SVS SB13-Ultra Subwoofer Review

SVS SB13-Ultra Introduction

Summer is here and I find myself reviewing an SVS subwoofer yet again. I believe this is 3 years in a row. I know…Poor me. This time it is the smaller, sealed brother in SVS’s Ultra line, the SB13-Ultra. Having previously reviewed the SB12-NSD, PB13-Ultra, PB12-NSD and listened to a few of the older SVS models as well, I’ve come to expect a lot from an SVS product. Perhaps a bit more than I would from a company whose products I’m not familiar with. I had also just returned the excellent JL Audio E series subwoofers which are comparable in function and price to the SB13-Ultra. That being the case I went into the SB13-Ultra review expecting a lot from it.

The SB13-Ultra was delivered in a moderate sized box that somehow still weighs about 100lbs according to my highly accurate back scale. After cutting the tape and popping the top open I could see that the packaging was substantial and very protective. The SB13-Ultra is double boxed with heavy gauge cardboard. Inside of the box are die cut foam inserts at the top and bottom and a couple of thick foam corner inserts. Removal of the SB13-Ultra was simple and took maybe 5 minutes. Contained in the boxes with the SB13-Ultra are the metal grille, the power cord and a quick start guide. The full length owner’s manual is available online from SVS. The SB13-Ultra isn’t overly large or imposing but it is a bit heavy. The gloss black finish and rounded corners with the rounded grille profile give it a nice and distinguished look. Personally I like the look of the SB13-Ultra without the large metal grille attached. The Rohacell driver cone is slightly reflective and I like the ability to see the Ultra driver working on occasion. All of the available amplifier connections and controls, the metal grille and the substantial weight give the SB13-Ultra an impression of quality and solidity as well. All in all the SB13-Ultra is a handsome and reasonably sized subwoofer that earns high marks in the aesthetic department.

Before reading our comprehensive review with measurements, check out our YouTube video overview of this sub to get an idea of how she performs and looks in a real room.

 SVS SB13-Ultra Subwoofer Review

Design Overview

The SB13-Ultra sits at the top of SVS’s sealed subwoofer line up with a price tag of $1599. It combines a powerful Class D, DSP-equipped amplifier that is controlled via what SVS terms as the IFC or integrated function controller. Changes to settings are made by a single knob that also functions as a push button. It is a slick little setup. A single push of the button enters the selection while a quick double press exits. The amplifier powers a beefy 13.5” diameter long throw driver in a relatively small sealed enclosure measuring about 17.4” on all sides. The enclosure features a large round over on the top and bottom edges of the side panels.  A heavy, formed, steel grille with a rounded profile attaches to the enclosure via a pin and cup system, covering the forward firing driver and adds a couple of inches to the overall depth of the SB13-Ultra. Four small feet on the bottom panel protect the finish from the floor. Speaking of the finish, the two available finishes are a piano gloss black which was worn by the review unit and a black oak wood veneer. Despite the SB13-Ultra measuring less than 18” a side it weighs in at 92lbs which gives some clue as to how much hardware this little guy is packing.

Removal of the Ultra driver from the SB13-Ultra enclosure was not too difficult. The best way is to remove the amplifier first so that the back of the motor can be accessed first. After removing the amplifier, which allows access to the back of the driver, remove the screws holding in the driver and then the driver motor can be pushed on from below, forcing the lip of the driver’s frame up enough to get a hold of it.  Once removed from the enclosure the driver can be seen for the beast that it is. Weighing in around 42.5 lb. and comprising the lion’s share of the 92 lb. weight of the SB13-Ultra,  it looks similar to the driver used in the PB13-Ultra, but it's shorter overall and the voice coil is partially visible.  The voice coil is unique to this application, in order to optimize it for use in a small sealed box (more layers of wire for higher BL most likely). The motor in the SB13-Ultra driver is overhung, while the motor in the PB13-Ultra driver is underhung (and slightly heavier at 50.5 lb).  Features that the two drivers do share in common include a sturdy cast aluminum frame, long throw parabolic surround, composite Rohacell/pulp cone, copper shorting sleeve to lower distortion, large diameter 9” spiders to support extended excursion, large diameter dual stacked magnets, vented pole piece and 3” diameter flat wound aluminum voice coil.  The result is a massive heavy duty driver with high power handling and very long throw capability.

