2 x Emotiva Ultra Sub 12 or...

[nogaro]

1 A3s-250 and 1 A5s-300 from eD. The totals come out to $800 in each case. The use will be 1 sub for music only (13x13x9 room) and 1 sub for 70% HT and 30% music (10x11x9 room). Music is primarily jazz and movies are primarily dialog oriented but do watch some big action stuff as well. Cannot do more than 16" deep for the HT sub and more than 18" deep for the music sub.

I used to be sane before venturing into the world of audioholics, but at this point, I might as well add this: Other suggestions are welcome too, with the total at or less than $1000.

Thanks!

 

[shadyJ]

Given your restrictions, I would go with the dual Emotivas, but I don't think the ED subs would be bad either. If you can save up a bit, you might ask ED about the A5s-325, which is 18" deep. They put their high performance 13" driver in that one so it supposed to get some fairly deep extension for a small sealed sub. It's $900 but I am sure it is much better than the Emotiva subs, especially for home theater. It's not listed on their site so you would want to ask ED about that one.

 

[GranteedEV]

Get two Epik Legends or Two Rythmik FV12s and be done with it

 

[nogaro]

@shadyJ - I only have 16" for the HT sub. Maybe I should rethink my room configuration to allow for a bigger box.

@GranteedEV - the only way I could do the 20" depth of the subs you recommend is by placing them sideways i.e. one of the drivers will be firing into the wall for the Legend. Is that an acceptable placement or would that make the sound boomy? On a separate note, how many scotchs have you tried what are your top 3 so far?

 

[sholling]

Maybe one cylinder sub? A SVS PC12-NSD is only a bit over 16" in diameter.

Dims: 16-5/8" diameter, 35-3/4" tall, 59lbs.

 

[Adam]

Maybe one cylinder sub? A SVS PC12-NSD is only a bit over 16" in diameter.

I was thinking the same thing , except that two of those are way over the stated budget. There's always used, though.

 

[jonnythan]

I see nothing wrong with dual Ultra 12s. They are tiny tiny and I'm a huge fan of sealed subs for music.. I'm also now a fan of sealed subs for HT in smallish rooms, too, having recently converted my ported sonosub into a sealed box. Plenty of extension (in-room -5dB point is around 25 Hz) and volume in my living room, which is 14x20. Very satisfying.

 

[shadyJ]

@shadyJ - I only have 16" for the HT sub. Maybe I should rethink my room configuration to allow for a bigger box.

@GranteedEV - the only way I could do the 20" depth of the subs you recommend is by placing them sideways i.e. one of the drivers will be firing into the wall for the Legend. Is that an acceptable placement or would that make the sound boomy? On a separate note, how many scotchs have you tried what are your top 3 so far?

If you want deep bass, you'll want to permit a larger box size. The small sealed subs you are thinking about buying won't be doing much below 30 hz. The PC12-NSD suggestion was a good way to get around that though, it is essentially trading depth and width for height.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

Get two Epik Legends or Two Rythmik FV12s and be done with it

I agree 100%.

 

[nogaro]

Ok, so I take it that nobody thinks having the SVS PC12-NSD or Epik Legend or FV12 is overkill for a 10x11x9 room? By overkill I don't mean I can't turn the volume down, but overkill in the sense of having way more than I can ever use. I'll have to see which of these I can squeeze into my TV room when I get back home on Friday.

So, where does that leave us with the sub for music? Out of the SVS PC12-NSD, Epik Legend, FV12, Ultra Sub 12, A5s-300, A3s-250, what's the best value preference i.e. which one can I make do with without sacrificing musicality given the 13X13X9 room and jazz/blues listening. I hear the A3s-250 was designed for music - will that be good enough? Will the Legend sound good even with one driver 2"-3" from a wall?

 

[GranteedEV]

Ok, so I take it that nobody thinks having the SVS PC12-NSD or Epik Legend or FV12 is overkill for a 10x11x9 room? By overkill I don't mean I can't turn the volume down, but overkill in the sense of having way more than I can ever use. I'll have to see which of these I can squeeze into my TV room when I get back home on Friday.

a 10x11x9 room is very small. a 12" sub sounds about right you might get bass down to 10hz in that room

Run the FV12 in its lowest extension mode rather than highest output mode. I beleive this is 14hz.

 

[sholling]

I was thinking the same thing , except that two of those are way over the stated budget. There's always used, though.

I missed the part about two rooms. I'd put an Ultra 12 in the music only room and I have no clue what's small enough for the other. Maybe look for a used cylinder sub.

I see nothing wrong with dual Ultra 12s. They are tiny tiny and I'm a huge fan of sealed subs for music.. I'm also now a fan of sealed subs for HT in smallish rooms, too, having recently converted my ported sonosub into a sealed box. Plenty of extension (in-room -5dB point is around 25 Hz) and volume in my living room, which is 14x20. Very satisfying.

My Ultra 12 drops like a rock at ~32hz. They're great for most music but I could never recommend them for home theater. Well maybe for chick flicks but I don't watch those.

 

[jonnythan]

My Ultra 12 drops like a rock at ~32hz. They're great for most music but I could never recommend them for home theater. Well maybe for chick flicks but I don't watch those.

That's measured in-room response?

 

[nogaro]

Thanks for all the fantastic input so far, everyone - it is certainly much appreciated.

I see some mentions for the PC-12 NSD, but none for the SB12-NSD. I do see that SVS themselves recommend the PC-12 NSD if space is not an issue, but since it is an issue in my case, wouldn't the SB12 suffice for both applications? Of course, that'll completely blow my budget, and I might just do the SB12 for HT and the Ultra 12 for music.

Also, if someone could let me know if the Epik Legend's performance will get adversely affected by one driver firing into a wall about 2"-3" from it, then I'd at least be able to strike that off my list!

 

[BillCinLR]

The Legend will perform just fine with that much room behind it.

Bill C

 

[sholling]

That's measured in-room response?

Yes in a 13x13x10 room using REW and a calibrated mic.

Edit: Don't get me wrong at its price point and within its limitations I think it's a very good music sub and I rarely hesitate (depending on the music) to recommend it for music only systems in smallish rooms. I just have a problem with a manufacturer making extension claims based on hoped for room gain without giving equal billing to actual anechoic or outdoor measurements. FWIW though it fits my need for a very compact sub for a music only system for my home-office and I'm happy with the purchase but I wouldn't be happy with it for action movies. Of course the OP's room may provide the hoped for room gain.

 

[nogaro]

I just saw this post about the ML Dynamo 500 for $199 shipped. Seems to have decent reviews for music and its dimensions work for my (OP) space. Does anyone have first-hand experience with it? Does ML exaggerate their specs? Extension down to 29 Hz should be decent enough for my music tastes, but if real world response is not as good then maybe it's not such a great idea??