Subwoofer on a budget.

[Pogre]

RSL's Winter Speaker Closeout

Hmmmmm

That's one way to get a Speedwoofer! Man, those packages are a really good deal for someone starting from scratch. RSL make great speakers too. Not sure if I'm remembering correctly, but I think Shady told me the CG5 is the pick of the litter from the bunch.

 

[William Lemmerhirt]

That's one way to get a Speedwoofer! Man, those packages are a really good deal for someone starting from scratch. RSL make great speakers too. Not sure if I'm remembering correctly, but I think Shady told me the CG5 is the pick of the litter from the bunch.

I think my bedroom 5.1 might get one of those packages!

 

[NINaudio]

I looked and it is a little bit bigger. Not by a whole bunch, but it is slightly larger.

Man it pisses me off when one of the best solutions is out of stock, lol.

I think the Starke SW12 is in stock, and would be great in an office setting.

 

[NINaudio]

Here's a review from here of the Starke subs:

https://www.audioholics.com/subwoofer-reviews/starke-sound-sw15-and-sw12/conclusion

and for direct comparison here are measurements for the speedwoofer:

https://www.audioholics.com/surround-sound-reviews/rsl-cg4-cg24-and-speedwoofer-10-loudspeaker-review/measurements-and-analysis

If you compare the SW12 and the speedwoofer 10, you will see that they are VERY close in performance.

 

[qba]

Here's a review from here of the Starke subs:

https://www.audioholics.com/subwoofer-reviews/starke-sound-sw15-and-sw12/conclusion

and for direct comparison here are measurements for the speedwoofer:

https://www.audioholics.com/surround-sound-reviews/rsl-cg4-cg24-and-speedwoofer-10-loudspeaker-review/measurements-and-analysis

If you compare the SW12 and the speedwoofer 10, you will see that they are VERY close in performance.

Thanks NINaudio, I kind of had mentally settled for the SVS SB1000 Pro, especially after watching the bellow video where he even compared it to the RSL Speedwoofer 10S. I was going to buy it tomorrow, there is a local authorized dealer very close to me, but I'm still open to suggestions.

I checked on the Starke site and the dimensions to the SVS SB1000 Pro seems to be pretty much the same, all I checked is the Width, Height, and Depth are irrelevant to the space I have to work with under the desk, the other good news is that the shipping to Toronto is free, not sure if Canada is going to hit me with border fees, but that is always a hit and miss.

How does the Starke SW12 compare to the SVS SB1000 Pro?

 

[William Lemmerhirt]

Thanks NINaudio, I kind of had mentally settled for the SVS SB1000 Pro, especially after watching the bellow video where he even compared it to the RSL Speedwoofer 10S. I was going to buy it tomorrow, there is a local authorized dealer very close to me, but I'm still open to suggestions.

I checked on the Starke site and the dimensions to the SVS SB1000 Pro seems to be pretty much the same, all I checked is the Width, Height, and Depth are irrelevant to the space I have to work with under the desk, the other good news is that the shipping to Toronto is free, not sure if Canada is going to hit me with border fees, but that is always a hit and miss.

How does the Starke SW12 compare to the SVS SB1000 Pro?

Sorry. Only made it 3 minutes into that video.
Numb nuts…

 

[qba]

Sorry. Only made it 3 minutes into that video.
Numb nuts…

William can you please elaborate? Is that guy just talking nonsense because he doesn't know? or he is talking nonsense because he is doing a covert ad for the SVS SB-1000? Since I don't understand a lot of the technicalities, it sounds very convincing to me, but that is problematic if you know he is making stuff up lol

 

[William Lemmerhirt]

Ok maybe not numb nuts lol.
I got to about three or four minutes and he’s talking about how the svs punches and attacks and pressurizes the whole room etc. it’s a small sealed sub, and all those descriptors are superfluous. Maybe I’ll watch the rest to see what you’re seeing, but I have found very few av people on YT that are worth the time.

