VTF-3 MK3 Listening Tests

Listening was done in a room measuring approximately 6m x 4m, no windows and enclosed on all four sides, with the VTF-3 Mk3 located at one end of the room. (See illustration below). The sub was (at various times) positioned either between the front center channel speaker and the front left channel speaker or simply placed in substitution of the sub that ordinarily sat beneath the front left channel speaker.

CD: Various Artists/Composers, The Boston Audio Society Test CD-1

The first CD up is The Boston Audio Society Test CD-1, track 3 “Saint-Saëns: Organ Symphony, excerpt from second movement (Poco Adagio)”. This is a fine example of a work capable of stressing even the hardiest of subs. It’s also a track you’ll see turn up now and again in bass-freak discussions when the  worst-of-the-worst-you-can-ever-throw-at-a-sub topic comes up. It’s fair to say its reputation as a sub killer is well deserved and the warning in the liner notes “When playing this track for the first time, lower the volume as your woofers may be at risk” you would be wise not to ignore.

The track begins with and features throughout melodic, pianissimo strings. Then the pipe organ gets in gear and unleashes a salvo of peddle tones that reach down to a glorious 16 Hz or so. 16 Hz isn’t something you hear, rather it’s something you feel. Some subs may confuse the issue by wheezing a pile of harmonics your way each time it attempts to plumb the depths, impressive as that may be, you’re still not hearing the fundamental 16 Hz.

With the VTF-3 Mk3 max. extension mode -3dB point very close to 16 Hz, you’ll very nearly get there, as close as the law’s of physics and Hsu Research’s design skills will allow. When presented with the opportunity, the VTF-3 Mk3’s tendency is to gracefully reach as far down into the infrasonics it can and come back in one piece. Subjectively speaking, the VTF-3 Mk3 consistently surprised anyone who happened to be within earshot at just how much bass emerged from the end table-sized box sitting at or near the front-left corner of my listening space. Overall, two words describe the music and LFE that poured from the VTF-3 Mk3: distinct & articulate.

CD: Linkin Park, Reanimation

Next up is Linkin Park’s “Reanimation” (Warner Bros., WEA; ASIN: B000069CWE) Another favorite, this is a great CD for assessing the qualitative aspects of a sub’s performance. Don’t expect the ultra low end stuff you find in the BAS CD mentioned above. What you can expect is a CD that will tell you just how cleanly the VTF-3 Mk3 can do what it’s made to do when not reaching down as low as it can go. The sub did a truly exceptional job, for this price class, of playing back track after track, very, very cleanly, hence the judgment that the VTF-3 Mk3’s ability to lay down bass lines that were distinct & articulate. Frgt/10 is a particularly fun and informative track in this regard.

Being a sub that just happened to be set up in a home theater, it got its workout laying down the low end for quite few movies in the time I had to getting to know the VTF-3 Mk3. Two movies that come to mind that did the VTF-3 Mk3 justice are Jarhead and Superman Returns.

DVD: Jarhead & Superman Returns 

For a trip to the Land of LFE, Jarhead and the Superman Returns provide plenty of just the sort of effects you’d want from a sub when not listening to the subtleties of complex string arrangements and the like. Between the two DVDs we find plenty of ambient rumbles, rockets, and explosions and all the feel-it-in-the-gut moments that makes a sub like the VTF-3 Mk3 really shine. The percussives were clean, distinct (there’s that word again), and downright startling (not many things like the audio track of a combat scene to jack the adrenaline), even when played back at the outer volume limits of the VTF-3 Mk3. Excellent!

Recommendations

The HSU Research VTF-3 Mk3 is a well designed product, packing a terrific driver, obviously crafted with an emphasis on the basic features that are important to deliver maximum bang for the buck in a product in its price class. Within its limits, it did a number of things exceptionally well. Add to all that product support, a very useful, interesting manual and small enough to fit comfortably in all but the tiniest locales and in the VTF-3 Mk3 you find a truly top-flight product and an excellent investment for the discerning movie and music lover. Buy two and bliss out even longer!