It seems like every conversation I've had with audiophiles about subwoofers the last few years included 3 letters: SVS. No doubt subs from this company were gaining some real respect among the high end community. When I met Nick Brown (VP Marketing) and Dan Marks and (VP Operations) from SVS at AXPONA 2019, they were launching the new SVS 3000 series. These guys not only know their subs, they are passionate about their company and its products. I thought the new SVS 3000 might be the perfect match for my current favorite affordable speaker, the Quad S-5, so I requested a review sample. Nick fulfilled the request with ease and speed.
I was never all that interested in subs until maybe 7-8 years ago when I heard a properly set up sub in a great system at a friend's place. I was even more fascinated when I heard another great system with two matching subs. It was then that my serious sub journey began. Subs have come a long way this century, and have been proliferated mainly because of the popularity of home theater. I'm not really a home theater type, although I do have a simple powered pair of mains and a small sub to compliment my TV. My real passion has always been listening to music on a traditional two-channel system, and this review focuses strictly on that.
Most speakers that can produce the kind of bass I'm looking for in the lower octaves are usually out of my price range, and those that included powered subs in the same cabinet just never did it for me. But subs were daunting, and I was a little intimidated by the set up they required. Turns out a little placement knowledge can mitigate most of your 2-channel sub set up problems. More on this below.
The SVS SB-3000 sealed subwoofer is available in either premium black ash, or the finish I received, the shiny piano gloss black. The robust MDF cabinet, which is sealed, measures 15.6" (397mm) H x 15.2" (385mm) W x 17.8" (451mm) with the non-resonant steel mesh grill attached. Most prominent is the front-firing 13 inch high-excursion driver that boasts a frequency response of 18Hz to 270Hz +/-3 dB. The driver includes a dual ferrite magnet motor assembly weighing over 25 lbs, and delivers immense magnetic force to a 13-inch drive unit with long-throw parabolic surround for extreme excursion, SPLs, and longevity. A lightweight and rigid aluminum venter cone, with composite fiber dustcap, moves massive amounts of air to create sonic energy without ever flexing or losing control. On the back you'll find the rear-mounted amplifier with intelligent control interface (ICI) which is fully controllable from an iOS or Android app. The sub weighs 54.5 lbs (24.7kg). The cabinet features a double-thick MDF front baffle and extensive internal bracing. Acoustic insulation eliminates interior coloration and resonance. The 3000 Series is powered by a Sledge STA-800D2 amplifier that combines the high current output of discrete MOSFETs with Class D efficiency, and boasts 800 watts RMS and 2500+ watts peak power.
The rear panel houses the intelligent control interface (ICI) user interface with bright back-lit controls and includes an auto/on button, low pass filter, volume, and phase. You'll also find an AC power cord receptacle, an on/off switch, and a trigger input. Inputs include unbalanced (RCA) line level inputs, and unbalanced (RCA) line level outputs. There is a USB type A port for firmware updates and for powering a USB device. Note that not all function controls are available on the rear panel, some must be accessed from the smartphone app.
The SVS app allows advanced customization so you can name your subwoofer and name the custom presets for easy switching, choose the subwoofer standby mode, and reset the subwoofer to factory settings. Bluetooth connectivity provides full control, even when the subwoofer is out of sight, and bi-directional feedback shows adjustments in real time on both the app and rear panel subwoofer interface. The app includes controls for volume, low pass filter, phase, polarity, parametric EQ, room gain compensation, port tuning, presets, and system settings. The SB-3000 is rich with features; you can find more details HERE.
Since becoming more subwoofer-literate in the last decade, I've come to believe that the best sub set up is the simplest one, especially if you have a dedicated room. I found that using speakers with a sealed cabinet, or with a front firing bass port works best with the front of the sub aligned to the front of the speaker cabinet, then adjusted slightly forward or back. If using a speaker with rear-firing port or rear passive radiators like my Quad S-5, start with the sub(s) lined up with the rear of the speaker cabinet, then adjust slightly. After lining the sub up to the front or rear of the main speaker cabinets, sit in your listening position and have a friend move the sub a little forward or back until you hear the phase snap into place. I used a well-recorded vocal to do this.
I like placing the sub right in the center if you are using one, or just inside or outside of the main speaker cabinets if you're using two. This was my first time setting up two subs in my room, and I felt set up was no harder with the pair. After I adjusted for phase, I placed the subs about 6.5 inches inside the main cabinets, which are way out into the room. If you use this method you'll likely not need to adjust phase. I didn't. Once the subs were placed in this configuration, I started playing with the feature-rich SVS smartphone app. As it turns out I only used the volume (at -16dB), low pass filter (LFE disabled, 50Hz with a 12dB slope), and a preset I named LO VOL that boosted the gain 2dB for low volume listening. Phase was set at 0, and polarity stayed in the positive default. I used a couple of different frequency response phone apps to look at the room response. Since things were looking good, and sounding damn good, I didn't feel I needed the parametric EQ or the room gain compensation. I used my favorite speaker accessory, the Gingko ARCHs under the Quads (see review HERE), and also under the rubber feet on the SB-3000s. When the set up was optimized, I started listening.
