SVS PB12-plus setup

[mdanderson]

Well I got my PB12-plus today and I have located it and setup the levels and everything but so far I have not been able to get the same level or impact I had with my old 20-39PCi. I followed all the instructions in the manual and set my speakers all to 75db along with the sub at the same level. I used the AIX calibration disc that came with my Oppo BDP-93.

I ended up with -17db on the volume of the sub and -1db on the sub level in my Emotiva UMC-1. I have the sub located just to the right of my couch. This is where the sub crawl test indicated was the best place for good bass. I used the same location as my old 20-39PCi but I did not do a new sub crawl test with the new sub. I have not tried to run PEQ yet. I do have REW when I decide to do it.

If I turn up the sub level in my prepro to about +6 or +7db, I start to get close to the same level I was used to but this would mean the sub is running at a much higher level compared to the rest of my speakers. I also turned up the volume level in the sub itself to about -10db and it was better but that would also mean the level is quite above the rest of the speakers, which would be about 7db hot. Thanks for any input.

 

[djreef]

Use the calibration discs as a rough guide. Do the final tune with your ears with material you're familiar with.

Oh, and give that big ***** a chance to break in. Trust me she'll sound a great deal different in 2 weeks.

DJ

 

[mike c]

it's ok for the sub to be louder than the mains ... at least in my opinion.

turn it up!

 

[mdanderson]

Use the calibration discs as a rough guide. Do the final tune with your ears with material you're familiar with.

Oh, and give that big ***** a chance to break in. Trust me she'll sound a great deal different in 2 weeks.

DJ

Thanks djreef and mike c for the advice. I will certainly give it a chance to breakin and I won't be afraid to have the sub running hotter than the mains even if it is around 6 or 7db more. Thanks again.

 

[timoteo]

I was just about to post for the OP to let the sub break in. New subs never have good impact at first. They truly transform over a month or so. If the OP has never had a new sub then he is in for a suprise at how the sub will change/improve specially in the midbass slam. Be patient & give the sub a workout. This will speed up the break in period.

The only sub i was impressed with right out of the box was my VTF-15H. It wasnt as good as it is now thats its broken in but i was happy from day 1. Other new subs ive owned were less than stellar at first. But even those subs became great performers over time!

 

[Josuah]

Yeah, the calibration sub is probably wrong in your case. Especially if you don't have a PEQ in your system yet. You should smooth out the response using PEQ and then level match using REW. You'll end up with a much better result than trying to match things up by the calibration disc.

 

[ack_bak]

Also don't be afraid to talk to the guys at SVS. They are very helpful.

Have you also looked into room placement? It looks like you are nearfield which is good, but you never know.

And I agree with the others, your sub may need some time to breakin.

 

[mdanderson]

Thanks timoteo, Josuah and ack_bak for the advice. I will give it more breakin time and I did call SVS and talk to Ed Mullen and he was very helpful. If I level match using REW, do I just use the test tone generator in that program? What frequency should I use when playing the test tones? Thanks again for taking the time to respond.

Matt

 

[Josuah]

I use the sweep and adjust to make the curve look as smooth as possible.

 

[Craigslist Joe]

Good stuff here. Thanks everybody.

 

[mdanderson]

Also don't be afraid to talk to the guys at SVS. They are very helpful.

Have you also looked into room placement? It looks like you are nearfield which is good, but you never know.

And I agree with the others, your sub may need some time to breakin.

My sub is really sounding better now but I just relocated my PB12-plus to the right rear corner after doing the crawl test using bass test tones(not music), and I am getting the couch shaking more for movies, but it was at the expense of accurate bass with music.

I may end up moving the sub back to where I had it which was just to the right of my couch, along the wall. I wish there was a compromise so I could get accurate bass for music as well as good slam for movies.

 

[djreef]

My sub is really sounding better now but I just relocated my PB12-plus to the right rear corner after doing the crawl test using bass test tones(not music), and I am getting the couch shaking more for movies, but it was at the expense of accurate bass with music.

I may end up moving the sub back to where I had it which was just to the right of my couch, along the wall. I wish there was a compromise so I could get accurate bass for music as well as good slam for movies.

Save your nickels and dimes and get a second one.

DJ

 

[Tomorrow]

Well I got my PB12-plus today and I have located it and setup the levels and everything but so far I have not been able to get the same level or impact I had with my old 20-39PCi. I followed all the instructions in the manual and set my speakers all to 75db along with the sub at the same level. I used the AIX calibration disc that came with my Oppo BDP-93.

I ended up with -17db on the volume of the sub and -1db on the sub level in my Emotiva UMC-1. I have the sub located just to the right of my couch. This is where the sub crawl test indicated was the best place for good bass. I used the same location as my old 20-39PCi but I did not do a new sub crawl test with the new sub. I have not tried to run PEQ yet. I do have REW when I decide to do it.

