SVS SBS-01 Speaker System Review

[Rock&Roll Ninja]

.....Not only that, but the review certainly wasn't up to the what I would normally expect from the usual detailed reviews in the past. Makes me wonder if the reviewer received some sort of kick back from SVS in return for a kind review. .....

Rather than dismiss this post altogether I reread several of the loudspeaker reviews and actually agree with Jongaro to a point. I think that the problem isn't with Audioholics overall, but more with some of the equipment reviewers.

Several contributors including Mark Sanfilipo, Clint DeBoer, Arvind Kohli, and Gene DellaSala (and others) are extremely in-depth with their reviews, sometimes even going so far as to partly disassemble the product to get a comprehensive view of build quality!

But on the other hand there are reviews , I don't like to name names but parhaps they've reviewed a Pioneer wireless HTiB or this SVS sextet, that when cmpared to the former....well, seem fairly sparse. Kinda like the homework you expect surly teens to complete in 15 minutes in detention.

The obvious solution? Hire more long-winded reviewers. Especially ones that like to take stuff apart and break it!

 

[Tom Vodhanel]

And like sands thru an hourglass...whenever SVS gets a positive review...you can bet the same troll(s) will jump into the thread to try to ruin it. Nothing constructive is ever added...just the same old story. The MO is always the same, anonymous posters with no post count(so you'll probably see the same troll signing on again...just to agree with himself(again) under yet another name)...making the same ridiculous accusations. Anything new we manufacture is just a "rip off" and any positive review means we've "bribed" the reviewer. This has been going on for years(mostly originating from the forum of a direct competitor) and we've still somehow managed to grow at a *very*healthy rate every year.. In fact the last 6 months have been our strongest ever.


Anyway, I want to personal thank Tom Andry for taking the time for the review...and I'm sorry he has to be insulted(implied that we "bribed" him) simply because he felt the new SBS-01 package offered a solid value.

Tom V.
SVS

 

[korgoth]

obviously no one put any merit in the bribe accusation.

but the review was a little short winded. decent review all the same, but i would have liked a little more to read.

 

[Rock&Roll Ninja]

but the review was a little short winded. decent review all the same, but i would have liked a little more to read.

No problem, just have SVS send me a complete 6 piece set (to match a Plus or Ultra series subwoofer), and I will be happy to review it for 6 pages. I'll even disassemble stuff and take photos for your viewing pleasure*






*products not guaranteed to be reassembled properly.

 

[shokhead]

Maybe i was right,a HSU owner. The way it reads to me on a lot of sub threads is; SVS owners for the most part will say you cant go wrong with either an HSU or SVS but when its the other way around, its HSU is Dr. God and SVS crap and i dont want this review thread to turn into this vs that but thats the way i read the svb stuff,most but not all the time and yes,3 posts and 1, does that add up to Troll? BTW,i'm blasting Wedding Nails and the old SVS is doing just fine.

 

[Tomorrow]

I've been on this forum for long enough to not know the history of the Hsu/SVS rumble, but long enough to see reactions to various reviews and posts. I consider myself reasonably impartial on these matters, since I'm an a/v novice.

What I have noticed is that:

* There are a few people here that will blast anyone at anytime...being offensive seems to be their nature. But they'll be everywhere and on all forums.
* SVS afficionados tend to be the most paranoid and attack prone. This I particularly don't understand given the great recommendations that flow daily on these pages.
* The reviews of a variety of products get the "BRIBE" accusations, probably from their competitors, or owners of competing equipment. Reviewers in the last few months have been so charged on reviews of equipment from the following manufacturers; SVS, Axiom, Outlaw, and a few others I can't recall.

'Tis pretty childish, me thinks. But then, I'm as old as box of rocks and twice as dumb.

 

[Sheep]

First, Tom just started reviewing, and he probly doesn't have test equipment yet.

Second, theres tons of graphs and information on SVS products on their site.

