Official Power Sound Audio Thread.

[Tom V.]

Originally Posted by Speed3driver

Hey guys, just let go of my eD A5-350, I am currently looking at a replacement. Want to spend $1,200 or under. I was pretty much focused on the HSU research VTF-15 mk 2, but noticed that PSA was getting much praise, have to say I like the specs on the V1500. Has anyone heard both?? impressions?

No one has heard the V1500 except a few visitors to our Ohio location when we were moving the new models in/out of the office for listening sessions. The new ICE powered products(S1500, V1500, S3000, and S3000i) will begin shipping in mid March.

I would expect the performance to be very similar for both of these products, you're sure to be happy either way. The differences are mostly with warranty, country of origin, amplifier tech, etc.

For example, we offer a 5 year warranty(vs 2), a custom DSP preamp controlling all amplifier functions, a completely "green" amplifier, free shipping both ways so you 30 day audition is entirely risk free, and most importantly to us...all of our products are Made in America.

DSP enabled amplifiers allow all of the engineering (limiters, EQ, compressors, etc) to be done in the digital domain. This tends to make things much more transparent when the system approaches its limits.

The "Green" part is important with regards to power consumption and efficiency. For example, our amps use one half of one watt(0.5w) in standby mode. The older analog based amps(like hsu) use 15-20 watts.

Our cabinets come from Ohio, our drivers from Kentucky, our amps from California. And we have about 20 other USA based vendors for everything from inner/outer boxing to the dampening material used in each product. In short, when you purchase a Power Sound Audio product you are supporting a couple dozen businesses across America..

Tom V.
Power Sound Audio

[Tom V.]

Originally Posted by Speed3driver

Thanks CrazyKat, I have much more faith in HSU as a company, established and trustworthy. I think we all know what happened to eD as a company. I know the guys at PSA are from SVS, and they do offer a better warranty. Its a tossup I guess, decisions decisions....

I can certainly understand the concern. Not only eD, but av123, epik, and a few other smaller IDs as well along the way.

I believe if you look closely at the business models of eD, av123, Epik, etc you'll see things heavily weighted to short sighted goals rather than establishing a sustainable business model.

We've been at this about 4 years now although it certainly doesn't seem that long..

Tom V.
Power Sound Audio

[Speed3driver]

Thanks Tom, I appreciate your insights, made my decision even more difficult ;p. Mid March is when I will be ordering so very good to know

[morbidcorpse]

Originally Posted by Speed3driver

Thanks CrazyKat, I have much more faith in HSU as a company, established and trustworthy. I think we all know what happened to eD as a company. I know the guys at PSA are from SVS, and they do offer a better warranty. Its a tossup I guess, decisions decisions....

I purchased my first PSA sub about a year ago, after much debate and anquish. After receiving the sub, I was having issues getting it dialed in. Believe me when I tell you, there is no greater customer service and quality product for the dollar, ANYWHERE. Tom answered my never ending stream of annoying questions and went above and beyond in diagnosing and offering solutions. Now I have wall shaking bass and I'm very very pleased with the sub. Trust me, when the right source material, these subs will kick you in the chest! Now my only dilemma with PSA is, do I add a second sub as I have some money burning a hole in my pocket?

[monkuboy]

Originally Posted by Speed3driver

Thanks CrazyKat, I have much more faith in HSU as a company, established and trustworthy. I think we all know what happened to eD as a company. I know the guys at PSA are from SVS, and they do offer a better warranty. Its a tossup I guess, decisions decisions....

Just my two cents whatever that's worth, but I think you can't go wrong with either company. I have 5 of the Hsu HB1 Mk2 bookshelf speakers and a PSA XS15se sub and am very pleased.

Hsu has been in business longer but I feel both are dependable companies. I've had my XS15se for a bit less than a year but when I was thinking about buying one Tom patiently answered all my questions and really fast, too. Excellent service and he sold me an excellent sub. I've got nothing but good things to say about my experience dealing with him.

Like I said, you can't go wrong with either choice.

[Tom V.]

Hi all,

Quick FYI,

We have one or two spots left on the S1500 and V1500 first production runs coming up in the next 7-14 days.

We're have okay stock on the XV15se and XS30se, very limited on the XS15se.

Speaker orders should ship out within 1-2 business days.