 SB13-Ultra Driver

The STA-1000D Sledge amplifier is a highly efficient Class D switching amplifier rated at 1000 watts long term power. It occupies the majority of the back panel of the enclosure. In use the amplifier certainly seemed to have plenty of power to boss around the Ultra driver. Even during heavy use with test signals in an outdoor environment in direct sunlight it did not overheat or protect at any point. Checking the plate with the scientific method of laying my hand on it after listening to loud music for a long duration revealed that it was barely warm.

The amplifier has both unbalanced RCA style and balanced XLR style connections and stereo inputs and output of both types. Nearly all of the controls for the amplifier are managed digitally by a small blue screen and a single button/knob. It is a very intuitive and easy to control interface. The DSP section of the amplifier is deeper than most and has controls for: Gain, phase, room gain compensation, low pass filter, high pass filter for the signal sent to the speakers reproducing the upper frequencies, delay adjustment for the signal sent out to the other speakers and two independent parametric equalization bands with adjustments for center frequency, cut, boost and Q. The best use of these controls is likely in pure two-channel systems where the amount of adjustments on board the STA-1000D amplifier should be enough to get the job of blending the subwoofer with the main speakers done without any other speaker management needed. These adjustments could be made by ear but the best results would likely come through the use of measurements in conjunction with the adjustments. Certainly this is a flexible and powerful amplifier.

SVS SB13-Ultra (Sledge STA-1000-D) Amplifier

The cabinet of the SB13-Ultra subwoofer is constructed of MDF (medium density fiberboard) and contains a large window brace internally which the motor of the driver fits into. This brace stiffens the top bottom and sides of the cabinet and also helps support the heavy driver motor and relieves stress on the front baffle and driver mounting area. The cabinet is lined with damping material and has large radiuses on the top and bottom edges. The SB13-Ultra cabinet is strong and well damped and it exhibited no appreciable vibration, rattles or resonances during the outdoor measurement sessions.  The gloss black finish provided on the review unit was beautiful and polished to a mirror finish. As with most gloss black finishes it is attractive but easily picks up streaks, fingerprints and dust. With the mirror finish, rounded edges and compact dimensions the review unit should be acceptable in most anyone’s décor. The heavy duty formed steel grille is certainly a unique piece and high quality to boot but I admit I’m personally not a big fan of it.  The build quality, fit and finish and ergonomics of the SB13-Ultra are all top notch.

SVS SB13-Ultra Cabinet View

SVS SB13-Ultra Sound Quality Tests

The SB13-Ultra was placed in the front right corner of my basement HT room facing into the wall and plugged into the system with an XLR cable. I left the gain of the SB13-Ultra at its maximum of 0dB and disabled all internal high and low pass filters and equalization. I allowed Audyssey to run its auto equalization on the system and afterward checked the balance of the SB13-Ultra against the main speakers as I often find it to be off a bit. The low pass to the SB13-ultra was set at 100Hz inside of my Onkyo processor.

Music listening

The SB13-Ultra showed up at my place right about the same time that the E series JL Audio subs were heading back to the factory. Both the E series and SB13-Ultra are compact, high power, sealed designs, with similar design goals, so I took the opportunity to use much of the same material to evaluate the SB13-Ultra as I had used for the JL’s. I broke the SB13-Ultra in for a couple of days with a heavy dose of Static X, Secret Chiefs and Strapping Young Lads. This was casual while I worked on the computer or walked around doing things but it did give me a chance to see if the SB13-Ultra could kick out the jams in my theater room and it did. None of the booming bass lines or bass drops appeared to fluster the SB13-Ultra and it happily reproduced fast triggered kick drums and all manner of electronically generated bass noises over the course of a few afternoons with stoic composure. Secret Chiefs in particular is an incredibly odd group but they do have occasional tracks with epic amounts of bass, some of it below 30Hz. I didn’t realize quite how loud I was listening one afternoon until one of these tracks came on but the SB13-ultra handled the sudden surges of powerful bass down in the 25Hz range just fine. I also gave the SB13-Ultra the obligatory bass sweep from the NIN track Discipline to see if it could reproduce the bottom of the sweep with any power or clarity and it did without any issues. 

