CS Ultra with S700 vs. S1000 ? (1 Viewer)

[Scott Basham]

Okay, maybe one of you SVS guys can help me out here. It's been a few weeks, but maybe Ron or Tom remembers that I purchased an Ultra and a S700 amp from one of the fellows on this board so that he could go the upgrade path to dual CS+ and I'd get a little more "umph" from the Ultra vs. the 16-46 PC that I had already bought.

To start with, I love the Ultra and it beats the 16-46 in terms of not only impact, but also in sound quality.. Very tight sounding.

Now I'm starting to wonder if I'm missing out by only having 350 watts instead of 500 to power it. Can anyone tell me if this is only a maximum dB issue, or would I be able to hear an improvement in volumes that are less than max? If it is as simple as you get x-amount of dbs with the 1000 vs. the 700, then I'm all set as it more than satifies now and can keep up with my RF-3s at an alarming volume. If however, there is a difference, maybe I need to start planning on something else? (my wife might say moving! j.k.)

Would the money be better spent going with an EQ like the ART? Are the rack mount tabs removeable on it as they are on the Sampson amp?

Thanks!

 

[Steve Zimmerman]

Now I'm starting to wonder if I'm missing out by only having 350 watts instead of 500 to power it.

For music I don't believe you're going to be pushing the sub nearly as much as with movies. With something like Phantom Menace, though, I found that it's suprisingly easy to push the Ultra all the way to the full 500 watts during "sound effects scenes" due to the sheer amount of incredibly low frequency LFE sounds on that DVD. But my HT room is huge.

My recommendation is to rent/buy the Phantom Menace DVD and watch it at the loudest volume you think you ever would. What does your receiver volume say? Is the baseline volume more than 5-10 dB below reference? Does the Clip light on the amp flicker during the THX intro or the pod race? If so then you would benefit from the upgrade.

If you provided a cubic foot measurement of your HT room, I'm sure someone could chime in with more exact feedabck.

--Steve

 

[Scott Basham]

Steve,

I'm in about 3000 cubic feet and I haven't noticed the clipping light to come on, so I'm guess that I'm okay. I'll just look at that as "future proofing" in case I ever am in the situation of needing more.

 

[Steve Zimmerman]

The nice thing about separate amplification is that if you ever need more (which you will IMO if you move to a larger room), you can always upgrade the amp.

--Steve

 

[RichardH]

Moving from 350 to 500 watts is only going to buy you 1.5dB, barely audible. If you move to a bigger room and need more bass, changing the amp is *not* going to do it. Adding a second SVS will get you 6dB across the board, which is definitely worthwhile.

So, if you're not clipping now, just leave it alone.

BTW, the formula for figuring out the dB difference between two amps driving the same speaker is:

10 LOG (P1/P2)

where P1 is the power output of one amp and P2 is the power output of the other. The resulting answer will give you the difference in terms of dB SPL output between the two amps.

 

[Gary Thomas]

I ended up with the 1000 due to the price difference. It was only $50 more than the 700 & seemed worth the investement.

 

[Andy Anderson]

Gary-

Me too. I think getting the S1000 is a great idea if you think that you might be adding a 2nd sub anytime down the road.

However, for now, I'd expect the 700 is just fine. If you're thinking of trading up, just lurk around the B-stocks page, and be patient. That's how I ended up with my Ultra. (Should be arriving Friday!)

 

[David Giles]

Hey Scott,
Well, I hope you're enjoying the Ultra. I SURE do miss it :frowning:
Being without bass is just about killing me. I'm leaving for a week-long ski trip this Saturday, and hopefully my CS+'s will be waiting for me when I get back.
I WANT MY SVS!
David Giles