Velodyne vs. Polk (1 Viewer)

[FredHD]

I am going to be trading in some speakers to Circuit City and upgrading my sub (DCM SW10). I will have $350 worth of credit to use on a new sub. I am going for either the Polk PSW350 as a straight up trade at $350 or I can spend about $80 extra and get a Velodyne CT 100. I have heard good things about both subs, but I wonder if the extra cost on the Velo is worth it? If anyone could provide some opinions it would be helpful because I am going tomorrow.
(I get to spend my birthday tinkering with my HT... pure bliss:bg
Thanks Guys
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Have good mosh-pitting!!

 

[Jon_R]

I really don't want to spoil your day, but I'm afraid I may. Recently I had a cs175 (center chan) that I traded in, this gave me $129 credit. They told me that according to the rules, it is a one time trade up where the value of the new items are at least 2x the amount of the trade-in. Thus, I had to spend at least $280. That was easy to do, because I ended up buying the polk r40, $400, got a free center channel speaker, cs175i, and used my credit to get it all for $270. The good news is, not many ppl at CC know what the hell is going on with the speaker trade-up. You may be able to slip it by them. Of course, I could have been given wrong information, and if that is the case, I just wasted 2 minutes of your life while you read this.
Jon

 

[Greg_R]

I didn't see the Velo CT100 in Nousaine's SW performance list (max SPL at 10% distortion). However, the CT120 just edges out the Polk PSW350 (a little more dB in the 20Hz range). Based on that, I would assume that the Polk would edge out the CT100 (MHO, based on specs).
Greg

 

[FredHD]

Jon_R
They must be more liberal with the policy down here in Texas. I have traded for eqqual value before and I also ran it by the guy I deal with. It's good to go.
Greg_R
I had heard that about the Polk (that it fared well against the CT120). Do you have a link to Nousaine's performance list?
Or does anyone else have a link to it?
Thanks
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Have good mosh-pitting!!

 

[John-D]

since both units would be available for a side by side comparison you should also do an audition.
SW performance specs are just an indicator. I know Klipsch can go way loud and possibly flat than most Paradigms, yet I wouldn't touch Klipsch with a 10 foot pole for my music listening.
Your personal tastes should rule when purchasing speakers of all kinds.
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The things we own end up owning us

 

[FredHD]

"Your personal tastes should rule when purchasing speakers of all kinds."

Very true John. It won't be easy however. At the store I am going to, their switcher in the listening room is broken and it will be a few days before the have it up again. So I'm going to have them bring the subs out to the other audio area and hook them up to the receiver there and listen to music through them. The tough part will be for movies. I may have to have them bring a DVD player to hook up to so I can audition the audio. But I'll definitely be taking my usual demo materials with me.
More opinions are welcome!!!
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Have good mosh-pitting!!

 

[FredHD]

Shameless Bump.
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Have good mosh-pitting!!

 

[Jeremy Hegna]

Isn't there something else at CC that you could use that $350 on?
Save a little more cash and pick up an SVS and you'll be done forever in the sub department.
My $.02
Jeremy

 

[FredHD]

I know, I know the SVS. I wish I could but I can't spend that much extra money right now (it's a stretch covering the difference between the Polk and the Velodyne). Reason being, I'm paying off an engagement ring and credi card debt. Ron and Tom, if you are on here I want you to know that some day I'll be an SVSer, but for now I have to go with what I can. I would actually like to hear what you guys think.
BTW, thanks to everyone who has responded.
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Have good mosh-pitting!!

 

[Tom Vodhanel]

I dont think either is going to have a day/night advantage...but I'm guessing the Ct100 will stay a little flatter 40hz.
TV

 

[Thomas_A]

I guess the comment about being mor liberal in TX stores is true... I have had no problem ugrading my stuff at CC... there is no policy about 2x or what ever at cc...think the store is pulling your legg!
Anyway.. On a personal note...I run all polk speakers-but I dont care for the Polk subs at all. I own the velodyne ct150... wich I got on a trade up from the ct80.... but that is my opinion...
I suggest you get what you want...get it home..if you dont like it...take it back and get the other. Nice thing about CC is you get the 30days and they dont question you. so you cant loose either way.
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So far, So good, So what
Link Removed
http://thomas2307.homestead.com/thomasworld.html

 

[James Edward]

A friend of mine has the CT100 and I am always amazed at how well it pumps out for home theater. I have no idea how the frequency spectrum is spread out on it, but for HT it works well in his rather large room. It's definitely on the bloated/boomy side, but overall, for the money, and room size it's in(16x20x18'ceiling), it cranks. He is probably driving it to the limit and beyond, so I would imagine that a smaller room would tame it somewhat.