I used the following components for all listening sessions:
- VPI Scoutmaster with JMW 9 arm and a Panasonic EPC-451C Strain Gauge cartridge with the CD-4 head amp
- MAC Mini with YFS power supply running Audirvana for hi-res, and Amarra for 16/44 feeding the DENAFRIPS Pontus DAC
- Heavily modded and tube rolled Dared MC-7p preamp
- Modded Quicksilver Mid-mono amplifiers
- Quad S-5 speakers
- DanaCable reference ICs, Speaker Cables, and USB cable.
I am not a bass freak. At least not the type you hear in overbearing car stereos. I like tight, fast, precise bass... that is not too domineering, thank you. That said, I do like to hear a kick drum that's got punch the way a live drum does, an electric bass with balls, the full effect of a proper deep synth bass, and the emotional excitement that orchestral double basses provide.
The intro of Steely Dan's "Gaslighting Abby," from Two Against Nature, features Tom Barney's growling electric bass vs Ricky Lawson's punchy kick drum. Unlike some subs, the 3000s rendered these two instruments clearly, separately, and succinctly. And not just during the sparse intro. I was able to discern them both throughout the entire tune. The kick drum had that extra bit of almost-live thump. Nice.
There's a lot of information you usually don't hear in the low notes that exist below most speakers published frequency response. Synths, 6 string electrics, large drums, pipe organs, etc, have a lot to contribute to the musical story. The 13 inch drivers in these subs were fast enough to keep up with my Quad's ribbon tweeters, while at the same time providing a solid harmonic quality that anchored the foundation of the huge soundstage. I felt that the subs relieved the mains of some of the hard work, and let them sing with less stress. I was hearing so much new low frequency information that I actually started thinking about the 3000s like a set of mains, but with a lower and narrower frequency range, from 50Hz where I had the crossover set (a few Hz higher than the Quad's published low end of 42Hz at -3dB) to 18Hz (lower limit of the SB-3000). There's a lot of musical content in those 32Hz.
For the first time in my room I clearly heard the unusual combination of double bass and electric bass in "This Weight," from Van Morrison's The Healing Game. Although I believe this track was recorded with these two instruments to achieve a specific texture—much as things are done in the classical realm—it's the ability to tell one from the other I was after. I heard it.
"Storm," from Massive Attack's Protection displayed a wealth of synth bass, with the 3000s exerting a commanding grip such that the low notes excited a resonance in my window frame I've never heard before. Maybe I was playing this track a little too loud, but I wanted to push the subs to see if they'd flinch. They didn't. They also never got in the way of Tracey Thorne's evocative vocal. The seemingly limitless power of the two 800 watt RMS amplifiers ensured that the subs never ran out of headroom, and really deepened the synth's low end texture which enhanced the soundstage.
Jaco Pastorius is one of my favorite bass players. His lyrical interpretations on the electric bass are still unsurpassed. "Portraits of Tracy," from his self-titled release, features his prowess with harmonics giving his Fender fretless more high frequency energy than you'd hear on a typical bass solo. Written for his wife, the unusual resolution of the last chord was pure joy. I listened for an anomaly around the 50Hz crossover point, but thankfully never heard one.
Before cueing up "Speak to Me," from Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon, I thought maybe I shouldn't recycle this old warhorse. But I just couldn't resist, too many good times to remember listening to this album. The intensity of the opening heartbeat spoke to me in a way it never had before. There was no overhang as I've heard with other subs, and dynamics were exciting to say the least. I was so drawn in I ended up listening to both sides. The subs blended seamlessly with my Quads, expanding the soundstage and emphasizing 3D placement of voices and instruments.
I also couldn't stay away from "Temple Caves" from Mickey Hart's Planet Drum. I've never heard the low note in "Temple Caves" reproduced with such authority.
A few weeks ago I heard an impressive live performance of "Also Sprach Zarathustra" by the Krakow Philharmonic. Composed by Richard Straus, you've probably heard the intro of this composition in 2001: A Space Odyssey, the Olympics, or if you saw Elvis live in the later years. I remember sitting in the third row in the 700 seat concert hall in Krakow and just reveling in the contrasting dynamic energy between the double basses and tympani, so I just had to see how this recording stood up. Cueing up my vinyl copy from the Royal Philharmonic, conducted by Henry Lewis, I was not disappointed. This tone poem inspired by Nietzsche was reproduced with an energy that, while not quite as palpable as the live performance I heard, rendered the dynamic contrasts with an iron grip. The 3000 passed the classical test with flying colors.
The SVS SB-3000 has changed my expectation of what can be accomplished in a subwoofer for about $1k, and was the perfect complement to my Quad S-5. What was a great pair of speakers with decent bass morphed into a monster full-range system with the addition of these subs. Once you hear the expanded soundstage, and all the weight, punch, and rich textures missing from the music, you'll never want to go back. The SB-3000 is diminutive in size, with the heart of a lion, and gives your main speakers a helping hand so they don't have to work as hard. These small cubes possesses almost unlimited power, and a quickness that'll make you smile. A plethora of features controlled by the smartphone app is icing on the cake. At $999 for the black ash, or $1099 for the piano gloss black, I feel they are a bargain. Will just one of these subs transform your system? Most likely, but at this price why not have two? SVS calls the SB-3000 "an ideal solution for reference bass in audiophile music systems." I agree. Highly recommended.
SB-300 Subwoofer
Retail: Premium Back Ash $999, Piano Gloss Black $1099
SVS
1.877.626.5623
Images courtesy of SVS or John Zurek
