Craigsub rankings thread

Schwingding

This was taken by me from AVSforum, where it was originally taken from AVS123.
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This was taken fron AV123 boards, it is GOLD imo and deserving of it's own thread. Bravo Craig!

1. JL Audio Fathom 113: 103 points.
2. Velodyne DD-18: 100 points.
3. ACI Maestro: 97 points.
4. JL Audio Fathom 112: 95 points.
5. Hsu VTF-3 HO + Turbo: 94 points
5a. Hsu VTF-3 HO w/o Turbo: 92 points
6. SVS PB12-Ultra: 90 points.
6T. Axiom EP-500: 90 points
7. SVS PB12-Plus/2: 87 points.
8. Rocket UFW-12: 85 points (provisional)
9. Rocket X-Sub: 78 points
10. Rocket Tyke: 60 points

As you can see, the "least performing" subwoofer still delivers 60 points. The Tyke really cannot deliver subwoofer performance. It still will add foundation to bookshelf speakers, and is a pretty good barometer for the entry level sub.

The Axiom EP-500 and the PB12-Ultra are virtual ties. The Axiom is a little more articulate, while the Ultra yields an extra 1/2 octave deeper.

The UFW-12 is the original version, and is only limited due to the fact it only manages 25 Hz. MLS mentioned getting me the upgraded driver/amp package. So, as with the Hsu, the rating is a provisional one.

For the scale, I consider 75 to be about the point in which a subwoofer is having a major beneficial impact on the overall system ... and the X-sub qualifies for that distinction.

Also ... Later the Hsu VTF-3 HO and the MBM-12 will be tested as a $1500 subwoofer, which will be the price for both, including the Turbo.

When evaluating these subs, I wanted to develop a system which would be easy to follow ... yet allow for a HUGE difference in the performance between, say, a TYKE and a Fathom 113.

In a direct linear fashion, the Tyke might look like it is 58.25% the sub the 113 is. Of course, it is not.

How the scaling works is this: each 3 points represents a 15% higher level of overall performance. It is also cumulative.

For example, The Fathom 113 is 43 points higher than the TYKE. Grab a calculator, and you will see you have 14.33 consecutive 15% improvements.

Take 1.15 x 1, and do it 14 times, and you get 7.08. Next, multiply 7.075 x 1.05, and you get 7.43.

In other words, the Fathom has 743% higher performance than does the Tyke.

The Hsu VTF-3 HO W/Turbo has 38.9% higher performance than does the SVS PB12-Plus/2 (in this case, the overall musicality added to extension wins the day).

The Fathom 113 has 46.5% higher performance than does the 112.

As an aside, to keep this from being overcomplicated, each single point outside the 3 point criteria is scored at 1.05, not according to a true scale, which would be 1.0477.

MLZ

The AV123 person spent a lot of time explaining how the scaling works, that +/- 3 points is statistically insignificant, etc.
But there is NO explanation of the most important calculation: how the number of points were derived. Was it by another formula based on specs or maybe independent measurements, or just a number arbitrarily assigned by the reviewer?

Schwingding

Here is the relevant thread

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=768150

The author is over there - ask him, he is being very helpful with queries about his process.