From BW to SVS ?

[remi89]

Hello,

I have a room of 4 by 4m by 2.30m high with a sony projector, a 2.4m screen and a Denon AV receiver combined with an Emotiva XPA gen 3 Amp.
My current 7.1 speaker set up consist of 3 GKFon the front and 4 klipsch on the rear and left/right
An old but always working nicely BW PV1 (first model) subwoofer is the last piece of audio equipment.

When I purchased this subwoofer 10 or 15 years ago, the SVS company was not known in France but know it is and we can order its products so I would like to have your thoughts on this:
I'm using my system around 80% for Home theatre and 20% music so should I ear an improvement if I replace my current PV1 by either a SVS PB-2000/SB-2000 (1100€) or 2xPB1000/SB1000 (1250€).
Is ported or sealed better for my usage and my room in your opinion ? 2x1000 is it better than 1x2000 (probably yes, but with the size of my room, I'd like to have your opinion...)

Thanks for your help and enjoy your movies !

 

[FargateOne]

Bonjour du Québec,
your room seems small so the "dicton' says seal for small ported for large. 2 is better than one. I had a PSB sub and changed it for a PC-2000 5 years ago, . Difficult to say in your case if SVS would work better but 10 years in electronic is an eternity. SVS France has a 45 days free trial? If, so go for it.

 

[remi89]

Thanks for your reply
I'll check for the free trial because it's a great way to compare "in situ" if there's a sufficient gap between the two subwoofers to buy a new SVS or not.
Thanks for the idea !

 

[Sonnie Parker]

I would lean towards the dual PB-1000. Dual usually help with getting the best response, and will be as loud if not louder than a single PB-2000. I would prefer ported for the ability to handle a little more power at louder volumes for movies with deep bass. This is what I would recommend to you if I were still working at SVS with your 80% preference for home theater.

And... as you mentioned... you get the free trial as well.

 

[remi89]

I don't know...
2 subs seems a little complicated for me to parameter even if I understand the argument of the best response that is verified. Another point that push me towards the PB-2000 is the deeper max frequency.
Thanks for your advice concerning the choice between SP/PB that I'll follow.

 

[Sonnie Parker]

That's why it is ultimately your choice.

 

[witwald]

I would tend to lean towards the SB-2000. It's got excellent low-frequency extension, well beyond that of the PV1. The natural second-order roll-off rate of the sealed enclosure will have improved transient response, as well as reaching down lower where room gain can help provide a bit of a boost to its response. As your listening room is fairly compact, one subwoofer should provide quite adequate levels. Of course, if you would like more low-frequency extension, then the equivalent vented subwoofer is the way to go, albeit in a much larger enclosure. I like the idea of sealed enclosures because there won't be any port noises at high SPLs, but that will be unlikely to be an issue in your smaller listening environment. As @Sonnie said, it is ultimately your choice. Either way, you will get a big improvement in bass response.

 

[remi89]

Thanks @witwald !
Now I have great infos for the SB and PB-2000 but you confirmed together that either choice should be a big improvement over my PV1.
I'll wait my holidays in august to go in Paris listen both SB and PB 2000 (and why not come with my PV1 if possible...) to choose with your advice in mind concerning my small room and the fact that I'm 80% home theatre.

 

[witwald]

I've created a set of plots of the responses of various SVS subwoofers. The responses have been normalised so that each subwoofer has a response of 90 dB at 40 Hz. This should make it a little easier to compare the low-frequency extension of each model. Also included are subwoofers from Rythmik and Arendal. The Rythmik F12SE is a servo-driven design, and as a result it produces the most extended low-frequency performance of those shown here, with lots of bass energy all the way down to 10 Hz.