Third, the product will determine the length of a review. A receiver is obviously going to have a huge review (especially if its loaded with features) compared to a 5.1 speaker system. Also, the price point will determine the length of the review aswell. A 900 dollar speaker system is going to be shorter then a 4000 dollar one. Plain and simple.

You should be able to figure this one out.

SheepStar

 

[Mr. Lamb Fries]

the product will determine the length of a review. A receiver is obviously going to have a huge review (especially if its loaded with features) compared to a 5.1 speaker system. Also, the price point will determine the length of the review aswell. A 900 dollar speaker system is going to be shorter then a 4000 dollar one. Plain and simple.
SheepStar

Good point...

As far a ripping someone off,

There are very few "original thinkers" out there. Most knowledge is gained from people developing theories, coming up with inventions, developing new technologies, etc.. from the past. learning material is, by definition, taking knowledge from predecesors and and applying it to your own feild of study. All fields of technology are just that...taking technology previosly developed/invented and improving on it. If such actions were frowned upon, we would still be using round bolders as wagon wheels!!! For the most part, Everthing we know is taken from others...from tying your shoes to learing calculus. Knowledge is gained and past on through generations...EVERYONE RIPS THINGS OFF. Thats how technology evolves. There is nothing wrong with gaining as much knowledge from someone and trying to improve on something they have previously started. If someone can take a product, apply gained knowledge, and improve on that product then isnt it better for all of us. ?Capitalism? Whats wrong with healthy competition? it makes for better products and better prices.

And for the bias in reviews...

All reviews will have some what of a biast towards them...its the nature of the beast. All reviews will have skeptics saying there were outside influences tainting the opinions of the reviewer...also the nature of the beast. All reviews, unless soley based on scietific data, will be influenced by the opinion and preference of the reviewer. A review is just that...take a product and have an experienced person give his opinion. There might be some shady activity behind reviews but you have to measure that against the reviewer...I have never known the people on this site to mislead a product for any type of personal gain. Maybe I am naive, maybe i dont care enough to question or argue about it. You, as the consumer, have to take all reviews with a grain of salt. be your own judge and dont "rip off" any one elses opinions.

HSU vs. SVS...

Why fight over which is better? Both, ive read, are great! I do not own either companies products but this east side/west side rivalry is tiresome. We should be happy there are a number of products to choose from. I DO plan on buying one or the other when the time comes

 

[Rock&Roll Ninja]

Also, the price point will determine the length of the review aswell. A 900 dollar speaker system is going to be shorter then a 4000 dollar one. Plain and simple.

A-ha! A Stereophile writer caught red handed! Feed him to the Sharktacons!

But serious, I don't see how a $900 loudspeaker should have any fewer review words than a $10,000 loudspeaker. Car&Driver doesn't pad their Ferrari reviews with 5 pages of "super-awesome 733t!" No, it gets the same treatment a Hyundai gets: What are the product strengths, what are the weaknesses, under what conditions will it perform optimally, under what conditions should it not be used. And besides, Audioholics has product reviews 6 or 7 pages long for some products in the same price-range as the SVS.

 

[Buckeyefan 1]

A receiver is obviously going to have a huge review (especially if its loaded with features) compared to a 5.1 speaker system. Also, the price point will determine the length of the review aswell. A 900 dollar speaker system is going to be shorter then a 4000 dollar one. Plain and simple.

You should be able to figure this one out.

SheepStar

Sheep, I can't believe you just said that. This is not the Sheep I know - did someone hijack the Sheep?

Here's a 7 pager $699 5.1 system: http://www.audioholics.com/productreviews/loudspeakers/Tannoy_FX5.1_review_p1.html

 

[Sheep]

Its not just the price. Tannoy is a very unknown company to many people. Also, the technology that is in the speaker will determin the length. A box with a tweeter and standard crossover isn't going to get a 20 page in depth review if nothing in it is ground breaking.

Plus, this review had no measurements, so add a couple more pages with those. Look at the 5.1 system shoot out. Each system got a page.