Tom V.
Power Sound Audio

[Magicmonger]

Originally Posted by Tom V.

I can certainly understand the concern. Not only eD, but av123, epik, and a few other smaller IDs as well along the way.

I believe if you look closely at the business models of eD, av123, Epik, etc you'll see things heavily weighted to short sighted goals rather than establishing a sustainable business model.

We've been at this about 4 years now although it certainly doesn't seem that long..

Tom V.
Power Sound Audio

Time flies doesn't it Tom?

[NzYme]

Yeah I learned shortly after buying two epik empires about PSA. Epick had nice subs but awful service and thus shortly went out of business afterward. I l like both Hsu Research / PSA but leaning heavily towards PSA because of the XS30se when the time comes for a replacement.

Correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't the XS30se have a similar design to the Epik Empire with two opposing drivers canceling out the enclosure vibration/distortion?

[Tom V.]

Originally Posted by NzYme

Yeah I learned shortly after buying two epik empires about PSA. Epick had nice subs but awful service and thus shortly went out of business afterward. I l like both Hsu Research / PSA but leaning heavily towards PSA because of the XS30se when the time comes for a replacement.

Correct me if I'm wrong but doesn't the XS30se have a similar design to the Epik Empire with two opposing drivers canceling out the enclosure vibration/distortion?

Correct, the XS30se, S3000, and S3000i all use dual 15s on opposing baffles to cancel the driver/mass reaction force. You can see an example of this in this video.

Power Sound Audio XS30se - YouTube

The similarities between the two products end there though. If you look at the FR of the epik(data-bass) you can see a non linear FR and a steep rolloff <20hz. This sacrifices one of the main advantages in going with a sealed design---mirroring the room transfer function.

Tom V.
Power Sound Audio

[Tom V.]

Hi All,

I thought some might like to see the first run of the V1500 cabinets being prepped.

Tom V.
Power Sound Audio

[CRAZYKAT]

Originally Posted by Tom V.

Hi All,

I thought some might like to see the first run of the V1500 cabinets being prepped.

Tom V.
Power Sound Audio

Very Nice.

[Speed3driver]

Thanks Tom for talking with me today regarding my selection and getting it on to the fed ex truck today Proud new owner of an XS30SE!!!! Can't wait to get it integrated into my Home Theater!!! I appreciate your time in listening to what I needed to help me make the best selection possible!!!

[CRAZYKAT]

Originally Posted by Speed3driver

Thanks Tom for talking with me today regarding my selection and getting it on to the fed ex truck today Proud new owner of an XS30SE!!!! Can't wait to get it integrated into my Home Theater!!! I appreciate your time in listening to what I needed to help me make the best selection possible!!!

Congratulations and Welcome to the Family.

[Tom V.]

Originally Posted by Speed3driver

Thanks Tom for talking with me today regarding my selection and getting it on to the fed ex truck today Proud new owner of an XS30SE!!!! Can't wait to get it integrated into my Home Theater!!! I appreciate your time in listening to what I needed to help me make the best selection possible!!!

Welcome, please be sure to let me know if you bump into ANY setup or calibration questions when the XS30se arrives!

Tom V.
Power Sound Audio

[Speed3driver]

Will do Tom Thanks again!

[Scarriere]

I had been thinking about a SB-2000, but after reading around the net a bit, I'm now thinking XS15se.
Are there any Canadian distributors? I live in northern Canada, but shipping from Edmonton, AB wouldn't be too bad.
I looked on your site for distributers, but am still hopeful something will work out.

[Tom V.]

Originally Posted by Scarriere

I had been thinking about a SB-2000, but after reading around the net a bit, I'm now thinking XS15se.
Are there any Canadian distributors? I live in northern Canada, but shipping from Edmonton, AB wouldn't be too bad.
I looked on your site for distributers, but am still hopeful something will work out.

No Distributors, sorry. I know a distributor adds some convenience but the downside is you simply cannot expect the same cost/performance ratio. The distributor will want their large cut---no one works for free..

Anyway, a XS15se shipped to AB will be about $875 + your local sales tax or $918. This includes all shipping fees and border crossing fees. You won't see any other fees associated with this purchase. If you provide your postal code I can give you a specific quote shipped to your door too.