 

[qba]

Ok maybe not numb nuts lol.
I got to about three or four minutes and he’s talking about how the svs punches and attacks and pressurizes the whole room etc. it’s a small sealed sub, and all those descriptors are superfluous. Maybe I’ll watch the rest to see what you’re seeing, but I have found very few av people on YT that are worth the time.

Thanks I'll appreciate it if you can watch it. Remember I'm ignorant to the subject so he could say whatever he wants with a level of conviction and it will sound factual to me lol

 

[qba]

Another convincing video

 

[NINaudio]

The measurements of the SB-1000 pro are pretty good as well:

https://www.audioholics.com/subwoofer-reviews/svs-pb-1000-pro-sb-1000-pro/conclusion

It costs more than the Starke SW12 right now, if that's an issue for you, but the SW12 seems to offer more performance than the SB-1000 as well.

 

[Pogre]

I agree with Bill. I think that guy is full shiat.

 

[Pogre]

Another convincing video

I don't put much stock in yt videos. Sealed subs are a compromise in just about everything for a smaller box. Is the SB1000 a bad choice? No. But the Speedwoofer will outperform it. I personally avoid sealed designs, and despite popular perception, they're not tighter, or more punchy, or anything else except compromised in deep bass performance for a smaller package. That's it, period.

If you need the smaller box go with the SB1000. If you want better performance go with the Speedwoofer or Starke Sound. I keep forgetting about Starke Sound.

 

[qba]

Thanks NINaudio and Pogre, I have to say that audioholics reviews articles with so much scientific testing and a nice ranking per category are amazing!!! This forum is like if a bunch of scientists set up to measure audio performance.

I have to agree that the Starke SW12 right now is cheaper and outperformed the SVS SB-1000 after reading both reviews from your site, The same with the out of stock RLS Speedwofer 10S, but embarrassing I thought I had made a mistake on my first dimension research for these subwoofers, and the SVS SB-1000 was 15" wide as the Starke (14.9) and the RLS Speedwofer 10S (15), but on reality, I noticed last night that I didn't make a mistake and to my joy SB-1000 is only 13" wide and that would make the placement underneath my desk more acceptable, as you can see on the previous pics I took I don't have a lot of space.

Just to let you know how important the space is for me, in Canada the SB-1000 is way more expensive than the Starke SW12 and the RLS Speedwoofer 10's, I'll be paying $829 plus taxes for a whopping $937 for the SB-1000, so at this point, money doesn't see to be a factor in this selection, the best thing would have been to buy the three and return two. I would have considered that option if they all were on the smaller size.

So what I'm planning to do is to buy the SVS SB-1000 if I'm not completed blown away by it where the music sounds as good as it gets for my perception, I will return it and buy the Starke SW12, or better off wait for when the RLS becomes available and buy the Speedwofer 10's and the Starke SW12 for a head to head test. Everything I have read about the Speedwofer 10's is that it's amazing for music and that is what I want it for.

According to this guy below, the Starke SW12 required fine-tuning that is the amount of my current level of knowledge, so is something I'm not looking forward too lol

Your patient and dedication while helping others are admirable.

Thanks!!!!!!

 

[Pogre]

So what I'm planning to do is to buy the SVS SB-1000 if I'm not completed blown away by it where the music sounds as good as it gets for my perception, I will return it and buy the Starke SW12, or better off wait for when the RLS becomes available and buy the Speedwofer 10's and the Starke SW12 for a head to head test. Everything I have read about the Speedwofer 10's is that it's amazing for music and that is what I want it for.

I think that's a fine plan. It's not that I think the SB is a "bad" sub, but there are some misconceptions around the sealed vs ported thing that just aren't true (such as "musicality". A well designed ported sub can and does match sealed for musicality). Any time you have a choice always go ported. You being size restricted is the only real good reason for choosing a sealed sub. With SVS' generous return policy tho it's risk free for you to try it out.

According to this guy below, the Starke SW12 required fine-tuning that is the amount of my current level of knowledge, so is something I'm not looking forward too lol

Any sub will require some level of fine tuning. How much depends on your room acoustics and placement. The room will be in charge of how much fine tuning you might need, not the sub itself.

