Velodyne SMS-1 Subwoofer Management System Review

[gene]

<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN class=style381><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><A href="http://www.audioholics.com/productreviews/avhardware/VelodyneSMS1p1.php"><IMG style="WIDTH: 125px; HEIGHT: 81px" alt=[sms11] hspace=10 src="http://www.audioholics.com/news/thumbs/sms11_th.jpg" align=left border=0></A>The SMS-1 is basically Velodyne’s flagship Digital Drive room correction software offloaded into a standalone system that allows it to be used with any (even *gasp* </SPAN></SPAN><EM><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">non-</SPAN></EM><SPAN class=style381><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Velodyne) subwoofers.<SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes">&nbsp; </SPAN></SPAN></SPAN><SPAN class=style641><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt"><FONT face=Arial>We have found it to be a fantastic tool for dialing in subwoofers and adding those final touches to tweaking your system for optimal performance&nbsp; </FONT></SPAN></SPAN><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">With the SMS-1 you may never have to Crawl for Bass again. We give a hearty recommendation to this tool and think that everyone who is serious about bass could stand to gain from integrating an SMS-1 into their listening room.</SPAN></P>
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<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">[Read the Review]</SPAN></P>

 

[mike c]

in page 3 of the review, there are no areas in red.

Here are the room mode points for Reference System 2:

***table here***

The areas marked in red are the room modes that can be potentially troublesome since they compound between first, second, and third harmonics – making the net effect worse than if none of the frequencies overlapped.

when you put in a 4 star rating in value, did you compare it with other options like BFD, mics, software, etc.?

also, does this thread belong in the amp/receiver subforum? maybe in the speaker/sub or general forum is better.

 

[mike c]

also, did you do subjective listening? i mean, sure it can flatten your response curve (looks good on paper), but did it improve the overall SQ for the better?

 

[gene]

The areas marked in red are the room modes that can be potentially troublesome since they compound between first, second, and third harmonics – making the net effect worse than if none of the frequencies overlapped.

Opps, I fixed it. thanks.

when you put in a 4 star rating in value, did you compare it with other options like BFD, mics, software, etc.?

We are very familiar what is on the market for bass correction. I personally own a Berhinger 2496 which is great, though very hard to use and has no OSD.

also, does this thread belong in the amp/receiver subforum? maybe in the speaker/sub or general forum is better.

Well technically its a processor but I agree so I will move it

also, did you do subjective listening? i mean, sure it can flatten your response curve (looks good on paper), but did it improve the overall SQ for the better?

Yes it sounded chocolatey, though with a touch of mint in it We did comment on how it sounded before and after within the measurements portion of the review. Results will vary depending on the room and subwoofer utilized. In my Family room system which is a very difficult room for bass since its open to almost the whole first floor, it didn't benefit me as much as I would have liked. OTOH, Clint's room showed more benefits toward the low end which allowed him to tighten things up considerably making the subs sound more seamless and natural.

 

[GregBe]

Great review guys. I actually bought and sold an SMS twice for my Axiom EP500 sub hoping it would make a dramatic difference. In my room, the problem was that at my main listening position, I have a pretty natural house curve sloping up from about 90hz to 30hz, and flattens out from there. When I would use the SMS to flatten out the lower regions to get a flat response at the main seat, it would in effect raise the 50-80hz region which made the sub sound boomy in other areas of the room.

I guess my point is it probably depends on your room, and not everyone is going to get the same satisfaction, as Gene had mentioned.

 

[j_garcia]

I got to play with this system on the DD-15. It seems very handy and it does a pretty impressive job on its own. Not a bad little tool, but not exactly cheap. For what you get though, the price is not unreasonable.

So Greg, did you end up with no EQ or something else? When do I get a chance to hear this guy? You're welcome to come by and hear the Tempest.

 

[GregBe]

Hi John,

After 2 times giving the SMS a solid try, I decided to go without. I can really see the benefit, but in my room, to improve the seated position, I just created too many other problems in other places.

We do need to get together soon. Definitely in the next few weeks.

Greg

 

[warpdrive]

Hi John,

After 2 times giving the SMS a solid try, I decided to go without. I can really see the benefit, but in my room, to improve the seated position, I just created too many other problems in other places.

Isn't the seated position all that really matters? Are you moving around the room while watching a movie?

