New SVS Ultra speakers now shipping (1 Viewer)

[Dave Upton]

How's the imaging?

 

[schan1269]

Let's just say... Beck Guero DVD-A should be these guys demo disc. Not sure if you've ever heard Guero in Hi-Res...but, by itself...considering how cheap you can buy DVD-A/SACD players....Guero needs to be on your "I've heard it" list...and this speaker set up... Aural Sex.

 

[schan1269]

Farewell Ride. Dayum. Granted Guero is great to begin with(Sea Change notwithstanding)...but these things, no matter how loud are so detailed it is ridiculous.

 

[schan1269]

The biggest surprise to me(and it could just be my "newest" speakers are 20 years old...and speakers have progressed this far)... I currently am playing Guero "flat" with the only adjustments being time to "sweet spot". No adjustments to the 13Ultra sub either. -5 on the Onkyo...and the you can't even "see" the midranges moving. Put your finger lightly to them and you feel it. Based on the power meter(and adjusting for inefficiency)...that works out to peaks of 40wpc. They aren't working hard and there is enough volume emanating from this room all over a 3500sf house.

 

[Mike Frezon]

It (your description) sounds great.
Probably almost as great as those speakers do.

 

[schan1269]

If I can get to it tomorrow, I'll give them another test. Really see what they can do. I have some Felix Hell Hi-Res downloads. The bass dips into 12hz. Not sure if I'll attempt that on just the Ultra tower or not. If I do I won't raise the volume past -30. Right now I have the 707 crossed at 40hz. The other disc I have is a live outdoor performance of the 1812 Overture with cannon blasts. No way I won't have the sub on for that one. Speaking of classical. I realized my BD of Immortal Beloved is lossless(forget which codec)...I thought it was DD. I did watch Baraka the other day. The Ultra held its own compared to what I'm used to. As a side note, listening to this center makes me think my DCM Surroundscape might be having problems. There shouldn't be as big a difference. (The Surroundscape is not the "equal" to the TF though. The TF, nor the TimeSpace before it had a center. I think the Surroundscape belongs to the KX line...) For those unfamiliar with the DCM TF, if they were made today...the 600 would easily be a $3000/pair speaker. Heck the new DCM TFE "equivalent" is pretty close in price to the Ultra. So when I say "I'm missing something" with the Ultra, compared to the TF600...it is in no way a slight to the Ultra. The Sun must be shining on me this week... Bought an Oppo(that I'm testing with these) 970 that I had gotten outbid on...the two higher bidders both flaked...2nd chance offer to me for $40 + $15 shiiping... While listening to Guero(while waiting for the garage to warm up) I listed a Denon 19XX and an Onkyo that played SACD/DVD-A analog only. The Onkyo just BIN for more than I paid for the Oppo...and the Denon sold for double...I need to buy a lottery ticket.

 

[schan1269]

Listening to... http://www.amazon.com/Beethoven-Mondschein-Pastorale-Complete-Brautigam/dp/B000M4REYE/ref=sr_1_10?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1362162798&sr=1-10&keywords=ronald+brautigam+beethoven Stellar. The "lack of noise" heard is phenomenal. Listened to this 2.0 in Direct mode and MCH with and without the 13Ultra. Any combination was a great time with an afternoon of tea.

 

[schan1269]

Now that I've got them dialed into the room, thought I'd share the Audyssey results to see if they jived with my original, self-done, settings...(sorry for the size of pics, new phone and forgot to re-size them) [ATTACHMENT=485]CAM00002.jpg (1,156k. jpg file)[/ATTACHMENT][ATTACHMENT=484]CAM00003.jpg (1,135k. jpg file)[/ATTACHMENT][ATTACHMENT=486]CAM00004.jpg (1,209k. jpg file)[/ATTACHMENT]

 

[Edward J M]

Hi guys - Glad new owners are loving the Ultra speakers! I have Beck Guero on DVD-A and agree it's a must-have demo for high-end systems. Charlie - I'm glad you are loving the XPA-3 - I knew it would tame the slightly edgy/harsh sound from your Pioneer AVR at high playback levels and it really lets the Ultra Tower shine with smooth and effortless dynamics. I'll be checking on this thread regularly, so if anyone has questions about the Ultra speakers, fire away. Thanks again for supporting our brand! Ed Mullen - SVS

 

[gene c]

I'm paritcularly intrigued by the opposing 8" woofers. I know some subwoofers have had that configuration but I can't think think of any speakers that have used it. And I have to admit, when it looked like a replacement for the MTS series was in the works i just expected them to be an up-grade of the old design. But it looks like you started with a clean sheet of paper. Will there be other finishes later on? Cherry, rosewood, etc? Also, any plans for a replacement for the SBS series?