When you consider the performance equivalent from the svs lineup is the sb13ultra...I think you'll agree we do represent a very good value.

Please let me know if you have any other questions.

Tom V.
Power Sound Audio

[Speed3driver]

OK, so the XS30se made it to my home safe and sound the other day. I left my MCACC mic and spl meter at my friends house so tweaking will come in a little bit. Initial impression...(mind you that I have only had 2 different subs, a Klipsch KSW-10, then the eD A5-350)

Packaging was top notch, great job to Tom and the team for ensuring that these massive subs get to where they are going safely.

Once unpacked (sub first, then grills) I was shocked at how compact the sub was....compared to what I was used to with the eD.
This is one SOLID unit. It literally feels like you can drop it down the stairs without worry, not that I would do such a thing. The finish is so much better than the pics let on, it is elegant but durable, especially compared to the eD.
The Grills are beastly, basically a solid board with a circle cut out for the face of the sub, I would venture to say that the grills weigh more than the entire Klipsch by a long shot.

Overall listening impression. So I started with the setting at phase 0, cranked up the crossover to let my AVR do the work, and put the gain at 12 o'clock. It was a little underwhelming. I was playing some Nero and decided to play with the gain, as I had my sub setting at 0 on the AVR. I gently turned the dial and as soon as I hit 3 o'clock, it came to life. Now I know it needs to get broken in and all that, but the fact that a sealed sub was playing as loud as the ported beastly eD was impressive. The best part though was when I tested it on a scene from Oblivion. The scene where Cruise is in the hole and encounters the "aliens" is one of my favorites for testing. Not only the gun blasts, but the part where he is zip lining up and it breaks away, the LFE was insane, and I noticed a lower tone at the very end of the LFE that the eD did not let me here. Music overall bass is much tighter, and this is just my ears talking, but the PSA seems to blend much better with the Sonus Fabers. On a little tech note, the auto power on is much quicker to respond that the LT.500, or SD.500 amps that I used to power the eD. Overall I am really enjoying my selection, and the WAF is much improved, she commented, it's really that little??? Very impressed Tom, thanks for the help and recommendation.

I will post pics later...so don't harass me folks!!!!!

[CRAZYKAT]

Originally Posted by Speed3driver

OK, so the XS30se made it to my home safe and sound the other day. I left my MCACC mic and spl meter at my friends house so tweaking will come in a little bit. Initial impression...(mind you that I have only had 2 different subs, a Klipsch KSW-10, then the eD A5-350)

Packaging was top notch, great job to Tom and the team for ensuring that these massive subs get to where they are going safely.

Once unpacked (sub first, then grills) I was shocked at how compact the sub was....compared to what I was used to with the eD.
This is one SOLID unit. It literally feels like you can drop it down the stairs without worry, not that I would do such a thing. The finish is so much better than the pics let on, it is elegant but durable, especially compared to the eD.
The Grills are beastly, basically a solid board with a circle cut out for the face of the sub, I would venture to say that the grills weigh more than the entire Klipsch by a long shot.

Overall listening impression. So I started with the setting at phase 0, cranked up the crossover to let my AVR do the work, and put the gain at 12 o'clock. It was a little underwhelming. I was playing some Nero and decided to play with the gain, as I had my sub setting at 0 on the AVR. I gently turned the dial and as soon as I hit 3 o'clock, it came to life. Now I know it needs to get broken in and all that, but the fact that a sealed sub was playing as loud as the ported beastly eD was impressive. The best part though was when I tested it on a scene from Oblivion. The scene where Cruise is in the hole and encounters the "aliens" is one of my favorites for testing. Not only the gun blasts, but the part where he is zip lining up and it breaks away, the LFE was insane, and I noticed a lower tone at the very end of the LFE that the eD did not let me here. Music overall bass is much tighter, and this is just my ears talking, but the PSA seems to blend much better with the Sonus Fabers. On a little tech note, the auto power on is much quicker to respond that the LT.500, or SD.500 amps that I used to power the eD. Overall I am really enjoying my selection, and the WAF is much improved, she commented, it's really that little??? Very impressed Tom, thanks for the help and recommendation.

I will post pics later...so don't harass me folks!!!!!

Congratulations again, Speed3driver.

[Speed3driver]

Here are a couple low res pics, will take better ones soon.