B&w Pv1

[SuperSkunk]

Hi all,

I was looking for some advice regarding a PV1 at £700, good buy or better to be had for the same money?

Thanks in advance.

 

[ttdriver]

Depends what you are looking for mate? Do you need something that looks like the PV1 or are you happy with a bigger box?

 

[SuperSkunk]

Although I like the design of the PV1 it is not my primary concern, the sound is. I know better can be had if I was paying full whack for the PV1 but was interested to see at this price what more informed people thought.

P.S. At the moment I am using a KEF Coda active sub

 

[HiFiRuss71]

Whilst the design and build quality of the PV1 are beyond reproach, unless you have the need for a sub with exceptionally clean upper bass because you have very small satellite speakers, then the PV1 is actually bettered (unfortunately, by quite a margin) by the likes of the BK-XLS-200 for £290.

The PV1's main problems are that it was designed to answer a number of engineering problems that aren't actually an issue in subs of a comparable size or performance.

Opposed drivers to cancel vibration? A well made sub is quite capable of providing enough mass to render the moving mass of it's driver an irrelevance.

Spherical cabinet to cope pressure induced resonance? Any well engineered sub of a similar size has cabinet dimensions too small to resonate within the sub bass frequencies.

If it were twice the volume and sported 10" drivers, then we'd have something worth talking about, but in reality, it doesn't actually offer anything other than a style based argument over B&W's own ASW-675 for considerably less money, even at the £700 you've found it for.

FWIW, it's been seen closer to £500 (ex-demo) and in the light of the above, it's still of dubious audio value. If you're only comfortable buying from a dealer and £700 is the budget, then on performance grounds, I'd take a much closer look at REL's T-1.

Russell

PS. The PV1 would stuff the Coda regardless.

 

[ChrisEdu]

When I tried a PV1 in my system, at home, I didn't like it much. I much preferred the REL Storm 3, although I have just purchased a SVS PC Ultra.

 

[spinaltap]

I purchased my PV-1 last year as an ex-display product for £712. For me, it has been an extremely successful purchase - I would have no hesitation in buying again. I wanted it for its 'musicality' for music and home-cinema - not for its low-end grunt.

Matching it with appropriate speakers is the key. I originally planned to buy the PV-1 alongside B&W M1's - but they were too muddied (as were the B&W XT2's) for my taste.

I chose the Mission E82's and E8c - and have been pleased with these too.

 

[bsimmer3000]

I also own the PV1 and yes you can def get more for your money if you dont mind getting somthing without the style of the PV1. I have been very happy with mine so far and will be changeing to twin pb13 ultras when i get the home cinama room started but in my room what is about 25x15ft it works just fine. Wife wont let me sell it anyhow as she loves the look of it and wants it in the main room when we move house. The PV1 is the only sub SWMBO see that she liked.

 

[BishopTTU]

Hi All,

I recently fell into a situation to purchase one "lot" of used B&W equipment. The items in the lot are:

B&W PV-1
B&W FPM-6 (2 floor standing, 1 center)
B&W CCM-80s (with back boxes)
Yamaha RX-V4600

I like my existing equipment and with the recent addition of the DS7's, I'm not sure I'm going to give a listen to the FPM-6s. My current setup is:

Denon AVR-4306
B&W 705
B&W DS7
B&W CCM-80
B&W ASW-675
Samsung BD-UP5000
XBOX 360 w/HDMI

Most of the equipment from the lot will goto e-bay.

However, I am tempted to try the PV-1 against my ASW-675. I'm not looking to upgrade sub's. The lot had a very low price and now that I've tested the equipment, someone took very good care of each item.

Anyhow, would anyone provide some recommendations of what source materials I should try against the PV-1 and 675. I have a few things to use and would welcome any additional thoughts.

My system is primarily used for 75% HT and 25% Music.

Thanks!

A.

 

[HiFiRuss71]

Try it by all means, but the PV-1 but the 675 goes lower and louder, all with less distortion.

I'd Ebay the PV-1 because you'll get more for it from those who've bought into the hype.

Russell

 

[rszee]

I sold my Pv-1 on Ebay and got £500 for it, doesn't come close to the DD18

I was one who wanted the style and substance but unfortunatly only got the style with the PV1 and while the DD18 is an big ugly black box it certainly has the substance. If you want good bass reproduction then i would give the PV1 a miss

 

[Derek S-H]

All these replies have been interesting in different ways, mainly because there seems to be an implicit understanding about what constitutes "good" bass.

I had a couple of subs before my PV1, square wooden boxes with big drivers in design, and a bass sound that was remarkably similar regardless of the price.

The PV1, I would say, produces a different kind of bass than what I'd heard previously - faster and cleaner and perfect for me living in a flat with thin walls.

Maybe it doesn't go as loud or as deep as some other designs, but not all of us are looking for that within the restrictions of our living arrangements.

I think you just need to establish your needs, as with any Hi-Fi or HC equipment, have a demo and then go from there.

Good luck
Derek

 

[HiFiRuss71]

I would agree with everything Derek except the bit about 'faster and cleaner'. It isn't faster, it just lacks low bass which by its nature sounds slower and it certainly isn't clean, unless your talking about frequencies >70Hz.

What it does do is sound like a moderate pair of floorstanders with all the attendant bass distortion that implies or, as some would have it, it has 'musical' bass.

Russell

 

[m_shafiq]

I agree with the above posters.

I bought mine from ebay for £395. It replaced my B&W ASW300 - traditional square box. It does not go as low as the ASW300 but I find it much more enjoyable.