I have these and 2x SB2000s. They are powered through a Denon x3500 by a Emotiva BasX A-300. I started with the Prime Bookshelf & center and then moved them to the back for a 5.2. Love the setup. A few comments have talked about the Prime bookshelves. Those things in comparison are really harsh in the upper mid range to highs. That was the first thing I noticed moving to the Ultras. Pleasant and detailed guitars with shimmery reverb trails. I will concede that Audyssey may have smoothed out that upper midrange dip for me, but I have no reservations about recommending the Ultras or the SB2000. Absolutely love the music coming from that 2.2 setup.
Very honest review. I`ve owned these for a couple of years and have enjoyed them. For the price, they deliver a nice listening experience. I totally agree that they are not bright and I found the measurements you shared quite interesting.
Thanks for the review. I've owned the Ultra bookshelves plus center and surrounds for a few years now. They are paired with two SB13 Ultra subwoofers. I listen to mostly multichannel (SACD) classical and some jazz music. I've never regretted the purchase. For movies, most recent is Aquaman 4K with Dolby Atmos, all the speakers totally disappear. They do need power. I upgraded to the Marantz AV8805 pre/pro with the Parasound Halo A52+ amplifier. The speakers love the power!
Knocked it out of the park with this one. I think you were very fair with your assessment and I've heard all the things you described in your listening impressions when I did my review. Also, I love the part where you talk about how "brightness" isn't in the highest frequencies where people think they are. Totally agree with that. When my kids are doing that extremely high pitched screech while I'm doing measurements, I noticed it's only around 3khz. 😂
Yep, I've noticed the 3-5K, upper mids, also known as the brilliance band can lead to listener fatigue, but I'll one further, if the entire top end, but especially the brilliance band sounds hard, not good either.
@@johnhpalmer6098 I believe it's the Presence band. I've looked into it before because I find 4khz the harshest & intolerable. Brilliance being 6khz or 7khz & up.
I've had these speakers for nearly 2 years now being fed from a Denon 3400H & an Emotiva BasX A-5175 external amp bi-wired. Don't really have any complaints about the way music & movies sound coming out of these.
Really complete review..... I have watched many and think this might be the most well rounded.....appreciate sound discussion of cymbals, male v female voices and guitar.... well done Ron
Nice review. Thank you. I've owned the SVS Ultras for about three years now. Now I'm starting to get the fever to send them to GR Research for an upgrade. 😎
I don't understand the hate for class D amps! As a bassist and House of Worship sound tech, that's all I use! My Yamaha RX-V573 home theater receiver is not class D, but I wouldn't hesitate to buy a class D receiver. Even though I've only heard the Ultras on UA-cam videos, I'm very impressed with what I've heard through my Audio Technica ATH-MSR7 headphones. Thank you for a comprehensive and incredibly informative review!!! For their size, the soundstage and deep but defined bass are very impressive to my ears.
I have the ultra towers and I can they sound very similar, you were spot on to what I hear. The only difference I would say is the towers dig really low. Like REALLY low. Subwoofers not needed? Maybe, they have some serious low end punch and that’s coming from a hip-hop head. The towers are very picky with placement though, they really do need at least 3ft from any wall boundary. I actually plan on sending them to Danny I’m just worried Texas will be shut down due to covid19, and I’ll be without speakers for months.
Yes! My set up, the Ultras and two SB3000 subs... Use that Soundbase, it can get pretty fun. The Soundbase sounds like it was actually made for this set up. Imagine that?
LOL I love it when a reviewer anticipates my questions and answers them even before I can articulate them! You were talking about the sibilance in female vocals and the fact that you can place the tweeter in some cases. I was wondering if a tube phono preamp or (too expensive and generate too much heat for the power levels I like) tube amplifiers would mask that... Within a couple of minutes you said you tried it with the Schitt Stack and the speakers disappeared. LOL Bravo for being thorough!
I know, you get a ton of recommendations. If I may add Ascend Sierra-2s with RAAL tweeters. I have a pair of the towers and enjoy them daily. Thank you for your reviews. Arigato gozaimasu from Osaka Japan.
My SVS Ultra Bookshelf sound fantastic with my SB13 Ultra x1 in a 10x15 room. Your thoughts mirror my experience over the years with these speakers. Are they perfect? Nope, but they've managed to get ~90% of the way there, which is overall, pretty darn good and better than most. I crave something more sometimes, but they have bested a number of speakers to my ears, in this room. Martin Logan Motion bookshelves almost took them out with their AMT, but...they had a weird hole in them I couldn't quite live without that the SVS more than delivered. I often switch between the SVS and the Klipsch Heresy III. Both are very good in their way, the HIII being a little more picky it seems. But when the right magic happens on the Heresy, it's very very good, and better than the SVS. But the inconsistency (I think it's based on source material) of the Heresy III is incredibly annoying at times.
@@Newrecordday2013 Came here to ask the same question. As you have listened to both extensively and ran the SVS Ultras on the Schiit setup I am going for (looking into the Ohm Walsh 3000), how would you compare the two. I am very interested in the XLS as DIY looks like a great way to save money to get great sound. But I always here great things about the Ultras as well.
Enjoyed the EQ commentary. I've found a 4khz boost to be the most influential band on whether a speaker is an easy listen or a rip your face off listen, to me. It also makes electric guitars sound hard, probably like you observed from the Tekton Impacts, totally opposite of what is going on here. I've found for music having a dip at 4khz is better but for HT a neutral 4khz makes dialog clearer. It's interesting how these bookshelves have this big dip 4-5khz dip yet the Ultra Towers have a peak there. The tower voicing is definitely not for me and the bookshelves dip looks a bit extreme even for me. I also look for neutral top end past 7khz or so, not tipped up. I've auditioned a lot of speakers lately, but looking at measurements the Wharfedale Linton look ideal. The new Elac Reference bookshelf Joe measured looks good too, but I really want to see what is going on with the tower. No one has video reviewed the towers that I've seen, hint hint.