The SMS-1 has several presets. You can have a custom EQ curve and all settings for any other part of the room, or you can defeat it altogether with preset 4.

That's the beauty of this system versus any other offering so far, it's so flexible. In that manner, it stands alone compared to the BFD and any other system

 

[j_garcia]

IIRC, the BFD, both the new one and old one, also have the ability to store a number of different curves or be bypassed with one button.

 

[warpdrive]

That may be true, but the SMS-1 stores EQ, as well as volume, phase, polarity, low and high pass crossover freqs, and crossover slopes for each preset.

And it's activatable via remote control so you can change presets on the fly at your seating position.

Your mileage may vary of course with the SMS-1, but for me, it's made a big difference.

 

[GregBe]

Isn't the seated position all that really matters? Are you moving around the room while watching a movie?

The SMS-1 has several presets. You can have a custom EQ curve and all settings for any other part of the room, or you can defeat it altogether with preset 4.

That's the beauty of this system versus any other offering so far, it's so flexible. In that manner, it stands alone compared to the BFD and any other system

I agree. That is exactly the reason I bought it the second time. For me, in my room though, the marginal improvement I saw/heard at the main listening position wasn't dramatic enough to warrant the ill effects it had elsewhere in the room. Don't get me wrong, it is an amazing product. It just wasn't worth the $600 for my particular room. I took that money and upgraded my mains to Monitor Audio GR10. That was a better upgrade for me.

 

[Doug917]

I have used one for several months and it does very well in my room. I would suggest acoustic panels first, then bring in the EQ to finalize things.

 

[gene]

Isn't the seated position all that really matters? Are you moving around the room while watching a movie

Only if you have one primary listening seat. I would hope you like to entertain guests occassionally

The goal is to make every seat a good seat in a home theater. Using a device like the SMS-1 must be used in conjunction with passive room correction to ensure smooth modal response in all listening areas. With one sub and a poor room, the best you can do with the SMS-1 is partly correct the one Money Seat.

 

[Sheep]

What a thorough and informative review. Its reviews like this that keep me coming back to AH. Congratulations on all your success and keep up the good work.

Note: This post was written by Sheep, not an AH Mod, Reviewer, or anyone else affiliated with AH.




Just kidding,

SheepStar

 

[warpdrive]

Only if you have one primary listening seat. I would hope you like to entertain guests occassionally

The goal is to make every seat a good seat in a home theater. Using a device like the SMS-1 must be used in conjunction with passive room correction to ensure smooth modal response in all listening areas. With one sub and a poor room, the best you can do with the SMS-1 is partly correct the one Money Seat.

It's not impossible to find a good compromise setting for more than one seat you know. That's the beauty of the presets, you can have one setting absolutely optimized for one person, but also use a different curve that takes into account multiple seats. For example, a multi-person EQ curve might forgo a steeper EQ slider settings and use a different phase setting, to preserve linearity for more than one seat. That's the way I have mine set up, my "by myself" preset has a very different EQ curve and phase/polarity settings than the "entertain guests" settings. The less aggressive setting of rmultiple people forgo perfect linearity for a better compromise over multiple seats

 

[Ajax]

Gene, when the 5 mic addition to the SMS-1 becomes available, will you be updating your review?

Greg, this might be the answer to the weaknesses you've encountered with the SMS-1. Of course, you'll have to shell out an additional $600 or so. YIPES!

 

[Ron Temple]

As Gene said, if you don't have passive solutions in place, it's very difficult to flatten the room other than in the money seat. I did find with the DD15 that the software allowed better integration with the mains and superior musical performance.

 

[Steve42]

Gene, when the 5 mic addition to the SMS-1 becomes available, will you be updating your review?

Greg, this might be the answer to the weaknesses you've encountered with the SMS-1. Of course, you'll have to shell out an additional $600 or so. YIPES!

Anyone know when that is due out?

BTW, as far as just optomizing for one seat, I agree that bass traps, etc. will help for the entire room (I own a few). However, for the most part people that come over for listening are usually just doing so to watch a movie, in which case "flat" response is much less "critical". If I want them to get the best effect though, I let them sit in the "best seat in the house".

 

[mike c]

anybody have the real selling price of the sms? (not SRP) in short, how many % discount do you guys get from the SRP?

 

[Ajax]

A quick search found it at Outlawaudio and Onecall for $599.