Lately I’ve been using Metallica: Through the Never as one of my go to concert discs because I’m a long time Metallica fan and because the drums on the disc have a huge live sound with tons of power. What I look for primarily with this disc is dynamic attack without bloating or distortion and the ability to project enough power into the room to provide an illusion of being at a concert. I found the SB13-Ultra did quite well here with enough oomph to keep up with the rest of the speaker system and without any loss of clarity or smearing of the kick drum. All of the bass was clear and well defined even during dense passages involving lots of quick drum work and frenetic guitar and bass rhythms. I also gave the self-titled Days of the New album a spin. I like to use recordings from this band because they are local to me and also because they typically have a good mix. What I find this music especially good for is evaluating the mix between the upper range of the subwoofer and the lower range of the main speakers. The guitar is electric acoustic on the majority of tracks that is mixed in the lead with a very full lower register and the drums and bass are somewhat sparse but also cleanly recorded. On top of that there are occasional parts where the vocals will drop to a throaty baritone. The result is a mix that can be very dense through the crossover region at times but alternatively can also be quite empty with just the bottom strings of the guitar resonating in this region. It can be very revealing of holes in the response, phase issues or issues with the subwoofer being too hot. The SB13-Ultra once dialed in, had no problems with the material and exhibited an excellent blend with the main speakers and produced the bottom end of the music without over emphasizing any notes or jumbling the fundamentals of the various instruments together.

Movie listening session

I started off the movie viewing with Scott Pilgrim Vs The World. I really enjoy the over-driven punk rock bass guitar and comic book action sequences with loads of sub bass. I turned this one up to -10 on the master volume let the SB13-Ultra do its thing. During the music sequences the SB13-ultra did a great impression of a saturated tube bass amp turned up to 11 and during the video game fight sequences it produced powerful, chunky, thumps, thuds and even a few subtle shudders through the couch that indicate high level bass below 25Hz. This is very difficult for a small sealed sub to do in a concrete floored room but the SB13-Ultra managed it.  Thor is another movie that I watched in its entirety and in which the SB13-Ultra helped to add the fun factor. Despite not having much in the way of very low bass frequencies Thor is mixed quite loudly and makes heavy use of the subwoofer connected to the LFE channel. The SB13-Ultra produced plenty of bass from the fight scenes to be convincing and entertaining as was the bass output during the battles with the destroyer and the frost giants. Whenever the rainbow bridge was utilized the SB13-Ultra would fill the room with groaning bass and rumbles. The SB13-ultra has enough guts for an engaging movie experience in a large room. 

As is usual for my victims... ahem…review subjects, I subjected the SB13-Ultra to a few infamous sub busting tracks in order to see just what the subwoofer is capable of and protected from. First on the list was the plane crash scene from Flight of the Phoenix which is mixed really loud and contains a mix of frequencies culminating in a very loud 30Hz drone during the barrel roll of the plane. At a playback level of -10 from what would be reference the SB13-Ultra most likely gave everything it had during this scene and while it couldn’t knock the pictures off of the walls it didn’t self-destruct or obviously distort badly and managed to produce more bass than I would have thought. I think the JL Audio E112 may have had a tiny bit more output on this scene but the SB13-Ultra may have been a bit cleaner in its presentation. Audio memory is notoriously shabby though, so I could be completely wrong on that score. Either one is going to offer about as much headroom as can reasonably be expected from a box that size.