Come on guys, don't turn my words. You know damn well what I'm talking about.

SheepStar

 

[korgoth]

i dont agree.. price can make some difference, but not really. not when its an svs product that gets this much attention.

it should be reivewed under the same microscope as any other product with that much attention

 

[shokhead]

I kinda agree because its from a very much liked and talked about Sub company thats putting out its first HT/Music speakers which kinda makes it a big deal. If Denon put out a sub that was on pair with a SVS or HUS,wouldnt that get a big review and great detail? I guess we wanted a bit more STUFF.

 

[Mr. Lamb Fries]

I am somewhat new to all this but what did he leave out?

he seemed to cover all bases. maybe there are points that people would have liked to be more indepth. Bring those to his attention and he should be able to reply to your satisfaction. If there are not any specific questions or points people would like to be further explained then there is no need for padding the review with extra words, or needless probes into the equiptment. (maybe there are no needless probes!!). But, when a product is finished being reviewed...its done.

Like I said, I am new to this but I feel the review covered all bases. let me know what points the review left out. This product would be perfect for my brother and before I steer him in this direction I would like to know if there is more relevant information there!

thanks

 

[gene]

I see a lot of whining in this thread, but why am I not surprised. It seems critics come out of the wood works anytime we do a review of a product from a company sold online. Oddly enough most of these critics have less than 3 or 4 posts to their names and love to make false accusations about things they know nothing about.

It's odd how people never complain about 1-2 page press release style reviews found in print magazines or other online publications, but when we do a concise review, critics cry foul play.

A couple of points to consider:
1) You can't judge review length by html page count. I personally post a lot of text per page whereas Clint posts far less text per page and spreads it out over more pages.

2) Tom's review is over 3000 words long. This is about 1/3 of the Gordon Rule requirement in a college English course!

3) Other than measurements, the review was complete discussing build quality, subjective evaluation, set up and recommendations - a format we have been using since the inception of Audioholics. In the future I will be training Tom to do measurements and get him setup with some test gear.

4) We don't operate like Car and Driver magazine and do gauge review length based on product complexity and retail price. We reserve our long featured reviews on flagship style equipment that warrants a more in depth review. To say we should spend as much time reviewing a $1k speaker system like we would on a 10k speaker package is silly. The more expensive a product is, the more critical we are on its performance. Its that simple.

I hope this clarifies some issues and keeps the trolling to a minimal. Happy New Year to All!

 

[shokhead]

So like it or not, we should shut up and do not voice an opinions even when there might be some good points to help out furture reviews. Maybe the next reviews should state,only positive comments.

 

[SmackDown]

There was no trolling by me. The origins of SVS, by way of Usenet posting and picking Dr. Hsu's brain for design ideas and Tom and Ron's *** kissing of the good doctor are all on deja for anyone who wants to research it. If you think they're an innovative company with new and original ideas may find some very interesting reading in there. Pehaps I should post some examples here.

 

[Matt34]

There was no trolling by me. The origins of SVS, by way of Usenet posting and picking Dr. Hsu's brain for design ideas and Tom and Ron's *** kissing of the good doctor are all on deja for anyone who wants to research it. If you think they're an innovative company with new and original ideas may find some very interesting reading in there. Pehaps I should post some examples here.

Your only contribution to this forum are the 2 post you made bashing on SVS, I would consider that trolling, go away.

 

[SmackDown]

Your only contribution to this forum are the 2 post you made bashing on SVS, I would consider that trolling, go away.

No bashing at all. Simply stating the facts that are there for anyone to see. A troll lies.

 

[Tomorrow]

So like it or not, we should shut up and do not voice an opinions even when there might be some good points to help out furture reviews. Maybe the next reviews should state,only positive comments.

No one said anything like this. It's the libelous, unsubstantiated, useless accusations about bribery that are childish and non-productive. Recommendations for reviews and review techniques are always welcome.