My take on the CS+'s (1 Viewer)

[SHAWN SZILEZY]

All,
I Received my 20-39CS+/S1000 Dual Sub package yesterday. In fact, it has now been over 24 hours since I received my electronic goodies and the grin on my face is still ear to ear. I took a day off of work eagerly hoping for early morning delivery but "Brown" did not show up until 2:00pm. All (3) packages arrived at the same time (always a plus) but with some minor damage to one of the sub boxes. I was kind of worried at first but the guys at SVS did a great job at packing so all was OK. Like a kid in a candy store I just could not wait to connect and calibrate. After making all the necessary connections and with trusty SPL and Video Essentials in hand, calibration was a snap. As with a lot of other owners I spoke with, my sub level is running 2dBs hot.
4:00pm
With all the setup complete it was time for a demo or two or three...you get the idea.
First up was U571 "depth charge" scene. WOW! These things are relentless in there performance. Hard hitting, tight, and quite scary too. Next up were Blade, Dark City, Das Boot, and "The Bass Standard" SW:TPM LD. Whew...that was insane!
Note: After playing the demo scenes over and over, the location of the subs eventually ended up in the same location as the old ones (one in each front corner of the room). I tried them in the same corner and they sounded awesome but I felt like I could localize the bass too much. Moving the subs to seperate front corners I felt the bass more evenly and had a harder time figuring out from where it was originating.
6:00pm
Time to let the neighbors rest and recover from the onslaught. Me too...need food.
8:00pm
Rest over...belly full!
Now came the time to put in a title for a full viewing. I wanted something that would give them a firm yet thorough workout....Godzilla came to mind. With the volume level at -12, each and every step 'Zilla' took was an experience in itself. I swear these things are posessed. The bass they produce is like a shockwave hitting you after an explosion! Lights and pictures on the second floor were rattling like you would not believe. Unless, of course, you are a fellow SVS owner. My wife even remarked at how much better they sounded when compared to my old Altec powered subs. Now that is when you know the upgrade was worth it.
In closing, I have to say that these are the most accurate sounding subs I have ever heard. I still cannot believe the depths to which they troll with the "port plugs" installed. Truly astounding! Tom, Ron, and all at SVS produce a quality product that delivers in every way. They are one of the few products that actually live up to their billing.

 

[SVS-Ron]

Shawn,

Thanks for the thumbs up! It's great to know your Plus subs are delivering. I didn't mention it in the note to you today but I'll add the below since I think it might be of interest to others too:

If you are really viewing -12dB down from your reference level (I assume you calibrated with a sound meter and a test disk?) then you might try bumping up the subs another few dBs. For lower level viewing like a calibrated -12dB I often have my subs 5-8dB over the mains. Of course -12dB, even if your receiver is displaying this number, means nothing if you have NOT calibrated with a sound meter and a test disk like Avia or Video Essentials. -12dB could mean +6 dB actual, or -20dB. Ideally you want to know that -12dB is actually what Dolby Labs would measure as -12dB. Easy to do with a sound meter as I hope you know.

Naturally this high a setting for even an SVS will be TOO much if you are doing demo blasts at Dolby reference levels. It's all in how well you are calibrated an how loud your master level.

My point here is that with that much subwoofer power on tap you should feel free to experiment a bit on various levels for the subs.

After calibrating, my favorite test/demo disk remains the first 5 minutes of Toy Story 2. Watch for sub bottoming or amp clipping on that one especially if you are exploring "hot" claibrations.

PS, Safety tip! The Plus subs are VERY resistant to bottoming. If you don't pay any attention to the levels the subs are actually being pushed (and it's impossible to know if you have not done the recommended calibration), this can be a bad thing believe it or not. It means you have less audible cue that you might be pushing the subs too hard, so keep this in mind as you explore your subs' limits. Ever wonder why we say the $38 Radio Shack sound meter is the best money you can spend on your home theater?

"Have you hugged your sound meter (and Video Essentials or Avia DVDs) today?"

Ron

 

[Larry_W]

Get an SPL meter! They're on sale at RatShack for $29.99.

 

[Evan S]

I hate all these great SVS reviews
After doing a almost full scale $6,000 upgrade to my system (everything but my Sub, TV and DVD player), I just cannot afford to get an SVS right now (even with the reduced price for the new PCi line. I just cannot justify another $580 on my credit card on top of what I've already spent. Plus, my neighbors would kill me.
But, glad to hear so many people are happy. I know I'll be one of those people sooner or later.
God I hope I win that contest!!!