 

[Jeremy Anderson]

Although I have a PSW-350 and I love it, you should note the frequency response on both:
Velodyne CT-100: 28-120hz +/- 3db
Polk PSW-350: 38-160hz +/- 3db
Personally, I find that Polk spec a bit suspect, as I've measured mine with Avia's bass sweeps and a RatShack SPL meter (with correction chart), and find that the Polk holds steady down to 25hz (with a peak at 50hz due to the tuning of its dual ports). Of course, that may just be my room reinforcing the low end. I've also done this test on the Velodyne (which I had for a few days) and found that the 28hz dropoff is pretty accurate, although the dropoff wasn't quite as sudden with the Velodyne.
The Velodyne has more dynamic power (about 140 watts more), and since it weighs 13 lbs more than the Polk, I'd imagine that's amplifier weight.
Both are very nice subs, but I went with the Polk because I thought it was a bit more musical, and it reacted faster to heavy quick bass hits (which means the Polk handled Rush's YYZ without muddying up the kicks and toms, unlike the Velodyne).
So if you're buying strictly for home theater usage, either will do nicely. If you listen to a substantial amount of music, I say stick with the Polk.

 

[Vin]

Jackson,
When I was shopping for a sub I chose the CT-100 over the Polk. My decision was heavily based on the Velodyne's greater ability to handle the opening chapters of Lost in Space without bottoming out.
I didn't particularly care for the movie but it has some very intense LFE which I find to be a very effective tool in auditioning subs for HT....just one of many DVDs that can be used for this purpose, for sure.
I paid $400 for the CT-100 at Circuit City on sale (regular price was $430) but after owning it for only a couple of months the CT-120 went on sale for $490 (regular price was $530) so I took advantage of their upgrade policy and traded up.....they were happy to do it, BTW.
Good luck whatever you decide!

 

[Greg_R]

Here's the link to the Nousaine test data.
Greg

 

[FredHD]

Well, here's the verdict. I stroll into CC with a bag full of CDs and DVDS and my SPL meter in hand. Luckily, I knew the salesguy so he gave me no hassles and let me set up the room similar to mine (Onkyo 494 reciever and similar speaker setup). I calibrated the fronts, centers, and surrounds to 75 db with my trusty SPL meter, and the sub to an average of 79db and went to work. First I demoed 4 movies with great bass (Titan:AE, U-571, Event Horizon, and SPR) and the Velodyne won the first round. I was pretty happy with the extension on both subs, but the Velodyne's bass was somewhat cleaner and tighter. Being satisfied with my findings, I moved on to music. I tried two DTS dvds first (Peter Frampton: Live in Detroit and Eagles: HFO) and multiple regular CDs from varying genres of music (Crystal Method, Metallica, Bach: Little Fugue, Led Zeppelin, Bjork, Ella Fitzgerald, and others). I can't remember one CD that didn't sound better coming from the Velodyne. I had one more trick up my sleeve to convince me that the Velodyne was worth the extra money. I pulled out a CD that was my ultimate test in bass from music: DJ Magic Mike's "Feel the Bass 3". Needless to say the Velodyne won. After my 3 hours of testing, I was given a nice surprise: they had an open box CT-100 for less than the Polk cost. So I picked it up, added a copy of Point Break in DTS, and paid my $5.61 difference and took my new baby home. Thanks for all the input.
BTW, here's another question. I have it in the corner,
just like my previous sub. My old sub was a downfiring with ports in the bottom. The Velodyne is frontfiring. It doesn't have round ports, but it has a vent under the driver. I have the driver facing out towards the seating area, but I wonder if I should turn it towards the wall.
Will that give me more room gain with the port facing the wall?
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Have good mosh-pitting!!

 

[Tom Vodhanel]

>>>BTW, here's another question. I have it in the corner,
just like my previous sub. My old sub was a downfiring with ports in the bottom. The Velodyne is frontfiring. It doesn't have round ports, but it has a vent under the driver. I have the driver facing out towards the seating area, but I wonder if I should turn it towards the wall.
Will that give me more room gain with the port facing the wall?