2 Ultra 12's or 1 X-Ref 12?

[Maestro]

I have a new Ultra 12 on the way at an incredible holiday price and was thinking of adding another one. Then after I place the order of course the after thoughts start to creep. I see the X Ref has twice the power and DSP of the Ultra but does that mean it's really twice the sub? Hard for me to know I have never heard either. Will 2 Ultras produce more SPL's and provide a more clean dynamic crunch in my Klipsch 5 channel system than a single X Ref 12?

75% Music. 25% Movies is where I'm at with it. Would love to hear from any Ultra or X Ref owners on this.

 

[dad311]

I have two ultra 12s with my five klipsch speakers, sounds great. I think I would rather have two ultras vs one x-ref. I listen to 75% music also.

 

[ObsceneJesster]

I have two X-Ref 12's and I can honestly say, I don't know how I ever went with just one sub. I would go with the two Ultra 12's if you can't afford two X-Ref 12's. Having two subs is a must for me from here on out.

 

[Maestro]

Then there is the possibility of the added cost of the Anti-Mode 8033C if that's needed for the Ultra's. That reminds me the X Ref's have the DSP built right in. Decisions, decisions...

Well it sounds like the 2 Ultras may be the way to go provided I won't need the DSP capability. Once again I promised my wife tonight that this would be the "last upgrade." I remember saying this many times before to her. She thinks I'm a junkie...

 

[theJman]

I'm with the others; dual Ultra's would probably be a better choice than a single X-Ref.

 

[timoteo]

Normally i would agree with going dual Ultras over a single Xref.

HOWEVER!! Look at the specs....

Single Xref:
Typical inroom down to 20hz
Typical max spl 118dB

Single Ultra:
Typical inroom down to 22hz
Typical max spl 113dB
(add 3dB if subs are seperated...116dB)
(add 6dB if subs are co-located..119dB)

So it depends on your wants. If you want more even bass response throughout the room then the dual Ultras will do that better. However you will sacrifice output & bass extension. If you often have more than 1 or 2 people listening then this is a good option.

If you normally only have you & maybe 1 other with you setting next to eachother then i would go for the single X-ref. You will have deeper bass extention & possibly more spl.

UNLESS you co-locate the dual Ultras which will be approx 1dB more max spl but still at the cost of extension.

I would recommend getting the XRef & save for a second XRef down the line.

 

[Maestro]

Dual Ultras was the decision handed down from Mount Olympus. Talked to Vincent at Emo and he suggested 2 Ultras would not only match the SPL's of one X Ref but provide the greatest flexibility. The 5 year warranty and the killer sale price for 2 Ultras didn't hurt either. I think I can live with that. After all I ain't Rockefeller...

 

[timoteo]

Sweet! Enjoy & have fun setting them up.

Make sure to read up on dual subwoofer setup, the bass crawl & correct phase adjustments. Get an SPL meter it will be priceless with getting your whole system setup correctly. Trust us, setting up a system correctly is VERY important!!

Congrats!!

 

[Maestro]

Will do. The SPL meter is next on the list. Thanks to everyone for their feedback! Appreciate it.