Rel Q400e or SVS PB12 Plus

the thing wnn

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Hi all,

I am looking at upgrading my current sub (an old Yammy) with a nice new one around the £800 mark.

I have auditioned and liked both the REL mentioned above and the B&W ASW750 which i also liked a lot.
Thanks to this forum, I have heard great things about the SVS subs too.

Now my dilemma is this - the B&W is a bit much new, and i can't find any under £900 s/h.
Whereas i have been offered a REL Q400e within my price range (s/h).
But.... I love the look of the SVS PB12 Plus.

Now as i can't audition an SVS, I have to go on recommendations.

What do you guys think?

a s/h REL or an SVS?

Thanks!

:lease: :thumbsup: :zonked: ;)
 
What do you want from a sub? Priority on music or movies? Tell us a bit of yourself. "Hi, my name is The Thing Wnn, and I like bass.." :clown:
 
Also what priority is space? And looks? I've only heard the REL u mention once, and having owned the PB-12/Plus 2 previously, I can safely say the SVS is a REL destroyer (in the context of the subs you're comparing).
 
Nimby said:
Stop beating about the bush. Tell us what you really think of the REL. :devil:

Nimby

Nimby, if you're going to quote me, please leave my comments in the right context i.e

(in the context of the subs you're comparing).

:)
 
russraff owned the REL Q400 for quite a while and if you do a search for posts by him you will be able to read his opinions.
 
Right....

Music and Films are a priority. I'd lean a bit more on the film side than the music, but not much.

My current system is as follows:

B&W CDM 1NT's, CDM CNT & 4 CDM SNT's for 7.1 surround use
Denon 3803 Amp + Denon 3800 DVD Player

(& of course my poo-ey old Yammy sub at the mo :()

The Yammy is a bit farty on films and almost non-existant with music as far as i'm concerned. Its not bad for what i originally got it for, but the rest of my system has moved on, leaving it behind :D

Space wise isn't really an issue, my room is roughly 6-7m wide and about 15-17m long (standard semi back room with extension built on at the back)
I have measured the area between my unit that holds all the components and my left front speaker and there is easily enough space for a nice big SVS.

I prefer the look of the SVS with the downward firing box, rather than the forward firing REL. So if looks were just the issue, then i'd have a SVS, but i'm more concerned with ability really.

IanJ - cheers for the info, I'll have alook for his posts on the q400e

Hope all that helps flesh out my situation a bit more

:clap: :smashin:
 
The thing wnn - just a thought for you here - if you're very seriously considering the PB12+, have you also considered the PB12+/2? For probably about another £150 or so you get twin drivers, bigger enclosure still, and 900W :eek: instead of 500W. I know which one I'd go for, if funds allow. It is bigger and heavier of course (@140lbs instead of 110), so sheer manoeverability may be a concern, but again as Scottie from Star Trek was once quoted: "You canna beat the laws of physics, Jim". Actually, I'm absolutely sure that someone will tell me that in fact you can, but you take my point? :D
 
juniper said:
The thing wnn - just a thought for you here - if you're very seriously considering the PB12+, have you also considered the PB12+/2? For probably about another £150 or so you get twin drivers, bigger enclosure still, and 900W :eek: instead of 500W. I know which one I'd go for, if funds allow. It is bigger and heavier of course (@140lbs instead of 110), so sheer manoeverability may be a concern, but again as Scottie from Star Trek was once quoted: "You canna beat the laws of physics, Jim". Actually, I'm absolutely sure that someone will tell me that in fact you can, but you take my point? :D

I've done some pricing for three of their subs, the PB12+, the PB12 Ultra (not the Ultra/2, a new model coming soon) and the PB12+ /2.
the plus comes in at around £800-ish all in, the Ultra at around £1k and the PLus 2 at around £1.1k (these prices included est shipping and all carriage and duty costs, plus VAT)

Now £800 - £1100 is a fair jump for me at the moment, and my wife nags as it is if i pump it up too loud (one time after the scene in monsters inc when the little girl first laughs and blows the lights etc, she said, and I quote, "If you ever <swear word removed> play that <swear word removed> thing that <swear word removed> loud again, I'll <swear word removed> divorce you, you <swear word removed><swear word removed>" :rotfl: :rolleyes: and that was with my Yamaha!! Imagine an SVS instead!!! :devil: )

So if i can't pump it up too loud, will i notice a £300 difference between the + and the +/2 ???
 
No, but you might notice a sound difference from the + and the Ultra :). Not everyone can pick it up, but having heard both plus and ultra drivers, I definitely prefer the Ultra sound :)....erm, and that is why I bought an SVS PC Ultra :) Which ROCKS!!! :D
 
Kazman said:
No, but you might notice a sound difference from the + and the Ultra :). Not everyone can pick it up, but having heard both plus and ultra drivers, I definitely prefer the Ultra sound :)....erm, and that is why I bought an SVS PC Ultra :) Which ROCKS!!! :D

I am looking forward to the specs and details of the PB12 Ultra appearing on the SVS website, I had an e-mail from erik saying it would be soon, but nothing as of yet
 
Nimby said:
Context Matt? What context was that then? :devil:

Nimby

Actually I owe you an apology, I read what you'd posted first thing when I was half asleep :rolleyes: - I thought you were implying that the SVS beats ALL RELs. That'll teach look at the forum first thing in the morning;)
 
the thing wnn said:
I am looking forward to the specs and details of the PB12 Ultra appearing on the SVS website, I had an e-mail from erik saying it would be soon, but nothing as of yet

Yes, I'd go for the Ultra also..
BUT, if you mean you won't play it loud, you'd be safe with PB10 (from your wife, also). And that's £400!

