Help me choose a new subwoofer

[Vankyra]

Hi everyone and Merry Christmas!

I'm looking to upgrade my old PB-1000. My home theater room is 22m². My usage is 50% movies, 50% music. I normally listen to about -20dB's, but I run my sub hot (and I have Dynamic Equalizer enabled since I love that bass boost it gives at lower volumes). I love being able to crank up the volume a lot and not care about distortion, chuffing, audible port noise or destroying my sub.

My budget is ~3k euros (europe market, unfortunately, so no JTR, Rythmik etc for me, just because of the silly customs). I have access to XTZ, SVS, Arendal, Rel and Klipsch.

My thoughts were:

• Arendal 1723 2V (2800 euros)
• SVS PB-3000 (1900 euros)
• SVS PB-4000 (2800euros)
• XTZ 3x12 (2300euros - it's sold out..)

Then I could go duals but using less expensive subs of course.

Notes to keep in mind: I can benefit from the 60day trial on the Arendal's and the XTZ's but not on the SVS ones.. Last but not least, I have a bad experience using my PB-1000, since it has tons of audible port noise when it needs to go low as well as driver noises (which I replaced and still had the same issue..)

Thanks.

 

[Pogre]

I'd scratch Klipsch and REL off the list right off the bat. XTZ and SVS are always good bets.

22m² seems like a pretty small area. So it's like 4.75m x 4.75m? Actual room dimensions including ceiling height and whether it's open to other spaces would be more helpful. We usually recommend going with dual subs but for a small enough area 1 can definitely be sufficient. If you do go duals I think two PB2000 or PC2000 Pros will offer better performance than a single PB3000 or PB4000. If your room is as small as it sounds a pair of PB1000 Pros would be plenty.

 

[kini]

Hi everyone and Merry Christmas!

I'm looking to upgrade my old PB-1000. My home theater room is 22m². My usage is 50% movies, 50% music. I normally listen to about -20dB's, but I run my sub hot (and I have Dynamic Equalizer enabled since I love that bass boost it gives at lower volumes). I love being able to crank up the volume a lot and not care about distortion, chuffing, audible port noise or destroying my sub.

My budget is ~3k euros (europe market, unfortunately, so no JTR, Rythmik etc for me, just because of the silly customs). I have access to XTZ, SVS, Arendal, Rel and Klipsch.

My thoughts were:

• Arendal 1723 2V (2800 euros)
• SVS PB-3000 (1900 euros)
• SVS PB-4000 (2800euros)
• XTZ 3x12 (2300euros - it's sold out..)

Then I could go duals but using less expensive subs of course.

Notes to keep in mind: I can benefit from the 60day trial on the Arendal's and the XTZ's but not on the SVS ones.. Last but not least, I have a bad experience using my PB-1000, since it has tons of audible port noise when it needs to go low as well as driver noises (which I replaced and still had the same issue..)

Thanks.

XTZ 312 is the best bang for the buck if you can wait. Otherwise the Arendal would be my choice. Like mentioned above you could go with 2 smaller subs like a pair of Arendal 17231Vs. Not sure on the price though.

 

[Hetfield]

Isn't Arendal supposed be top quality? Everyone seems to be in love with them right now and I've been curious myself. I'd be tempted to give them a listen personally.

Sent from my Pixel 4 XL using Tapatalk

 

[Vankyra]

I'd scratch Klipsch and REL off the list right off the bat. XTZ and SVS are always good bets.

22m² seems like a pretty small area. So it's like 4.75m x 4.75m? Actual room dimensions including ceiling height and whether it's open to other spaces would be more helpful. We usually recommend going with dual subs but for a small enough area 1 can definitely be sufficient. If you do go duals I think two PB2000 or PC2000 Pros will offer better performance than a single PB3000 or PB4000. If your room is as small as it sounds a pair of PB1000 Pros would be plenty.

Thanks for the reply. Mhm I've heard that Klipsch subwoofer amps are terrible plus their drivers can't go lower than 18Hz.

My room is indeed pretty small. It is 4.5m x 3.5m and the ceilings are 2.9m. Sorry but I'm not good with dimensions and numbers, plus that cubic feet that I read when it comes to subwoofer coverage is confusing to me.

You mentioned smaller subs compared to my thoughts. My single PB-1000 (non pro though) couldn't keep up when I was running it hotter a few dB's and enabled the Dynamic Equalizer. When the bass was deep, the driver and the port were both acting strange, that's why I'm thinking about larger and more capable subwoofers.

 

[Vankyra]

XTZ 312 is the best bang for the buck if you can wait. Otherwise the Arendal would be my choice. Like mentioned above you could go with 2 smaller subs like a pair of Arendal 17231Vs. Not sure on the price though.

Do you think that they will restock their XTZ 3x12 soon? Or maybe they are preparing a new sub?

The Arendals 1723 1V would cost me 1800euros each. I could buy one now and then the second one in a few months.