Nice and enthusiastic review. Thanks for your continued attention to detail. My only concern is the midband dropout you mentioned that kills a nice electric guitar. Maybe their crossover could be better instead of so simple. Lots and lots of bookshelf speakers have this problem and it sucks. Requires the user to infuse that bandwidth into things which can be done but often at a detriment to other things. [Note: The little Tonar Vinyline phono stage from Austria seems to have this ability for LPs, although the rest of its performance is nothing to get excited about for sure, but should you have some vinyl with fuzz guitar lots of wah wah, check it out.]
Followed the link and it appears that the Ultra' s are not available in white! Also, using the soundbase, were you able to adjust volume with app on phone? I've read that volume has to be adjusted manually (via front panel knob), that would be a non-starter for me. Thanks.
The volume can be adjusted from the app or the dial on the front of the sound base. I had one for the 45 day trial and returned it due to the interface/app. I found it had a slow response to everything and finding my music could have been much easier with a better format. Using Pandora or Amazon music worked as expected.
Great thorough review. I just recently added the Prime Elevation & Prime Center to my set up. I am very impressed with SVS. Any chance you would review the Prime Bookshelf?
I'm considering the svs ultra bookshelf home theater surround package vs the rsl cg25 surround set w cg5 for surrounds. I plan pairing with the svs pb 2000 pro sub. Kinda stuck on which reciever, but for sake of argument, let's go with the marantz sr8015. This system would keep it all around 6,500. So the question is whether this is the way to go,or is there an alternative more bang for the buck option, and which system would be more enjoyable. Dont tell me either would be great. I'm a one and done type, who doesn't upgrade to often.
There's some context here regarding the Ultra line that I haven't seen anyone bring up as yet. This is speculation on my part, but it makes sense after everything I've read or watched. Most people who have heard both the Ultra and Prime lines have mentioned that the Prime series sound like slightly lesser versions of the Ultra series. I believe this is true of Zeos and DMS. It's possible this dip in the upper midrange may have been a sacrifice made when downsizing from the Ultra Tower, which is a 3.5-way design with two midrange drivers. On a recent AV Rant podcast, SVS President Gary Yacoubian mentioned that the Prime Pinnacle tweeter, and the Prime tweeters broadly, are meant to be as close to the Ultra tweeters as possible, but they are not technically equivalent. Recently, they've been trickling down high end features from their Ultra subwoofers down to their lower tiers. Given this history of starting with flagships and moving down, I wonder if the Ultra Towers have less upper midrange problems. Most recent reviews of the Ultra line and virtually any with measurements have been for the Ultra Bookshelves. Your measurements aren't far off from the ones Audioholics produced. They're not dead neutral, but they are relatively neutral. I haven't seen any measurements of the Ultra Towers, however, and am curious how they'd fare. Joshua Valour has yet to post his full review on them, so I'm curious if he'll have anything to say on this.
Good question! I am not sure if he’s ever had a pair come in. Anyone can send him a pair if they want to see. I’m sure he could at the very least offer some better parts as an upgrade. Wouldn’t be shocked if he can also smooth out the response as well.
@@Newrecordday2013 I asked GR if he had done Ultras yet 4/22/20. He has not. If I can get a good idea what to do with my naked speaker stands in the meantime. Mine might be the first set
Now that the ultras have been on the market for a long time, is there other speakers i should be looking at or are they still above most others for the price?
Danny at GR-Research just announced he is going to design a new crossover for the SVS Ultra Bookshelf. He already has an upgrade for the SVS Ultra Center which I am going to buy immediately. Can't wait for the Bookshelf upgrade. Since you reviewed the stock SVS Bookshelf, would love to hear your opinion of the upgrade when Danny is finished with it.
Now that I have watched your reviews of the JBL 530 and SVS Ultra bookshelf what do you think the better one is between the two because I'm down to these two? The only thing is I'm coming from a home theater setup not 2 channel. I also have the Studio 570 in mind also against the SVS Ultra bookshelf. Any thoughts?
I have been happy with my SVS Ultra bookshelves. They are working well with the addition of an SVS SB-1000 sub. The nice gloss white cabinet has prevented damage to my marriage. I am increasingly happy that Danny at GR research appears to be working on an upgrade kit for them! 😎 Danny has posted a video on his initial evaluation of them. ua-cam.com/video/Y3SRBFZx7Yc/v-deo.html
Great review. It seems there’s some better options at this price point, but certain people may like this spkr. People should research and eventually buy what sounds best to them in their own home. Most companies today have decent return policies, as more are starting to sell direct. I agree that people should have the choice of part upgrades, but that can also effect a speaker model from sounding consistent from one to the next. That’s where people like Danny can come in.
I am a 50 year old drummer...maybe that’s why I don’t follow the “these things have a harsh tweeter sound”. I find them to be articulate and clear, not harsh. Have I heard other speakers with a more soft “air” type of treble? Sure. However, the trade off is “clarity and “definition”. At least at this price point. Sure, a pair of Wilson Benesch can do all of the above. Just increase your budget by 1000%! 👍🏼 I am thoroughly enjoying mine especially with vinyl.
Yeah, 3k to 6k is the 'bright' region in my opinion. I'm not a specs maven but that has been my experience. I have five of the Primes that I got in a SCORCHING deal with an SB-1000 sub. Sadly they are the black oak rather than the piano gloss but I cannot overstate the deal I got on them. They are about my fourth or fifth favorite speakers and honestly, they may be one of the least bright among them. I think that 10K rise leads to a wide sounding speaker so it can help small speakers sound bigger but the 3k to 6k is the bright region. I do prefer brighter speakers, but I'm not a fan of sibilance which is a pretty slippery slope when you get away from non-audiophile approved recordings. I have not heard the Ultras but if they are 20% better than the Primes, they get a big thumbs up from me. I'd strongly consider the Revel M16s in this price range but, again, I have not heard the Ultras. Female vocals sound much better on the Revels and the Focal 807W but that is a bit more $$$.
I'd go with an RCA splitter at the RCA output and send two low level signals to two sub amps, not high level. Audioquest makes a good one for pretty cheap.
@@scottyo64 Why is that, unless you have REL :). And how do you do it. Stereo speakers wires from amp to sub then from sub out to the speakers? That is a lot of wiring.
Hi Ron! Nice review. You mention an little issue with female vocals,... Will these SVS speakers work well with classical music and specially opera? Thanks!
