Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Polk Audio PSW505 12-Inch Powered Subwoofer (Single, Black)

Polk Audio PSW505 12-Inch Powered Subwoofer (Single, Black) Review



I spent hours of reviewing and listening to subwoofers. I am a college student therefore i have not a lot of money to just throw around. I had a bookshelf setup from the 90s that weren't keeping up like they used to. I had bought a pair of monitor 50s and paired them with my Harmon Kardon HK 3490. They sounded beautiful every high and mid was perfect. Where was the low end though? SO I went searching for a sub. I looked everywhere. I found several really nice looking subs, but they were all to expensive. I came across the 505 did some research and found out a guy a couple blocks up the road had one. I was completely blown away. I picked one up immediately.
I will do the Cons first.
It is rather bulky. Think the size of about 3 or so receivers staked up on each other. It is rather heavy as well. About 50 pounds. If you have a really cheap TV if will really mess up the image. My mom has a proscan and I can't have it on when shes watching tv because the magnets are so massive. They are fine with my Vizio tv though, not a problem and its about 4 inches from the tv.
Next con is the foam surround. Granted it makes it a little more efficient, I would have loved a rubber surround. They tend to last longer (upside is if you register the subwoofer as soon as you get it, you have FIVE YEAR WARRANTY!!!!!) that is a monster pro... I mean where can you go and get a five year warranty.
Next con is this...which really isn't a con. If you live in a dorm or an apartment complex i would go with a lower sub maybe an 8 inch or a 10 at the max...this thing slaps everything off the walls up or down stairs when turned fully up (which I would not recommend)
The last con is the break in period. It seems to take forever but when it is broken in...wow its a huge difference in sound. Its so much tighter and accurate and it has a more bass sound rather than a boomy sound.
Now for the pros. If anything would go wrong polk customer service is amazing. I blew my tweeters on my monitor 50s in the 3 days. They didn't ask how or why i did it, they just sent me out a brand new pair of tweeters and I called them up and they directed me right through it.
This sub can be had from anywhere from 200-250 shipped. I bought mine at newegg for 230. Very pleased.
Now, I use mine soley for music because I am a bass head and it really makes those low notes stand out. However. If you do not have up decent speakers and are just using cheap sony bookshelf speakers for at your local sears I would net get this sub. It will overpower the speakers and all you will hear is bass. You need a decent pair of speakers like monitor 40s or something or it wont sound balanced.
All in all this sub plays my music without any lack of bass, I use redbook CDs...and the bass is crystal clear. Its just astonishing. Much better than the setup I had before.
If you are on the edge with this one. You cant, and will not ever find a subwoofer with this amount of watts, inputs and features in any store for less than 400. Easy. If you want a tight powerful sub I would pick one or two up (I have 2) before they are completely gone. There is limited stock considering the monitor series was discontinued for the Tsi Series.



Polk Audio PSW505 12-Inch Powered Subwoofer (Single, Black) Feature


  • A single powered subwoofer for use with stereo or home theater speaker systems
  • Equipped with one magnetically shielded 12-inch long-throw woofer
  • Frequency Response: 23Hz - 160Hz
  • Peak power handling: 460 watts (300 watts continuous)
  • Slot-load venting minimizes turbulence, noise, and distortion



Polk Audio PSW505 12-Inch Powered Subwoofer (Single, Black) Overview


POLK PSW505 - This high quality powered subwoofer makes opens a whole new dimension of thrilling low end sound for audio and home theater systems alike. This versatile, clinically accurate beast handles bombs and bullets and delicate string sections with equal finesse. Polk Audio's PSW series of powered subwoofers were designed to deliver powerful and astonishingly musical bass at amazingly low prices. All the PSW models represent an evolution and refinement towards a truly visceral home-theater bass experience that coordinate with Polk's TSi and RM, and R/M/T Series Speakers for home sound that truly rivals the best that theater's offer. Experience movies, music, shows and games like never before. Pick up a PSW subwoofer and feel its superb build quality. Polk Audio PSW-505 is comprised of top-notch quality components from the driver, the power amp, and the cabinetry to deliver the finest performance. Hi-Roll Surrounds to support longer excursion High current 300 Watt Continuous (460 Watt Dynamic) power amplifier Frequency Range - 23 Hz - 160Hz Adjustable low pass crossover, phase switchand volume control for perfect blending with any main speakers Unfiltered LFE input Magnetically shielded Auto on/off circuit that automatically turns your subwoofer on when it senses a program signal. When no signal is present, the amplifier turns off within 15 minutes Sturdy Feet keep the sub from sliding across the floor when played at high volumes Unit Dimensions - 16-1/8H x 15-1/8W x 18-3/16D; Weighs 56 pounds Warranty - 5 Years Parts and Labor Speaker; 3 Years Parts and Labor Amplifier Subwoofer cable required; not included. Monster Cable is recommended


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Customer Reviews


Awesome Sub - J. Hall -
All I can say is this sub is awesome. More bass than the average listener will need - but it's great to have just in case. I ran speaker cable from the left and right (front) outputs of my receiver to my sub inputs, then from the sub outputs to my satellite left and right speakers for perfect mixing. Best purchase I've made in a while. For the price - this is a steal.



One of the best out there for the money. - E. A. Hurst - From Beyond
Have/had the JBL 10' sub which is very nice, but I wanted that BOOM you feel in your chest, like the theaters. After looking at many reviews online, and stereo shops it came down to either Velodyne, sunfire,(too much doe for me) Infinity,
SVS (another great brand)and finally these.. the Polk Audio PSW 505 12'
Thick cone surround sub, at this price it is nearly a steal, do not hesitate with this one! if you see this on amazon for ANY price, buy it! forget about the "Higher well known names" this will wipe the floor with most of the ones that are even priced at 0 more. Yes, they are THAT good. But, you need the right receiver/wires to give them the proper amount of output.

I was not surprised about the company making good products they have been around for a very long time so that was expected, what was not expected was how low this thing can get if you tweak it just right, the foam surround woofer is huge thus obviously delivering thunderous bass without causing any damage to the speaker itself. the back of the box is very typical in that, it is a pretty old-style set up making it very easy to to adjust the frequency response, terrible, bass, highs, tone level, lows, power switch in the back etc..

Is there better out there? sure, if you wanna pay 0-00 more for a "Name/Look" but if you want true sonic performance that can shake your neighbors windows, all at a low reasonable price, get this. You will be happy you did once again just to reiterate this is not the best by far, meaning if you have the money and really want the best (whatever that is to you) stick with SVS or the new C-Series from Cerwin Vega! Aside from this, this item is tops for the money hands down no contest. Best of all Amazon has it for the lowest price around you won't find this in your local best buy for this good a price, shop around think, do the math. (May buy another one) 5 stars.






Great Sub - Joseph Durall -
This is a great sub. It fills in the low base nicely. It is for movies more than music though.
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