Christmas in September...sort of.

[Radian]

Third unit from Velodyne was the best so far. Very little lingering distortion. Almost unnoticeable. Had I received this unit the first time around, I probably would have not picked out the noise issue. However, the only problem was that the signal still cut out all together at low volumes just like the other two.

At -79dB my system still puts out 50dB at the listening position depending on the source levels (almost loud enough to interrupt a phone conversation). So it can be quite audible when the bass cuts in and out. This isn't cool in my book...so I passed it on.

Velodyne was a pleasure to work with regarding the matter. They were just as eager as myself to make sense of what was going on. There was a small handful of other customers with the same issue. Bum deal...I really wanted this unit to be part of my system. My ears just wouldn't bite on it.

Now my scope is set on the Audyssey Sub EQ (SVS AS-EQ1). I'll post updates on it when it comes in.

It had better be "all that and a bag of chips" for the price tag. In fact, I'm surprised it doesn't bake bread and julienne potatoes in addition to figuring out your room acoustics.

[Drey Chennells]

damn. I couldn't take it cutting out at low volume either.

Now my scope is set on the Audyssey Sub EQ (SVS AS-EQ1). I'll post updates on it when it comes in.

It had better be "all that and a bag of chips" for the price tag. In fact, I'm surprised it doesn't bake bread and julienne potatoes in addition to figuring out your room acoustics.

right, well it sounds like a great piece... hey you get a whopping 10% off for the holidays..Christmas in December!
http://www.svsound.com/products-parts-subeq.cfm

[bean438]

Aren't all those processors and room correction gadgets a gimick?

For my project recording studio I spent a grand on bass traps, and panels to catch early reflections. I felt this was a good purchase.

I was told to treat the room before you spend cash on any electronic gadgets

[Radian]

Aren't all those processors and room correction gadgets a gimick?

Perhaps, but not in my case. I could certainly hear the results of the EQ. I liked what I heard apart from the artifacts of the SMS-1. If the AS-EQ1 works, I'll keep it. If I my ears aren't convinced, it's going right back.

I was told to treat the room before you spend cash on any electronic gadgets

I agree 100%, but it is not an option given my living quarters at the moment. I don't have space for multiple subs to even things out, and to physically cater to the bass frequencies in question, I'd need a whole new room/house.

[Radian]

So after unloading the SMS-1, I saved a few more pennies and acquired a SVS AS-EQ1 during their New Years sale. (Thanks Drey for the suggestion!)

Okay, okay...so what was it like to setup and how does it sound?

Setup is the first thing this unit has in spades. From unboxing to aural delight in 1 hour. Comes in a nice steel box. Feels hefty, but I know better. It's a DSP and like the DCX, I suspected it couldn't be more than a daughter card or two. So I took a peek. Yup, same size in there.


Second thing this unit has in spades. It's phase linear. I could tell right-off-the-bat that this device was working some serious magic in the 100-250Hz region. Ever since I put the tapped-horn into service, I couldn't get it to blend well in the upper crossover region, and was losing a few mid-bass notes in comparison to the Auto Tubas that are installed in my car. I know the sub's phase plot in that band is wilder than Lake Havasu during Spring Break and the XR57's mild low pass x-over slope provides quite a margin for the sub and mains to have a go at it. That the AS-EQ1 can seamlessly match that up to the horn-loaded mains is pretty damn cool. It's not just a matter of correctly EQ'ing the amplitude response. It's discretely shifting the phase of the subwoofer signal in the frequency domain as well. Transient response of the main speaker / subwoofer combination is equivalent to the response of just the mains running full range by themselves to my ears. It's about time.

Some interesting things to note: I jacked up the sweep procedure no less than 2 times. I most recently figured out I was cascading filters. The AS-EQ1 does emit some idle noise like the latest SMS-1 I received, but it is quite minimal just the same. I've come to terms that having a completely undamped horn isn't helping matters and would most likely eliminate this issue all together if I strategically place a few egg crate panels. Come summer, I'll be busting out the foam. The AS-EQ1 has no high pass filter capability, and I still prefer to listen with my bass +7 dB above flat.

All in all, it's a keeper. Christmas 2010 is finished.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvuqyPJYiPg