Low distortion,deep detailed bass, fast enough to stay out of the way, good x-over.Well made.

Requires carefull set-up. Can easily load a small to medium room. X-over is as transparent as I have heard esp. at this price point, but will sligthly harden the sound and diminish over all ambience. These effects took me a while to realize, basically because the soundstage and dynamics, benifited from the x-over being there.Your call.

To preface, I replaced the Servo-15 X-over cable with a homemade RG-8 cable (13ga. center). I also realized that the sub sounded its best when the X-30 gain was set as high as possible (compromise between the sub gain and the X-over gain)to get the signal level up in the cable. Dynamics and control definitley improved doing this. Because this sub is capable of such deep powerful bass some help with standing waves ( bass traps etc. ) may be necessary to show the detail this sub is capable of. (Make your own) To be honest, I think there are probably subs that will hit harder then the Servo-15 but not by much.I find it to be a good match with Quads 63s and perfect with my Nestorovics. For HT applications, I can''t give you a reson not to buy this sub. AS far as subs go, ( most of the time trying to integrate one into any system is a pain, the X-30 versatility definiteley helps here) this is the best over-all one I have had as part of my system. Love the power, the bass spread and extreme low distortion.

Similar Products Used:

Entec,Vanderstein

Pure Bass

Large,which is necessary Can hear slight ground loop hum.

I had 2 Mirage BPS 150is and found them adaquate upstairs on a wooden floor. Although adaquate, I found it easy to blow the speakers in them. When I developed the basement, cement floor , I found that there was less bass coming from them. So the hunt for more bass was on. After much searching I found a high end audio store that told me the physics of reprodusing bass. A small speaker has to work very had to produce low frequencies and at some point it will, no matter how much power you have, will stop. He said that 8" drivers will produce great mid base but will blow at very low frequencies. As was my case. As an experiment I brought home a Servo15 with the crossover and had 50hz and above going to the Mirages and everything below going to the servo15. WOW what a difference. I saved up and purchased a second. With the second one setup I found that I couldn"t even hear the Mirages anymore, so I sold them. With 2 subs I''m able to turn the output down and run them at lower power levels to get maximum performance with no distortion. Do not be fooled that with 2 subs you get twice the volume because you don''t. What you do get is a more homoginous bass responce throughout the room. I run one between the main speakers and the other one offset at the end of the couch. They face each other but are offset about 5''. The phase is set 180 degrees to give me the maximum bass at the sweet spot,my music listening chair. The bass is more than adiquate for home theatre but I really bought them for the excellent tight effortless musical bass that they produce.

Similar Products Used:

Mirage BPS 150i

very musical

not as powerful as some

I have to agree with most of what has been said about this sub, except that it's output is not as great as some have made it sound. I home demoed this sub versus a Velodyne HGS-18. The Velodyne was MUCH more powerful. But, it was also twice as expensive, and even more important than that, it wasn't musical. It had bad transient response and simply sounded a step behing the rest of the music. It would make a killer movie-only sub, though. The Paradigm, on the other hand, is incredibly clean and musical.

I am writing this to make readers aware of an alternative I didn't see mentioned in anyone's review. It is the Energy ES-18XL. Energy is one of the best kept secrets in general, and especially in subs. The Energy ES-18XL is almost as musical as the Paradigm and has nearly the output of the Velodyne. See my review of the Energy for more info.

Based on my limited experience with the Pardigm, I give it 4 stars for overall rating (it didn't have the power I was looking for) and 4 stars for value (the Energy can be had for the same price!)

Similar Products Used:

Velodyne HGS-18; Energy ES-18XL

Outstanding control, flat frequency response...and it goes low...very low.

...it's big? ;-)

...have one word to say about it....WOW!

That about says it all....I used to have a small Audio Pro sub in my system, mainly to get that extra oompfh on movies...but never really thought it made a big difference (got fairly big fronts), so I sold it to a friend of mine.

But after some auditioning to other systems at friends and dealers I felt as if something was lacking in my setup...that low rumble that cannot be really heard...but felt...and after alot of testing and listening I set my mind on the Servo-15.

I needed a tight and musical sub...as well as a good one for HT use...and there really was no competition in the "normal" price range...the Servo-15 is just an unbelievably good performer for it's price.

The only problem would be the neighbours...

Get one...NOW! :-)

System:

Dantax 16:9 32" TV
Yamaha DSPA-1092 DD 5.1 reciever
Pioneer DV-525 DVD
Pioneer CLD-D503 LD (AC-3 modified)
Paradigm Monitor 9
Paradigm CC-350
Paradigm Mini Monitor
Paradigm Servo-15

Similar Products Used:

Audio Pro Subzone.

The Paradigm Reference Servo-15 subwoofer is one of the best bargains in High-Endsubs that has enough resolution and power to do justice to both audio and home-theater.

After auditioning several subwoofers from Velodyne, Hsu, M&K, Mirage, NHT, B&W,
Sunfire, including the big Velodyne FSR-18, I settled for the Servo-15.

If you own the FSR-18, stop reading! You already own the best sub. It can move enormous
amounts of air with low distortion.

However, if you looking to buy a new sub, go and audition the Servo-15. What amazes me
is how the Paradigm R&D team managed to come out with a comparable product at
half the price. It is fairly easy to design a high-performance product where cost is no concern.
Making a comparable product at a fraction of that cost is truly a design achievement
and deserves a 5 star.

The Servo-15 seemed to have higher resolution and accuracy on the bass notes than the FSR18
but moved less air.