Next up was The Hurt Locker where the 50-caliber is being fired in the desert. With this scene the subwoofer is asked to produce huge amounts of bass under 20Hz accompanied by a reduced but still significant level of upper harmonics. Very few bass systems reproduce this content fully. The SB13-ultra being a sealed design does extend rather deep in room and did reproduce the majority of the signal but it did not have the full dynamic range and heft that can be present on this track when played back on a system with nearly unlimited dynamic reserves in the bottom octaves. It was still an impressive effort for the SB13-Ultra. It just lacks the headroom in the deep bass to reproduce the full dynamics of the bass signals in this scene all by itself in my room. Again…Very few systems really do this ridiculous scene justice. Most subs do not even attempt to play the bottom of this signal but the SB13-Ultra did. It just needs 2 or 3 of its brothers to provide the extra headroom.  

Demo scene number 3 was the rail-gun test scene from Batman: The Dark Knight. This one isn’t particularly deep or taxing on most subwoofers but it has very loud and abrupt bursts of bass good for judging how dynamic the bass system is in the middle and top of its bandwidth. The SB13-Ultra was quite impressive on this scene and really blasted out the bass accompanying each shot from the gun with room filling authority and without any hint of strain.

As a final torture test I usually use the server room scene from the horror movie Pulse. This particular scene is one of the more demanding that has been released with loud, sustained, warbling bass centered at about 17Hz. To top it off there really isn’t a lot of accompanying noise in the soundtrack either. This scene makes a lot of ported subs, even good ones, audibly wheeze, some subs skip this sub 20Hz content almost completely and don’t even try to reproduce it. A lot of other subs cut out and go into protect or get driven into distress very easily with this content. The SB13-Ultra did what it could with this track and did not shutdown or get driven into severe distress. Much like the JL Audio E112, the SB13-Ultra did reproduce the 15-20Hz content to the extent that it could which was enough to be noticeable but clearly there was some compression and limiting of the signal going on at the chosen playback level and there was a bit of distress noise and distortion from the driver. This was the only time that I heard any audible distress from the SB13-Ultra during the listening sessions, which is impressive considering how much bass was being expected out of a single driver. The SB13-Ultra provided yet another exemplary subjective performance from an SVS sub. It has a lot of power for a subwoofer of its size and is very well behaved subjectively. The SB13-Ultra is my personal favorite of the SVS subs I’ve reviewed thus far.

SVS SB13-Ultra Subwoofer Review Measurements and Analysis

The SVS SB13-Ultra subwoofer was measured while placed outdoors on the ground in a large field with the nearest large objects a minimum of 60ft or farther away from it, with the driver facing towards the microphone element. The left XLR input was used and an Earthworks M30 measurement microphone was placed on the ground at a distance of 2 meters from the nearest enclosure face of the subwoofer and pointing towards the driver. The grille was left off of the SB13-Ultra. The amplifier was set to maximum gain, the phase was set to zero and the low pass filter was set to bypass for all measurements unless otherwise noted. The internal PEQ, RGC and other DSP controls were also disabled unless otherwise noted. For more info on the testing equipment and procedures please see the article here.

Powered Subwoofer Testing Outline and Procedures Overview

SVS SB13-Ultra: Effect of Low Pass Filter Settings on Frequency Response

SVS SB13-Ultra: Effect of Room Gain Compensation Settings on Frequency Response

Above are the frequency response measurements of the SB13-Ultra subwoofer showing how adjustment of the internal low pass filter frequency and slope affects the top end response shape and also how the RGC or room gain compensation setting affects the low frequency extension. The low pass filter setting is selectable as either 12dB/octave or 24dB/octave and is variable at 7 frequencies from 31 to 125Hz. The indicated slope and frequency of the slope were in very close agreement with what was measured. The RGC setting primarily cut back the low bass frequencies a bit with the 6dB slope being a bit less aggressive and the 12dB setting being more so. This would primarily be used in a smaller room, with near field placement or with corner loading of the SB13-Ultra. The parametric equalizer function was not measured because it has been previously with the larger vented PB13-Ultra review and should perform identically. The 2 bands available give a wide array of options for combating room resonances at the listening position or for affecting broad adjustments to the response shape. Needless to say when the PEQ bands are combined with the low pass filter function and the RGC controls there is a huge amount of adjustment that can be made to the SB13-Ultra’s response. I could see the flexibility afforded by the internal DSP and the extensive input and output options being handy in dedicated 2-channel systems where a receiver with automatic room correction and bass management is not being used. I have a 2-channel garage system for casual listening while working on things and I have to use a separate active crossover unit to blend my B2031A’s to whatever bass system I’m using with them at the time. I could likely eliminate the active crossover unit if I were using the SB13-Ultra.

