SB12 and PB10

If music is your priority, I'd go with the SB12. If you want something more impressive for movies, the PB10 wins out. Because you said "I mainly watch movies", I'd say to go with the PB10. Keep in mind that either way, you may irritate the neighbors.

I agree that the PB10 will definitely be capable of ticking off the neighbors if you live in an apartment . I haven't heard the SB12+, but I do own two PB10's and I can say you'll probably be very pleasantly surprised by the amount of performance you'll get from such a low-cost sub.

As far as sound quality goes, the PB10 is very good, while the SB12+ is supposedly even better. But IMO placement and calibration will be almost as important as the sub itself - especially when you're choosing between two quality subs. Take the time to find the best placement and calibrate it correctly. It makes a huge difference. Either sub should be great, but my vote is for the PB10 for its substantially lower price and deeper extension. Good luck.

Buying both isn't a bad idea, as long as you don't mind eating shipping both ways for the losing sub. Maybe the $100+ is worth it so you can have peace of mind knowing that you have the sub that works better for you. I wouldn't want to spend that much to sample both, but it could be the best option for you.

HT: PB10
Music, smaller rooms, or need nice finish: SB12

Gaming isn't that demanding on a sub in terms of the frequencies they need reproduced. I don't know if they really have a lot of subsonic information because they expect most people to have cheap computer speakers. But the PB10 is just going to have more output down low when you do hit the occasional (<25Hz) subsonic sound whether in games or movies. It's just going to have more kick over the SB12

I have the SB12 but I bought it because I wanted the best quality sound and was willing to sacrifice the very deep bass to get it. I also wanted something that looked nice. But if I have a large HT system, the PB series is just going to provide more bang for the buck

Here is a different way to look at it.... Might change your thinking...

I have 4 SVS subs... 2-Plus/2's 1 Plus, and a SB12+

I compared the PB-12Plus and SB-12Plus in my bedroom, and the difference to me is that the Sealed unit was very accurate, it would hit and then stop, it can be visceral, but its tight, where the PB-12 ported box would send waves of bass throughout the room, almost leaving a linguring feeling, but still tight and accurate.

I feel that the SB12 has lots of power, but its a cleaner softer, tighter feeling.
The Ported subs are a different animal, They shake the hell out of everything and I prefer them for HT and even for music, but thats just me... Now that I have my system setup a bit more, I am going to revisit this this weekend...

An interesting comparison here would be to run the PB12 with a low filter at about 25hz and then compare it to the SB12. I'd be curious to see if it would make the PB sound somewhat tighter like the SB.

It's quite possible that would narrow the gap, because the extra extension may be exciting room modes that you can't hear with just the SB12's frequency range.

oohhh that does sound like a cool idea... I'll give that a try...

I personally like the ported sub sound better then the sealed. But I didn't experiment with it enough, I didn't have all my stuff setup right. With all my equipment in the basement hidden, its not as easy to just swap things out without measuring and adjusting.

My room is small, 1700^3 and was tossing around the idea of putting the sub in the closet, opening it when in use, its a wide not so deep closet, double doors, if you know what I mean.

Otherwise I was thinking about trying some different subs as well.... like a F113, or a DD-15 or a Servo-15 to see how I feel about them... for a smaller footprint..

I own both of the subs you're looking at, and Warpdrv is spot on about the SB12. For music, the SB12 is amazing and has quite a bit of output, but in a very large room, output drops below 27 Hz. The PB10, however, just goes deeper and has quite a bit of sub-20 Hz output in moderate sized rooms. Before buying the SB12, I thought the PB10 was excellent with music- now, the PB10 got knocked down just one notch.

One advantage of the SB12 is the parametric EQ- it really helped tighten bass up with a room node. It also has built in crossovers, whereas the PB10 has just an amp with gain and phase.

I love both, but if I had to give up one, it'd be the PB10 because the SB12 sounds incredible with music and comes in a smaller package.

For HT, I couldn't possibly give up a ported sub... they just have the ability to shake things during movies that give me shivers.

In my Great Room, I have Dual Plus/2's and during movies or even concerts they start shaking the entire room, and I watch the look on peoples faces... Its priceless...

Ok it goes something like this.... I start with this, and


They usually look like this or this then they get a little and sooner or later I get this... which sometimes ends up with this...
Then I get this and this all the while my house is like this

dude, your house icon is freakin hilarios. I want my house to do that

great post!

You know I can't pass up a thread to display Rosie in.

SB12 in Rosenut finish. She rumbles, grumbles, slams, bangs and sings....all on pitch!

I have been listening mainly to cable TV and DVDs so far. Music will be included more in the future, no doubt.

Is size a concern or not, GrooveRite? Because the SB12 is much smaller.

I've never heard either, but I think it is probably safe to characterize the SB12 as having considerably more finesse than a PB10.



Good points. The PB10 only has a single unfiltered mono RCA input with no speaker level inputs OR outputs. The SB12 is much more adjustable and has speaker-level inputs/outputs should you ever need them.

More inputs to me are worthless... I only use RCA and would never have a need to use high level or Balanced inputs...

Correct, the SB12 has more finesse, is a finer, more articulate bass output, its much more controled and cleaner, and provides fantastic bass for music, but for HT use, nothing beats a ported sub. I think they are just far more effortless, giving the waves of scary low bass.

Lets make sure that we are clear here.. these are my opinions, and I'm obviously a bass head, so that low fluttering heavy hitting bass is what does it for me...

I love the SB12+ and its a great value sub, but I prefer ported, and the PB12-Plus is a phenomenal sub for HT. If I was only doing 2 channel, a couple of SB's would be awesome and a great value, but they just don't do it for me for that visceral LF slam of a ported.

Being a gamer a sub does play alot. Especially with Cod4 ,H3 shooter games. It's a big difference in the low IME. For a good game on Xbox live I would get the HT sub. JMO

True, but R/L RCA (as opposed to 1) inputs are useful. As can be speaker-level inputs. So is a crossover.

Not sure I'll agree with you there. A lot of games lately have mostly 20hz and lower content with the explosions.

Really? like which games? I've been playing COD4 on pc on an X-fi and while its great quality sound , i never heard any infrasonic content with my older sub or my friends subs... ive been told this is the game to beat at the moment

There really isn't a difference, other than aesthetic/design choices. Sometimes one type might be easier to place in your room than another, but the overall sound should be virtually identical. If you have pets or young kids, downfiring subs protect the woofer better (don't want little fingers poking holes in your woofer, or cats clawing your grill). They should both give the same bass experience, though.

A down-firing sub may "shake the floor" more, but it's not by design. It would depend upon how solid your floor is. A carpeted floor will affect the higher frequencies produced by a down-firing sub. Theoretically, there should be no real difference in "pressurization" unless you are right next to the sub.

Correct, either is a fine choice.... I hooked up the SB12 lastnight and realized how much I like that sub, I pounds just as well in my bedroom as the PB12-Plus, but was just so much more articulate. Amazing for that tiny little thing... Just clean punchy, accurate bass. Not as sloppy as the ported, not that the ported is sloppy, just trying to find a good analogy... maybe more reverberating.