SV Subwoofers
OWNERS’
GUIDE
SVS Powered Box, Single
10” ISD (PB10-ISD) ™
Contents:
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•
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Pages 2-3 Safety Instructions
Page 4 Welcome
Page 5 About your new SV Subwoofer
Pages 6-9 Setup, integration, and calibration
Page 9-10 Powered Box amp features
Pages 11-12 Bass demos for your home theater
Page 13 Home theater terms
Pages 14-15 Notes
Page 16 Terms and conditions
Last update: 25 July, 2005
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SV Subwoofers
13. Unplug this apparatus during lightning storms or when unused for long
periods of time.
14. Refer all servicing to qualified service personnel. Servicing is required
when the apparatus has been damaged in any way, such as power-supply
cord or plug is damaged, liquid has been spilled or objects have fallen into
the apparatus, the apparatus has been exposed to rain or moisture, does not
operate normally, or has been dropped.
15. WARNING: To reduce the risk of fire or electric shock, this apparatus
should not be exposed to rain or moisture and objects filled with liquids,
such as vases, should not be placed on this apparatus.
16. To completely disconnect this equipment from the mains, disconnect the
power supply cord plug from the receptacle.
17. The mains plug of the power supply cord shall remain readily operable.
The lightning flash with arrowhead symbol within an
equilateral triangle, is intended to alert the user to the
presence of un-insulated "dangerous voltage " within
the product's enclosure that may be of sufficient
magnitude to constitute a risk of electric shock to
persons.
The exclamation point within an equilateral triangle is
intended to alert the user to the presence of important
operating and maintenance (servicing) instructions in
the literature accompanying the product.
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SV Subwoofers
Welcome.
From the entire SVS team, congratulations on your purchase of a
new standard in home theater and music bass!
Your sub isn’t some generic black box built someplace you can’t even
find on a map. It’s made in our Liberty, Ohio factory by home audio
fanatics... like you. Designed, and tested using the latest state of the
art instruments... and assembled by hand, your SV Subwoofer is
without a doubt one of the best investments you’ll ever make in
bringing music and theater home.
We’ll help you to set up your sub right, and in no time, you’ll be
giving “demos” of your favorite DVDs or music selections to all your
friends and neighbors (be kind if you live in an apartment!). This
isn’t just a subwoofer after all, it’s a carefully designed audio
component carefully tuned in our labs, by the award winning SVS
skunk works team.
You’re unlikely to have heard, or felt, bass like this before, unless it
was in a top-notch, commercial movie theater. Audio in your home
will never be quite the same again. That’s a promise.
Already have a question about your sub? You might answer it by
reading this manual, we think you’ll find it easy to read and more
informative than most. For even more detailed discussion about set-
up topics check out our Questions/FAQs page at
know, and then some.
Maybe you just want to share a bit of bass news? Or perhaps you
have a story about your SV Subwoofer to share with us? Maybe
something we missed in our website? No matter, feel free to send a
exclusive re-seller in Scandinavia: [email protected]
It’s not often you can talk to the guys who made your audio
component. In this case, we look forward to it.
SVS Customer Service
Page 5
About your SV Subwoofer
There maybe be other subwoofers that look like them, but virtually none work like
them. Not at this price. SV Subwoofers are decidedly different in how they are
designed, produced, sold, and even in the exceptionally high quality components we
use. The best part? You could have spent much more and still not come close to the
performance our subwoofers provide. So, what makes a subwoofer an SVS?
Quality components, sane prices. You might be surprised at how inexpensive the
components in some not-so-inexpensive subwoofers are. At SVS, performance is
king... not shaving off a few dollars from component costs. We scour the earth for the
best, most cost-effective parts (when we don’t make them ourselves), and meld them
into finely tuned designs that define high performance home theater (HT) and music
bass. We’ve tested and discarded plenty that didn’t meet our tough standards. If we
use it, you know “it” is satisfied some tough customers first. Us.
