New Polk speaker system. Help with sub!!

mbond24

Hello all

I have a new 7.1 Pioneer Receiver and Polk speakers in a 5.1 setup. Here is what I have going:

Front: Polk RC85i
Rear: Polk RC80i
Center: Polk CS20
Sub: Polk PSW505
Receiver: Pioneer VSX-1020-K

Everything works great except the sub. I am on my second sub from Amazon and I am still getting the same problem. I am hooking it up to the "Sub Out" in the back of the receiver and the "LFE" input in the sub. I get very little to nothing out of the speaker. I've tried everything and even my neighbors who have HT systems have helped and cannot figure out what is going on. I've tried every setting on the receiver (sub on, sub off, sub plus, etc) and get the same thing. I tried adjusting the "LFE" setting on the receiver and that doesn't work. I don't want to return another sub to Amazon because I know it has to be something I'm missing. I spoke to Polk and it seems as if they do not know the problem either.

Thanks in advance for your help.

Outfitter03

mbond24 welcome to Club Polk. There are a lot of people on this forum familiar with the Pioneer Receiver but I am not one of them. If your neighbor has a working HT system with a sub running on LFE, I would tote the sub to his house and verify that the LFE input works. In one step you have narrowed it down to the sub or your receiver.

If the sub works on his system then you need to look into the setup of receiver and the signal path to the sub.

apphd

Welcome to CP mbond. Outfitters suggestion is a great starting point. You need to determine if it is the sub, AVR, or cable to the sub. I haven't been able to find an on line manual for this unit, but if you haven't already, look it over very close, as it could be a set up problem. Also you could try some different connections such as the speaker level inputs, to see if you get anything out of the sub. Not familiar with your AVR but I would guess you want >sub on>the rest of your speakers set to small or a XO around 80 for starters>the XO on the sub turned to the highest setting>output on the sub around mid way. What is your source? Maybe there is some bass management in that which needs a look. Post some more detail as to what your source is and what material you are trying and someone here should be able to help you get going or determine what the problem is.

jinjuku

mbond24 wrote: »

Hello all

I have a new 7.1 Pioneer Receiver and Polk speakers in a 5.1 setup. Here is what I have going:

Front: Polk RC85i
Rear: Polk RC80i
Center: Polk CS20
Sub: Polk PSW505
Receiver: Pioneer VSX-1020-K

Everything works great except the sub. I am on my second sub from Amazon and I am still getting the same problem. I am hooking it up to the "Sub Out" in the back of the receiver and the "LFE" input in the sub. I get very little to nothing out of the speaker. I've tried everything and even my neighbors who have HT systems have helped and cannot figure out what is going on. I've tried every setting on the receiver (sub on, sub off, sub plus, etc) and get the same thing. I tried adjusting the "LFE" setting on the receiver and that doesn't work. I don't want to return another sub to Amazon because I know it has to be something I'm missing. I spoke to Polk and it seems as if they do not know the problem either.

Thanks in advance for your help.

I you have any other device with an RCA stereo out you can turn the x-over knob all the way up and plug it into the sub and play something.

If you have a laptop you can go to Radio Shack and get a simply 1/8th inch headphone to RCA adapter and RCA cable. Google for 80Hz test tone .wav or .mp3 and download and play.

tonyb

Did you get a test tone out of the sub when you run the auto calibration ?

mbond24

Thanks for all the advice guys. I'll try to answer all of the questions posted above:

Outfitter03: I think the first thing I'll do is call up my neighbor and take my sub over there (along with a 6pack as a thanks) to test it on his system

jinjuku: My last sub I hooked it up to my DVR's RCA connection and didn't get much sound at all. I'll try it on this one too but I don't think I'll get any sound.

tonyb:I did get a test tone when I ran the Auto MCACC. It was a very low/faint tone.

apphd: The source is my Directv DVR. All other speakers work nicely with the system. Even get good bass out of my front/center/rear speakers if I set it up right. Just nothing out of the sub. I'll try using speaker level connections to see what happens.

Thanks for the help guys. I'm going to call Pioneer and Polk again to see if they can give me some insight on the receiver. Maybe I'll have to upgrade to the DSW Pro 600...

mbond24

Just spoke with a Polk rep. She really didn't help too much but just told me to take it to my neighbor's house to make sure it isn't a problem with the receiver. If it is the sub I'm going to give up and get a different model. I'm not going to give up on Polk yet so if it is the sub and not the receiver, I'll upgrade and get the DSW600.

rdb2001

mbond24 wrote: »

Just spoke with a Polk rep. She really didn't help too much but just told me to take it to my neighbor's house to make sure it isn't a problem with the receiver. If it is the sub I'm going to give up and get a different model. I'm not going to give up on Polk yet so if it is the sub and not the receiver, I'll upgrade and get the DSW600.

Where is the level set on the back of the sub?

What is the sub level set at on the Pioneer?

mbond24

Okay guys/gals... I just got a replacement receiver from Amazon... Hooked it up again (level set to 80hz) and got the same problem! Minimal sound from the sub! Aaaarrrggg!!! So I have been through 2 subs and now 2 receivers and I am getting the same problem... Maybe it's me... Do I need to turn the sub up to Max to get good bass? Maybe the PS505 really isn't a good sub? I already put in my refund request to Amazon so I have to send back the sub... Wondering what to do now... Stick with Polk or another brand? I know, that is blasphemy here on this site...

mbond24

Both the sub and receiver are set to 80hz...

mbond24

The test tone I get from the Pioneer is pretty low and weak compared to my other Polk speakers that I have running...

tonyb

Use one crossover,not both. The one in the receiver set to 80,the one on the back of the sub turn all the way up to the highest value. Is the sub hooked up to the right output on the back of the receiver ? Go into the setup menu on the receiver and turn the sub level up to +5 and see if it helps. Could also be the cable your using, try another rca cable.

archdiver

mbond24,

I'm certainly not as experienced as most of the regulars on this forum - recently registered to obtain info on my new sub, prior to receiving it from Amazon . . . 1st post as well.

