SVS subwoofer / small room question (1 Viewer)

Hi, I am really interested in getting an SVS subwoofer, but my main concern is which to get! ;-),
My room is approximately 12x13X8 (8 = ceiling height) and the subwoofer will go with 4 Energy connoisseur C-3s and a center.
I want to set my speakers to small so i can help my c-3s sound better and put all my bass in the subwoofer. Which series should i go with? the PCi or the PC+? Im not going to play it that loud (nor would i think i would need to due to the small size of my room i think) and which size should i go with? the 16-46, the 20-39 or the 25-31?
I admit that i am interested in added subsonic potential added by the 16-46, but would that be alright for my C-3s and my room? I personally would like sub with the most capability., Any recomendations would be very helpful, thanks, -Chris- what sub would hit reference level in my room and what does reference level necessarily mean? I heard it a few times recently.

Chris, that is a very small room, and any PCi series sub will fill it with prodigious amounts of clean bass. I see no need for the PC+ in this application.

Be aware that square (or near square) rooms tend to exacerbate problems with standing waves and associated peaks and nulls, and you might need to experiment with placement quite a bit to get the best results.

Which model PCi? Usually I only recommend the 25-31 where filling a very large room with adequate SPL is the primary concern, since the 25-31 plays the loudest of the three enclosures above their respective tuning points. If maximum SPL output is not the primary issue, then I tend to lean towards the 20-39 or the 16-46 size enclosure.

In your small room, I don't see output capability ever being a limitation with any size PCi, so I'd recommend going for the deeper extension offered by the 20-39 or even the 16-46.

Reference Level is that volume setting (in your room with your system) that will provide approximately 105 dB bass peaks from any surround channel, and 115 dB bass peaks from the LFE channel.

If you run the speaks on Small, the subwoofer is required to handle both the low passed bass chores and the LFE channel, so the demand on a subwoofer in this configuration is extremely high at Reference Level - possibly requiring upwards of a 120+ dB peak in the event of a simultaneous bass peak in a surround channel and the LFE channel. Most subs cannot play at true Reference Level and most people don't enjoy it that loud anyway. It is simply a yardstick by which HT enthusiasts can compare relative playback volumes between systems. For example, when someone says "I watched SW Episode I PM at 5 clicks under Reference Level, you know exactly how loud that would be on your system, providing your system is properly calibrated to the same standard.

How do you know what Reference Level is on your system? The best way is to obtain a calibration disc like Avia or Video Essentials and calibrate your system with an SPL meter and the test tones on the disc. For example, Avia states that the Master Volume setting required to achieve 85 dB on the surround and subwoofer test tones on their disc will also result in Reference Level SPL upon playback of a regular video DVD.

Good luck with the new SV sub - I'm sure you will love it and it should blend nicely with your other speaks.

Regards,

Ed

Thanks for your comments, can i get any more opinions from anyone? anything is helpful, Thanks, -Chris-

I agree with edward and would like to add that for myself I didn't want a subwoofer taller than my speakers. I also emailed SVS on my room size and what I listened to and well I got 2 recommendations. For future proof use they recommended the 25-31pc+ but if that didn't fit my budget they said the 25-31pci will due just fine.
I own the pci and am very happy with it. Sounds great on all ends.
From reading your post I would think you would be more than happy with the 25-31pci. Just my thoughts.

Chris-

My room is 12.5x10x8 and I use the 20-39CSi. It does put out a nice amount of bass but I have a hankering for duals now. If you think you'll want reference levels (110-120db at your chair) then definitely go with the + model. It's not that much more and it's definitely better to have more sub than you need. More headroom, less distortion.

Chris,

I've had an SVS 20-39PC w/original driver in a 11'2" X 10'6" room for two years now... works extremely well. I'd recommend the 20-39PCI. It's got the newer ISD driver (Improved Standar Driver). You'll go low&loud with this solution..

I've got a 12x11x8ft room and using a 16-46 PC+.

I could have gone with the PCi, but I'd have that naggy feeling of "Wonder how better the next one up would sound?"

For most movies, it can go reference easily in my room(but I treasure my hearing); could not be any more satisfied than this.....

Thanks for your comments, any more is always appreciated. I dont mind waiting a little more in order to save up for a 16-46 PC+, I want no buyers remorse, lol.
Plus i get the feeling that this purchasing decision is more future proof than getting a PCi, I might move it to another larger room someday anyway. Also, what is appealing is that unlike the Pci, i believe I have more control over how i can mess with the settings (like the phase for example).

MingL:

I noticed you let that other thread die re: your 16-46PC+ response curves. Did you try setting all your speaks to Small with an 80 Hz filter point? I thought you might be getting phase issues with the mains on Large and the LFE + Mains bass configuration.

Chris:

Certainly the PC+ offers a lot for the money - that's why I bought one. But your opening thread specifically said you were not going to play it loud, and you were interested in subsonic potential, so that lead me straight to the 20-39PCi or 16-46PCi. A PC+ will be underutilized in that room, but it will be "future proof" for sure .

Regards,

Ed

I wouldn't recommend going with the 16-46 unless you listen to pipe organ music. Not much DVD material goes down below 20Hz with any appreciable level (with the exception of sub-killaz like SW:AOTC and stuff like that) and most bass in music rarely dips below around 40-50Hz. The 20-39 is a nice compromise between the maximum SPL of the 25-31 and the deep extension of the 16-46.

My recommendation would be the 20-39PC+. Sure, it might be overkill for such a small room, but it's better to have the power and not need it than to need the power and not have it. Another reason I recommend the PC+ is that you can use the included port plug to re-tune the sub down to 16Hz should you really feel the need to lower the tuning. It's the best of both worlds, because you can adjust it down if you need to (whereas you can NOT retune the PCi because it only has a single port, as opposed to the triple porting of the + line).

In my 12x18x8 room, I have a 20-39CS+ with the port plug in to tune to 16Hz, not because I needed the lower tuning so much as it smoothed out frequency response in my room a bit so that I didn't have to EQ as much. Besides... there's nothing like the first time you feel a subwoofer pressurize the room!

Just to add my two cents I have the EXACT same size room as you and I have a 20-39cs+. I love it and have no complaints about it. I had a 25-31cs but wanted it to go deeper with no remorse. I would highly recommend this sub for you. BUt in our size room any sub you get will work perfectly. Do not worry about SVS they will get it right for you or die trying!!

Any questions on my setup let me know

-Brian