Get “square”. Typical subs require heavy internal bracing and many we’ve seen are
simply poorly made. We did a host of studies that optimized the materials, the size,
and even the enclosure finish to ensure a rigid design that was still compact and able to
take the abuse your family and friends can dish out. SVS cabinets are no ordinary
boxes. Selling through select dealers means your sub, and not glossy ads, get the
priority at SVS. Tap the side of your sub, look at those smooth corners, and you’ll
know what we mean.
Stable front firing woofer. Our tough box design is one plus, but we’ve also taken
great lengths to design a simple and effective front firing configuration. Look for little
details like stainless steel mounting pins and match rubber lined sockets (instead of
cheap plastic parts). Removable rubber feet allow for stable placement on any surface.
No rattling, or buzzing allowed, even if you put your sub on tile or wood floors.
Custom low turbulence port designs. When you listen to our trend-setting ported
subs you’ll hear (and feel) bass like never before, with a exceptionally low noise and
distortion. Huge patented, 3” flared port fittings make the difference. You’ll quickly
realize something special went into your new sub the second you fire it up.
Stylish, and understated. From the fine, durable enclosure finish, to the attractive
color-keyed grill, you’ll be amazed at how easy it is to lose your sub in a corner.
SVS’s aren’t tiny, but this is one of those times size does matter. There are many
brands of boring “black box” subs out there. Fortunately, you didn’t just unpack one.
World class power. Our North American built amps are designed and manufactured
with a level of fit and finish, and power, practically unheard of at this price. Did we
mention power? It’s there in spades (though we rate them conservatively). And SVS
starts with efficient designs which don’t require significant levels of power robbing
equalization to go low and flat. This way, our amps can be dedicated to reproducing
low frequencies, not making up for a lack of enclosure space (the bane of clean, deep
bass). As a result, we don’t require the megawatts some subs do. Plus they run cool
and reliable in those vented cylinders. We sweat the details on integrating a top of the
line amp in your sub, so you don’t have to.
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SV Subwoofers
Setup, calibrating and integration
What’s to know? Well, first of all, setting up an SV Subwoofer is
pretty darn easy. There are a few key things to get right though if you
want to get the most out of your sub…
Unpacking. You’re probably eager to fire up your sub, but take time
to carefully unpack everything. Save the box and shipping materials,
just in case you need to return the sub for any reason.
Location. They say it’s ALL about location right? It’s the same with
setting up your subwoofer. So, where to put it? Go for a corner if
you can, and avoid putting your sub where it might adjoin large open
areas Studies have shown that the deepest and flattest bass response
.
is typically attained when a subwoofer is placed within a few feet of
one of your home theater’s corners. A corner near your seat is best of
all. The front-firing configuration of this SVS makes this easy.
Whether you put the sub in front or to the rear of your seating area
makes surprisingly little difference. Deep home theater bass, like that
from “5.1 channel” DVDs is non-directional. You can’t tell where it is
coming from, even though you can hear, and feel it.
Hook-up (see fig. 1). To configure your new sub, a simple mono,
shielded 75 Ohm A/V RCA type cable (a.) is all you need to take the
subwoofer output jack of your DD/DTS surround sound receiver (b.)
and feed the low-level input of the sub’s amp.
NOTE: Stop now if you aren’t
SVS PB10-ISD
“Input” jack
Totally
familiar with your
Ensure all
receiver’s manual.
power to your equipment is off
when making these connections. Also, be
certain your power outlet can handle
a
minimum of 350 watts. (Use of “convenience
outlets” on receivers are not recommended for
powering your SVS.)
(a.)
(b.)
DD/DTS Processor/Receiver
Fig. 1
(Subwoofer “Out” RCA jack)
SV Subwoofers
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More Setup, calibrating and integration
If you are running a pair of SV Subwoofers (fig. 2), you will need to use a
standard “Y” cable adapter (c.) The best adaptor to use for this task has one male
RCA connection and two female RCA outputs. From the “Y” cable you can run
a standard 75 Ohm RCA to RCA signal cable (d.) to each sub, thus “splitting” the
Low Frequency Effects (LFE) and other bass signals from your receiver and
effectively feeding both subwoofers with the same signal.