 

[Edward J M]

I'm paritcularly intrigued by the opposing 8" woofers. I know some subwoofers have had that configuration but I can't think think of any speakers that have used it. And I have to admit, when it looked like a replacement for the MTS series was in the works i just expected them to be an up-grade of the old design. But it looks like you started with a clean sheet of paper. Will there be other finishes later on? Cherry, rosewood, etc? Also, any plans for a replacement for the SBS series?

Yes, the Ultra series is a clean-sheet design from Mark Mason (of PSB fame). Acoustic Research (back in the day) was fond of the dual opposed woofer array. The benefits are myriad: there is mechanical force cancellation, which reduces even-order harmonic distortion in the drivers and also eliminates driver-induced cabinet vibration, and also the four woofers tend to load the room uniformly with a high modal density and a smoother bass response at more listening positions. We're actively working on other finishes, but I don't have a time frame for when they will be available. Yes - expanding our loudspeaker line-up with more affordable models is a long-term plan for SVS.

 

[schan1269]

Thought I'd share more impressions...discs used..

http://www.amazon.com/I-Find-You-Very-Attractive/dp/B000033K0T/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1363980792&sr=1-1&keywords=touch+and+go
http://www.amazon.com/Horehound-Dead-Weather/dp/B0028SVXPS/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1363980904&sr=1-1&keywords=dead+weather+horehound
http://www.amazon.com/Planet-Dog-Transmissions/dp/B000004AX5/ref=sr_1_6?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1363980931&sr=1-6&keywords=planet+dog

http://www.amazon.com/Killer-Joe-Blu-ray-Matthew-McConaughey/dp/B009POCFTG/ref=sr_1_2?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1363980981&sr=1-2&keywords=killer+joe
http://www.amazon.com/Essential-Art-House-Hidden-Fortress/dp/B001WLMONC/ref=sr_1_2?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1363981012&sr=1-2&keywords=hidden+fortress
http://www.amazon.com/Quo-Vadis-Blu-ray-Robert-Taylor/dp/B001ECQ6E2/ref=sr_1_3?s=movies-tv&ie=UTF8&qid=1363981042&sr=1-3&keywords=quo+vadis

There have been others, but...

Touch and Go is first class and a few of the tracks are easily reference material. Fabulous. There is one track at anything more than reasonable volume that causes a "woomphuf" sound out of my BIC V830 and Infinity Crescendo. Doesn't happen on the DCM TF600, and doesn't happen on these.
Alison Mosshart...only thing better would be if she was in person about 6 feet(or less...) away from me.
Sheesha on Planet Dog is another of my "reference" tracks. Lots of stuff going on and played this as loud as the Kenwood M2A would muster. The Ultra never complained or made any type of odd sound(for those that have heard an actual CD of Sheesha...and not a stream from MOG/Spotify, can attest to the workout the track is)

Killer Joe. I've seen the play, so I knew what was coming. Outstanding sound...even when there isn't much. The true test of a speaker is when there is nothing to do...
Hidden Fortress isn't exactly a sound tour de force...but hey, the center speaker is fabulous in what it can do, with so little.
Quo Vadis sounded suberb...again considering not a lot to work with.

 

[Patrick Hannon]

Gene: My (now getting close to vintage, I guess) Mirage OM-6 speakers use 2 opposed 8 inch powered (sub)woofers and they sound fantastic and according to Stereophile (I think, though it was many years ago) measured very well. I find the bass to be "smooth" and as noted above more easily integrated into the room. These new SVS speakers look quite interesting from what I have seen..... P.E.H.(As an addition) I almost forgot about my pair of AR-9 speakers (from ~1980) that I have for surround speakers(!!) They have 2 opposed 12 inch woofers... And as you mentioned about subwoofers, I have a Mirage BPS-150 opposed 8 inch (centre channel sub) and a BPS -400 opposed 12 inch as my LFE sub. I appear to be surrounded by smooth bass. Most of this post was just to try the new format and editing but I thought the information would be interesting. I seem to like the dual woofer approach...Cheers,P.E.H