If you bi-amp, is there any cross-over involved at all? Completely direct? If not, what advantages are obtained? Do they retain their initial response? What improvements? Thanks. You've been on probation after MY tekton experience. Don't screw this up, kid..... Kidding, sort of.
@@Newrecordday2013 Purchased the LCRs, Electron Ses (The genius advised me on this selection.) and the accompanying Center. Dealt with the owner and it was always uncomfortable. Wrote a two page letter advising him to calm down after the first experience (40 minute complaint session) sent it along with my check and order. The speakers arrived and remained 'spitty' even after two weeks of continuous play (I was out of town). When I called to ask for possible means to address that issue, he told me to try toeing them about. I explained it didn't matter if I was in another room, they maintained that characteristic. (BTW, I was a Certified Audio Consultant, an electronic technician and a long time owner of good to very good Mid-Fi devices.) So I returned them without the fingerprints which would have excluded a reimbursement within the qualifying guarantee period. I got my price paid returned and after having laid out $400 for shipping. So it sounds OK but he did mock my Yamaha top of the line receiver as an amplifier source and I was advised by his staff member that they had tested the returned speakers and they measured perfectly. He also was derisive about my letter which was just written out of compassion. As the Warranty conditions state I was supposed to be thrilled and if not return them. This entire episode was shitty. So I purchased Ohm 1000s and I am gratified by their service, conversations and products. With the difference in price I bought a 12" SVS and a Speedwoofer. I'm done for now but I like to keep my feet in the Audiophile fire. You keep my toes toasty and I like your low key style.
@@Newrecordday2013 Intelligence and persistence do not make for complete successes. That's probably a good thing for we who are less capable. You can always tamp down any tendency toward jealousy by focusing on their less desirable traits. I admit perhaps I could have been more cautious when a guarantee of complete thrills is stated and a 40 minute exposition.of personal burdens during a consultative support call initiates a business relationship. Enough of Alexander. Dealing with Jon at Ohm was very pleasant. We spoke at length about our experiences with Fed-Ex (VERY negative). I called and asked if they were going to use them to ship an order to me. I had ordered a sub from Monolith and it, in short order, arrived in Florida , eighteen miles from my home, where it sat for more than a week. Monolith advised some patience so after six days, I asked for a RMA, which they gave me. It actually got worse from there with Fed-Ex. I don't blame Monoprice and they did what they could and gave me my refund but I do feel you agreed to get it to me. If the process failed, I'm a customer, not a punching bag for anyone. I'm sure I would have been pleased with the product but it wa already tainited. Jon tempered my ambitions and recommended their small tower (1000s). It seems that they were ready to be of service and not just maxing a deal. I am 'thrilled' now both by their straight forward actions and the products. One last thing. Ohm packaging was SOO superior to the Utah's folks. I think they could have substituted for small fall-out shelters.
XLS encore is more balanced and linear throughout the entire band. I’ll be reviewing them pretty soon. As for the JBL, totally different sound! Like apples and oranges! Watch my review on the JBL, might be helpful!
Where bi-amping doesn't really get shown much. I think it would be a good video. Specially, with these SVS Ultras and that Schiit stack. Or maybe a Tube top end and a Class D bottom. How much more/better bass can we get bi-amped.
Fantastically precise review, for the money these speakers, which i have heard, are good but not great. The schiit stack and directstream dac used is good enough to get close to the best out of 88 db and above speakers, so i think ron pushed them near their performance envelope, i dont think there is much else to say about these speakers to potential buyers.
Bright you say? Ask SVS for the Primes. That's like scratching on chalkboard. Then there's the polar opposite which is the Prime Pinnacle, which is so much more laid back than the Ultras. SVS has some serious homework to do with their next line up of speakers as far as tweeter design goes.
it would be extremely easy to attenuate that tweeter a bit....(why don't more manufacturers have adjustment here - the ability to fine tune is a valuable one)
Thanks for the graphs, honestly thats all I am looking nowadays. I think the issue in the mids can be corrected with some eq. That ofc doesn't justify svs bad design choices . why evennbother with svs when you can buy the rp600m that shares the same design flaws but costs 50% less?
They are good with bass. (for most) Almost don't need a sub, but the ports chuff when driven hard. Then I added an SVS SB 1000 sub. Big improvement. Crossed over 80hz. No more chuffing. Driving with Marantz SR7002.
I am running mine with an old Marantz sr7002, with Audssey / equalizer adjust. And they sound pretty nice (+Sb1000 sub). But this is also my first set of semi high-end speakers. I am developing a fever to send them to GR research for an upgrade. I just need to figure out what to do with my naked speaker stands while they are out at GR research.
@@AverageNiceGuy Awesome idea to send to GR research. Unfortunately im based in mid-east and its too difficult with shipping, and too costly. In the meantime you could buy a pair of GRs diy speaker kits, which are pretty well priced, and would give you something to do during lockdown.
@@markbradbury5266, I'm looking for a options to do this. I will need some white speakers to take the place of my SVS Ultra bookshelves while they are out crossing the country to GR Research, then possibly New Record Day. Unfortunately I'm married to beautiful European Hungarian woman that is BIG on style. I will need something in high gloss white that I can't do it home :-) I am poking around options now. I just think it would be fun to run my SVS ULTRA'S through GR RESEARCH, and then New Record Day and then get them back. .... Humor.. then I saw a video on magnepan, now my brain is short-circuited :-) more thinking to do
Great review. Thanks Ron! Hey, I read in another review of the SVS amp that it ran hot and that the owner could smell something like "burning plastic." Did you have any issues with it running hot? Smell anything?
@@svalbard01 Maybe I received a bad unit. But I could not get the amp back in the box fast enough to send back.."burning plastic" smell was there. The 2 front knobs felt like they were going to fall off at any time. The fiber optic input was loose/wonky..had to have one of the amps feet sit on the cable once I got it to work then hope nobody touched it.... I own the Ultra's and love them dearly.....The difference in the build quality between those and the amp was almost comedic.