SVS PB10-ISD
“Input” RCA jack
NOTE: Now is a good time to select
if you want “ON” (always on) or
“AUTO ON” which turns your sub
on only when a bass signal is present.
(d.
“Y” cable/splitter from
receiver
(c.)
DD/DTS Processor/Receiver
(Subwoofer “Out” jack)
Fig. 2
“Calibration” isn’t only for tech minded folks, it’s critical to a proper
configuration of your home theater sound system. Fortunately, adjusting channel
balance (or calibration) is as simple to do as it is important. The first order of
business is making sure your DD/DTS surround sound system is set up properly.
We recommend you consult your audio/video receiver (or processor) manual to
refresh on the procedures to do this. Generally, this requires ensuring the
receiver’s test tones, or a special test disk (like Ovation Software’s Avia) play
back at the same volume from each of your system’s speakers. That’s speakers at
left, center, right, left surround and right surround (and if equipped, center rear),
plus the subwoofer . (More on sub level in a second). Skip to page 9 (“Powered
Box Amp”) if you aren’t familiar with your sub’s amp, and come back to
calibration.
Some things to check as you get ready to calibrate:
•
Are your speakers set correct to the correct “size”? Your receiver/
processor might allow you to indicate if your speakers are “Small” or
“Large”. Selecting the size accordingly will ensure bass goes to most
appropriate speakers, and use the subwoofer correctly too. Also, is your
subwoofer turned “ON”? We don’t mean “is your subwoofer amplifier
on?” (that’ll be important later too) but rather, is your receiver sending a
bass signal to your sub amp? This can only happen if you say “Yes” (or
“ON”) in the “Subwoofer” selection during the setup of any typical Dolby
Digital/DTS capable receiver (you’ll need to enter your receiver’s setup
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“menu” to check these critical choices).
•
•
Is your receiver connected to the sub amp? Use a well-shielded
RCA cable (sometimes called a “patch cord”) to hook to the
subwoofer output of your DD/DTS receiver to the RCA input jack of
your SVS amplifier. As mentioned earlier, you’ll need to “split” the
subwoofer signal with a “Y Cable” if you bought a pair of subs.
Is your Radio Shack ® sound pressure level (SPL)
meter ready? This tool is absolutely essential to proper
home theater audio setup. It’s akin to a tire pressure gauge
for your car (you don’t set your tires by “feel” right?). Set
the meter to “Slow” and “C-weighting” (and turn the dial to
70 or 80dB depending on your test tone source). Haven’t
got the meter yet? Order one from L-Sound. We prefer
the analog instead of the digital display model.
Getting ready to start now: Make sure your receiver/processor master
volume is set at “00 dB” or some other easy to remember reference level.
Finally, ensure your SVS’s volume/gain control is set no more than 1/4 to
1/3rd up, for now. It’s also critical to check the subwoofer level control of
your surround receiver before you begin the test tones. Set the subwoofer
output signal no higher than “-5 dB” initially (that’s one quarter way up,
given a typical receiver’s subwoofer channel level limits of –10 dB to +10
dB) . Your LFE “trim” or “peak limiter”, if you have one, should be set to
0dB to start (that’s full up) but this can be dialed down later to tame peaks
if needed. Turn off any sound-field processing modes, “midnight mode”
etc. Your LFE should go to the “subwoofer only”, not “mains” too, if this
is an option in your system.
Now play your receiver's internal test tones so you have something to
measure with your SPL meter. Or, buy a test DVD such as the Avia. A
test disk’s tones ensure your entire signal path, from the DVD player to
your speakers, is set correctly. Whatever you use, when the tones start
alternating from speaker to speaker (watch your sound meter now), set each
speaker’s volume to about 75 dB (or 85dB if using Avia) by using the
receiver’s dedicated channel level controls (leaving receiver’s master
volume the same). We recommend you turn down the receiver’s
subwoofer output level before you significantly lower your sub’s volume/
gain control. This helps keep distortion sent to your SVS to a minimum.
