Velodyne SPL-1200 - I've got a permanent grin now! (1 Viewer)

[Scott Beatty]

Well I've finally gotten the icing to my HT cake - it's called the SPL-1200. Boy does this thing do what I want and then some. Tight/Deep/Rock-my-world bass!! My old AR PS12 (a 12" slot ported down firing sub with a 150 watt amp) can't touch this thing - nor should it for the price. What an improvement a REAL sub can make. The Patriot DVD's battle scenes have cannon fire that rips right thru me. What a blast. U571's depth charge scene is awesome and the scene where they first take over the sub has machine gun fire that sounds incredible. Each bullet had its own punch. For music, it does even better than I expected. My B&W DM604S2's really shine now. For $875 fresh out of the box, this is one serious contender.

This ear to ear grin is starting to hurt !

 

[Roger Kint]

Where did you get it for $875?

 

[MikeKaz]

dag. i've been seriously considering this sub to replace my my 250 watt jbl PB12, but i've been trying to find reasons to do so that would justify the price. hearing comments like this doesnt help my budget-conscious side. does it go a lot lower and have more impact than your other sub? the pb12 is a very good sub- it plays very loud cleanly and is very fast and blends well with music. however, listening to my brother's 15 inch servo controlled velodyne left me wanting lower frequency response from my sub. will i get some of this ultralow bass with the spl1200?

 

[Scott Beatty]

I went to a Sound City in Denville N.J.. Salesman there named Pete (nice guy too) let me demo it against some Atlantic Techs, Sunfires, and a Paradigm. The Vel was the clear winner IMO. He even offered me a 3 day full refund trail.

 

[TimothyW]

Scott: Which Sunfire & Paradigm did you compare it to and what were your thoughts?
MikeKaz: It seems the answer to your last question would be yes. Here are some links on the subject:
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...threadid=53655
http://www.hometheaterforum.com/htfo...threadid=29972

 

[Scott Beatty]

MikeKaz - I cannot comment on JBL subs because I've never listened to them. I will say that my AR SP12 "claimed 20hz", but if it ever got there, I wasn't around for it ! The SPL-1200 is a sealed sub with a 750 watt amp, the AR was ported and had a 150 watt amp. I know you can't go by numbers alone, but the Vel claims 22hz and a Sound & Vision review said it hit 16Hz in their room. What I'm saying here is the Vel crushed the AR hands down (in my room). But hey, were talking $170 dollar sub.

Bottom line is yes, the Vel goes lower & louder and does it tighter than the AR. Whether it would keep up with its bigger badder brother (HGS15), I don't know. MY question would be: does the cost difference between the HGS15 and the SPL-1200 justify the increased performance to you? Isnt the HGS15 really expensive ??

 

[Scott Beatty]

TimothyW - The sunfire was a small dual 8" (my god was it small!). We must've been pushing the little guy pretty hard to because it was bouncing around and the woofers looked like hummingbird wings in mid flight. For it's size, the Sun did pretty good, but it couldn't keep up with the Vel IMO. The Vel was cleaner/deeper/louder.

The Paradigm (I'm so sorry I messed up) was there, but I infact listened to 2 Atlantic Techs - one ported one sealed both with 12" drivers. Sorry, I did NOT listen to the Paradigm. However, the Atlantic Tech (sealed one) bottomed out so much, we turned the volume to the point where it was useless (to me anyway). The other Atlantic Tech (ported) I thought was ok, but like the Sunfire, it just didn't keep up with the Vel. Again, my apologies if I misled anyone with my first post convcerning the Paradigm.

 

[EricHaas]

Scott:

I am looking for a small sub with maximum performance. I was impressed to see the following dimensions for the spl-1200 at Velodynes website: 14-7/8" X 14-3/8" X 15-7/8. Thats the same size as my Sony SA-WM40! And you can get the SPL online for $775.

You mentioned that the HGS15 is the spl-1200's "big brother." Aren't they in different lines though? I wonder how the SPL is supposed to compare to the HGS12. Does anyone know?

Also, I cannot seem to get a clear pic of the sub. What kind of finish does it have? The HGS series has a nice black piano gloss finish.

 

[Vlad D]

Scott, I know exactly what you mean. I've had the SPL-1200 since mid-january and love it. Deep, tight, loud bass. I was watching Pearl Harbor and Star Wars Ep. 1, the other day and was blown away. The attack scene in PH, and the pod race scene in SW were just awesome. I totally agree with your comments. Plus you got a great deal! I paid about $150 more than you did, but still happy, a local "hi-end" dealer in my area sells it for $1199.

Enjoy,

Vlad

 

[Vlad D]

Eric
Onecall has a picture of it on their site. Here is a
link .
The SPL series doesn't have the piano black finish of the HGS series, but it's nice none the less. It has a black wood finish, a black grill covering the woofer, and small grey "feet" on each corner. The picture on onecall's site shows it with the grill off.
Vlad

 

[EricHaas]

Thanks for the link. Looks like another to add to the short list of reasonable SVS alternatives, along with the Adire Dharman and Hsu VTF-3.