Our hearing is most sensitive between approximately 1kHz and 5kHz and a lot of speaker manufacturers purposely engineer a dip in this range so their speakers don't end up sounding harsh or bright. As you get higher in the frequency range there is less and less energy and our ears are getting less sensitive so a speaker has to have a severely elevated rise above, say, 10kHz to sound bright because of that fault. Also, a lot of two way bookshelf speakers use what are nominally called 6.5 inch bass/mid-range drivers and unless they are very well made their response starts to degrade in that 2 kHz region, with most completely in breakup by 3 kHz. So they are rolled of early to compensate for this which makes for lower distortion and less chance for sounding bright. It's also why so many reviewers peg the crossover frequency of such speakers at around 1.8 to 2.2 kHz and then act like they're incredibly good at hearing the crossover. Perhaps they are good but in most two ways of this type, especially under a grand, that's where the crossover has to be.
Dave P SVS specs show a 2kHz crossover as expected. What I don’t understand is how they have that 2-10kHz depression from the tweeter without having some extra parts in the crossover to shelve the lower frequencies. Ron said there are only 5 parts in the crossover which sounds like a simple 2nd order crossover.
@@StewartMarkley Hey Stewart. Yeah, too many variables to say exactly. The crossover is certainly playing a part but to what extent is impossible to tell. Looks like a very simple two way but without component values other than for the one cap and individual response measurements for each driver we have no real way to discern whats going on.
Dave P Maybe Ron can send those speakers to Danny to check out. If there’s anybody who can figure this out it’s him. I’m guessing the tweeter is rolled off a little on the lower octaves for some reason.
I tried to like them. Really tried. But man we’re they fatiguing. Vocals were harsh. I ran them with a Rega Brio and a Yamaha A-S801. Ended up sending them back rather quickly.
I know it’s not fair to compare a $1000 speaker to a $4000 speaker, but how do these compare to the Ryan S610? Ryan 4X better that the SVS as far as smoother highs, more detail, more articulate bass extension? Head to head, who wins at their price point?
I think magnetic grill are tacky. I 💕 ke the the old fashion way of putting on or removing the grill. I like a tough looking speaker. They are making them so pretty now adays.
Nice review Ron. Just a quick comment on the upper midrange-lower treble depression, I don’t know how SVS did that but I think the audible result may give the impression of more detail than without the depression. I was expecting you to say that the crossover had more parts than it did which might explain how they created that depression but apparently not. I looked at the SVS info on the Ultra speaker which stated the use of premium grade capacitors and air core inductors yet from what you said it sounds like anything but that. Also the picture they have of a crossover shows a ton of standard iron core inductors and electrolytic capacitors, which refutes their claim. It is obviously not the crossover for this speaker.
SVS é incrível mesmo derruba completamente os sentidos é incrível mesmo não conheço nada até hoje nada nada melhor do que SVS conhecem? ouçam ouçam e aguardo resposta 10000000000000de estrelas
Always love how thorough you are in your reviews Ron.
My man!
I have these and 2x SB2000s. They are powered through a Denon x3500 by a Emotiva BasX A-300. I started with the Prime Bookshelf & center and then moved them to the back for a 5.2. Love the setup.
A few comments have talked about the Prime bookshelves. Those things in comparison are really harsh in the upper mid range to highs. That was the first thing I noticed moving to the Ultras. Pleasant and detailed guitars with shimmery reverb trails. I will concede that Audyssey may have smoothed out that upper midrange dip for me, but I have no reservations about recommending the Ultras or the SB2000. Absolutely love the music coming from that 2.2 setup.
I appreciate you mentioning magnetic grills as a recommendation to SVS. Cheers Ron
Thanks for watching!
I like the pegged grills
Very honest review. I`ve owned these for a couple of years and have enjoyed them. For the price, they deliver a nice listening experience. I totally agree that they are not bright and I found the measurements you shared quite interesting.
Thanks for the review. I've owned the Ultra bookshelves plus center and surrounds for a few years now. They are paired with two SB13 Ultra subwoofers. I listen to mostly multichannel (SACD) classical and some jazz music. I've never regretted the purchase. For movies, most recent is Aquaman 4K with Dolby Atmos, all the speakers totally disappear. They do need power. I upgraded to the Marantz AV8805 pre/pro with the Parasound Halo A52+ amplifier. The speakers love the power!
One of your best reviews yet Ron! Was anticipating this for a while. Love your attention to detail. Look forward to the next one.
I just got a pre-loved (2 yr old) of these of about 60% less the price of brand new and I loved it!!
Bro. I loved this redoes. I thought the plants behind you were shrunken heads for a bit. They were plants though
Knocked it out of the park with this one. I think you were very fair with your assessment and I've heard all the things you described in your listening impressions when I did my review. Also, I love the part where you talk about how "brightness" isn't in the highest frequencies where people think they are. Totally agree with that. When my kids are doing that extremely high pitched screech while I'm doing measurements, I noticed it's only around 3khz. 😂
My man!
Yep, I've noticed the 3-5K, upper mids, also known as the brilliance band can lead to listener fatigue, but I'll one further, if the entire top end, but especially the brilliance band sounds hard, not good either.
@@Newrecordday2013 do you do subwoofers reviews
@@johnhpalmer6098 I believe it's the Presence band. I've looked into it before because I find 4khz the harshest & intolerable. Brilliance being 6khz or 7khz & up.
I've had these speakers for nearly 2 years now being fed from a Denon 3400H & an Emotiva BasX A-5175 external amp bi-wired. Don't really have any complaints about the way music & movies sound coming out of these.
Really complete review..... I have watched many and think this might be the most well rounded.....appreciate sound discussion of cymbals, male v female voices and guitar.... well done Ron
Y
Nice review.
Thank you.
I've owned the SVS Ultras for about three years now.
Now I'm starting to get the fever to send them to GR Research for an upgrade. 😎
FYI: You don't send them there, you just buy the kit and solder it in yourself. It's a piece of cake even for a total novice.
@@robbetts Thanks, I've ordered the kit 👍
@@AverageNiceGuy any thoughts on the kit? That's something I would consider maybe next year. I just got the Ultras last week and am enjoying them.
@@moniack my regret, my employer sent me 150miles to new job.
Kit not yet installed 😭
I can only tell you that these with a pair of SVS PB-2000 Pros sound wonderful, so you would be very happy! Great review!
Can’t you get a minidsp to run out of the SVS amp, for multiple woofers.