SVS SB13-Ultra: Frequency Response as Tested

Above is the frequency response of the SB13-Ultra as tested with the all of the internal DSP functions that would affect the frequency response shape disabled. Judging by the shape of the response and some of the other measurements taken, there is likely a bit of bass boost centered at around 20-25Hz to extend the deep bass response. This is very common for small sealed units. Overall the response shape fits within a 6dB total window from 22-360Hz. SVS specs the response as 20-460Hz within a 6dB window. The top end is nice and extended on the SB13-Ultra so it could easily be used up as high as 150-200Hz if needed to blend with small bass-limited speakers.

SVS SB13-Ultra: Group Delay

As expected of a sealed subwoofer system the group delay and other time domain measurements for the SB13-Ultra are well mannered and show nothing of consequence. The delay never approaches 1 cycle at any point over its entire useful bandwidth.

SVS SB13-Ultra: Long-Term Power Compression

The long-term output compression tests for the SB13-Ultra show that it maintains excellent linearity with good tracking of the output demands and little changing of the response shape up through the 105dB sweep. The 5dB louder 110dB sweep indicates that the SB13-Ultra was already at its output limitations near 25Hz in the 105dB sweep and this is further reinforced with an even louder 115dB sweep which shows near zero increase in output in the deep bass. The SB13-Ultra managed to produce around 98dB at 20Hz, 105dB at 30Hz and greater than 110dB from 45Hz on up during the loudest 115dB sweep. Of note is that despite being driven some 5 to 10dB into compression in the deep bass and the driver cone moving a massive amount, the SB13-Ultra was stoic during this and emitted nothing more than a bit of suspension noise from the driver below 20Hz. No cabinet vibration or panel resonances were noted either. SVS has always shown an aptitude for preventing gross overload artifacts from their subwoofers and once again did the job well. Also interesting is that the repeat 90dB measurement, which was taken after the rest of the measurements in order to display any long term heating effects on the driver, indicates that there is very little shifting of parameters or heat built up in the voice coil. This is impressive considering that gusting winds on the day of ground-plane testing necessitated re-running some of the sweeps multiple times to get a clean measurement. This meant that the SB13-Ultra driver took a few more 23 second long sine wave sweeps than usual during this test.

Note on Output Compression Testing: This is by far the most demanding measurement type conducted on the subwoofers during our testing and will reveal any issues with overload, port compression, port noise, driver distress, creaks, rattles, buzzes, etc. Additionally, the test is conducted outdoors with just the subwoofer operating so there will be no nearby walls or objects to vibrate and no upper frequency content from other speakers in operation. These would normally help to cover up or mask any objectionable noises from the subwoofer in a typical room. Any sort of audible distress or issues with the subwoofer are readily apparent in this environment.

SVS SB13-Ultra: Output Compression Magnitude

Looking at the chart above, which shows only the amount of compression occurring in the output of the SB13-Ultra as the output level is increased, indicates that the SB13-Ultra is linear and responds to increased output demands with negligible compression of 1dB or less up through the 105dB referenced to 50Hz level. Increasing the output another 5dB to the 110dB nominal level again shows little compression above 35Hz where it is 1.5dB or less but the output in the deep bass has started to be limited and reaches 5dB from 20-25Hz. This indicates that there is likely to be some boost equalization used to shape the SB13-Ultra’s deep bass response which is centered in that bandwidth. Increasing the output demands another full 5dB to what would be an 115dB@50Hz nominal level pushes the SB13-Ultra into heavy limiting over the entire bandwidth.

