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Fathom or wait?

post #1 of 61
4/21/07 at 4:58am
Thread Starter 
I plan on buying a f113 in the next 3 to 4 months; however, given that ACI Maestro has its new XL coming out & SVS ultra 13 is coming out in July, I am wondering whether I should wait for a comparison / reviews of these 3?

HT and music usage - 50/50.

thanks,
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post #2 of 61
4/21/07 at 7:24am
Something better is always going to be on the horizon. That being said, the new SVS ultra 13 likely will not be as good as the Fathom 13, but it will cost much less and be in the same ballpark. Nothing is known for sure until we see some numbers and hear the thing.
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post #3 of 61
4/21/07 at 7:41am
Quote:
Originally Posted by theMethod View Post

I plan on buying a f113 in the next 3 to 4 months; however, given that ACI Maestro has its new XL coming out & SVS ultra 13 is coming out in July, I am wondering whether I should wait for a comparison / reviews of these 3?

HT and music usage - 50/50.

thanks,

Hi

I would not wait. I like the Velodyne DD-18 in Maple. It might cost a little more than the F113, however, it is my first choice right now.

Best Regards
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post #4 of 61
4/21/07 at 8:31am
new Maestro? do tell
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post #5 of 61
4/21/07 at 8:54am
Quote:
Originally Posted by spyboy View Post

Hi

I would not wait. I like the Velodyne DD-18 in Maple. It might cost a little more than the F113, however, it is my first choice right now.

Best Regards

Does the maple finish sound different than the other finishes?
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post #6 of 61
4/21/07 at 9:22am
Quote:
Originally Posted by dlfromcanada View Post

new Maestro? do tell

Yes, I'd be interested, this is news to me too!
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post #7 of 61
4/21/07 at 10:07am
Quote:
Originally Posted by theMethod View Post

I plan on buying a f113 in the next 3 to 4 months; however, given that ACI Maestro has its new XL coming out & SVS ultra 13 is coming out in July, I am wondering whether I should wait for a comparison / reviews of these 3?

HT and music usage - 50/50.

thanks,

if you are without a sub now i would be tempted to make a purchase
but if you have a sub i would wait and see what developes in the next
few months all the companies seem to be stepping up to the plate.
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post #8 of 61
4/21/07 at 10:28am
Quote:


Does the maple finish sound different than the other finishes?

It does.

Quote:


I plan on buying a f113 in the next 3 to 4 months; however, given that ACI Maestro has its new XL coming out & SVS ultra 13 is coming out in July, I am wondering whether I should wait for a comparison / reviews of these 3?

I would buy the JL now since it is so good I doubt those other subs will compete with it.
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post #9 of 61
4/21/07 at 3:23pm
Thread Starter 
My bad . . . I sure thought that ACI had a new Maestro XL coming out, must have dreamed that one. Apparently . . . not.

Well, I guess that is one sub that I don't have to wait to come out in order to compare to the others -

Did not mean to start a rumour -
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post #10 of 61
4/21/07 at 3:34pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by Neverwinter2 View Post

It does.

I would buy the JL now since it is so good I doubt those other subs will compete with it.


One possible alternative would be to buy something now, say the fathom and, then, reconsider when others come out on the market. That brings up an interesting facet that I am going to post as a new thread, that is, what subs have best re-sale value?
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post #11 of 61
4/21/07 at 4:25pm
I think you better buy and setup the F113 in your place and find out what it can do, you will not need more.
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post #12 of 61
4/21/07 at 5:30pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by theMethod View Post

One possible alternative would be to buy something now, say the fathom and, then, reconsider when others come out on the market. That brings up an interesting facet that I am going to post as a new thread, that is, what subs have best re-sale value?

that might be an interesting thread.
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post #13 of 61
4/21/07 at 5:52pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by John F. Palacio View Post

Does the maple finish sound different than the other finishes?

Apparently!
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post #14 of 61
4/21/07 at 5:53pm
Seriously, F113 all the way.
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post #15 of 61
4/21/07 at 5:58pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by theMethod View Post

I plan on buying a f113 in the next 3 to 4 months; however, given that ACI Maestro has its new XL coming out & SVS ultra 13 is coming out in July, I am wondering whether I should wait for a comparison / reviews of these 3?