I use them for my side and rear surrounds and they are absolutely fantastic. Great job on the review!
What’s in the front?
@@303RUBIXphantom fronts I guess haha
Kickass Review ! Just now watched , idk how this onw snuck by me !
Thanks Ron !
I don't understand the hate for class D amps! As a bassist and House of Worship sound tech, that's all I use! My Yamaha RX-V573 home theater receiver is not class D, but I wouldn't hesitate to buy a class D receiver. Even though I've only heard the Ultras on UA-cam videos, I'm very impressed with what I've heard through my Audio Technica ATH-MSR7 headphones. Thank you for a comprehensive and incredibly informative review!!! For their size, the soundstage and deep but defined bass are very impressive to my ears.
Running 4 ultras AND a center with only the RZ50... Sounds amazing! No amp needed.
Forget the separates.
I have the ultra towers and I can they sound very similar, you were spot on to what I hear. The only difference I would say is the towers dig really low. Like REALLY low. Subwoofers not needed? Maybe, they have some serious low end punch and that’s coming from a hip-hop head. The towers are very picky with placement though, they really do need at least 3ft from any wall boundary. I actually plan on sending them to Danny I’m just worried Texas will be shut down due to covid19, and I’ll be without speakers for months.
With no toe in, that top end boost would probably be shaved off in the listening position. 15k+ Hz is usally very directional on a tweeter that size.
Yes! My set up, the Ultras and two SB3000 subs... Use that Soundbase, it can get pretty fun. The Soundbase sounds like it was actually made for this set up. Imagine that?
"What I'm hearing matches up with what I heard"??...lol. Just poking fun, I knew what you meant. Thanks for review, always on it
LOL I love it when a reviewer anticipates my questions and answers them even before I can articulate them!
You were talking about the sibilance in female vocals and the fact that you can place the tweeter in some cases. I was wondering if a tube phono preamp or (too expensive and generate too much heat for the power levels I like) tube amplifiers would mask that... Within a couple of minutes you said you tried it with the Schitt Stack and the speakers disappeared. LOL Bravo for being thorough!
I aim to please...
I have NAD M10 - pairing with this - does it give warmer tone (opposite of Klipsch sound)??
i have a question i want to know if a freya+ and two aegirs will be enought for 2 svs subs 3000 and 4 svs ultra bookshelf
Little Ronnie, all clean-shaven! BTW, it seems that SVS either no longer does the piano white finish or they are all sold out. Nice review, Ron.
Thanks amigo!
I know, you get a ton of recommendations. If I may add Ascend Sierra-2s with RAAL tweeters. I have a pair of the towers and enjoy them daily. Thank you for your reviews. Arigato gozaimasu from Osaka Japan.
My SVS Ultra Bookshelf sound fantastic with my SB13 Ultra x1 in a 10x15 room. Your thoughts mirror my experience over the years with these speakers. Are they perfect? Nope, but they've managed to get ~90% of the way there, which is overall, pretty darn good and better than most. I crave something more sometimes, but they have bested a number of speakers to my ears, in this room. Martin Logan Motion bookshelves almost took them out with their AMT, but...they had a weird hole in them I couldn't quite live without that the SVS more than delivered. I often switch between the SVS and the Klipsch Heresy III. Both are very good in their way, the HIII being a little more picky it seems. But when the right magic happens on the Heresy, it's very very good, and better than the SVS. But the inconsistency (I think it's based on source material) of the Heresy III is incredibly annoying at times.
SVS vs XLS Encore!? I have both, but my encores are still breaking in. Haven’t done an a/b yet.
Do you have the standard or upgraded caps?
@@Newrecordday2013 I was just looking to add this exact comment. Any thoughts, including the upgraded parts preferably. Thanks for the review as well.
Upgraded caps and mills resisters.
@@Newrecordday2013 Came here to ask the same question. As you have listened to both extensively and ran the SVS Ultras on the Schiit setup I am going for (looking into the Ohm Walsh 3000), how would you compare the two. I am very interested in the XLS as DIY looks like a great way to save money to get great sound. But I always here great things about the Ultras as well.
Please could you recommend a good stand for SVS Ultra Bookshelf speaker?
Enjoyed the EQ commentary. I've found a 4khz boost to be the most influential band on whether a speaker is an easy listen or a rip your face off listen, to me. It also makes electric guitars sound hard, probably like you observed from the Tekton Impacts, totally opposite of what is going on here. I've found for music having a dip at 4khz is better but for HT a neutral 4khz makes dialog clearer. It's interesting how these bookshelves have this big dip 4-5khz dip yet the Ultra Towers have a peak there. The tower voicing is definitely not for me and the bookshelves dip looks a bit extreme even for me. I also look for neutral top end past 7khz or so, not tipped up. I've auditioned a lot of speakers lately, but looking at measurements the Wharfedale Linton look ideal. The new Elac Reference bookshelf Joe measured looks good too, but I really want to see what is going on with the tower. No one has video reviewed the towers that I've seen, hint hint.
one problem from holding me back is no USB input for DAC. it would be great if there is a USB input.
Nice and enthusiastic review. Thanks for your continued attention to detail. My only concern is the midband dropout you mentioned that kills a nice electric guitar. Maybe their crossover could be better instead of so simple. Lots and lots of bookshelf speakers have this problem and it sucks. Requires the user to infuse that bandwidth into things which can be done but often at a detriment to other things. [Note: The little Tonar Vinyline phono stage from Austria seems to have this ability for LPs, although the rest of its performance is nothing to get excited about for sure, but should you have some vinyl with fuzz guitar lots of wah wah, check it out.]
can you do a review comparing SVS pinnancle with SVS ultra.
What speaker stands are the ultras sitting on?
Sounds like the SVS Soundbase is the big winner giant killer here, for $400? Unbelievable
As all ways right to the point. Like to see Mission qx review too.
Can you test the Legacy HD monitors and compare it to the SVS Ultra's.
Followed the link and it appears that the Ultra' s are not available in white! Also, using the soundbase, were you able to adjust volume with app on phone? I've read that volume has to be adjusted manually (via front panel knob), that would be a non-starter for me. Thanks.
