It does what you expect it to do...shake and rattle your room.

I'm disappointed with its construction...more specifically, it's internal wirings.

I moved the sub to a new location once to clean around the area and then several days later, when I played a movie, the sub didn't work. Support helped me to trouble shoot and the end result was that I had to send the amp for repair.

It came back, it's not the original amp, and I've installed it into the box. When I played a movie, it still didn't work. I was getting frustrated and angry and didn't want to talk to support just yet...I had to cool and calm down. In the meantime, I checked inside
the box and inside was covered with some white material. I traced the speaker
cable to the speaker and to my surprise, the positive wire was off the speaker's
connection post. I inserted it back and then pulled it out to see how much of an effort it would take to get it disconnected....it didn't take that much of an effort at all. In fact, I believe, when I moved the sub to a new location, it must have fallen off....that's why there's no sound. So, it wasn't the amp's fault, it was bad speaker connection.

In fact, Velodyne is so cheap, they used a 14-gauge wire for the internal speaker and it's so short, you'd have to be careful when taking the amplifier out. Given the premium price of this sub, you'd think Velodyne would have given it a $10-worth of cable.

I'm very pleased with the DLS-5000R performance. There isn't really too much tuning
you will do to it...it just works flawlessly. I set my xover to its lowest at 40Hz and when it hits, it hits hard and solid.

I've no quarrel with the volume setting. I'd go by ear, not by sight...so, I turn off the
light... :)

When you increase the volume, it's sometimes scary...scary in that it might actually break some glass(due to vibrations perhaps) or even loosen screws off drywalls. So,
I pushed it moderately..but it can be pushed real hard...just be careful of your ears.

My VA-1012 was an awesome sub. But it was a little weak in punch and deep
thuds. The DLS-5000R does all that and more. If the sub is setup properly, you'll never know where the low level sounds coming from...that's the optimum
setting...IMHO, and it does just that.

Customer Service

Excellent support. Poor troubleshooting technique.

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Velodyne VA-1012. I had it since 1997 and never had any problem with it.

lots of power (1000RMS as stated above). Even though 23 Hz is about its lower limit,... it produces bass very well and really loud. If you want deeper, more controlled bass,... go a series or two higher. Gloss front is hard to keep clean but looks great! Weight helps keep it in place. This sub fades into my system perfectly and I dont think I'll ever switch from Velodyne. Great Job Guys!

People complaining about the volume buttons,... read the manual. The manual tells you how to understand what volume its on,... the light blinks, right? The reference volume is 30,... so it will blink 3 slow times,... Volume 34 = 3 slow times and 4 fast times,... get it!?! And if you lose track,.. reset it. If you dont understand the manual,... go by ear,... other then that,... Not much weakness except that the surround could be rubber instead of foam, but all and all,... no big weaknesses.

What many people dont know is that the Velodyne DLS-5000R has a 1000 watt RMS amp (from the SPL-R series) powering it and all I can say is WOW! For great bass, obviously you need the right placement for it, but everyone should know that. This sub is definitely a performer. Ive had it for about 2 years and its still going stong. My ideal set-up contains a 7.6 surround sound, consisting of 7 Klipsch RF-83's and,... 6 DLS-5000R's. Why?,... because for thier price,... not many things can pass them up. Put them in the right spot, right cross-over, and right volume,... it will easily give you a movie theater experience. It will take care of you the same way you take care of it.

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Where to start,... Infinity PS212, Paradigm Signature 15, JBL HTPS-400, JBL 1500 Array, Klipsch RT-12d, Bag End Infra-18,... and a few more.

Sub is very powerful, remote is handy with its four presets. Everyone on here complains about it having no volume display, not a big deal. I just turn it up or down with the remote and go by ear, if it is too loud, turn it down lol.

Size, but not really, you know how big it is before you buy it. some people complain about it being too loud, that is why you have a volume control.

This sub sounds great for music and movies. Futureshop is selling it for $1200 + taxes, I paid $650 taxes included. I was all set to buy the 12" 1200watt JBL, until I head this sub. Out did it in every way. Has a Great look. You can feel the air 10' away on half volume, shakes the house for those pounding seens.

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12" SVS, 15" paradigm

just a fyi: the amp is actually a 1kw, not 600w as listed all over the internet. i contacted velodyne themselves and they said they originally called it a 600w due to what they called some sort of legal issue. but it has always been 1,000W.

great sub. beats my 18" jbl s1s.

Loud, tons of bass

The size of this woofer can make hiding it in a room difficult.