HT and music usage - 50/50.

thanks,

You might want to consider that the F113 is sealed, and generally sealed subs sound "better" for music, but given it's ability to dig deep also makes it great for HT. In my opinion, you should go with the F113.
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post #16 of 61
4/21/07 at 9:45pm
Thread Starter 
It doesn't take long to see that the fathom gets a many votes of confidence on this forum. I have never heard one, but it must be the sub to beat. However, my impression is that they are not easy to obtain. I rarely see any used ones for sale. Now, the reason that no used ones are for sale may speak volumes about what ownership means - that is, the owners want to keep 'em.

Unfortunately, there are no dealers in Birmingham or Huntsville (Alabama). Yet, there are places that have JL subs for cars, as i have a JL audio sub in my trunk.

In contrast, Velodynes, Paradigm, and all the brands that Tweeter, Best Buy, Circuit City, etc. carry are readily available.

I would be glad to be the official distributor for JL Audio's Home Theater products for the North Alabama region - (hint, hint).
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post #17 of 61
4/21/07 at 10:02pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by theMethod View Post

I plan on buying a f113 in the next 3 to 4 months; however, given that ACI Maestro has its new XL coming out & SVS ultra 13 is coming out in July, I am wondering whether I should wait for a comparison / reviews of these 3?

HT and music usage - 50/50.

thanks,

Wait.
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post #18 of 61
4/22/07 at 7:31am
I wouldn't wait months for a promise if you can be enjoying a F113 TODAY! The F113 is a proven product given the feedback on this board and others.
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post #19 of 61
4/22/07 at 7:59am
Quote:
Originally Posted by theMethod View Post

I plan on buying a f113 in the next 3 to 4 months; however, given that ACI Maestro has its new XL coming out & SVS ultra 13 is coming out in July, I am wondering whether I should wait for a comparison / reviews of these 3?

HT and music usage - 50/50.

thanks,

I've been in your shoes and to be honest, it is real easy to make onself crazy. Everybody has a different opinion which makes the decision even harder. If the SVS Ultra 13 comes out in July, it will take another several months to get a handle on how the new Ultra performs objectively and subjectively.

You have to ask what's important to you:
1) Is money an issue? The Fathom two times the price of the Ultra 13
2) How much output do you need? The Fathom will likely have the edge in output compared to Ultra, but TWO Ultras (the price of one Fathom) will likely edge one Fathom.
3) Is size an issue? The Ultra's enclosure will be larger than the Fathom.
4) Are you a patient man? The Fathom is here and is a known quanitity, the Ultra is still in pre-release and we don't have any idea on what this subwoofer can do. Do you need a subwoofer now, or are you patient enough to wait 6-8 months before pulling the trigger.
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post #20 of 61
4/23/07 at 11:51am
WAIT WAIT...why wait?

JL Audio has a tremendous performer,built to a standard nobody even matches at this price point,it even bests subs retailing for more from Velodyne and Aerial!

The performance is first rate,parts quality second to none. Take the output for example...it competes with much larger units from SVS and HSU all ported large units! Look at the beastly woofer it makes the competition look like midranges where used.

Now sound quality and integration.Again the JL Audio tops the heap of subs from the most respected names in audio,and in the worst cases matches them(those have often lesser SPL and cost more!).

Get the Fathom f113. You have a sub now that is a winner and will remain at the top for quite some time.The flavor of the month...not the Fathom.

I have a gang of subs in all price rangesup to $5000 US and the Fathoms are the finest subs south of 10K.And I would pit a f113 against a Wilson Watch Dog quality for quality...any day!

And at the asking price of a Watch Dog you get...a GOTHAM! A Gotham puts to near shame most ubber subs when all aspects of performance and built are added.
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post #21 of 61
4/23/07 at 12:02pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheEAR View Post

WAIT WAIT...why wait?

JL Audio has a tremendous performer,built to a standard nobody even matches at this price point,it even bests subs retailing for more from Velodyne and Aerial!

The performance is first rate,parts quality second to none. Take the output for example...it competes with much larger units from SVS and HSU all ported large units! Look at the beastly woofer it makes the competition look like midranges where used.

Now sound quality and integration.Again the JL Audio tops the heap of subs from the most respected names in audio,and in the worst cases matches them(those have often lesser SPL and cost more!).

