SVS Ultra Evolution Tower Speaker Review

As Carlo Lo Raso had recently reviewed the large Ultra Evolution Pinnacles, and Taps Das reviewed the Nano speakers, I thought I would follow up with a review of SVS’s smallest tower. They look just like the Pinnacles, but with smaller bass drivers, smaller cabinets, and less weight. I cannot compare the sound as I have never heard the Pinnacles in person, but it’s logical to assume that they are similar in sonic character. The time-aligned curved front baffle is still evident, with the tweeter being centrally mounted between two mid-range drivers. There are four bass drivers (two front & two rear) with two ported openings in the back.

SECRETS has reviewed some of the Ultra Evolution speakers already, so I will not linger too much on their design philosophy. SVS achieves time alignment by physically concaving the front baffle. The idea here is to have the different sound wavelengths coming from the front of the speaker to arrive at your listening position at the same instance. Thus, audible time smearing of the sound can be eliminated. In an age when we have room correction and DSP software, this approach may seem a bit redundant. Not all software can correct for the time domain, so the speaker design here is a practical solution. I have Dirac, which does time alignment for me, but I’ll get into the pros of using DSP later in this review.

My initial impressions of the Ultra Evolution Towers were that the bass output was a bit too potent for my tastes. The mids and treble were excellent and sounded more similar than not to my GoldenEar T66s with their folded ribbon tweeter design. The Towers sounded larger and more powerful than I was expecting, and that was a surprisingly good thing in my book. The T66s have independently powered woofers with a bass output volume knob that lets me finesse the bass output. Without that ability, I would have to find another fine-tuning solution.

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With a WMTMW driver configuration, the two rear firing composite glass fiber woofers are opposed to the two in the front, which helps cancel out cabinet resonance. They are designed to allow for high excursion, so when cranked up, they should maintain their composure. I never got them to “bottom out” at any time, nor did the ports in the back create any chuffing or burping.

The tweeter is a diamond-coated (vapor-deposited) aluminum dome with a specially designed organic cell lattice diffuser, which helps widen dispersion. The tweeter is designed to go lower in frequency and blend into the mid-range better than typically made aluminum domes. I concur via extensive listening sessions that the tweeter was very non-fatiguing and never sounded harsh. The mid and tweeter drivers are separately enclosed, and the ¾ inch MDF cabinets were very solid and resonant-free.

On the back, we have two woofers and two ports. There are also a pair of 5-way binding posts for bi-wiring or bi-amplification. Spikes are included, but I used their soft rubber feet to protect my oak flooring. The Towers are a bit top-heavy and narrow, and I would have wished for outriggers for the base of the speakers. If you have rambunctious children and/or large dogs, beware! It would take little effort to topple these towers. I ultimately placed some rubber discs under the front of the speakers to help point the tweeters slightly up toward my ear level.

I placed the Ultra Evolution Towers about eight feet apart and 1.5 feet from the front wall. I originally hooked them up to my Musical Fidelity Nu-Vista 600.2 and streamed from my WiiM Ultra via the PS Audio Stellar DAC through balanced cable connections. There are no tone controls on the 600.2, as it is strictly an analog integrated amplifier in its purest form. For integration into my home theater, I hooked the SVS Ultra Evolution Towers to my Onkyo TX-RZ70 AV Receiver and used its Dirac room correction for the best sound reproduction in my 17 ’x 13’ x 8’ media room. Though I have an SVS 3000 Micro subwoofer, I decided not to use it during my evaluation of the Towers as it would have been somewhat redundant. My speaker cables are AudioQuest Rocket 33s.

I’ll start by addressing an issue that may cause some concerns with the speaker’s placement. In my youth, I used to sell speakers and electronics at Circuit City (alas, defunct now since the 1980s). If a customer wanted speakers for Classical/Jazz, I’d steer them to JBL or Infinity. Those brands made generally excellent full-range speakers. For Heavy Metal, I would always show them Cerwin Vega speakers. They were efficient, inexpensive, and known for their prodigious bass output, just what was needed for a garage system. That said, they were not known for lush midrange or sparkling treble. Always match the customers’ needs to the right product. The SVS Ultra Evolution Towers are superior to those Cerwin Vegas in every way, but the bass, though a bit dominant, is better controlled, and the mids and tweeter are excellent. I had the Towers well out into my room away from the sidewalls, and the bass was still a bit too rich for my taste. Normally, a tone control or certainly room correction with bass control would let you adjust the bass to your preference. I could control the bass in two different ways. With the Nu-Vista 600.2, I had to use the built-in graphic equalizer from the WiiM Ultra, which worked well, and when I used the Onkyo AVR, I had Dirac Live adjust the bass output to my specific listening room spot. If you do not have these options and just play them without some basic correction, you may have issues finding that perfect spot in your room that balances the bass with the mid/treble. Just wanted to mention this up front.

Now, with the SVS Ultra Evolution Towers in position and room correction applied, I’ll give my impressions with some music and movies. As I alluded to in the beginning, a subwoofer is not necessarily needed with these speakers, but my SVS 3000 Micro would be a great match!

MUSIC

MOVIES

I watched plenty of movies during my time with the Ultra Evolution Towers, and these three films are but a sampling of how the Towers performed under duress. John Wick (any of the series), Godzilla Minus One, and The Dark Knight have all the hallmarks of over-the-top filmmaking. Dialog needs to be clear, even during the heavy action scenes. Bass must be punchy, yet well-controlled. Treble needs to provide details like the sound of a bullet casing hitting the warehouse floor or a soft whisper. There is no reason that an excellent music speaker cannot be an excellent movie speaker. A well-designed speaker should be able to excel at both genres.

The Ultra Evolution Towers did just that. And the fact that they added the realism that good bass brings to both types of entertainment without the use of a subwoofer was impressive indeed. The stomping of the Big Lizard had a great impact and tactile chest thumps. Gunfire exhibited plenty of boom and zing. Dialog (both male and female) sounded natural and clear. I could find little fault with the overall performance of the Ultra Evolution Towers…and these were the smallest of the three SVS floor standers!

The Ultra Evolution Towers pack plenty of great sound into a more compact form. The build quality is excellent, and SVS has a good reputation for customer service.

These speakers should provide the consumer with years of enjoyment for both music and movie buffs alike.

Though my original impressions about the Ultra Evolution Towers were that the placement for some bass de-emphasis might be tricky for some rooms, I found that it was easily controlled with tone controls or room correction software. Once that was done, I enjoyed my time with these smaller siblings in the SVS Ultra Evolution floor stander line. The black gloss finish was flawless, and the balance of the tweeter, mid, and woofers was very good, and for what I consider a truly full-range speaker. If you want to save some space and perhaps some coin, the SVS Ultra Evolution Towers deliver the sonic goods and are an excellent value.