These things are Big and Hungry! (1 Viewer)

[Foster_G]

The speakes are Cerwin Vega V-15F rated at 400w max. 102 db sens. with a 15" woofer. I am on the verge of buying these things but I need to know if my system will be able to handle it.

Power will be from a 100w x 7 Outlaw 7100 but I'm wondering with the large 15" woofer and only 100 watts will the speakers suffer from loss of impedence and headroom? If so how much power are we talking here to feed these things?

Regards,
Foster

 

[Chu Gai]

With a sensitivity of 102 dB, you could run them off your soundcard.

 

[John Garcia]

Shouldn't be a problem.

 

[Foster_G]

If I could power them with just 10w or so, would I still be able to get the bass from that 15" or is more power required to give me the dynamics, both high and low, I want in my system?

 

[ColinM]

You might use like, 2 watts before they rip your head off and slam it against the back of your room.

I have JBL 4628Bs - 1" compression tweet, 8" Mid, 15" Woof, 98db rated. They SCREAM, and I have the lowly HK AVR110, 40x5 in HT, 50x2 stereo.

 

[Foster_G]

Well then consider me warned

But honestly, how much more output are we talking if I went from 100w to say 200w Outlaw Monoblocks? I guess my whole thing is when the movie starts getting good (i.e. more explosions, crashes, etc.) I want to have the satisfaction of knowing that when it comes to push and shove, my speakers have enough power(and headroom) to give me the dynamics I'm looking for.

 

[John Garcia]

No offense, but that amp already outclasses those speakers, so I don't think more power would be necessary. If you're looking for great dynamics, I'd look at some other speakers.

 

[Foster_G]

None taken. Its more of a quest for good, solid bass all the way around. I want something that plays deep, has high sensitivity, but doesn't break the bank. I want to have solid bass from all channels and augment that with a solid sub, (SVS PB12-Ultra/2).

 

[Dustin B]

http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...124#post517124

Assume the speaker's senestivity ratings is at least 3dB higher than it actually is and that it's claimed extension is 1/2 to a full octave lower than it actually is.

 

[Vaughan Odendaal]

Dustin, where the hell have you been! I haven't seen you for a long, long time.

--Sincerely,

 

[Foster_G]

John,
What, per se, makes Cerwin Vega under qualified for the amp (Outlaw 7100 or 200 Monoblock). Don't worry, I'm no big Cerwin Vega fan or anything, so your opinion is definitely welcome. I just want to know as much as I can about these things if I were to get them. Are they poor quality?

 

[Arthur S]

If you are fixed on the C-V speakers, 100 watts is enough. 200 watts will only yield 3db more volume. Once you get a subwoofer, you will find that the real bass is coming from the sub.

No offense, but an SVS PB12-Ultra/2 is way, way better than your C-V speakers. Your system will be skewed heavily towards a sub and to a somewhat lesser extent, towards electronics.

But if it is all about volume, C-V is hard to beat.

 

[Foster_G]

Okay, so in general, even though the numbers look good where it counts (to the ears) is where it lacks. Then how about something along the line of Ascend Acoustics CMT-340s all around? I still want the same speaker all around, and still have the SVS PB12-Ultra/2 taking care of the low end.

Thanks for the responses guys, as of right you have saved me $1,800 that would have been spent on something not worth it in the first place. It'll be hard to get that 102db out of my head, but what's the consensus on the Ascends?

 

[Foster_G]

Arthur,
Its not so much about quantity of volume, rather the quality of it. I don't want a speaker that plays load if it does a poor job. I'd rather it be accurate before it becomes earsplitting.

 

[BrianWoerndle]

What the sensitivity means is that to achieve 102db at 1 meter you need 1 watt.

So:
102db 1 watt
105db 2 watts
108db 4 watts
111db 8 watts
114db 16 watts
117db 32 watts
120db 64 watts
.
~121db @ 100 watts
.
~125db @ 200 watts. (x2 speakers + room gain and you will be over 130db)

Your ears will be bleading if you ever really used 200 watts.

 

[Chu Gai]

Well, what kind of a room size are you talking about?

 

[John Garcia]

The CVs just aren't really good when it comes to clarity. Great efficiency doesn't buy you much if they don't sound great. The 340s would walk all over the CVs in terms of clarity.

If you want great bass, just get a great sub, and I think you are already headed in the right direction. Contact SVS with your room dimensions and see what they recommend.


That's at 1m; I don't know anyone who sits that close Room size will affect that, as well as treatments or lack of, as well as how far away from the speakers he is sitting.

 

[Dustin B]

I've been here, the whole time, just not posting anywhere near as frequently. My big posting time was the 9 months or so I was jobless out of school. Haven't been jobless for the last 2.5 years

I'll have my own wood shop soon, so you'll see some more DIY stuff from me soon, I hope

 

[Foster_G]

The room dimensions of the space are 9'x16'x23'(HxWxD). So really, my thinking is I need a big speaker with a lot of power to fill the space with sound. I'm relatively new at this whole thing. I've only been around this stuff for about three or four years so I'm really just beginning to scratch the surface.

I'm really appreciative of all the advice that you guys are throwing my way. I don't want to sound all newbie, but on the level, to fill a room like mine in a 7.1 setup, having all the speakers the same, and trying to get the most out of movies and sports programming on the HD would such a setup CMT-340s and the SVS work for me? What are some better options for me? Keeping the budget for seven speakers under say $2500. I'd like to upgrade my current amp also from the 7100 to the 770 or go one step further and get seven 200m's for each channel.

 

[Foster_G]

John,
Let me throw this at you. If the CMT-340 can walk over the CVs, what's out there modestly priced that could walk over the CMTs?