Jerry S. in Pennsylvania

After attending nearly 2,000 concerts in his lifetime, Jerry S. from Pennsylvania knows exactly how his favorite classic rock bands should sound. While many of them are aging out of live performances, Jerry still has a passion for music and feeling connected to the artists. With his retirement came the opportunity to upgrade his system and using a very specific set of listening criteria, he visited multiple HiFi stores in pursuit of his ideal speaker upgrade.

After many listening sessions and consultations with the SVS support team, Jerry found his end-game stereo system with a pair of SVS Ultra Evolution Pinnacle speakers, an SB-2000 Pro subwoofer and a Hegel integrated amplifier. Now, he can sit back, enjoy the sound and, “…reside in music heaven.”

Learn about Jerry’s journey below.

Questions And Answers:

When and why did you first get into HiFi?

I started out listening to music on a transistor radio in the early sixties. At age 12, I bought an 8-track player with detachable speakers. My parents had a turntable as part of a console stereo/tv.

Why is having a high-performance speaker system important to you?

I have been attending rock concerts since seeing Jethro Tull and Led Zeppelin at Madison Square Garden in the early seventies and I’ve been to 1000s of shows and was in the music business for about 12 years. I listen loud, and classic rock is my focus, but I listen to vocals, jazz, etc.

Tell us a bit about your audio journey.

I purchased Advent speakers back in the early 70s with a Sony TA 1130 integrated amp at 60 watts per channel. I went through several brands of bookshelf speakers and about 30 years ago I bought a pair of Acoustic Research TSW 910 towers for $2000, which was big money back then, along with Pioneer Elite separates - M90 and C90 at 200 watts into 8 ohms or 300 into 4 ohms. It was a quantum leap for me and I had it paired with a Thorens TD 125 Mk 2 AB turntable. The expanded soundstage was amazing along with depth and clarity.

I stuck with that system for a long time and, about 12 years ago, replaced all the drivers. When I retired, I decided to get new speakers and a new house and went from a small room to a much larger room. My price range was 4-6000 dollars, and I figured I would keep the amp and preamp.

How did you learn about SVS and what lead to your upgrade decision?

I first heard the Ultra Evolution Pinnacle speakers at the Audiolab store in Pennsylvania on the recommendation of a salesperson. I also listened to a few other brands there, I had never heard of SVS before.

Over the course of several weeks, I visited several retail stores and auditioned the following brands all similarly priced , Kef, Paradigm, Canton, Revel and Klipsch, we used streaming and CDs as the source of the music, predominantly but not limited to classic rock from the Beatles to The Who to Cat Stevens and many more, including SACDs, and poorly remastered old titles for a wide range of comparison. I don't like bright speakers and I do like accurate sounding high end, sharp bass, and a strong mid-range. I'm 69 years old with good hearing, though I do have tinnitus from many years in the music business and attending at least 2,000 live shows.

What was the impact of upgrading to SVS Ultra Evolution speakers compared to what you had previously?

I listened to your speakers in two different stores, one with a small room, and one large, both with about 400 watts into 8 ohms. My normal listening volume is about 86- 92 dBs. The first thing that jumped out at me was the superior soundstage and clarity along with the depth of the music. I eliminated Klipsch immediately as being too bright and unbalanced, the Cantons were also too bright for me as were the Revels. The Kef loudspeakers just seemed bland.

At 88-95 dBs the SVS sounded best to me, not bright, strong mid-range, firm bass, and the depth and clarity sealed it. I purchased a pair of Ultra Evolution Pinnacle loudspeakers in gloss white. In addition to their striking appearance, they provide the sound impact that I was searching for.

I was told Home Theatre Group, where I purchased them, used a 400-watt amp, so I knew there would be a drop-off once I got them home. My amp and preamp were exposed as being perhaps too old, so I bought the Hegel H 390, and the order was restored. The broad soundstage depth and clarity returned, the Pinnacles were free to perform, then I added the subwoofer and now I reside in music heaven.

Did the SVS support team assist in any part of your setup? How?

My level of comfort with SVS was born out of their amazing customer service. I'm not a wealthy guy, $5000 is a lot of money for me. I contacted the customer service department several times by e-mail and phone and I always received a prompt and thoughtful response. One time, I left a message at 11 am on a Sunday morning, and at 11:15am, I received a return call from Jay, who identified himself as an audio engineer and explained what my subwoofer thought process should be moving air and all.

My listening room for the last 20 years was a 10-12 room with my chair about 8 ft away; speakers toed in. However, I was moving to a new house with a rectangular-shaped room measuring 16 x 24 ft. The speakers would no longer be in corners and would be in the middle of the room on the long wall. I contacted your customer service department and was fortunate enough to draw Ryan with whom I exchanged several emails regarding speaker placement and power requirements, cables, and more. He could not have been more helpful and responded quickly in every instance.

Anything else you’d like to share with the SVS community?

In closing, I love the speakers, love the value and love the customer service. All four employees I spoke to deserve accolades. Gary, I must say that you have to be a good leader as the speed of the ship is the speed of the captain. Thank you for everything! I am a very happy customer. Suffice it to say, my satisfaction is through the roof, the value is tremendous.