 

[DaveF]

Hi guys - Glad new owners are loving the Ultra speakers! I have Beck Guero on DVD-A and agree it's a must-have demo for high-end systems. Charlie - I'm glad you are loving the XPA-3 - I knew it would tame the slightly edgy/harsh sound from your Pioneer AVR at high playback levels and it really lets the Ultra Tower shine with smooth and effortless dynamics. I'll be checking on this thread regularly, so if anyone has questions about the Ultra speakers, fire away. Thanks again for supporting our brand! Ed Mullen - SVS

Ed, congrats on shipping the new line! I was shocked to see the MTS M series completely replaced by the Ultras. I'm still loving my M speakers, especially after getting them unpacked after a year in storage (move from Henrietta to Virginia) I'd love to shop for ultras in a few years when it's time to do my basement HT upgrade.Look forward to hearing more about the ultras. It would be interesting to hear from SVS some of the backstory on how you came to your current product line. We were expecting a new high end line...and the ultras seem to bring it. But it's as fascinating that the entry and mid level product lines were deleted. At least now, I can plan on my M speakers appreciating in value as a collectors item

 

[DaveF]

Note: I recently purchases the SVS Ultra Tower Package and am of course curious as to how other "early listeners" are perceiving them. I also decided that I would share my own reactions -- good or bad -- to help everyone considering these speakers get a full view from as many folks as possible. ..

stoked, thanks for the detailed review! It's always fun reading about people getting new speakers

 

[Edward J M]

Ed, congrats on shipping the new line! I was shocked to see the MTS M series completely replaced by the Ultras.I'm still loving my M speakers, especially after getting them unpacked after a year in storage (move from Henrietta to Virginia) I'd love to shop for ultras in a few years when it's time to do my basement HT upgrade.Look forward to hearing more about the ultras.It would be interesting to hear from SVS some of the backstory on how you came to your current product line. We were expecting a new high end line...and the ultras seem to bring it. But it's as fascinating that the entry and mid level product lines were deleted.At least now, I can plan on my M speakers appreciating in value as a collectors item

Hi Dave -

Good to hear from you! SVS is always developing new products - so I wouldn't worry about the absence of the entry/mid level speakers in our product line-up worry you to too long.

The M-series is a great speaker line and like you I still greatly enjoy my full 7 channel set in the reference theater.

 

[schan1269]

Tongue in cheek here, but...

Have the house to myself, except for a client checking out some "used A/V gear" and have finally(been trying and finally found what I was looking for) found a "flaw" in these speakers...

I finally got them to produce some port chuff.

What did it take?

Hempolics(group)
Burning Dub(track)

Equipment:
Onkyo TX SR707(in pure audio mode)
Adcom GFA-5800(actually demo-ing it to sell it. Had it turned up to roughly 40%. Power meter showed it was blipping in the 800watt range...considering it pulls 1440 to create 500...I can only assume that was 150wpc-ish)

Anyway, using the Ultra to give the Adcom a workout. It had been sitting idly in its box for 3 months.

The customer of mine was interested in the Adcom. He then saw the speakers I had to choose from and wanted to hear the Thiel. I had been listening to the Ultra before he got here and could hear them outside...

Anyway, the Ultra were creating quite the buzz within 100ft of where they sit. Utencils in the kitchen were buzzing. The rearview mirror in the guys car was buzzing.

Do the Ultra win vs the Thiel CS3.6? Uhm...no. But it isn't a fair fight either.

 

[DaveF]

Sam, I missed that you had a review of Ultras -or did you buy a set? I need to look up Beck Guero now

 

[schan1269]

A review...I need these like I need a hole in my head...

But yes, they sound good. I'm not even sure how much longer I have them...

We had some mad rain up here the last couple of days, so I had to move the boxes back out of the basement. The basement stayed dry, but roads have been closed all over the place. You can't go south of where I am unless you use I65. SR55, US41 and US231 are all closed.

 

[Mike Frezon]

I need to look up Beck Guero now

I've been thinking the same thing, Dave. If you find a place that is carrying it, LMK.