 

[Vankyra]

Isn't Arendal supposed be top quality? Everyone seems to be in love with them right now and I've been curious myself. I'd be tempted to give them a listen personally.

Sent from my Pixel 4 XL using Tapatalk

I've read that Arendal is using HDF instead of MDF (high density vs medium density fiberboard) for their subwoofers and that definitely makes a steady, quality product. And the cherry on top is their warranties. 5 years for electronics and 10 years for their drivers.

 

[shadyJ]

The XTZ sub will be the highest performer in that group by a pretty wide margin.

 

[Vankyra]

The XTZ sub will be the highest performer in that group by a pretty wide margin.

Thanks for the reply.

Do you think that I should go for the XTZ sub if I chase raw power?

The 1723 2V has 104dB's at 12.5Hz whereas the XTZ has 100dB's. Plus the Arendal has a measurement at 10Hz which can output 90dB's. Above the 12.5Hz frequency, the XTZ is clearly the winner, it destroys so many subs with its amazing performance, but the thing is that I can't comprehend how big of a difference those 2 subs would have.

I'd also love to know why most people buy SVS subs for example, since there's this XTZ monster which at lower price than the PB-4000, it can have an ambiguous fight with the PB16 ultra and even smoke it above 25Hz.

 

[shadyJ]

Thanks for the reply.

Do you think that I should go for the XTZ sub if I chase raw power?

The 1723 2V has 104dB's at 12.5Hz whereas the XTZ has 100dB's. Plus the Arendal has a measurement at 10Hz which can output 90dB's. Above the 12.5Hz frequency, the XTZ is clearly the winner, it destroys so many subs with its amazing performance, but the thing is that I can't comprehend how big of a difference those 2 subs would have.

I'd also love to know why most people buy SVS subs for example, since there's this XTZ monster which at lower price than the PB-4000, it can have an ambiguous fight with the PB16 ultra and even smoke it above 25Hz.

Yes, if you want raw power, the XTZ sub is the one to get. Regarding the difference between the XTZ and the Arendal, the XTZ would sound louder throughout the entire audible power band. 12.5Hz is pretty much below human audibility. I really like the Arendal sub, but it just isn't as powerful as the XTZ sub. It is probably a nicer sub in other respects, but in raw performance, it can't match the XTZ sub. As for the XTZ vs SVS, most SVS subs are much more physically manageable than the XTZ sub. The thing is huge and heavy. SVS also gets its message out better, so more people know about SVS than XTZ.

 

[Pogre]

So I just looked up the XTZ 3X12. Holy crap. I'd wait a little for that bad boy. That's some serious subwoofage! I have a 2 x 12" sub from RBH and I friggin' love that thing, lol. Any idea when they might be back in stock? Contact them and see how long. I wouldn't wanna wait a year for it or anything, but it's so cool I'd at least inquire.

XTZ Cinema Series 3X12 Subwoofer Review

The XTZ Cinema Series 3X12 subwoofer earned our Extreme Bassaholic rating and proved to be one of the best performing subs we’ve tested. 60 day risk free trial makes it a no brainer for serious bass.

www.audioholics.com

 

[Vankyra]

Yes, if you want raw power, the XTZ sub is the one to get. Regarding the difference between the XTZ and the Arendal, the XTZ would sound louder throughout the entire audible power band. 12.5Hz is pretty much below human audibility. I really like the Arendal sub, but it just isn't as powerful as the XTZ sub. It is probably a nicer sub in other respects, but in raw performance, it can't match the XTZ sub. As for the XTZ vs SVS, most SVS subs are much more physically manageable than the XTZ sub. The thing is huge and heavy. SVS also gets its message out better, so more people know about SVS than XTZ.

Thanks a bunch for explaining.
I really like that Arendal sub too, but it seems that I'm going with the XTZ sub. I couldn't care less about its size and its weight, as long as it can show some serious muscles to me. I'm gonna wait basically because it's been sold out for a couple of months or so. I hope it doesn't get discontinued..

 

[Vankyra]

So I just looked up the XTZ 3X12. Holy crap. I'd wait a little for that bad boy. That's some serious subwoofage! I have a 2 x 12" sub from RBH and I friggin' love that thing, lol. Any idea when they might be back in stock? Contact them and see how long. I wouldn't wanna wait a year for it or anything, but it's so cool I'd at least inquire.

XTZ Cinema Series 3X12 Subwoofer Review

The XTZ Cinema Series 3X12 subwoofer earned our Extreme Bassaholic rating and proved to be one of the best performing subs we’ve tested. 60 day risk free trial makes it a no brainer for serious bass.

www.audioholics.com

It is a bad boy for sure! It's been sold out for a couple of months or so. I'm going to contact them and see how long I have to wait. I hope it doesn't get discontinued, or if it does, maybe they are planning to release some new muscular beast.