The volume can be adjusted from the app or the dial on the front of the sound base. I had one for the 45 day trial and returned it due to the interface/app. I found it had a slow response to everything and finding my music could have been much easier with a better format. Using Pandora or Amazon music worked as expected.
Starts at 6:27
What a fine and helpful review!!!
WOW.....I didnt know Ron had a younger brother who was also into audio
Dude, looking good! Losing the beard reveals a cut, chiseled Ron. You been dropping a few lbs lately? Wish I could.
Hey man! Thanks! Only a couple pounds but hey, I’ll take the compliment!
Great thorough review. I just recently added the Prime Elevation & Prime Center to my set up. I am very impressed with SVS. Any chance you would review the Prime Bookshelf?
I'm considering the svs ultra bookshelf home theater surround package vs the rsl cg25 surround set w cg5 for surrounds. I plan pairing with the svs pb 2000 pro sub. Kinda stuck on which reciever, but for sake of argument, let's go with the marantz sr8015. This system would keep it all around 6,500. So the question is whether this is the way to go,or is there an alternative more bang for the buck option, and which system would be more enjoyable. Dont tell me either would be great. I'm a one and done type, who doesn't upgrade to often.
Would the marantz stereo 70s be able to power the ultras well?
There's some context here regarding the Ultra line that I haven't seen anyone bring up as yet. This is speculation on my part, but it makes sense after everything I've read or watched. Most people who have heard both the Ultra and Prime lines have mentioned that the Prime series sound like slightly lesser versions of the Ultra series. I believe this is true of Zeos and DMS. It's possible this dip in the upper midrange may have been a sacrifice made when downsizing from the Ultra Tower, which is a 3.5-way design with two midrange drivers. On a recent AV Rant podcast, SVS President Gary Yacoubian mentioned that the Prime Pinnacle tweeter, and the Prime tweeters broadly, are meant to be as close to the Ultra tweeters as possible, but they are not technically equivalent. Recently, they've been trickling down high end features from their Ultra subwoofers down to their lower tiers. Given this history of starting with flagships and moving down, I wonder if the Ultra Towers have less upper midrange problems.
Most recent reviews of the Ultra line and virtually any with measurements have been for the Ultra Bookshelves. Your measurements aren't far off from the ones Audioholics produced. They're not dead neutral, but they are relatively neutral. I haven't seen any measurements of the Ultra Towers, however, and am curious how they'd fare. Joshua Valour has yet to post his full review on them, so I'm curious if he'll have anything to say on this.
So what you are saying is SVS should be about to drop a V2 of the Ultras :)
Any chance you could review the Canton Vento 836.2 Bookshelf speakers?
Excellent review!
So how would you compair these to the JBL 530s... Obviously a larger base driver, but for listening.. hmmm
Z Reviews did the comparison between the ultra vs the primes about 2 years ago. Maybe another Elac review. Those are few and far between.
What do you think Danny could do with these?
Good question! I am not sure if he’s ever had a pair come in. Anyone can send him a pair if they want to see. I’m sure he could at the very least offer some better parts as an upgrade. Wouldn’t be shocked if he can also smooth out the response as well.
@@Newrecordday2013 I asked GR if he had done Ultras yet 4/22/20. He has not.
If I can get a good idea what to do with my naked speaker stands in the meantime. Mine might be the first set
Now that the ultras have been on the market for a long time, is there other speakers i should be looking at or are they still above most others for the price?
They are on sale right now, you should get a pair!
Danny at GR-Research just announced he is going to design a new crossover for the SVS Ultra Bookshelf. He already has an upgrade for the SVS Ultra Center which I am going to buy immediately. Can't wait for the Bookshelf upgrade. Since you reviewed the stock SVS Bookshelf, would love to hear your opinion of the upgrade when Danny is finished with it.
Any chance these might go by Danny's shop before they go back to OH? (asking for a friend)
That's what I am getting the fever for.
It's just that I will need some gloss white ones to take their place while mine are out at GR's.
Now that I have watched your reviews of the JBL 530 and SVS Ultra bookshelf what do you think the better one is between the two because I'm down to these two? The only thing is I'm coming from a home theater setup not 2 channel. I also have the Studio 570 in mind also against the SVS Ultra bookshelf. Any thoughts?
I have been happy with my SVS Ultra bookshelves. They are working well with the addition of an SVS SB-1000 sub.
The nice gloss white cabinet has prevented damage to my marriage.
I am increasingly happy that Danny at GR research appears to be working on an upgrade kit for them! 😎
Danny has posted a video on his initial evaluation of them.
ua-cam.com/video/Y3SRBFZx7Yc/v-deo.html
How many videos did you copy & paste this exact same post under!?
Great review. It seems there’s some better options at this price point, but certain people may like this spkr. People should research and eventually buy what sounds best to them in their own home. Most companies today have decent return policies, as more are starting to sell direct. I agree that people should have the choice of part upgrades, but that can also effect a speaker model from sounding consistent from one to the next. That’s where people like Danny can come in.
How do these compare to the Studio Legacy Monitors? I’m trying to find the most accurate one for classical, piano, etc.
I wish they made the center, floorstands and subs all in white
I am a 50 year old drummer...maybe that’s why I don’t follow the “these things have a harsh tweeter sound”. I find them to be articulate and clear, not harsh. Have I heard other speakers with a more soft “air” type of treble? Sure. However, the trade off is “clarity and “definition”. At least at this price point. Sure, a pair of Wilson Benesch can do all of the above. Just increase your budget by 1000%! 👍🏼 I am thoroughly enjoying mine especially with vinyl.
Yeah, 3k to 6k is the 'bright' region in my opinion. I'm not a specs maven but that has been my experience. I have five of the Primes that I got in a SCORCHING deal with an SB-1000 sub. Sadly they are the black oak rather than the piano gloss but I cannot overstate the deal I got on them. They are about my fourth or fifth favorite speakers and honestly, they may be one of the least bright among them. I think that 10K rise leads to a wide sounding speaker so it can help small speakers sound bigger but the 3k to 6k is the bright region. I do prefer brighter speakers, but I'm not a fan of sibilance which is a pretty slippery slope when you get away from non-audiophile approved recordings. I have not heard the Ultras but if they are 20% better than the Primes, they get a big thumbs up from me. I'd strongly consider the Revel M16s in this price range but, again, I have not heard the Ultras. Female vocals sound much better on the Revels and the Focal 807W but that is a bit more $$$.