I've had Polk fronts and a center for over 8 years now with my old HK A/V unit and love them, enough so to buy the PSW505 sub - identical to yours, after replacing my A/V receiver with a unit also identical to yours - Pioneer VSX-1020-K. I actually brought my old KLH Model 6 speakers down from the attic and am using them as front mains - assigned the CS245i pair as 7.1 front heights . . . sounds incredible.

Don't know if I can help, since I didn't experience any issues in hooking up my sub - plug + play out of the box. I used a Belkin PureAV AV20500-25 ft. cable from the sub-out to the LFE and set up through Auto MCACC using the remote mic. I'm extremely pleased with the results.

Have you experimented with the many listening modes available with this receiver? There could be compatibility issues with your source.

mbond24

Could it be that I'm getting bad products from Amazon? I'm just perplexed on why there are so many good reviews and I end up with 2 bad subs. Don't know what to do... Tried different settings and listening modes on receiver. Plugged into the correct "sub" output and everything. Don't know what else to do... Get another (3rd) sub from Amazon?

jinjuku

mbond24 wrote: »

Could it be that I'm getting bad products from Amazon? I'm just perplexed on why there are so many good reviews and I end up with 2 bad subs. Don't know what to do... Tried different settings and listening modes on receiver. Plugged into the correct "sub" output and everything. Don't know what else to do... Get another (3rd) sub from Amazon?

Where are you located? There may be a polkie near you. If you have a local AV/Audio shop I would see what an hour of their time is onsite.

archdiver

As mentioned, my PSW505 sub was from Amazon as well and cannot imagine you've gotten 2 inferior or defective units in a row. These woofers are extremely well built and delivered in Polk sealed cartons. It also seems unlikely you have a bad receiver - although mine was purchased from a local BB.

I will bet the a/v system is simply not programmed properly - follow jinjuku's wise suggestion.

mbond24

I'm in the SW part of Phoenix, AZ. I looked up some custom installers and may give them a call. I ran the automatic setup on the Pioneer and the test tone out of the sub is very low compared to the L/R/Center/Rear speakers. All the other speakers drown out the sub since it doesn't pump out much sound. Only if I turn it all the way up does it put out anything. Even then the sound from the sub is pretty muffled.

haven250

I had the same problem you have to go into speaker set up and put all speakers to small then the sub will work.

jinjuku

haven250 wrote: »

I had the same problem you have to go into speaker set up and put all speakers to small then the sub will work.

I believe he should still get the .1 since it is a discrete channel.
Who knows what the AVR is doing however.

mbond24

I've done that setup where I change all 5 speakers to small and the .1 to 'yes'. Still get small sound out of the sub. That is what is so frustrating. I've done everything that the manual (and guys here on Polk forum) has said and nothing has changed.

tonyb

What kind of cable are you using to connect the sub ?

mbond24

I was using coax with F connector adapters. Thought that was problem... Then tried using normal sub cable and nothing changed. My neighbor brought over a monster cable and that didn't change anythng. Still little/no sound.

archdiver

We both have the identical sub + AVR . . . and bass volume is definitely not a problem with mine. In fact, the wife gives me grief if I crank the sub past 33% - with the receiver only at -25 db. That beast really pressurizes our 25' x 20' HT space.

tonyb

Frankly, I find it next to impossible to get 2 receivers and 2 subs all defective. You have a directtv box, is it a HD box ? Do you have an optical cable going from the box to the receiver ? Or hdmi from box to receiver ?
Lets figure this out, go into your setup menu, on a piece of notebook paper,write down all the settings, then post them for us. I know it might take 15 minutes, but lets get you squared away. Then tell us how the direct tv box is hooked up, where you have the mic when running auto calibration. Should be in your listening position at ear level.

haven250

When you go into speaker setting where you can pick small and large go to the first speaker and use the remote right arrow and all the speakers go small by themselves then the sub should be dark grey. You should then get sound

jenfromcand

This is very important, bump.

jenfromcand

You know, I've got to say that you have got a really valid point there.

jinjuku

jenfromcand wrote: »

This is very important, bump.

Reported (spam)

z3r0m4g3

I had the same problem, come to find out that the LFE on the receiver and the LFE on the sub do not work together. Turn the LFE on the receiver all the way off, plug the cable into the LFE port on the sub, turn the LFE knob all the way up and then turn the volume know all the way up ( on the sub). This worked for me.

mbond24

tonyb wrote: »

Frankly, I find it next to impossible to get 2 receivers and 2 subs all defective. You have a directtv box, is it a HD box ? Do you have an optical cable going from the box to the receiver ? Or hdmi from box to receiver ?
Lets figure this out, go into your setup menu, on a piece of notebook paper,write down all the settings, then post them for us. I know it might take 15 minutes, but lets get you squared away. Then tell us how the direct tv box is hooked up, where you have the mic when running auto calibration. Should be in your listening position at ear level.

I do have a HD Diretv box. I do have HDMI going from box to receiver. I'm going to try messing with the settings tonight and also jot down my settings for everyone to see.

larry777

Don't worry about the low sound from the Sub during auto setup. Thats all you are supposed to get. Mine was the same when I set it up, but when I put a movie on it performed as expected. I did go back into my settings on the AVR after the auto setup though and I believe gave it another + 3 db.