Here are the positive points on the Servo-15

Absolutely no booming or overhang. No matter what material I fed it, it never exhibited even
a hint of bass bloat or smearing of the deep and mid bass. The sub is designed for accuracy.

No matter how loud you played, this sub never bottomed out or emitted spurious vibrations that
lesser subs do to give away their location. It just filled up the room with a low level rumble
than can be more felt than heard. When I play the Jurassic Park T-Rex scene or the shuttle
launch scene from the Apollo-13 DTS DVD (chapter-13), the whole room gets energized.
It feels like a mild earthquake in progress.

On music this sub is the king. Indeed, the Servo-15 would be more suitable to extend the
range of an audiophile quality speaker setup in the 40Hz to 25Hz region. It has no
competition in this critical range. Listen to track 10 from Enyas “Watermark” CD to
hear what this sub can do with the low bass drums. Pretty scary.

The $1500 list price for the black ash laminate finish includes the X30 external
crossover. Use this crossover. I got far better results with the X30 engaged than
using the subout from the Yamaha DSP-A1. I haved hooked up 4 Mirage M3-si
speakers to this with a pair of Rock Solids for the front effects. I have the main
speakers set to “large” setting and using the X30 to crossover at 80Hz. The X-30
comes with a good quality 23’ coaxial cable that feeds the sub.

The X30 has 3 fixed high pass RCA outputs at 120Hz, 80Hz, and 50Hz. It has
a variable low pass from 35Hz to 160Hz. Both are active 3rd order 18db/octave
designs. I found it very easy to blend in the main speakers with the X30 controls.
With the volume control on the sub set at 12 o’clock, I found the perfect balance
by setting the output level on the X30 to just 64db (9 o’clock position).
If I raise it to 54db, the whole room shakes as if an 18 wheeler is rolling down the street.

Elegant aesthetics. The Servo-15 will easily blend into any hi-end setup visually.
It looks and feels like a well crafted and well engineered product. This certainly
does not have the “out of the garage” look.

Very easy to operate. Set an forget approach. The sub has an automatic
power on/off function. The sub turns on when it detects a signal and
turns off (including the X-30) when there is no activity for around 20 minutes.

Absolutely quiet servo operation. The 400W RMS built in power amp and the
servo mechanism is quiet as a mouse. There is no thumping when it turns
on automatically.

On the down side:

This sub is big measuring in at 18 in wide by 20 inch high and 22 inch deep.
However, it does not look that large once you set it up in a corner. Since my
Mirage speakers are already out 3 feet from the front wall, I have the sub
aligned flush with the front baffles. This effectively hides the depth.

This sub is heavy. The shipping weight was 100lbs.

Bottom Line:

If you are in the market for a sub to do both audio and home-theater, the
Paradigm Servo-15 is an excellent choice. It is an outstanding bargain
at a street price of $1250. Products like these push the envelope of performance
at increasingly lower price points. These are truly “examples”
of what skillful engineering can do. Two thumbs up for the R&D team at
Paradigm.

Regards,

Tapas Das.

Mr.Reznor the only way your going to see what that subwoofer can really do is to listen to some hip hop music(for bass results)because as any one knows;rap music has more bass than any other type of music.If you don't believe me,just ask some of your neighbors or friends.So,not to get away from the review,the servo 15 is a very good subwoofer.

Beautiful rosewood finish. moderate size and quality product judging by its weight. Adequate power from the built-in amp. Goldplated feets.

none at the moment.

capable of producing extreme deep bass. Excellent sub. for home theather especially DVD with lots of low bass contents.
Now I'm able to get the low rumbling bass without the booming bass like my ex. cerwin vega. Love the look and Rosewood finish. Brilliant design for the power "on" LED.
It's in front of the speaker instead of at the back like most other sub's. When the sub is on, the green LED comes on and it glows throght the letter "P" emblem. Extremly please with the Servo-15, Highly recommanded.

Similar Products Used:

paradigm pw-2200, cerwin vega,yamaha sw-100

Accurate, deep-reaching bass!

Sometimes you hear the servo adjusting just a bit.

This is the best sub I have owned so far. The closest in performance was the HSU Research SW10 which is an excellent stereo sub arrangement but doesn't touch the performance of the Servo-15. There are more boomy subs for strictly Home Theater which knock you out with distorted bass... but real bass is the Servo-15's forte. It's a pretty clear best buy until something else comes out! I know I couldn't cost justify the Velodyne 15 inch sub over the Servo-15.

Similar Products Used:

Legacy Powered Sub, Mirage, Hsu Research SW10

-great for music
-great for movies
-tight, clean bass
-price

only its size, but I hide it easily next to my couch

I think that this sub is fantastic. It works well to very low frequencies and has plenty of power for my room(350 sq. ft.). There is no comparison between it and my old Genesis 10 inch. I use it 90% music and 10% home theater and I feel not even a hint of upgradeitus.

Gear:

-B&W Nautilus 804
-PSB 400 surround and center
-Monarchy Audio SA 100 deluxe monoblocks(great stuff!)
-Monarchy Audio pre-amp
-Sony 7000 DVD
-Carver 806x
-Rotel processor
-DH labs interconnect

Similar Products Used:

genesis servo 10

The crossover is nice but extra!

Poor dynamics!

What a disappointment! I can't believe the raves about this sub. It does not even come close to the speed and dynamic punch offered by even the midpriced Velodynes much less my older ULD 15. I have heard the Sunfire subs and even the smaller Junior sub has the Servo 15 beat. I'm returning this thing for a Velodyne!

Similar Products Used:

Velodyne