>>>Value in audio is a funny thing, because the human emotional response to sound is non-linear. A piece of audio equipment can be measurably 90%, 95%, or even 110%, as good as another piece and yet not generate the same emotional reaction. Similarly a piece of audio equipment can cost $300 more than another, and because of the emotional impact of the sounds it generates, be judged a better value. That is how I see the TV-12 -- as actually the best value in the SVS line-up. And that is why I am going to be sorry to see it go.<<<
Hi GGunnell, Thank you for the insightful comments. We really value feedback like this from fellow audio enthusiasts!
Value is very tough to define as it represents a moving target of sorts…but I certainly understand your POV here.
>>>One trend I see in the future is that folks are going to have less and less space for stereo equipment. Construction costs and utility costs trending upwards at a faster rate are reducing the size of homes already. Another factor is the aging of the baby boomers -- more and more people are not going to want to deal with 140# cabinets. Larger drivers generally require larger cabinets. I'm sure the new TV-13 is a great driver -- and I hope it sounds as good as the TV-12 -- but it sounds like there's going to be a significant gap in both cabinet size and cost between the 12.3 series and the TV-13 series.<<<
The new PBUltra won’t be significantly larger than the current PBUltra. The revision I have in my theater room right now is about 5% larger for example. That may change very slightly…but this is very close to the final design. And this minor increase in size is accompanied by a substantial performance increase. The weight is still unknown…but again…don’t expect a huge increase over the current PBUltra. The new Ultra/2 will be a beast. It will be larger than the current Ultra/2…and heavier too. I have one of these pounding in my theater room right now(although it is a little earlier in the design process and may not be released at the same time as the single driver models). Like the single driver version…this represents a significant advance in performance capabilities. The pricing is going up(as Ron mentioned)…but the performance leaps here are so significant I believe most will consider the new Ultra designs to be an even BETTER value(compared to the current Ultra products).
>>>Spreading this gap even wider will be the growing popularity of multiple subs. My guess is that still very few sales go to multi-unit buyers, but those that run stereo (or more) subs are looking for quality sound in less expensive per unit enclosures. A 113 at $3k might possibly represent a performance value; but to get the acoustic benefits of stereo subs would require a minimum investment of $6k as opposed to around $2.5k for a pair of Ultras.<<<
Anything from JL is sure to be a quality product. The new(and current) Ultras are a different beast with different design goals though. If you are looking for the best performance from a relatively small enclosure in the $3000 range…The JL113 demands consideration. But if you are willing to accept a larger enclosure the new PBUltra will have huge performance advantages in the deeper bass frequencies(15-30hz) and we won’t be giving up much(if anything) in “upper bass slam factor) either..
The new Ultra driver (designed by Stephen Ponte) is a work of art. I’ve had the privilege of working with some of the best driver designer’s in the industry for the past decade and Stephen’s work is second to none and FAR superior to most. My longtime R/D partner Jim Farina is equally astute with his work on porting, amp design, enclosure design, ect. These two young engineers will be making waves in the industry for a long long time…mark my words here.
Also, remember that the new SB12plus is just the first design in the “small” subwoofer market for SVS. We’ll definitely expand that “family” of products in the future…although nothing is close to be finalized on those designs yet. This “family” definitely lends itself to the “multiple subwoofer” ideology of course.
Tom V.
SVS