Can anyone tell me what brand the wood bookshelf speakers behind him are? thanx
Attach a subwoofer speakon connector directly to the speaker posts.
I'd go with an RCA splitter at the RCA output and send two low level signals to two sub amps, not high level. Audioquest makes a good one for pretty cheap.
@@briansimmons5363
I perfer high level by far for 2 channel music.
@@scottyo64 Why is that, unless you have REL :). And how do you do it. Stereo speakers wires from amp to sub then from sub out to the speakers? That is a lot of wiring.
Hi Ron! Nice review. You mention an little issue with female vocals,... Will these SVS speakers work well with classical music and specially opera? Thanks!
If you bi-amp, is there any cross-over involved at all? Completely direct? If not, what advantages are obtained? Do they retain their initial response? What improvements?
Thanks. You've been on probation after MY tekton experience. Don't screw this up, kid..... Kidding, sort of.
The biamp runs through the crossover, so anything I had to say about it still applies. What was your Tekton experience?
@@Newrecordday2013 Purchased the LCRs, Electron Ses (The genius advised me on this selection.) and the accompanying Center. Dealt with the owner and it was always uncomfortable. Wrote a two page letter advising him to calm down after the first experience (40 minute complaint session) sent it along with my check and order. The speakers arrived and remained 'spitty' even after two weeks of continuous play (I was out of town). When I called to ask for possible means to address that issue, he told me to try toeing them about. I explained it didn't matter if I was in another room, they maintained that characteristic. (BTW, I was a Certified Audio Consultant, an electronic technician and a long time owner of good to very good Mid-Fi devices.) So I returned them without the fingerprints which would have excluded a reimbursement within the qualifying guarantee period. I got my price paid returned and after having laid out $400 for shipping.
So it sounds OK but he did mock my Yamaha top of the line receiver as an amplifier source and I was advised by his staff member that they had tested the returned speakers and they measured perfectly. He also was derisive about my letter which was just written out of compassion.
As the Warranty conditions state I was supposed to be thrilled and if not return them. This entire episode was shitty.
So I purchased Ohm 1000s and I am gratified by their service, conversations and products. With the difference in price I bought a 12" SVS and a Speedwoofer.
I'm done for now but I like to keep my feet in the Audiophile fire. You keep my toes toasty and I like your low key style.
Man I’m sorry about your experience with Eric. Sadly this is not the first time I’ve heard these types of encounters.
@@Newrecordday2013 Intelligence and persistence do not make for complete successes. That's probably a good thing for we who are less capable. You can always tamp down any tendency toward jealousy by focusing on their less desirable traits. I admit perhaps I could have been more cautious when a guarantee of complete thrills is stated and a 40 minute exposition.of personal burdens during a consultative support call initiates a business relationship. Enough of Alexander.
Dealing with Jon at Ohm was very pleasant. We spoke at length about our experiences with Fed-Ex (VERY negative). I called and asked if they were going to use them to ship an order to me. I had ordered a sub from Monolith and it, in short order, arrived in Florida , eighteen miles from my home, where it sat for more than a week. Monolith advised some patience so after six days, I asked for a RMA, which they gave me. It actually got worse from there with Fed-Ex. I don't blame Monoprice and they did what they could and gave me my refund but I do feel you agreed to get it to me. If the process failed, I'm a customer, not a punching bag for anyone. I'm sure I would have been pleased with the product but it wa already tainited.
Jon tempered my ambitions and recommended their small tower (1000s). It seems that they were ready to be of service and not just maxing a deal. I am 'thrilled' now both by their straight forward actions and the products. One last thing. Ohm packaging was SOO superior to the Utah's folks. I think they could have substituted for small fall-out shelters.
Great review. If I ever get the itch to replace my NHT's it would be with either the SVS or Ascend Acoustics.
You should look at the revel m16 as well some serious engineering went into those.
I find my pair sounding great with an old school Yamaha z9 in pure mode.
How would you compare these SVS Ultras to the Elac Adantes?
which do you feel is the better speakers - Klipsch RP-600M or the SVS Ultras? for half the price what would we be losing?
SVS Ultras are more versatile and more refined imo.
How would this speaker compare to the xls encore? How would the jbl 530 stack up against it? Rookie here. Thanks for what you do!
XLS encore is more balanced and linear throughout the entire band. I’ll be reviewing them pretty soon. As for the JBL, totally different sound! Like apples and oranges! Watch my review on the JBL, might be helpful!
Thanks for your response!
Where bi-amping doesn't really get shown much. I think it would be a good video. Specially, with these SVS Ultras and that Schiit stack. Or maybe a Tube top end and a Class D bottom. How much more/better bass can we get bi-amped.
Fantastically precise review, for the money these speakers, which i have heard, are good but not great. The schiit stack and directstream dac used is good enough to get close to the best out of 88 db and above speakers, so i think ron pushed them near their performance envelope, i dont think there is much else to say about these speakers to potential buyers.
Hey Ron. Just use the left/right output of the SVS amp, and have the sub do the crossover.
If the sub has high level inputs, this can work.
Sorry I meant to say the left/right RCA outs.
Put an RCA splitter on the sub out and run to two sub amps. Audioquest makes a good one for not much .
That would actually work!
@@Newrecordday2013 Been doing it for years on my rig.
Bright you say? Ask SVS for the Primes. That's like scratching on chalkboard. Then there's the polar opposite which is the Prime Pinnacle, which is so much more laid back than the Ultras.
SVS has some serious homework to do with their next line up of speakers as far as tweeter design goes.
it would be extremely easy to attenuate that tweeter a bit....(why don't more manufacturers have adjustment here - the ability to fine tune is a valuable one)
can u review on the focal chora. thanks
Thanks for the graphs, honestly thats all I am looking nowadays. I think the issue in the mids can be corrected with some eq. That ofc doesn't justify svs bad design choices .
why evennbother with svs when you can buy the rp600m that shares the same design flaws but costs 50% less?
Nick Damianides maybe the looks? 😆
JBL Studio 530 for 75% less.
