[Awoken4Life]

I'm looking for a powered sub to replace my dead sub. I have been reading through the forums and have noticed that the face of home theater has changed since I last ventured for product. The brick and mortar stores are being phased out by the ID outfits. I'm being drowned in brands/ specs and finding more relevant models daily and am worried of missing out on a product to consider by not being familiar with all the ID brands I don't know of. My budget is in the +/- $1000 range. I have the following components:

5 - Tannoy Precision 8 (set up in L/C/R/LR/RR)
1 - Denon AVR X-2000
1 - Playstation 3 for games/DVDs/BlueRays (soon to be replaced by a Playstation 4)
1 - Direct TV HR23700 cable box
1 - SurroundCast wireless rear surround transmitter

I currently have one Tannoy TS12 sub which is about 10yrs old! It has stopped working so I want to replace it. It is a 12" downward firing sub. I do have active kids so downward firing sub is appealing just from the "protect my investment" frame of mind. I liked the fullness of that sub and it also had LFE controls onboard. My range of music is upbeat classical, EDM, old school, trance, Pink Floyd, dance, top 40, latin dance, latin rock and more but that should give you a range of sonics.

Room description:
* my room is 16.5'x21' playing long ways
* I have a tiled floor
* there are lots of windows
* one of the long walls opens to the kitchen with a long counter and a hallway on either side
* the ceiling is raked on the short side from 18' down to 8' with an opening to a room above

Usage description:
80% movies
15% gaming
5% music

Volume level:
I like loud volumes for some viewing but don't want to sacrifice quality at low volumes either.

I also need to run wireless to the sub and place in the back corner of the room. That adds to the cost of the Rythmik. I have talked to reached out to Rythmik and spoke to Brian. I reached out to HSU on their forum but had no response yet. I'm trying to make sure I get the best economical choice but not sacrifice on my listening experience. I also considered the HSU ULS15 since it comes with wireless but am being advised to stick to ported since we are so movie heavy in our experience. I have also been warned about the wireless but see that others have done it with success. Would my receiver compensate for any delays? I have asked HSU about their specs on the wireless but have not heard back yet. I don't want to lose the lower freqs for the movies. I posted in other forums so am looking for more input but don't want to delay in more of my own indecision. Any other options I may be missing on with good response? :/
Thanks!

 

[theJman]

Varied musical tastes, difficult room, down-firing only and wireless? Well, that about covers all the potential trouble spots any one person could have.

Given your circumstances the first thing that popped into my mind was the PSA XV15. That handles pretty much everything but the wireless part. For that I would suggest contacting Tom and seeing what he has to say. More than likely he'll be able to assist you with finding something that will work.

 

[chashint]

Outlaw LFM 1 Plus or the LFM 1 EX along with their wireless kit.
http://www.outlawaudio.com/

 

[gorb]

I'd buy the Rythmik FV15HP. Tons of output for a reasonable price.

The PSA XV15 and Outlaw LFM-1 EX (I love my LFM-1 EX) are also very nice options, but they won't compete with the FV15HP in output or extension.

You can read reviews on all three units here:
http://www.data-bass.com/data?page=system&id=51
http://www.data-bass.com/data?page=system&id=58
http://www.data-bass.com/data?page=system&id=88

Unfortunately, the HSU VTF-15H has not been reviewed by the same guy, but it's on his list and will hopefully be tested in a few months.

 

[chashint]

When I responded earlier I was using my phone and did not notice the thread title.
If I were choosing between these two I would go with the Rythmik for the servo control.
It has also been professionally reviewed.
I know the VTF15 I has tremendous output, but when it was reviewed by Audioholics reviewed the Review caused a firestorm from the fanboys when the measurements did not match the advertised specs.

 

[Mike0206]

Have you considered duals? You could get two outlaw LFM-1 EX's for less than a rythmik at $1198 and add wireless kit which would put you just over the rythmik price but you'd have duals. You could do the same with PSA and the xv15 and go duals and that would save you 5% on the package but you'd be at $1520 including shipping but no wireless. Are duals even an option? If so I would consider the outlaw setup. Pretty awesome for the price.

 

[Awoken4Life]

Talk about a left turn! After all the great advice and opinions from several forums I have decided on and ordered the Power Sound Audio XV15. It's a 15" downward firing ported sub. I wasn't sure of the need for a 15" or downward firing but this subs specs and price point were great. Believe me, I went through a ton of specs on a ton of subs! What really tipped the scale was the customer service on a few questions I had. I got a response back from Tom at 10pm (apparently he works long hours like I do) - as a fellow business owner I respect that. His answers were not condescending and straight forward. He told me what I could expect (freq range and ~dB) out of his sub as it would be placed. I have been in the Audio Visual industry for over 25 years and know what these things are, what I wasn't sure of is brands, reliability and trustworthiness. I had not originally been considering them because they were relatively new but the more I read about them on the forums and the more I looked at their offerings the more I realized they were among the best of the them because of prior experience. I post this so that others who follow this thread looking for answers (as I did through posts years old!) know the thought process behind how I got to my own decision. Thanks to all and thanks to PSA - Welcome to the family!

Here's one link I found particularly helpful. I loved the simple layout but the name was absolute perfection. You can choose any other of the tested woofers for a direct comparison on the the same graph. Great site guys - congrats!
http://www.data-bass.com/systems
I relied on the graphs from several sites other than the manufacturers and also the input from actual owners of the subs or others sharing what they have heard to make up for what I couldn't hear myself. Descriptive impressions go a looong way. I will post my own thoughts on the PSA XV15 when I've had enough time to for a rounded opinion.

For a cool little twist of irony look back at t he first response.

Varied musical tastes, difficult room, down-firing only and wireless? Well, that about covers all the potential trouble spots any one person could have.

Given your circumstances the first thing that popped into my mind was the PSA XV15. That handles pretty much everything but the wireless part. For that I would suggest contacting Tom and seeing what he has to say. More than likely he'll be able to assist you with finding something that will work.

The first posts I received on several forums were for this exact subwoofer.
You know - I could have saved a lot of time... but the trip would not have been the same.

You ROCK theJman ! ! !

Again - thanks to everyone! This is what forums are supposed to be about - helping each other out and spreading information!

 

[Mike0206]

Glad to hear you were happy with the customer service at PSA! That's awesome! I've been snooping around for a sub as well just not quite sure who to go with. Your experience may just prompt me to give PSA more consideration. Can't wait to hear your review.

 

[theJman]

For a cool little twist of irony look back at t he first response.

The first posts I received on several forums were for this exact subwoofer.
You know - I could have saved a lot of time... but the trip would not have been the same.

You ROCK theJman ! ! !

I'm glad I was able to assist. Be sure to come back and post your comments after it's been broken in and tuned. Given the title of this thread -- which doesn't mention the PSA sub -- perhaps this thread might be a better place for your thoughts. That way, anyone looking at PSA will be able to find your information easier.

 

[Awoken4Life]

I sure will theJman. I'll post once I get it and get it going. Originally I was made up between the 2 listed in the title but kept researching and taking advice at what else to consider.

 

[Sunlesstrawhat]

Hello Awoken4Life, any impressions on the PSA XV15? I'm also looking at HSU and Rythmik and found your thread. Just wanted to check in. Thank you.