I have been using a 12" sub prior to purchasing the DLS-5000R. I upgraded because my 4 tower speakers with two 8" woofers in each tower were over powering my current sub. I plugged this in and played with the settings for an hour or so and all I can say is “WOW”. This sub can actually over power my speakers making them seem smaller. It is a bit boomy at times but I am sure I will figure this out with proper room placement. For the price I couldn’t be more happy!

600 Watts RMS; 15 inch driver

Tweaking needed with placement, phase setting and low pass cross-over adjustment before it will sound right in your room (which is true for every sub though).

This is an update from my Aug 06 review. Totally agree with pajames2 -- may sound a bit boomy with certain recordings. The bass is really heavy and for best results, right placement is needed. Make sure that the low pass cross-over is turned all the up, to ensure that high frequencies are completely filtered out. Also the right phase settings make a difference too. Great sub if you enjoy chest-shaking heavy bass.

Customer Service

Never had a reason to call them

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Infinity, JBL, Yamaha, Onkyo

15" Woofer, 600 Watts RMS.

Could be a bit boomy in certain recordings.

This is an update from 2006 August. Yes I agree with pajames2 - it is a bit boomy at times, but it has a lot to do with the placement and the phase setting. Try placement around the room with each phase setting, until the boominess is gone. Also make sure that the low pass cross-over is turned all the way up to cut the high frequencies.

Customer Service

Didn't have to go to Customer Service yet.

Similar Products Used:

Infinity, JBL, Yamaha, Onkyo

Goes very loud, will handle most bass effortlessly. A good mid -range subwoofer. Not in the same league as the DD series though.

No way to tell volume setting as it's done by remote with no reference point only a flashing LED, very, very frustrating once you change it as you've got no idea where you were before.

A touch boomy at times.

Mine only lasted a week before a fuse blew and wouldn't turn on, it also had an earthing problem which produced an annoying hum straight out of the box. Both problems were fixed under warranty though.

Overall a good sub, I use it primarily for home cinema and it gives good results most of the time, can be a touch boomy at times but it's only a mid-range subwoofer so that is to be expected especially with the large amp running it.

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M&K MX-125

Maximum Dynamic Power with 600 Watts RMS, 15 inch forward firing driver, 4 phase adjustments, 4 customized listening presets, auto on and off, Low frequency response down upto 23 Hz, adjustable low pass cross-over (no high-pass switch though the manual mentioned it -- this is not needed anyway as I do not have satellite speakers connected to this sub), Powerful solid rock bass for movies (Italian Job) and for music (Dire Straits – Brothers in Arms). The sub is still new and I believe that it needs more breaking-in before it gets a bit more mellow to give out softer bass, but even now it rocks.

Hard to find the present volume level. Wish it had an LED volume display or at least a manual knob to easily tell the volume. To restore pre-set volume (35 out of 100), 8 keys have to be pressed in the remote. However this is no big deal once you have calibrated the sub to match with main speakers.

The very best sub in the market in $600 range. Paid $543.99 + Shipping 74.55 at yahoo online store.

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Infinity, JBL, Yamaha, Onkyo

The Distortion Limiting System really does work if you are at all a skeptic. I've listened to a wide range of music (everything from Vivaldi's Four Seasons to Jamiroquai's Canned Heat) and especially noticed the DLS during Will.I.Am's Drop On You. As you increase the volume, you feel the urge to cover your ears well before the ebonic cube even begins to labor. There is an ever-so-slight sound pressure level inconsistency with high levels of gain (which I think is how the distortion limiting actually works, but I'm not sure). It plays loud, hard, tight, clear and virtually distortionless at every (tolerable) volume setting, movies included. Just switch over to the 'movies' preset on your remote and enjoy foundation-shifting explosions (Carnival of Venice bombs in The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen) and neighbor-irritating ship landings (the Nebuchadnezzar in the Matrix trilogy). The remote is pretty handy; if the gorgeous blue LED is too much for you, turn it off, if you can't handle all that is the DLS5000R, mute it. I love that remote; one-button instant impact for Movie mode, tight and full R&B/Rock mode, civilized Jazz/Classical, or hard-hitting Game mode. Yes, there is a VERY noticeable difference between all the presets that you will enjoy--makes switching from Gran Turismo 4 to Bach to Chronicles of Riddick a snap. No fiddling with tedious setting after setting after setting.....

A volume KNOB would be really nice; if only to at least physically see how high your volume is set. The removable front grill is a little tough to remove--for someone who loves/needs to watch a driver that large go crazy is important.

Bottom line: the sub is perfect for the money. Sure, it may lack a self-equalizing room microphone system, and clarity down to 12hz, (24hz suffices) but I also lack the ability (and cognizance) to spend four digits on a single subwoofer. I am generally happy with this particular fun box, and if I had to make the choice again, I would definitely make it.