If at all possible you should use the same setup to test your speakers.
How's the bass?
I liked the bass quite a bit on this speaker. Granted, you do need a sub to reach below the 40s.
They are good with bass. (for most)
Almost don't need a sub, but the ports chuff when driven hard.
Then I added an SVS SB 1000 sub. Big improvement. Crossed over 80hz. No more chuffing. Driving with Marantz SR7002.
Ron, lets open them up!! goodjob
ua-cam.com/video/MqOcqD1lXFE/v-deo.html
Your so clean cut I didn’t recognize u
Has anyone tried to adjust the frequency response curve using a Minidsp HD, to add some more mids (smooth out the curve) ?
Or even Equalizer APO with its parametric capabilities.
I am running mine with an old Marantz sr7002, with Audssey / equalizer adjust. And they sound pretty nice (+Sb1000 sub). But this is also my first set of semi high-end speakers. I am developing a fever to send them to GR research for an upgrade.
I just need to figure out what to do with my naked speaker stands while they are out at GR research.
@@AverageNiceGuy Awesome idea to send to GR research. Unfortunately im based in mid-east and its too difficult with shipping, and too costly. In the meantime you could buy a pair of GRs diy speaker kits, which are pretty well priced, and would give you something to do during lockdown.
@@markbradbury5266,
I'm looking for a options to do this.
I will need some white speakers to take the place of my SVS Ultra bookshelves while they are out crossing the country to GR Research, then possibly New Record Day.
Unfortunately I'm married to beautiful European Hungarian woman that is BIG on style.
I will need something in high gloss white that I can't do it home :-)
I am poking around options now.
I just think it would be fun to run my SVS ULTRA'S through GR RESEARCH, and then New Record Day and then get them back.
.... Humor.. then I saw a video on magnepan, now my brain is short-circuited :-) more thinking to do
If you give them enough juice, they get real bright. I should also add, they're just fine on an AVR.
Schiit Loki, that works wonders on these.
omg clean look suits you well
Ha!
Re: SVS Amp: 150 Watts ! Yes, at four ohms.
Great review. Thanks Ron! Hey, I read in another review of the SVS amp that it ran hot and that the owner could smell something like "burning plastic." Did you have any issues with it running hot? Smell anything?
Not at all
@@Newrecordday2013 Thanks. That's awesome to hear because those features, with that power, at that price, are sweet. And I'm in the market.
It’s a great little amp for the money!
@@svalbard01 Maybe I received a bad unit. But I could not get the amp back in the box fast enough to send back.."burning plastic" smell was there. The 2 front knobs felt like they were going to fall off at any time. The fiber optic input was loose/wonky..had to have one of the amps feet sit on the cable once I got it to work then hope nobody touched it.... I own the Ultra's and love them dearly.....The difference in the build quality between those and the amp was almost comedic.
Our hearing is most sensitive between approximately 1kHz and 5kHz and a lot of speaker manufacturers purposely engineer a dip in this range so their speakers don't end up sounding harsh or bright. As you get higher in the frequency range there is less and less energy and our ears are getting less sensitive so a speaker has to have a severely elevated rise above, say, 10kHz to sound bright because of that fault. Also, a lot of two way bookshelf speakers use what are nominally called 6.5 inch bass/mid-range drivers and unless they are very well made their response starts to degrade in that 2 kHz region, with most completely in breakup by 3 kHz. So they are rolled of early to compensate for this which makes for lower distortion and less chance for sounding bright. It's also why so many reviewers peg the crossover frequency of such speakers at around 1.8 to 2.2 kHz and then act like they're incredibly good at hearing the crossover. Perhaps they are good but in most two ways of this type, especially under a grand, that's where the crossover has to be.
Dave P SVS specs show a 2kHz crossover as expected. What I don’t understand is how they have that 2-10kHz depression from the tweeter without having some extra parts in the crossover to shelve the lower frequencies. Ron said there are only 5 parts in the crossover which sounds like a simple 2nd order crossover.
@@StewartMarkley Hey Stewart. Yeah, too many variables to say exactly. The crossover is certainly playing a part but to what extent is impossible to tell. Looks like a very simple two way but without component values other than for the one cap and individual response measurements for each driver we have no real way to discern whats going on.
Dave P Maybe Ron can send those speakers to Danny to check out. If there’s anybody who can figure this out it’s him. I’m guessing the tweeter is rolled off a little on the lower octaves for some reason.
I tried to like them. Really tried. But man we’re they fatiguing. Vocals were harsh. I ran them with a Rega Brio and a Yamaha A-S801. Ended up sending them back rather quickly.
Can you do the same for the towers ?
@@Audfile right ? Why is that ?
I know it’s not fair to compare a $1000 speaker to a $4000 speaker, but how do these compare to the Ryan S610? Ryan 4X better that the SVS as far as smoother highs, more detail, more articulate bass extension? Head to head, who wins at their price point?
I think magnetic grill are tacky. I 💕 ke the the old fashion way of putting on or removing the grill. I like a tough looking speaker. They are making them so pretty now adays.
Use a splitter for the sub out. Or go through a minidsp 2x4 hd. Problem solved.
Hi, review the Wharfedale Diamond 225
Nice review Ron. Just a quick comment on the upper midrange-lower treble depression, I don’t know how SVS did that but I think the audible result may give the impression of more detail than without the depression. I was expecting you to say that the crossover had more parts than it did which might explain how they created that depression but apparently not. I looked at the SVS info on the Ultra speaker which stated the use of premium grade capacitors and air core inductors yet from what you said it sounds like anything but that. Also the picture they have of a crossover shows a ton of standard iron core inductors and electrolytic capacitors, which refutes their claim. It is obviously not the crossover for this speaker.
Well at this point I have to believe there is a reason why the SVS Ultra Tower hasn’t had nearly as much review action on UA-cam.
SVS é incrível mesmo derruba completamente os sentidos é incrível mesmo não conheço nada até hoje nada nada melhor do que SVS conhecem? ouçam ouçam e aguardo resposta 10000000000000de estrelas
Muito obrigado pela atenção dispensada acho que é bom
GR research freq dip follows yours, he fixed it.
Yeah I saw that.