REL strata III VS. storm III? (1 Viewer)

[Andre*C]

I am getting a REL but cannot decide which one. I've heard them both (strata and storm)at Tweeter electronics and liked them both. The strata sounded a little bit lacking when it came to techno but I am wondering if it would have a greater effect in my house (I will be using it 70% for music and 30% movies). I'm looking for that "feel it in your chest" bass but I also want it to have the musicality of REL. The room at tweeter(about 30ftx30ftx12) was twice as big as my listening room and had a very high ceiling so maybe the strata would sound like the storm in my house (that would definitely save me some money). Should this sub be good for techno in a smaller room or is this sub better for other kinds of music?

 

[Phil A]

I have both subs and also a Q150. I formerly used the Strata III in the bedroom system and 2 Rel Storm IIIs in the main system. The Strata is of course a sealed box. If pushed, it likely won't impart the overload as gracefully. It also has a smaller amp. It is also somewhat dependent on what speakers you use them with more so than the type of music. You can make a Storm sound more like a Strata by spiking them. If you let me know what type of speakers you have, I could the Sumiko rep what he thinks would be the best match. You can also go to their website and ask the question (www.sumikoaudio.net) as they are likely more familiar than anyone. In general, but not always the case, from what I have seen the Strata tends to sound best with speakers that have quicker woofers, generally things like book shelves or small floor standers. If interested, I also know as part of an estate sale, someone is selling a Storm (not a III) which is basically the current Storm with an amp like the Strata. I am not sure if they are willing to ship, but it would be significantly cheaper than either. I would also hope that your processor allows bypass of the sub crossover, e.g. analog direct?

 

[Trevor Dwyer]

I have the following and to be honest I really have to switch the REL to its lowest levels all the time. I am very impressed with this sub.


Speakers:
Front L/R: B&W CDM 9NT
Front Center: B&W CDM CNT
Rear L/R A: B&W CDM SNT
Rear L/R B:
Rear Back L/R: B&W CDM SNT
Subwoofer: REL Strata III


Best Regards

Trevor

 

[Phil A]

Trevor, nice set-up, I actually have a bunch of B&Ws I've saved for the basement when I get to it that includes P6s for the left and right a CDM CNT and a CDM CSE (neither of which I have as yet used) that I will use for my front and rear centers.

 

[Gregg Z]

I just want to second all of Phil's advice. It really depends on your speakers as to which is a better match. Leaner speakers integrate better with Strata than the Storm. The Storm can be to be too "rich" for certain speakers.
Email [email protected] and explain your situation. He is very knowledgeable and helpful. I've got B&W 805's and Patrick said definitely the Strata (preferably two of them). Interestingly, he also said that the Stadium III is a good match for lean speakers when you need to get down into the really low Hz. Too rich for my blood though.
Gregg

 

[Andre*C]

My speakers: I just got the Vienna acoustic mozarts which to me seem to be lean concidering the smallish drivers. I also just got a b&k 305 receiver which drives these speakers nicely. About the analog direct. Why is it good to bypass the sub's crossover? I'm not sure if I have analog direct:frowning: .

 

[Phil A]

Andre, my brother has the Mozarts with the Maestro center and I have helped set-up several systems with them and the Strata III. I would still get the input via contacting Sumiko. After all, they distribute both brands and are more familiar with the products than anyone.

The beauty of a Rel is that it has 2 crossovers with separate colume controls, both a high level connected via your amp inputs to the Rel via a Neutrik Speakon connector and also a low level connected to the processor's sub output most often via single-ended RCAs, and the Rel also has a balanced (XLR) jack for systems with such outputs.

If your processor (receiver) won't allow a turning off of the crossover (whether it is fixed by 80HZ or adjustable) via an analog direct type mode then the frequencies sent to the sub and mains is limited by what it gets from the processor. A Rel has a very flexible crossover that allows one to set the high level crossover point to match your speakers and room. The Mozarts to my memory will start to drop off in the mid 30HZ area in most rooms and you will want to set the Rel high level crossover to mate with this, usually just below that level (e.g. upper 20-low 30HZ area since bass frequencies sum) to fill in the bass that the Mozarts are not producing.

If you can't turn off the processor bass crossover there is little point to getting a Rel since the mains and the subs will be fed only by the frequencies of that crossover your Mozarts will have the low bass cut-out at the crossover frequency and the sub will be playing at a much higher frequency than will likley be an optimal setting for music reproduction, but it likely will be fine for HT.

Some places that demo the Rels don't know how to use them properly. You may have been listening to the low level connection only fed via the RCA connection. If the same store sells them (Viennas and Rels), go back when it is not as busy (e.g. when they open Saturday) and bring your CDs and insist they hook-up the Rel in a system just connected analog direct with teh high level connection and tell them to set the crossover at "A6" (which translates to 30HZ) with the Mozarts. If they give you BS about how you don't need the other connection give me the name of the store and the sales person and I will pass it on the Sumiko rep.

Sumiko offers training for sales people (some stores are too cheap to send at least some of them) and the Sumiko rep I know travels all around with the same recording to meticulously set-up the speakers so they will sound right. The market is driven by HT and most people in the business or into the hobby know how to set-up things for HT, which is not always good for music set-up. The Rels set-up right for music just compliment whatever your main speakers do, taking a signal from the amp so that it gets similar sonic characteristics and disappears to the point that your main speakers magically appear to produce full-range sound.

PS - besides the high level crossover setting, it also has a volume control where should be set so that matches your mains as well. If you like something with a drop more bass than most peoples tastes you can also turn it up more. This still leaves your main speakers getting the signal and playing down to the level they are capable of, which is why you bought them in the 1st place. Try the high level volume at one o'clock and adjust up or down to taste if they don't have a real time analyzer or sound pressure level meter along with a test tone disc to properly adjust the levels.

 

[Matt Jesty]

Patrick is a good man, those Sumiko guys are in HIGH demand at CES to do set-ups (speakers and subs)...Have been through their Masters training 3 times ...going to go through again.....