Polk Audio PSW10 10-Inch Price Review

Size: 10 Inch  Color: Black

857 of 873 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of five stars Polk PSW 10: Great, with many reservations, February 3, 2006
By Ref Stanton “Refefer” (Northern Virginia) See all my reviews This review is from: Polk Audio PSW10 10 Inch Monitor Series Powered Subwoofer (Single, Black) (Electronics) I bought this subwoofer about two months ago and since then have given it an broad listening test. Following is a list of things I could do to enhance sound quality also as many reservations I have toward it.

Before I start off, I could like to clarify one thing about the PSW 10 that may unjustly turn off possible purchasers from it: it runs at 50 watts RMS. In the world of music and sound systems, one of the biggest misconceptions out there’s that wattage directly correlates with how deafening a speaker is. THIS isn’t NECCESARILY TRUE! The efficiency of the driver establishes how deafening it gets at some wattage, not only the total of power you are pumping into it! This is why you may be able to purchase, as an example, computer speakers that boast 400watts of power and have them easily massacred by volume by speaker set ups with half the power (for more examples, compare computer speaker systems to counter systems to a true sound system. You’ll find the volume, at a given wattage, tends to increase as you go down the spectrum).

I found the PSW 10 easily competed by volume with every other sub in it is range, as well as those running at twice to three times the power RMS. If you want to prove it to yourself, run down to your local Circuit City (who sells Polk subs) and sound test it yourself.

Now, onto the guts of the review.

1. As far as entry subwoofers come, this is most likely the best bang for your buck that you may find bar none, particularly considering the quality of the build. Built around high quality medium density fiberboard and using a greatly economical 10″ driver, the PSW 10 manages to bang also, if not louder, than other subwoofers in this group, in spite of running at 50 watts RMS.

2. The sound quality is excellent, with little distortion at high volumes above 50 hz or with full excursion easily being reached due to ported design. In the 40hz 50hz range, the polk begins to show the restrictions of an entry level sub, the sound becoming somewhat more muddied (though not horribly so) with expanded length sounds(ie. A hellicopter landing slowly) while staying crisp for burst sound (ie. A gunshot or bassdrum). Below the 40hz, it is pretty much non functional as a subwoofer. I should also stress that no entry subwoofer has any redeeming qualities below 40hz.

3. Music is where this subwoofer really shines! it is bass is perfect for each genre of music (my tastes tend to be a bit ecclectic and as such I tested it with Classical, Hip Hop, Electronica, Rock, and Jazz) you may be able to throw at it. I was most impressed when playing The Chieftans “Ballad of the Irish Horse” album and may have sworn the drums played in the room (a testament to the quality of polk’s design). Deep bass is 99.9 of the time is restricted to above 50hz, right in the sweet spot of the polk, and as such, the bass lines in every Rap song I tried (the extreme being Wolfpak Gangsta Rap and Kanye West Golddigger) was quite remarkable, correct and crisp. When playing the 1812 Overature, the cannons were well made, if somewhat muddied (as it’s one of the not many songs that adventures below 50hz) but in general good. I was impressed with the sound quality of the polk in music.

4. That being said, this subwoofer is ideal for music and will be disappointing for those who wish to use it for movie watching. While it’s useful to add it to any non subwoofer setup, the 10″ driver struggles to hit the low lows with the sound becoming muddied with deep, deep bass of any length. I found this to be a problem with all entry subwoofers I have tried, not just the polk, so take this with a grain of salt.

Overall, this subwoofer is most likely the best entry subwoofer you may be able to get bar none.

TIPS FOR MAKING IT SOUND BETTER!!!

1. 1st thing of note: Like all quality entry level subwoofers, great sound comes with the sacrifice of volume. This sub works best in smaller rooms, say 20×10 maximum. Any bigger and the sound will begin to get lost in the room and sound strained.

2. Most subwoofers work the best along the front wall of your sound system, in the corner. This but isn’t a cardinal rule. To find the best place for the subwoofer (this works for any sub for your information), place the subwoofer where you could usually be sitting, listening to it. Play a song and walk around the room till you find place where the bass sounds the best. Move the sub to that place and it should be ideally placed!

3. One shortcoming about the Polk is the lack of an LFE input: you only get RCA and speaker line inputs meaning that there’s no way you may be able to bypass the interior crossover of the sub. Considering the market it is aiming for, this should not be too big of a problem for majority of people, but holders with good receivers may be a bit vexed by this. As well, don’t hookup the sub through the speaker line: it will lose a just total of sound quality from forcing the bass through small gauge wires. Hook it up through the RCA if at all possible and you’ll be largely rewarded.

In summation, in spite of the reservations inherent of the entry level subwoofer class (and LFE port), this is an excellent subwoofer which warrants all the praise it is been to get.

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102 of 108 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of five stars Excellent sound, May 15, 2009
By Frank J. Perricone (People’s Republic of Vermont) See all my reviews
(REAL NAME) () This review is from: Polk Audio PSW10 10 Inch Monitor Series Powered Subwoofer (Single, Black) (Electronics) I am using this with an Onkyo TR 606 alongside a Toshiba 62″ DLP HDTV and a full set of Polk speakers, and the sound quality is extraordinary.

The only caveat is that the subwoofer input has two connectors, but you really only have to connect one of them. The manual is far from clear about this, and lots of people will most likely use up extra on a Y cable, or worse still, put in an adapter which will add both cost and loss of fidelity. But just connecting to the left input works good. Subwoofers are mono nevertheless and the double inputs are mainly there to make certain wiring configurations easier, not to add more sound fidelity.

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143 of 154 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of five stars Polk Audio PSW10 Powered Subwoofer, June 1, 2007
By zinm See all my reviews This review is from: Polk Audio PSW10 10 Inch Monitor Series Powered Subwoofer (Single, Black) (Electronics) While I looked for sub woofer I compared PSW10 and PSW404. PSW404 sounds better but for the price $110 and $250 at J&R I opted for PSW10. The sale agent dropped the price for me though they still selling PSW10 for $200 here. Those of you who worry about no LFE input, that should not be a problem. All you must do is connect the sub woofer output of the receiver to either the right or left input on the sub woofer. , then set the variable low pass filter on the sub woofer to the highest setting. This will set the interior low pass filter above the low pass filter frequency given by your receiver and create an LFE input. Or you may use a RCA cable to offer a connection to both inputs on the sub woofer from the LR pre out from the receiver. Then change the cross over frequency from the woofer as wanted. It sounds a little louder and better for me. I bought Monster sub woofer cable and it sounds no better than RCA cable. Attempt not to waste your money on this. It has 7.4 out of ten in CNet ranking and it’s #6 in editor’s top list for sub woofers. I paired PSW10 with R300, RTi4, R150, CSi3 and Denon 1906 receiver. Primarily used for HDTV over the air, DVD movies and many FM. It sounds many better than the sub woofer from RM6750. It carries five years warranty but be sure you purchase from Authorize dealer. For the price I paid I’m more than happy with it. I hope this helps to your choice.

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