland, LSound, and you can get their PB13 Ultra for 2k €. That is what I would do, it just fits your budget and is a terrific subwoofer. Anything else would cost a fortune to ship and support across the Atlantic would be awkward.

With this being the case, a great suggestion indeed.

 

[Muzykant]

I have not heard the other subs mentioned here, but as I write this I am listening to Victor Wooten's recording through a pair of bookshelves and an SVS SB-2000 sub positioned in the center. It sounds wonderful! Great extension, tight control and perfect blend with my bookshelves. I don't see how a pair of these wouldn't satisfy a person's listening needs. Plus, you can get 3 of them for the budget you mentioned. At under 16 kilos each and with such a compact size, you would have plenty of options to place them perfectly.

 

[tyhjaarpa]

No reason why it would not be great for music as well. After all, it responds to electric signals not music types.

Just got to be aware all of the urban legends out there, this being one.

I know it responds to electric signals, but different music styles have faster paced bass and I would like to be sure that my sub can keep up with the speed. I have heard that some subs can struggle with fast paced music and that's why I'm concerned about it. Is this true? Cant really tell as I haven't heard so many subs yet to tell. I want to be sure to get best sub for my money as I'm dropping good amount of it there (at least in my opinion 2000€ is plenty).

Forgot to mention in my first post that I'm really looking for 1 sub setup as it would be really hard to place 2 subs in my current apartment, and I most likely wont be moving out from there in next 2 years.

How is that SVS PC13-Ultra and SVS SB13-Ultra or maybe even SVS PB12-Plus? Isn't down firing sub easier to place, or is this just another myth? SVS PB13-Ultra looks pretty nice all tho but more pricey than those other models, does it justify that price difference between them?

 

[Muzykant]

People only say great things about PB13-Ultra. But it's a huge brute that weights 70 kilos and that you can't probably even grab. I even have trouble moving my sealed Ultras, and they are a lot smaller and lighter.

 

[tyhjaarpa]

People only say great things about PB13-Ultra. But it's a huge brute that weights 70 kilos and that you can't probably even grab. I even have trouble moving my sealed Ultras, and they are a lot smaller and lighter.

I don't see problem in weight as long as you can move it with 2 persons. Dimensions on it are acceptable as well. Sound is the most important thing for me in sub. And of course if I can save some cash without losing sound quality it would be nice.

 

[mtrycrafts]

I know it responds to electric signals, but different music styles have faster paced bass a...

Not exactly sure what you mean by this. Bass region has a frequency band that the sub will reproduce.
There is a sticky thread about sub myths, should read that.
http://forums.audioholics.com/forums/subwoofers/35455-myths-about-subwoofers.html

 

[PENG]

I don't see problem in weight as long as you can move it with 2 persons. Dimensions on it are acceptable as well. Sound is the most important thing for me in sub. And of course if I can save some cash without losing sound quality it would be nice.

Two persons can definitely move the PB13U but your relative small room should work very well with the much lighter SB13U. Also, if you go with hearsay (I don't), the SB13U will give you the fast bass you are concern about as it is a sealed sub. Hearsay aside, I do enjoy my PB13U a lot but I see no need to pair it with my R900.

 

[Muzykant]

Two persons can definitely move the PB13U but your relative small room should work very well with the much lighter SB13U. Also, if you go with hearsay (I don't), the SB13U will give you the fast bass you are concern about as it is a sealed sub. Hearsay aside, I do enjoy my PB13U a lot but I see no need to pair it with my R900.

Sure its bass is fast enough, just the output drops in a hurry below 30 Hz. Though, in smaller rooms it might actually work fine.

 

[tyhjaarpa]

Not exactly sure what you mean by this. Bass region has a frequency band that the sub will reproduce.
There is a sticky thread about sub myths, should read that.
http://forums.audioholics.com/forums/subwoofers/35455-myths-about-subwoofers.html

Thanks, really interesting info out there and a lot useful information. What I meant is music with double kick bass for example can have really fast bass hits and I would like to be sure that my sub can keep up with the speed and reproduce all hits clean without problems. As I have read some subs can struggle there, I do not know if its true or not.

Is there any comparison available between SVS SB13-Ultra and MartinLogan Dynamo 1500x? Or does any one here have experience from both? As those 2 subs at the moment are looking best in my eyes. SB13 being 1700€ and 1500x being 1800€ they are really close to each other in price and if I'm not wrong in performance as well? Would 1500x benefit from down firing configuration over SB13? Or does it even matter?

I can get 1500x from local store for testing without any costs, for SB13 I need to email lsound if they have some contract with UPS for returning shipping and how much would it cost. But good thing is that I'm not in hurry with this purchase.

 

[crossedover]

SVS SB13-Ultra Subwoofer Review | Audioholics

MartinLogan Dynamo 1500X Subwoofer Review | Audioholics

 

[tyhjaarpa]

SVS SB13-Ultra Subwoofer Review | Audioholics

MartinLogan Dynamo 1500X Subwoofer Review | Audioholics

Already read both of those before my last post, but thanks. In my eyes they look pretty close to each other in reviews..? Would like to know if some one have compared them in person and how they liked them. And would like to know does 1500x benefit from down firing configuration?