 

[Pogre]

Just to demonstrate here's a paragraph from AH's recent 2021 top picks article regarding the SVS 1000 series subs:

"Overall, our review gave them both high marks, 5/5 in Value and Performance and Certified Large Bassaholic for the PB-1000 Pro, Medium for the SB-1000 Pro for their punchy mid-bass, flat frequency response, and most importantly, honest-to-goodness extension down to 20Hz. A slight nod went to the PB-1000 Pro for its more lifelike movie performance for home theater and its overall capability to fill even a larger room with boom. It should be more than adequate for 3000 ft^3 viewing spaces while still providing good bass performance all the way up to 5000 ft^3 (PB-1000 Pro)."

You can see the ported version earns the next level room size rating just by virtue of its ported design. Here's a link to the article if you wanna check it out.

2021 Audioholics Product of the Year Award Winners!

Here are our 2021 Product of the Year Award winners based on audio products we reviewed that really stood out among their peers in loudspeakers, subwoofers, integrated amplifier, headphones and more.

www.audioholics.com

This article explains the room size rating protocols.

Bassaholic Subwoofer Room Size Rating Protocol

This article outlines our test procedure in determining a subwoofers room size recommendation based on its max CEA SPL output while making room size and subwoofer distance assumptions.

www.audioholics.com

 

[qba]

Just to demonstrate here's a paragraph from AH's recent 2021 top picks article regarding the SVS 1000 series subs:

"Overall, our review gave them both high marks, 5/5 in Value and Performance and Certified Large Bassaholic for the PB-1000 Pro, Medium for the SB-1000 Pro for their punchy mid-bass, flat frequency response, and most importantly, honest-to-goodness extension down to 20Hz. A slight nod went to the PB-1000 Pro for its more lifelike movie performance for home theater and its overall capability to fill even a larger room with boom. It should be more than adequate for 3000 ft^3 viewing spaces while still providing good bass performance all the way up to 5000 ft^3 (PB-1000 Pro)."

You can see the ported version earns the next level room size rating just by virtue of its ported design. Here's a link to the article if you wanna check it out.

2021 Audioholics Product of the Year Award Winners!

Here are our 2021 Product of the Year Award winners based on audio products we reviewed that really stood out among their peers in loudspeakers, subwoofers, integrated amplifier, headphones and more.

www.audioholics.com

This article explains the room size rating protocols.

Bassaholic Subwoofer Room Size Rating Protocol

This article outlines our test procedure in determining a subwoofers room size recommendation based on its max CEA SPL output while making room size and subwoofer distance assumptions.

www.audioholics.com

Thanks Pogre, office room is in a small size category, plus I will be almost sitting on top of the sub.

 

[Pogre]

Thanks Pogre, office room is in a small size category, plus I will be almost sitting on top of the sub.

You might be perfectly happy with the SB1000 Pro. It's a pretty solid performer and you can do worse for sure. Let us know your impressions when you get it hooked up, and if you have any questions about setting up just ping us here. We have lots of experience with sub setup.

 

[William Lemmerhirt]

Thanks Pogre, office room is in a small size category, plus I will be almost sitting on top of the sub.

I think @Pogre has covered anything I would have added. I rarely recommend sealed subs, but I think this is a case where I would. Space seems to be job number one, and then getting the best you can fit in that space. Seems like you’re accepting compromises, and realistic about basically sitting on top of it and what that will give you.
You’ll be very happy with any of the choices here.

 

[qba]

I think @Pogre has covered anything I would have added. I rarely recommend sealed subs, but I think this is a case where I would. Space seems to be job number one, and then getting the best you can fit in that space. Seems like you’re accepting compromises, and realistic about basically sitting on top of it and what that will give you.
You’ll be very happy with any of the choices here.

William, I totally agree, you guys as a collective have done such an amazing job in disclosing the best options within my needs and budget. Once again I'm so grateful for this, I would have never been able to get to this conclusion without you guys! Thanks!!!!!!