If I turn up the sub level in my prepro to about +6 or +7db, I start to get close to the same level I was used to but this would mean the sub is running at a much higher level compared to the rest of my speakers. I also turned up the volume level in the sub itself to about -10db and it was better but that would also mean the level is quite above the rest of the speakers, which would be about 7db hot. Thanks for any input.

I suspect that you had your older SVS long before you acquired your Oppo (and it's AIX calibration disc). So my question is...had you also level matched the 20-39 to your speakers (or did you do that only 'by ear')? It may be that you had been running the old sub quite hot...many people do when not using SPL meters for level matching. A casually set difference in amplifier output setting between the old sub and the new (calibrated) Plus would easily account for the different prepro level you're using.

That is a sweet sub which should outperform your PCi.

 

[mdanderson]

Save your nickels and dimes and get a second one.

DJ

I assume you mean a second sub. Yes, that would be nice.

 

[mdanderson]

I suspect that you had your older SVS long before you acquired your Oppo (and it's AIX calibration disc). So my question is...had you also level matched the 20-39 to your speakers (or did you do that only 'by ear')? It may be that you had been running the old sub quite hot...many people do when not using SPL meters for level matching. A casually set difference in amplifier output setting between the old sub and the new (calibrated) Plus would easily account for the different prepro level you're using.

That is a sweet sub which should outperform your PCi.

Thanks for the input. Yes, I did level match my old sub to my speakers but I had the sub running about 3-4db hot. I may try running REW again. I could not get it to run the first time but I know what I did wrong.

 

[Tomorrow]

Thanks for the input. Yes, I did level match my old sub to my speakers but I had the sub running about 3-4db hot. I may try running REW again. I could not get it to run the first time but I know what I did wrong.

Even if you did level match the PCi and speakers, the difference in amps and their control knob settings could still cause the difference you are noting in the prepro level. Do you notice that the Plus is definitely less articulate and more boomy than the PCi? That would make your issue problematic.

Hopefully running REW will help. Good luck.

 

[mdanderson]

Even if you did level match the PCi and speakers, the difference in amps and their control knob settings could still cause the difference you are noting in the prepro level. Do you notice that the Plus is definitely less articulate and more boomy than the PCi? That would make your issue problematic.

Hopefully running REW will help. Good luck.

Thanks. The plus is more articulate and less boomy than the PCi but that is when I first placed the plus to the right of my couch. Music sounded great but lacking in slam for movies. I now have it located in the right rear corner but I need to level match again after doing the crawl test with bass test tones.

Movies now sound good but I lost accuracy in the bass for music. I will give REW another try. Thanks again for the help.

 

[timoteo]

If you are finding that one location sounds better for music then the 40-60hz range is probably being brought out. If the other spot sounds better for movies then most likely the 20-40hz range is being emphasized. A sub placed in a corner further away will typically boost the ultra low (20-40hz) bass. While if its closer & away from a wall it will give you more midbass.

Music rarely drops lower than 40hz, while movies can get down to 20hz & even lower. So you need to either find a better location in the room for the sub or you need to apply some EQ to tame the peaks. Find out the best location, measure that spot & bring down your frequency peaks. This will yield a flatter & better musical & movie bass.

 

[mdanderson]

If you are finding that one location sounds better for music then the 40-60hz range is probably being brought out. If the other spot sounds better for movies then most likely the 20-40hz range is being emphasized. A sub placed in a corner further away will typically boost the ultra low (20-40hz) bass. While if its closer & away from a wall it will give you more midbass.

Music rarely drops lower than 40hz, while movies can get down to 20hz & even lower. So you need to either find a better location in the room for the sub or you need to apply some EQ to tame the peaks. Find out the best location, measure that spot & bring down your frequency peaks. This will yield a flatter & better musical & movie bass.

timoteo, you have been very helpful and I appreciate all of your input. I ended up moving the sub back to right beside my couch because the music sounds so nice there. I will work on the lower bass for movies using REW or something else.

When I do find these peaks, I will try to bring them down with EmoQ on my Emotiva UMC-1 prepro. The SVS sub has its own PEQ and I have used it to bring down a peak at 40hz. Should I turn off PEQ in my SVS if I am using the equalizer in the prepro? Thanks again.

 

[Tomorrow]

When I do find these peaks, I will try to bring them down with EmoQ on my Emotiva UMC-1 prepro. The SVS sub has its own PEQ and I have used it to bring down a peak at 40hz. Should I turn off PEQ in my SVS if I am using the equalizer in the prepro? Thanks again.

I would say that depends upon what your REW shows. Both your sub and your prepro have correction limitations. My room has such terrible nodes that I PEQ'ed both of my Plusses, then ran YPAO (Yamaha's PEQ), and then polished them off with a DSPeaker Anti-Mode 8033 subwoofer PEQ. There are a lot of filters in the loop, but it's the best I could do. (Remember, when trying for a flatter frequency response, it's much better to cut peaks than to boost dips.)

Not to worry, it might be a little work, but you will end up loving your new SVS.