PSW250 for $50 on CL. Worth it?

ROHfan
ROHfan Posts: 1,014
edited February 2011 in Subwoofer Hookup & Bass Management
Just saw this on CL. A PSW250 for $50. I currently have a PSW10 which I will upgrade in the future but $50 is hard to pass up. Is there a significant sound quality improvement over the PSW10?
TV: 65" Samsung QLED 4K
Fronts: Energy RC70 --- Center: Energy RC-LCR
Front Heights: Polk RC65i --- Rears: Polk RC85i --- Sub: Power Sound Audio XS15
Pioneer VSX-1120K --- Parasound HCA-1000A --- Oppo BDP-103
Vincent Audio SA31 preamp --- Teac UD301 DAC
AIYIMA Tube T7 preamp --- Nobsound 12AX7 tube preamplifier
Post edited by ROHfan on
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Comments

  • grimmace19
    grimmace19 Posts: 1,429
    edited February 2011
    IMO anything is an improvement from the psw10... as long as that 250 works and is in decent shape worst case scenario is that you can resell it for more than you pay which will give you more money for a better upgrade later.
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  • JimAckley
    JimAckley Posts: 1,138
    edited February 2011
    +1

    Anything is an upgrade over the PSW10.

    Just out of curiosity, what else do you have in your system?
    - Computer Rig -
    YAΘIN MS-20L, polkaudio RT5

    - Main Rig -
    Pioneer SC-37, Overnight Sensations, Samsung 52" LCD

    - Currently In Progress -
    Curt Campbell's Uluwatu LCR, LMS Ultra Gjallarhorn, JBL W15GTi stereo subs, 2.1 entertainment system for the gf
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  • cnh
    cnh Posts: 13,284
    edited February 2011
    That's hard to say. According to Polk stats...the two subs are a bit similar? With the 250 being a smaller driver. The problem with the PSW10 is that it has a lot of PORT noise and is easy to overdrive. The 250 has a smaller driver and dual ports. You'd need to hear it to decide if it were cleaner. It definitely cannot play any lower than the PSW10.

    Take a look:

    http://www.polkaudio.com/homeaudio/specs/recent/psw250/

    cnh
    Currently orbiting Bowie's Blackstar.!

    Polk Lsi-7s, Def Tech 8" sub, HK 3490, HK HD 990 (CDP/DAC), AKG Q701s
    [sig. changed on a monthly basis as I rotate in and out of my stash]
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  • JimAckley
    JimAckley Posts: 1,138
    edited February 2011
    I've had the fortune of listening to both (is it ever a fortune to listen to entry level subs?) in similar systems, and honestly liked the PSW250 better. The PSW10 was in a system with Monitor 50 fronts, and the PSW250 was in a system with Monitor 40 fronts. The 40 seemed to distort very easily, whereas the 250 could get a little louder while staying clean. Just my 2¢...
    - Computer Rig -
    YAΘIN MS-20L, polkaudio RT5

    - Main Rig -
    Pioneer SC-37, Overnight Sensations, Samsung 52" LCD

    - Currently In Progress -
    Curt Campbell's Uluwatu LCR, LMS Ultra Gjallarhorn, JBL W15GTi stereo subs, 2.1 entertainment system for the gf
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  • ROHfan
    ROHfan Posts: 1,014
    edited February 2011
    JimAckley wrote: »
    +1

    Anything is an upgrade over the PSW10.

    Just out of curiosity, what else do you have in your system?

    I have R50 fronts, CS10 center, R150 front heights, Bose cube rears (to be replaced with Definitive BP1.2xs or Polk OWM3s--which do you think?), running on a Denon AVR 1611.

    I'm happy with the PSW10 but that's really because it's my first sub and I've nothing to compare it to. What makes me want to upgrade is that scene in Transformers right after the voice-over when you hear that loud pulsing bass with the helicopter. The port noise (?) is very noticeable. I'm probably going to go with a PSW505 in the near future but I'm not sure if I should replace the sub first, or the Bose rears. I'm anxious to get new rears because when a fighter jet flies over my head during a movie the jet turns into a rubber band airplane by the time it's behind me :) Audessy actually crosses the cubes over at 250Hz which tells me there's a big hole in my sound.
    TV: 65" Samsung QLED 4K
    Fronts: Energy RC70 --- Center: Energy RC-LCR
    Front Heights: Polk RC65i --- Rears: Polk RC85i --- Sub: Power Sound Audio XS15
    Pioneer VSX-1120K --- Parasound HCA-1000A --- Oppo BDP-103
    Vincent Audio SA31 preamp --- Teac UD301 DAC
    AIYIMA Tube T7 preamp --- Nobsound 12AX7 tube preamplifier
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  • stangjason
    stangjason Posts: 341
    edited February 2011
    I tried the PSW10 inline with my VTF-1 for kicks and decided it had nothing to add to my system except muddy boomy mid-bass. Sorry for the apples and oranges comparison but I recommend saving your money till you can afford a quality sub that's right for your room.
    Pioneer vsx-1120k, B&K Sonata series video-5 amplifier, Polk Rti8, Fxi3, Csi5, and HSU VTF-1
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  • ROHfan
    ROHfan Posts: 1,014
    edited February 2011
    stangjason wrote: »
    I tried the PSW10 inline with my VTF-1 for kicks and decided it had nothing to add to my system except muddy boomy mid-bass. Sorry for the apples and oranges comparison but I recommend saving your money till you can afford a quality sub that's right for your room.

    Thanks for the input. I'm gonna go with a PSW505 in the near future.
    TV: 65" Samsung QLED 4K
    Fronts: Energy RC70 --- Center: Energy RC-LCR
    Front Heights: Polk RC65i --- Rears: Polk RC85i --- Sub: Power Sound Audio XS15
    Pioneer VSX-1120K --- Parasound HCA-1000A --- Oppo BDP-103
    Vincent Audio SA31 preamp --- Teac UD301 DAC
    AIYIMA Tube T7 preamp --- Nobsound 12AX7 tube preamplifier
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