SVS SB13-Ultra: CEA2010 2 Meter Ground-plane RMS Results

CEA2010 Results

The CEA2010 maximum-distortion-limited-short-term output results for the SVS SB13-Ultra indicate it has a lot of muscle for a unit of this size and alignment. It is neck and neck with the excellent JL E112 for the most part which I also recently reviewed. At the 40Hz band and above the SB13-Ultra is capable of greater than 112dB of output and tops out at a loud 117dB over the 63-125Hz octave. At the 31.5Hz band and above the output is limited by the available amplifier power. As with any sealed subwoofer the low end output diminishes gradually into the deeper octaves as the driver is asked for more and more displacement. By 20Hz the maximum recorded output with passing distortion is 96.5dB which drops to 92.6dB at 16Hz. The SB13-Ultra was able to produce enough output with low enough distortion to get down into the lowest couple of bands as well and while not with pant flapping output, in room the boundary reinforcement will typically provide a noticeable lift to the lowest bass frequencies below 30Hz, while also boosting the fundamental of the waveform compared to the harmonics, which lowers distortion. This was the case in my room. At the 25Hz band and below the SB13-Ultra output was limited by distortion, the 3^rd harmonic to be exact. If distortion is ignored completely the SB13-Ultra could produce output levels about 4dB higher in the deep bass but with greatly elevated distortion levels.

SVS SB13-Ultra Subwoofer Review Conclusion

As expected from an SVS product the SB13-Ultra operated and performed flawlessly during all listening, use and testing, producing high quality bass reproduction and a set of measurements that are text-book for a small high power sealed alignment. The SB13-Ultra was capable of plenty of output for movie night in a large room and proved to be utterly immune to abuse during action blockbuster movies or while being intentionally flogged with measurement signals. This being my 4^th SVS product review in a couple of years and having heard a few other SVS units over the years in various people’s systems, I would expect no less than rock solid reliability and well balanced performance from any SVS subwoofer. Audio memory is unreliable to say the least but I have to say the SB13-Ultra would be my SVS subwoofer of choice for pure music listening. I don’t know if it is the low distortion driver or the ample headroom in the upper bass register but the SB13-Ultra really sounded great with a variety of concert discs and 2-channel recordings. $1599 isn’t exactly chump change for most, but with the SB13-Ultra you do get a lot of product for the money. While I am still not a fan of the heavy, metal grilles employed on the Ultra line, there is little else I can fault about the SB13-Ultra. The SB13-Ultra offers strong performance in almost all areas: Excellent finishing, reasonably compact size, output headroom that is comparable or better than most other units its size, protection against self-destruction, a generous 5 year all inclusive warranty and plenty of input and output connections. Not to mention the full featured internal DSP system which has enough flexibility to tweak the SB13-Ultra into working with almost any conceivable room or system. Even if most of the internal DSP functionality is never employed, it will be there if you ever have need of it. SVS has proven time and again to produce a high quality subwoofer at reasonable cost and the SB13-Ultra is yet another fine example.

The SVS SB13-Ultra met the required output goals needed to earn the Audioholics Bassaholic Large Room rating. The Large Room rating indicates that this sub is recommended as maintaining adequate headroom in rooms or spaces of 3,000-5,000 cubic feet and/or for users who usually listen at moderate volume levels with occasional high volume playback. For further information in how we make these recommendations see the full article here.

See: Audioholics Subwoofer Room Size Rating Protocol

 SVS SB13-Ultra Subwoofer Review

SVSound SB13-Ultra Review
SVSound
MSRP: $1,599

The Score Card

The scoring below is based on each piece of equipment doing the duty it is designed for. The numbers are weighed heavily with respect to the individual cost of each unit, thus giving a rating roughly equal to:

Performance × Price Factor/Value = Rating

Audioholics.com note: The ratings indicated below are based on subjective listening and objective testing of the product in question. The rating scale is based on performance/value ratio. If you notice better performing products in future reviews that have lower numbers in certain areas, be aware that the value factor is most likely the culprit. Other Audioholics reviewers may rate products solely based on performance, and each reviewer has his/her own system for ratings.

Audioholics Rating Scale

• — Excellent
• — Very Good
• — Good
• — Fair
• — Poor

Metric	Rating
Ergonomics & Usability
Features
Build Quality
Bass Extension
Bass Accuracy
Dynamic Range
Fit and Finish
Performance
Value