Get the Fathom f113. You have a sub now that is a winner and will remain at the top for quite some time.The flavor of the month...not the Fathom.

I have a gang of subs in all price rangesup to $5000 US and the Fathoms are the finest subs south of 10K.And I would pit a f113 against a Wilson Watch Dog quality for quality...any day!

And at the asking price of a Watch Dog you get...a GOTHAM! A Gotham puts to near shame most ubber subs when all aspects of performance and built are added.

Well said...
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post #22 of 61
4/23/07 at 12:40pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by John F. Palacio View Post

Does the maple finish sound different than the other finishes?



Of course they do!



























Of course it might be due to my accent.
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post #23 of 61
4/23/07 at 7:11pm
After Co-locating my F113, I can't imagine how big a Gotham will be. >.<;

James
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post #24 of 61
4/23/07 at 7:41pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by JamesK8 View Post

After Co-locating my F113, I can't imagine how big a Gotham will be. >.<;

James

Just an FYI two F113s will outperform a Gotham. Some may not realize this.

The purpose of the Gotham is to just make the connections simpler and space requirements slightly less, as in one power outlet, one input and one cabinet.

Simply put, two colocated F113s take up more space than a Gotham in either height or width.
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post #25 of 61
4/24/07 at 12:27am
Quote:


Simply put, two colocated F113s take up more space than a Gotham in either height or width.

Ok. It still looks big. The picture just makes it look small and cute. It's really big and cute. Heh. I'm loving my F113 more and more as it breaks in.
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post #26 of 61
4/24/07 at 4:57am
Quote:
Originally Posted by jpmst3 View Post

Just an FYI two F113s will outperform a Gotham. Some may not realize this.

That's not exactly what's being said over in the JL audio thread (factory visit thread).

If the two f113s are stacked or otherwise colocated, they would not outperform a Gotham. The advantage with two F113s has to do with non colocated placement. Dual Gothams would outperform dual f113s.
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post #27 of 61
4/24/07 at 5:30am
The advantage spoken of on the JL Audio trip thread is qualitative, not quantitative. In terms of measured output, the two are very close with a slight edge to the twin f113's. In terms of sound quality, Carl Kennedy feels the Gotham offers an advantage based on his extensive listening tests of the first production units.

I have not personally had enough seat time with the production Gotham to offer an intelligent opinion.

Best regards,

Manville Smith
JL Audio, Inc.
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post #28 of 61
4/24/07 at 5:44am
Quote:
Originally Posted by JimP View Post

That's not exactly what's being said over in the JL audio thread (factory visit thread).

If the two f113s are stacked or otherwise colocated, they would not outperform a Gotham. The advantage with two F113s has to do with non colocated placement. Dual Gothams would outperform dual f113s.

Two colocated F113s will have more enclosure volume and more amp power than a single Gotham while still using two of the same dirvers. So, it will take more EQ to get the Gotham flat due to its smaller per driver enclosure, further reducing its actual output comparitively speaking.

It is just physics and we talking pure output in comparing the two. SQ, or subjective listening comparison is different. The Gotham may have slightly different sound characteristics.

If you seperate the F113s then you lose 3db in output and a Gotham would have more output. The only advantage in sound in sperating two F113s is smoothing the response.

The same goes for just about any brands' dual vs. single enclosure. SVS PB-Ultra and Ultra/2 for instance. Two colocated singles will outgun a dual in output, but not in space savings...It is just simple physics at work, two colocated units will have more amp power, more enclosure volume and more port area than a dual single.
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post #29 of 61
4/24/07 at 5:57am
This was my exact theory on Dual 16-46+ vs a single PB-12/+2...
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post #30 of 61
4/24/07 at 6:03am
Quote:
Originally Posted by bgillyjcu View Post

This was my exact theory on Dual 16-46+ vs a single PB-12/+2...

That comparison is a little different bg. You are dealing with two different native tunes there and enclosure styles. Below 25 Hz, no question the colocated 16-46s will easily outgun the PB12/2. Above 25 it will be much closer since the 16-46s sacrifice a couple of dbs in output for the added extension.

Of course, if you seperate the 16-46s, then the PB12/2 will be closer in the bottom end and should crush the 16-46s above 25Hz.

You would have to ask Ed M. to get the exact answer there.
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