You should not be set this control lower than –5 dB however, since some
adjustment room is needed to fine tune levels later. If your subwoofer
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SV Subwoofers
reading is still too high then turn down the sub’s amp volume a little with
each run.
But what’s “too high”?? Tastes vary, and so do movie soundtracks, but
your SVS is capable of tremendous levels of low distortion, low frequency
bass — far more than most commercial subs. Take advantage of this,
especially if you like action movies with lots of “.1” channel (LFE) action,
and give the sub a bit more “bump” during calibration. Keep in mind too
that the human ear is relatively insensitive to low frequencies. This, coupled
with the fact most folks don’t watch movies at Dolby Digital reference level
(fairly loud), means raising the bass up a few dBs usually yields a more
satisfying movie and music experience.
What sub levels do we recommend? If you watch movies at relatively
moderate sound levels, a good start is a range of +1dB to +3dB above your
other channels (as measured with your sound meter). This means the test
tone will waiver about 78 dB for the subwoofer portion of the calibration run
(88dB with Avia). (Note: You may want to rotate the sound meter SPL
meter dial to 80dB to get a good reading with these higher levels.) Note too
that many modern surround sound receivers allow a variety of different
subwoofer level settings, depending on the “listening mode” you are in.
With “Dolby Digital” as your “mode” use the above calibration routine. You
may well find that CD “Stereo” music calls for a lower bass settings adjusted
by ear. The above is a guide… experiment. The louder your master volume
though, the more you should back off the subwoofer’s level to compensate.
Audible distress is a sign to lower things a bit. Avoid your driver bottoming,
resulting in a loud “clack”!
Location and measurement. You should take the above measurements
from your typical preferred seat for watching movies. Be advised, strong
bass levels can vary tremendously simply by moving your seat or your
subwoofer a few feet. Such is the nature of long wave-length, low bass
sound. Don’t hesitate to try different locations and different levels for your
subwoofer. Setting levels which are too high (and often, too low) is the most
common subwoofer setup error.
Powered Box amp. We looked the world over for the best
performing sub amp that’s still affordable. What resulted is an SVS custom-
designed, North American-made amp with amazing build quality, and just
the features folks with today’s digital surround sound systems need.
Volume/Gain. Use gain (in conjunction with your receiver’s subwoofer
output level control) to dial in a bass calibration to your liking. Start
calibration with the sub’s volume 1/4 to 1/3 of the way up (turned clockwise
from the left).
Phase. Think of long bass waves as conflicting or enhancing each other,
depending on the timing of their arrival at your listening location (either
SV Subwoofers
Page 10
together, or not). Since some of your room’s bass might come from main,
center and/or surround speakers, as well as your sub, getting these bass wave
forms to arrive in a complementary fashion is the difficult job of the phase
control. Essentially, “phase” varies the timing of the bass waves coming from
the sub. But don’t despair if you don’t hear much difference, especially if
running a single subwoofer. Bass “cancellation” will vary by room shape,
volume, and the bass frequency. No one setting is likely to ever be perfect. One
technique to optimize phase is to find a nice “bassy” loop (such as the menu of
the “Godzilla” movie DVD) and measure the loop’s SPL response at various
bass peaks. As the loop runs, you can have an assistant adjust the phase control
in small steps while you measure. When you see the most response on a given
bass passage, typically that’s the setting with the least cancellation (for the
frequencies of the demo loop).
If you have a pair of subwoofers, calibrate with only one subwoofer on at a
time. When finally switching on both SVS’s (assuming you calibrated both
individually to the exact same level) you should have a combined reading of
+6dB more than when one sub was playing. If you do not, have an assistant
slowly move the phase on only one subwoofer a bit until you get about +6dB
more than with one sub playing. This ensures your subs are not “canceling”
each other out due to poor phase alignment. Again, all measurements must be
from your prime viewing seat.
