choosing a svs sub

[kingweb50]

I am looking at buying either the pb13 ultra or the sb13 ultra. The price difference does not matter and it will be paired with paradigm studio 100s, cc-690, and arp-590 surrounds. I originally ordered a paradigm sub 15 but the finish I wanted was not available so I am looking at these two svs subs. Would I want the ported or sealed version?

 

[j_garcia]

Depends on your listening preferences IMO. The PB is one that sounds great with both movies and music, but having not heard the SB13, I'd still probably say that though you will likely give up some output to the PB, it will still end up sounding cleaner than the PB.

What finish exactly?

 

[ImcLoud]

I take it you are looking for piano, not a ton of subs out there available in piano.. What I have noticed about "ported vs sealed" subs is ported have more output and sealed are more accurate.. So normally this would mean movies = ported and music = sealed.... BUT there are some variables here.. As J stated Sealed subs are more accurate {and normally smaller, more spouse friendly} and ported subs are more powerful {and normally dig deeper}... SO, what if you can afford a sealed sub that has enough output for your movie listening, wouldn't is be the best of both worlds? A lot of output with accuracy? I think that is what you have with the sealed 13" ultra, its a very accurate sub with a TON of output...

Also if you find it isn't loud enough you can always send it back and get the ported.... I have heard both, and I personally would get the sealed if I had to choose between them, and if I had to choose in the general price range of the ultras I would get an hsu uls15 dual drive over either svs ULS-15 DualDrive Packages , but no piano

 

[JonnyFive23517]

ImCloud, I'm glad to hear someone has heard both and preferred the sealed. I own the SB13 and I've never regretted the purchase, but I wonder what the PB13 would sound like. A couple things you might consider:

SB is manageable to move by yourself provided you're average size. I know I couldn't move the PB13 by myself without slipping a disc. Or two. The SB13 is also smaller.

The black oak finish on my SB is much nicer than I had anticipated. A piano finish will show smudges/dust more, but I'm sure the piano finish is gorgeous too.

How big of a room are we talking, what are your listening habits? If you said gigantic room all movies, I'd strongly lean ported. If you said large/moderate room (or less) and a blend of movies/music I'd lean SB13.

Have you considered a pair of subs? Pair of SB13s would be nice

 

[kingweb50]

well I called and talked to SVS also and he talked me into the pb13 ultra over the sealed because of my room size being about 3500 cubic feet. He seemed to think they are very comparable in music but in movies the pb is much nicer than the sb. I took his advice and went with the ported and he said if I wanted in 45 days of listening to it I could return it in get duel sb13 ultras but he doesnt think I will.

 

[kingweb50]

Thanks for all the replies guys. This forum has been quite helpful in setting up my first theater room

 

[Uncle_Big_Green]

well I called and talked to SVS also and he talked me into the pb13 ultra over the sealed because of my room size being about 3500 cubic feet. He seemed to think they are very comparable in music but in movies the pb is much nicer than the sb. I took his advice and went with the ported and he said if I wanted in 45 days of listening to it I could return it in get duel sb13 ultras but he doesnt think I will.

I believe that SVS is right. You wouldn't have gone wrong either way, but since your room isn't tiny, you probably want the ported. This is coming from a sealed sub owner. I really want two of my subs in my space as it's not too much less voluminous than yours.

 

[theJman]

I believe that SVS is right. You wouldn't have gone wrong either way, but since your room isn't tiny, you probably want the ported. This is coming from a sealed sub owner. I really want two of my subs in my space as it's not too much less voluminous than yours.

+1

The rep from SVS is correct; you'll need a PB to fill 3500 ft^3. If you went duals then a pair of SB's would work, but for a single unit the PB is a far better choice.

 

[JonnyFive23517]

I think you made a great choice with the PB13 and I don't think you'll regret it.

 

[kingweb50]

My pb13 ultra arrived and now have some setup questions. Since I will run audessey again do I turn off all the sub settings since the room correction will set cross overs and such? Also, what is the volume db level I should set the sub to? The sub is so much larger in person then my tape measure visualization seemed. Glad I have plenty of room for it.

 

[kini]

My pb13 ultra arrived and now have some setup questions. Since I will run audessey again do I turn off all the sub settings since the room correction will set cross overs and such? Also, what is the volume db level I should set the sub to? The sub is so much larger in person then my tape measure visualization seemed. Glad I have plenty of room for it.

Best source of set up information is from the source itself. Email or call SVS.

 

[Rippyman]

My pb13 ultra arrived and now have some setup questions. Since I will run audessey again do I turn off all the sub settings since the room correction will set cross overs and such? Also, what is the volume db level I should set the sub to? The sub is so much larger in person then my tape measure visualization seemed. Glad I have plenty of room for it.

When I talked to Ed Mullen about mine he suggested setting the sub power to -10 , HZ at 20 and leave all other settings off. Then run Audessey. I suggest using all 12 positions with Audessey when doing the calibration.

 

[JonnyFive23517]

Set the sub volume so Audysseys chirps are at 75db. (Or is it 85 db?) For my SB13, I Audyssey at -10 on the sub. Yes, disable all sub controls and let the receiver do that. Use the full number of measurements available, at the very least moving the mic around a couple inches each time if you only care about the main LP. (Covering a volume about the size of your head or so).

 

[afterlife2]

Read this: Digital Bass Management - SVS

 

[kingweb50]

I set the sub to -10db as the guy at svs told me is the correct audessey level and ran the audessey and went back and increased the crossover setting in my side channels to 80hz as they were set to 40hz. What volume db do most people set the sub to now that room correction is complete?

 

[Rippyman]

I set the sub to -10db as the guy at svs told me is the correct audessey level and ran the audessey and went back and increased the crossover setting in my side channels to 80hz as they were set to 40hz. What volume db do most people set the sub to now that room correction is complete?

What did your receiver set it to after running Audessey?

 

[kingweb50]

Rippyman, audessey set it to -12db

 

[Natrix]

Ed from SVS has mentioned that to get the most power out of the Sledge amps that the gain should be set higher and correspondingly adjusted in the AVR, so you could bump the subs gain to -7 and adjust the AVR's gain to -15.

What volume db do most people set the sub to now that room correction is complete?

There is no one setting that will work for everyone as there are too many variables to consider. I'd do what I suggested above and then listen to some music and watch some movies and adjust the subs output from there if need be.

 

[Rippyman]

Rippyman, audessey set it to -12db

Your sub is set too high then, turn your sub down to -15 and run it again. Your receiver is saying it's too loud right now and is trying to compensate by turning it way down.

 

[Ed Mullen]

Your sub is set too high then, turn your sub down to -15 and run it again. Your receiver is saying it's too loud right now and is trying to compensate by turning it way down.

Correct and good advice. If the AVR sub channel level bottoms out post-calibration, that means the sub gain is too high. The AVR will attempt to compensate for this by jacking up the speaker trims levels way into the positive region, which is not optimal. It's best to drop the gain on the subwoofer and re-run set-up. Once the sub channel level comes off the bottom of the control range (preferably in the mid-negative region) you're good to go.