If you're not going to play your sub really loud, you shouldn't notice the difference. And it could be white, tan, slate gray or the common black.. Just a thought. ;)

P.S. You can always add another one if this lil' beast isn't enough for you. (or buy your wife a new wardrobe if she gets angry from the bass...)
 
It all depends on what you want from your sub really. I haven't heard an SVS and so won't decry their ability - it seems they're very good from what the other forum members who own them say. However, I do have the q400e (which incidentally I would sell for the right money - not because it's inadequate but because I love money lol!) and I can safely tell you that whilst testing it it had enough power to make my head feel like it was being squashed under the pressure!!! Another plus point from a patriotic point of view is that it is British, not something many of us are proud to be enough IMO these days. It is VERY well made, the quality is there for all to see and it is a solid unit which I even in my limited experience has proven itself EXTREMELY capable.
Hope this helps to keep the argument balanced.
Cheers
Rick
 
Diamond said:
P.S. You can always add another one if this lil' beast isn't enough for you. (or buy your wife a new wardrobe if she gets angry from the bass...)

:clap: :rotfl:

no, if i'm gonna get a SVS sub, its got to be a 12" driver sub. After all, she goes out every now and then ;) :dd: :dts: :eek: :devil:
 
If you are looking to buy 2nd hand then consider the Paradigm Servo 15 which can be had from time to time on the classifieds at your price point.
I had a Rel Q400 then i heard the Servo, as far as i'm concerned no contest, get a Servo ;)
Tim.
 
the thing wnn said:
I've done some pricing for three of their subs, the PB12+, the PB12 Ultra (not the Ultra/2, a new model coming soon) and the PB12+ /2.
the plus comes in at around £800-ish all in, the Ultra at around £1k and the PLus 2 at around £1.1k (these prices included est shipping and all carriage and duty costs, plus VAT)

I don't think the difference is quite as big as you think between the 12" and the twin 12". On the assumption that you are going for the "fine textured black" (I know I did :cool: ), then the difference in price is $300. This actually equates to more or less £200 inc. duty and VAT (I agree it is more than the £150 I quoted yesterday. I reckon the actual door to door cost of a PB2+ is as follows:

$1,199 + $200 delivery = $1,399 @ £/$1.84 = £760 + 4%duty = £790 + VAT = £928 or thereabouts. I reckon on the same basis the Plus costs £729. Maybe I've missed something out - and I'm not sure whether my shipping cost of $200 is correct or not???
 
To add some coments, the REL's use of the Neutrik connection makes it, for me, an excellent choice for music lovers. I have a velodyne, now, and that doesn't integrate as well for music listening. I can say that the sub does have prominent output at 15hz and is finished wonderfully well. In addition, the Q400 isn't too large. Personally, I still can't get over the "i'm not spending that amount of money on something I haven't heard" hump, so haven't had an SVS. The REL is good, though.

Russell
 
juniper said:
I don't think the difference is quite as big as you think between the 12" and the twin 12". On the assumption that you are going for the "fine textured black" (I know I did :cool: ), then the difference in price is $300. This actually equates to more or less £200 inc. duty and VAT (I agree it is more than the £150 I quoted yesterday. I reckon the actual door to door cost of a PB2+ is as follows:

$1,199 + $200 delivery = $1,399 @ £/$1.84 = £760 + 4%duty = £790 + VAT = £928 or thereabouts. I reckon on the same basis the Plus costs £729. Maybe I've missed something out - and I'm not sure whether my shipping cost of $200 is correct or not???

erik quoted me around $245 door to door for the PB12+/2 and i'm after a wood finish sub to match in with my wood finish B&W speakers and hand made stained wood cabinet, so that puts the price up a little more.

Picky aren't I? :D
 
the thing wnn said:
erik quoted me around $245 door to door for the PB12+/2 and i'm after a wood finish sub to match in with my wood finish B&W speakers and hand made stained wood cabinet, so that puts the price up a little more.

Picky aren't I? :D
bah! Get a dustbin like mine :D

http://www.avforums.com/forums/article.php?a=122

Wife won't notice it at all :devil:
 
I had a rel with the neutrik speakon connection and it did me fine for music but normal speaker cable seems to do exactly the same job to my ears. I guess there must be some advantage or subs like rel, mj acoustics would not use the neutrik connection but for hi level music, surely speaker cable is as good?
 
Hi Thing Wnn
I'm not sure if you are still looking for an ASW750, But I saw a couple for sale in the back of the march 05 issue of Hi-Fi News
"B&W ASW750 subs x2, boxed unused cost £2500 sell both bargain £1100" :)

if you like I'll pm you the persons contact details

:)
 
You can pm me their details if you like mate.
Cheers
Rick
 

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