Line In. Use your sub’s “Line In” jack to connect the subwoofer to the output
jack of your receiver/processor. A simple RCA to RCA cable is all you need.
Auto-On. Your Powered Box allows itself to be in an “Auto-On” mode… or
“On” all the time. With the former setting (the switch in the “Auto” position)
your subwoofer will “sense” that a DVD or CD etc. has begun and switch its
audio circuits on immediately (the “hard” power switch mentioned below must
be on, naturally). A few minutes after a movie, the Auto-On light will turn Red,
switching the sub back off. When running (and sensing a signal) the Auto-On
LED will be green. Sometimes, with very low listening levels, your subwoofer
might not get enough of a bass signal from your surround sound processor to
“trip” the Auto-On circuit. Should you ever find this to be the case you may
leave this switch to “On”, or turn up the receiver’s subwoofer level some (be
sure to recalibrate channels levels with your meter afterwards).
Power. This heavy-duty, two-position switch next to the power cord will
completely cut the power to your sub amp. Flip this switch to off before you
ever move the sub or change inputs or outputs.
A/C connection. Plug your sub into a dedicated A/C outlet. “Convenience”
outlets of typical receivers often don’t provide the needed current for your SVS
high power amp. Avoid them.
Fuse. Mounted behind a small door near your cord, user replaceable (as spare is
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SV Subwoofers
Bassy demo scenes to die for.
So now what?? You’ve got one of the best theater and music bass
subwoofers on the planet, you’re calibrated...want to see what she’ll do?
But of course! Since finding those scenes can be a bit trying, we’ve
compiled a list of our favorites below. After all, calibration with test
tones is important, but it’s movies and music this sub is itching to show
off. Chapter stops for DVDs are shown, with movie time in hours:
minutes: seconds. What are you waiting for? Just hit PLAY!
•
“The Iron Giant” Great family animation with SERIOUS bass,
including strong peaks below 25 Hz. Jump to:
1. “Chase thru the forest” Scene 8 (20:00 into the movie)
2. “Robot Landing” (Train Impact) Scene 10 (25:40)
3. “Green Boom” Scene 27 (1:11:40)
•
•
“Antz” Another good family movie, though not perhaps for small
children. Extremely loud bass above 30 Hz.
“Terror from Above”, Scene 17 (51:48)
“The Matrix” Modern, violent, science fiction classic with plenty
of shoot-’em-up bass blasts. Here’s some subtle and not so subtle.
1. “Where we are grown”, Scene 12 (42:55)
2. “Landing in fight”, Scene 15 (50:51)
3. “Chopper shootout”, Scene 31 (1:47:15)
•
•
“Das Boot” Arguably one of the best war pictures of all time with
bass approaching 20 Hz. Very loud, very intense.
1. “Depth charges”, Scene 21 (59:30)
2. “Storm surfing”, Scene 25 (1:15:15)
3. “Hitting bottom”, Scene 17 (53:15, Side “B”)
“Apollo 13” Moving story, with some surprisingly subtle but
revealing bass where it counts.
1. “Lift off”, Scene 13 (35:15)
2. “Coming home”, Scene 53 (2:05:43)
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More Bassy demo scenes.
•
“Titanic” You love it...or you hate it. Regardless of which side
of the ship you sit, this flick does some serious rumbling for
you:
1. “We can’t leave him” Scene 22 (2:21:50)
2. “Ship Splitting” (2:41:30)
3. “Last Gasp” (2:42:05)
•
•
“Blade” Not one for the kiddies, but loaded with deep bass.
1. “Footstep”, Scene 4 (7:15)
2. “Door blown” Scene 20 (50:05)
“Aliens” Not just another modern sci-fi horror classic, this one
rocks from intro to final scene.
1. “Ship drop”, Scene 9 (41:20)
2. “Awakenings”, Scene 15 (1:12:52)
•
"Apocalypse Now" Making This Vietnam war movie, Francis
Ford Copolla nearly went crazy...imagine what it'll do to your
subwoofer!
