SVS PCI 25-31

[derrickdj1]

It is not unusal to have the bass vary in a room by 20-30 db compared to our speakers at+/- 3 db. CECAA805 said I was getting room gain for the usable 16 Hz to 25 Hz. I was careful in setting up the subs and adjusting phase control to avoid cancellation issues. I am sure if I had some of the monster subs that other forum members have, the 16-30 Hz performance would be improved. But, the variation in bass in the room cannot be overcome by brute force in the sub department. EQ is good, but it will flatten the overall response at the exspense of spl. Careful setup and room TX.s are needed.

The one thing I am sure of now, multiple non-identical, similar subs can be used effectively. Even with identical subs, location will make them behave different. The amp power in my three subs are similar as well as the total output. This avoid the problem of one sub running out of steam. I can see why multiple subs are recommend to smooth out the frequency response in the room. I can also see where bass management becomes even more important. The room resonance from multiple source of bass(large setting on speakers) makes it impossible to have the bass arrive at the main seating area at the same time. This can affect dialogue as well as to low of a xo on the center speaker.

I am able to hit 110-115 db in a large open concept room at 13-14 ft. from the mains with bass that you can feel and hear at reference levels. Getting the PCI 25-31 seemed like a lateral move, but I have more bottom end and less reverb/resonance now. If you have not tried some of the extreme bass videos, they are a lot of fun with an spl meter in hand. These videos tell you more about your subs than test tone since it is a slightly more realistic setting. I definetly am an SVS fanboy now and would not hesitate to move up in their line and not feel I am missing out on something.

[Scrappydue]

Subs varying by 20-30db? Wow. Never heard that before. What I meant before was that there is a filter in the empire for 20hz and below combined with the natural roll off of a sealed sub making for a 30 db cliff after 20hz. Basically the way Tom at psa described it that them empire really doesn't benefit from any room gain because of that filter.

[CECAA850]

Subs varying by 20-30db? Wow. Never heard that before.

A 20 to 30 dB swing from one part of a room to another is not uncommon in an untreated room with no eq. You'll find that when measuring in a peak and then again in a null. The subs output is fairly constant, you're seeing the rooms effect in your measurements.

[joshjp]

This is from the Data-Bass website.........

Notes

The Empire is apparently boosted near 20Hz to extend the frequency response, but the filter seems to be a high pass so it will not be able to make good use of room gain if it is present in the very deep bass like an unfiltered sealed subwoofer would.

The Empire exhibits very good upper range headroom and extension up to 300Hz. The subwoofer runs out of headroom near 20Hz where there is EQ boosting first. When over driven there it will produce some distorted sounds which seem to be related to the limiting in the amplifier and not the drivers. Compression performance is very good above 30Hz and almost all of the compression occurs where there is EQ boosting applied to the system (we suspect clipping). Overall long term and peak output are also good for the size of the subwoofer and cost. This system exhibits solid upper bass headroom and distortion performance is reasonable.

[derrickdj1]

I am surprised nobody commented on the xo for a center channel. The reference Klipsch speakers are 2 way: without a dedicated midrange driver, the woofer is covering a lot of the voice band along with the bass in the channel. Having a low xo means that a lot of extranous bass is also going on with the dialogue. Even though most movies are mixed with very little below 80 Hz in the center channel. It can also lead to heavy female vocals.

Bookshel and tower speakers also have most of their frequency variation in the under 100 Hz region and multiple subs can help with the bass in the room at under 100 Hz. The bottom line is if you want a Hi-fidelity movie experience or music experience , most tower and bookshelf speakers will not deliver it without using subs. Well, I think we have stretched out this post, lol.[]

[Heritage_Head]

Um its a post about svs i think we can stretch it a little more lol []

[derrickdj1]

Your post was an interesting read Joshjp. My experience is that the Epik sealed subs do well as you go up the frequency scale which is what you stated. My Legend and PA 150 have a better mid bass performance up to around 150 Hz to 170 Hz, but the SVS seems to have the deepest low end. Let us know how you like the new PSA sub. Take some pic's.[]

[Mongo171]

Um its a post about svs i think we can stretch it a little more lol

I was thinking "extension." As in an SVS extending below 20Hz. []