 

[Shawn Sefranek]

Hey Shawn,

I’m glad the little SVS demo over at my place inspired you to spend some of your money.

I can’t wait to stop over there and see how the new “twins” sound in your Theater Room.

Welcome to the wonderful world of SVS,

Shawn S

 

[SHAWN SZILEZY]

Ron,
I understand what you are saying. Everything has been properly calibrated with SPL. There is no way I would think of demoing anything without first setting levels. Thanks for the concern though. I watched Jet Li's "The One" last night and the subs performed admirably. There was some serious bass throughout the entire film. These subs impress me more and more everytime I fire them up.

 

[Nick P]

PS, Safety tip! The Plus subs are VERY resistant to bottoming. If you don't pay any attention to the levels the subs are actually being pushed (and it's impossible to know if you have not done the recommended calibration), this can be a bad thing believe it or not. It means you have less audible cue that you might be pushing the subs too hard, so keep this in mind as you explore your subs' limits.

Ron,

Could you please explain this a little more? If the driver is not bottoming how are we to know if the subs are being pushed too far?

Thanks

 

[Joe_H]

All I know is that my Amp clips before I get any bottoming. BTW is that 30 dollar RS meter for an online purchase too? My RS only carries the digital.

 

[Joe6pack99]

Ron question is there any way for us with "older" subs to get the new port plugs I didn't see them for sale on the site? Also if I order 2 ISD's does the $40 dollar rebate apply on both of them for a combined $80 off? Thx again

 

[Tom Vodhanel]

>>>Ron,

Could you please explain this a little more? If the driver is not bottoming how are we to know if the subs are being pushed too far? >Ron question is there any way for us with "older" subs to get the new port plugs I didn't see them for sale on the site? Also if I order 2 ISD's does the $40 dollar rebate apply on both of them for a combined $80 off? Thx again

 

[MarcVH]

Thanks for the tips, guys, but I'm still a little confused. It seems to me that calibrating is great way to make sure you have a balanced response and things sound the way they're supposed to. It doesn't seem like a terribly accurate way to determine whether the driver is being pushed to its limit, since room size (and other room factors, not to mention which of the 3 sizes of CS+ it is/they are) plays a big role in what SPL gets produced for a given amount of driver power. Am I missing something?

Admittedly, the only other objective measure most users probably have available is the clipping light on the amp (assuming they got the S1000 package.)

 

[ColinM]

I think these driver's limit is determined by the motor travel, so if it bottoms out, there you go. Limit.

Unless it's a PC(i), which has a limiter, correct?

- C

 

[Vin]

Unless it's a PC(i), which has a limiter, correct?

Good question.....anyone have an answer?

Vin

 

[John Welch]

PCs do not have a limiter. This from someone who bottomed his PC on the Phantom Menace LD during the Droid Control Ship explosion, which has a nasty +8-10Db spike right at that time on the import laser.

 

[Tom Vodhanel]

>>>Thanks for the tips, guys, but I'm still a little confused. It seems to me that calibrating is great way to make sure you have a balanced response and things sound the way they're supposed to. It doesn't seem like a terribly accurate way to determine whether the driver is being pushed to its limit, since room size (and other room factors, not to mention which of the 3 sizes of CS+ it is/they are) plays a big role in what SPL gets produced for a given amount of driver power. Am I missing something?
Admittedly, the only other objective measure most users probably have available is the clipping light on the amp (assuming they got the S1000 package.) >I think these driver's limit is determined by the motor travel, so if it bottoms out, there you go. Limit.
Unless it's a PC(i), which has a limiter, correct?
Good question.....anyone have an answer?
Vin

 

[Vin]

Thanks for the reply Tom....just a little more clarification though. If I'm understanding you correctly, what you're saying is that it's the degree of limitation that makes the difference in what a particular sub will try or not try to reproduce.

Another way of saying it is, does the amp in my Velo CT-120 apply the brakes sooner than the Bash amp in an attempt to lessen the likelyhood of the sub bottoming out, albeit at the expense of not trying to dig out those lower frequencies that might be present on a given DVD?

Thanks,

Vin