1. "Chopper ride" Scene 2 (0:19:47)
2. "ARC LIGHT" Scene 4 (0:26:02)
3. "Grenade launch" Scene 12 (1:27:58)
“Contact” SETI with a (bass) twist or two along the way.
1. “Bombing”, Scene 28 (1:36:30)
•
•
2. “Space truckin”, Scene 33 (1:55:56)
“Dark City” One of Roger Ebert’s favorites, think he likes bass
too?
1. “Let the tuning commence”, Scene 8 (34:30)
2. “City makeover”, Scene 15 (1:27:45)
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A Glossary of Home Theater Terms
Don’t feel guilty if you want to skip over the below. But if you are
curious about what some of the terms and abbreviations stand for, read
on:
CD - Compact Disc, the music standard and capable of great sound.
Now joined by Super Audio CD (SACD) and DVD-Audio as high-
resolution music alternatives that can really make subwoofers great
audio upgrades.
dB - Short for “deci-Bell” a unit of sound, a 3dB increase takes twice
the acoustic power to attain!
DD - “Dolby Digital”, the most popular form of digital surround sound,
usually found on DVD soundtracks. Actually a compression algorithm
that can provide 1 to 7 channels of movie audio .
DPL - “Dolby Pro Logic”. The last generation of non-discreet channel
surround sound. Derived from 2 “matrixed” analog channels.
DTS - “Digital Theater System” similar to DD, but often with less
compression. Many feel it sounds better than DD, but you be the judge.
DVD - Amazing little video disk, DVD, doesn’t “mean” anything!
HT - “Home Theater”. What you make of it. But a home (theater)
without a subwoofer, isn’t quite up to our definition!
Hz - Short for Hertz, the German scientist who came up with a scheme
of measuring the frequency of sound waves. 15-30 Hz is very low bass
and very rare in anything but movie soundtracks. 60-80 Hz is generally
considered mid-bass above which most large full range speakers can
easily produce. The real fun (and most common) deep bass, is in the
middle of that range, call it 20-40 Hz.
LFE - “Low Frequency Effects” are the “.1” channel in 5.1 or 6.1
channel soundtracks. If you have a sub selected in your system, any
LFE signal goes to the subwoofer. The sub may get bass from other
channels as well however, depending on the “size” of speakers in your
set-up.
RMS - A common and accurate way to rate the power of an amplifier.
Literally “Root Means Squared”. Typically measured in “watts”.
SPL - “Sound Pressure Level”, a fancy way of saying “Volume”.
Usually measured in dBs. SPL meters are critical to setting your
SV Subwoofers
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Notes:
SV Subwoofers
Page 15
Notes:
Terms and Conditions
14 days money back guarantee provided by the government: You as
a Scandinavian consumer are entitled by law to cancel the order at your
sole discretion within a period of 14 days from receipt of the product, for
a return of the purchase price, provided the products is fully intact. You
are obliged to arrange and pay for the return costs before a return of
purchase price is made.
15-45 day money-back guarantee provided by L-Sound: If you are
not completely satisfied with the performance of your subwoofer, return
it to us within 45 days from delivery for a full refund of the purchase
price. Your only obligation is to arrange and pay for the return costs, and
return the product fully intact in its original shipping box (with all parts).
Shipping: When you receive your new subwoofer, please check to
ensure there is no damage. If after unpacking you discover any damage
that may have been caused by transportation on your product, we request
you contact us immediately and if possible, provide a photo of damage
Warranty: The product has a 3 year warranty against defects in
materials and workmanship. Upon return the products will be repaired,
and redelivered. Naturally, this warranty does not cover any product
subjected to misuse or accidental damage.
The bottom line: We’re proud of these subwoofers and want you to be
as happy owning one, as we are selling one (or more) to you. E-mail L-
Sound if you have any warranty question: [email protected]
SV Subwoofers
L-Sound
Frolandsveien 6
4847 Arendal
Norway
Phone: (+47) 377 11 333
Fax: (+47) 377 10 440
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