SVS 20-39 CS-Plus Amp Question (1 Viewer)

[AndrewGault]

Would a Carver M-400 power a SVS 20-39 CS-Plus alright to get the full potential?

 

[Tom Vodhanel]

The 20-39CS would need 300-350w to fully realize its potential. However, it is rather sensitive so even with *just* half that power(say 150-175w)...you'll get very good output. How large is your room?

TV

 

[AndrewGault]

About 22x15x8
The Carver amp bridged provides 400 watts I believe.

 

[Jaimin]

I have a 2531cs and I use a parts express plate amp that puts out 250watts. This is plenty for the sub. As long as the amp can handle 4 ohm loads it should be more than enough.

 

[SVS-Ron]

Andrew,

If that rating is good for a 4 ohm load then it'll be just about perfect for a CS-Plus. With a room that size I'd recommend the CS-Plus in any case. You'll be tempted to run it pretty hard I think. The CS would work too but not be as capable, as you would guess.

Ron

 

[AndrewGault]

I cannot find a ton of info about the Carver M 400... Except people saying it is a powerhouse. And that it can be bridged to 400 watts mono (probably 8ohm). However I don't think it will have a problem driving a 4ohm load.
Here is the actual item I am looking at.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...tem=1941329514
It's probably what I'm gonna end up getting. Unless I just suddenly decide to spring for the S-1000 (trying to save a little money)

 

[Jay_E]

Andrew,

If I remember correctly the Carver M 400 amp is about a 20 year old (or more) design. I remember I almost bought one when I was in college (1980?). The "Magnetic Field Power" design was very controversial back them, because it was very lightweight compared to other amps of the same rated power. I would be a little leary spending over $200 for an amp that old on ebay.

Do you alreay own a 20-39CS+? If not you should consider a 20-39PC+. It is only $250 more than the CS+. You would be hard pressed to find a better amp than the 525 watt amp that comes with the PC+ for $250. As a recent purchaser of a 25-31PC+, I'm sure you'll enjoy your SVS with wahtever amp you decide on. Good luck.

Jay

 

[AndrewGault]

Heh. Thanks for the info.
I was looking @ the PC-Plus but I think the CS-Plus has a better driver or something like that...
And my room is quite large so I need the more powerful driver.
Otherwise I would probably just get the PC Plus.

Thanks for your advice.
Andrew

 

[Doug BW]

I was looking @ the PC-Plus but I think the CS-Plus has a better driver or something like that...

Not true. The PC-Plus is a CS-Plus with a built in amp. It has features the CS-Plus does not have (e.g., settable subsonic filter, phase control, crossover).

I second the advice to go for the PC-Plus over the CS-Plus and a used amp.

 

[Jay_E]

Andrew,
You were probably thinking of the PCi series. They don't have as good of driver as the CS+. The PC+ series just started shipping in september. It is the same as the CS+ except it has a built-in 525 watt amp. Here is some info on the amp. AFAIK the main advantage of buying the non-powered model and a seperate amp is when you need two subwoofers. Then you can do that with 1 amp. Doublecheck with the guys at SVS. I'm pretty sure that they would also recommend the PC+ over the CS+ and the used Carver amp. Good luck.
Jay

 

[AndrewGault]

Thanks for the info guys. I will certainly be giving it more thought now.

Andrew

 

[Edward J M]

You would be hard pressed to find a better amp than the 525 watt amp that comes with the PC+ for $250.

Make that "impossible" and I'll second that notion.

525 watts RMS into 4 ohms, cool running Indigo BASH technology, auto-on, 4 position SS filter, infinitely variable phase control, defeatable crossover, and input choices galore.

Get the PC+: The TC dB-12 driver and that amp are a marriage made in subwoofer heaven.

Ed

 

[AndrewGault]

Alright... You guys sold me.
Well actually the B-Stock 20-39 PC-Plus that just happened to show up today did.

I'll report back on how it does in my quite less than ideal room... (15x20x8, tile over concrete slab, wood paneling, 15 feet from listening position)

I'm so excited! I wonder how long it will take to get here since it's Thanksgiving...

 

[Jay_E]

Well actually the B-Stock 20-39 PC-Plus that just happened to show up today did.

The same thing happened to me about a month ago. I had been thinking about getting a SVS 25-31 PC+ for some time. I happend to look at their B-stock one day and there it was. Even though it was only $50 off it was enough to push me over the edge. Congratulations on your purchase. I'm sure you'll be happy with it.

Jay

 

[Edward J M]

WTG Andrew! After calibration and break-in, please post your impressions here! If you are anything like the rest of us SVS owners, you will be more than impressed - you'll be ecstatic!
You might experience your PC+ slowly moving itself across your smooth tile on concrete slab floor at high playback levels - the reactionary forces of the dB-12 driver are very strong. An entrance carpet floormat, or automotive grade truck cap adhesive strips attached to the bottom of the baseplate, or vibrapods (www.vibrapod.com) are inexpensive solutions.
Ed

 

[AndrewGault]

How long should I expect break-in to take? I probably will set it on a piece of carpet.

I can't wait for it to get here. (I assume the directions for calibration are included...)

 

[Edward J M]

Use a rubber bottomed carpet (like a nice carpeted entrance mat) for the best friction against a slippery floor. I have a very smooth and slippery Armstrong laminate floor over a concrete slab and I sure needed it under on my 20-39PC+ - what a friggin' powerhouse that driver is!

The sub will sound fantastic right out of the box, but after a few weeks mine played a bit louder on the LFE test tone and I recalibrated again. I never noticed a change in the sound quality as it broke in, it just played a tad louder after a while.

Directions are very good for calibration. Running the sub too hot is a very common mistake because the human ear is not very sensitive to lower frequencies. Don't trust your ears - get an SPL meter and a calibration disc or at a minimum use the receiver test tones generator. Mount the meter on a tripod (makeshift if need be) at the listening position, angled about 45 degrees towards the ceiling and facing your mains/center/sub. Run the sub around -5 at the receiver and around 1/3 gain on the amp as a good starting point in an average size room.

Ed

 

[SVS-Ron]

Andrew, as Ed said, the carpet idea (if you have a hard/slick floor ... and wood floors are the worst in this regard) is a good one. I even had to do it with my first subwoofer project (an end-table design that Tom helped me with). I prefer the sort of shag carpet that is used in bathroom rugs. They have VERY grippy rubber laminated on the bottom and you can generally get any color. In my case I got jet black and cut a nice discreet circle and it worked very well to keep the sub from "creeping" and it quieted the old (and loose) wood tiles in the house I was in at that time too.
Even more off topic, while the sub moving on a HT floor surface is a VERY rare problem (Ed was maybe the second or third in the thousands of subs we've sold) one recent beta tester (thanks Ryan!)confirmed that simply replacing the stock foam disks with thicker, more compliant 3M synthetic rubber feet will do the trick too. Anyone keen to play with them can find them at www.partsexpress.com under part number 082-244.
While these are completely irrelevant on carpet, and most hard floors, they are THE solution when the standard feet won't cut it. We'll soon stock these for customers that need them. These things do tend to raise the sub up a few millimeters, and makes the base plate a tick "squishy" but they do the trick. Given the center of gravity of our subs is so low stability is little affected and the sub will stick like glue on the most slippery floor.
As we introduce more and more powerful models you look for every little "trick" you can to ensure things remain stable in every sort of HT environment.
Ron

 

[AndrewGault]

Heh. Thanks for all the tips guys. I will be sure and keep them in mind.