New woofer for PSW-300?

audio_alan
audio_alan Posts: 770
edited June 2012 in Vintage Speakers
Hey everyone, my friend just bought a set of older Polk speakers that included a PSW-300. The plate amp seems fine, but the woofer is shot. I looked at Polk's product page for that sub, but don't know if it's a 8 ohm driver or not.

http://www.polkaudio.com/homeaudio/products/recent/psw300/

Any suggestions on a cheap replacement? He told me that he doesn't want to sink more to $30-$40 into it though. If it's more, he'll probably just look for a different sub...

I was thinking of suggesting one of these to him:

http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=295-315
http://www.parts-express.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?Partnumber=295-486

Thanks.
Post edited by audio_alan on
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Comments

  • jon s
    jon s Posts: 905
    edited June 2012
    IMHO, it's not worth repairing a PSW300... It's a bandpass design which limits bass output. I have one and it distorts easily at moderate volumes. What's wrong with the driver? usually, the spider separates from the cone due to a poor adhesive. You can use a superglue to reattach the spider if this is the case.
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  • audio_alan
    audio_alan Posts: 770
    edited June 2012
    Jon - Yeah, the spider came unglued (sounds like a common thing with that model). But even holding it together, the cone still makes a rubbing sound. I'm thinking the voice coil might be warped or something as well, basically making the woofer a lost cause at this point.

    My friend thought it might be fun to try getting a cheap woofer just to see if he could get it functional and maybe flip it for a little extra money if he doesn't like it.
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  • Syndil
    Syndil Posts: 1,582
    edited June 2012
    jon s wrote: »
    IMHO, it's not worth repairing a PSW300... It's a bandpass design which limits bass output. I have one and it distorts easily at moderate volumes.

    Love my PSW-300. The bandpass design is great for a subwoofer that is intended to be used as a subwoofer and not a midbass driver--maybe you're sending too much midbass to yours. My mains get down to around 35Hz and I have the crossover on my pre set to 40, so my PSW-300 doesn't get tasked with any midbass work. I can shake the foundations without distortion.

    IMHO the PSW-300 is one of the best sub designs Polk has made--if you want a true subwoofer.

    That said if I was going to replace the woofer, I would only consider replacing it with the woofer it was designed and tuned to work with.

    RT-12, CS350-LS, PSW-300, Infinity Overture 1, Monoprice RC-65i
    Adcom GFA-545II, GFA-6000, Outlaw Audio 990, Netgear NeoTV
    Denon DCM-460, DMD-1000, Sony BDP-360, Bravia KDL-40Z4100/S
    Monster AVL-300, HTS-2500 MKII
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  • Face
    Face Posts: 14,340
    edited June 2012
    I don't know how much of a difference there is between the 300 and 303 but: http://reconingspeakers.com/products-page/woofers/polk-psw303-8-woofer/

    You can always contact them or Polk to see what they say.

    A random $40 woofer is a bad idea.
    "He who fights with monsters should look to it that he himself does not become a monster. And when you gaze long into an abyss the abyss also gazes into you." Friedrich Nietzsche
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  • audio_alan
    audio_alan Posts: 770
    edited June 2012
    Face - Yeah, I kind of wonder how well a random woofer will work as well, but I think he wants to try it. Contacting Polk is a good idea though. They might have a drop-in replacement that might work better than any xyz brand...
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  • Syndil
    Syndil Posts: 1,582
    edited June 2012
    I can tell by looking at the pics (assuming that is the pic of the actual woofer) that the 303 woofer is not similar to the 300 woofer.

    Edit:

    Heck, just noticed the 303 woofer is 8". The 300 is a 10". So yeah, definitely not similar. ;)

    RT-12, CS350-LS, PSW-300, Infinity Overture 1, Monoprice RC-65i
    Adcom GFA-545II, GFA-6000, Outlaw Audio 990, Netgear NeoTV
    Denon DCM-460, DMD-1000, Sony BDP-360, Bravia KDL-40Z4100/S
    Monster AVL-300, HTS-2500 MKII
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  • audio_alan
    audio_alan Posts: 770
    edited June 2012
    Syndil - Yeah, definitely not a match. It was a good idea though.

    I haven't heard back yet from my friend on what he wants to do. I agree that a random woofer is a hit or miss proposition.
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  • Joe08867
    Joe08867 Posts: 3,919
    edited June 2012
    If your going to try a random SUBWOOFER make sure it is a SUBWOOFER and not just a woofer. A regular woofer won't go low enough and really negate the idea.

    Also make sure it is made for a small enclosure. The box this is in is about 1cu ft so the sub needs to work in that small a space.

    I wouldn't worry to much about power handling but I would get above the 80watt mark of the speakers you have shown. That sub has a dynamic power of 300 watts. About 150 nominal.
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  • audio_alan
    audio_alan Posts: 770
    edited June 2012
    My friend just sent me a message saying he bought a woofer. I'm not sure which model yet. I'll let you guys know how it turns out...
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  • jon s
    jon s Posts: 905
    edited June 2012
    audio_alan wrote: »
    Jon - Yeah, the spider came unglued (sounds like a common thing with that model). But even holding it together, the cone still makes a rubbing sound. I'm thinking the voice coil might be warped or something as well, basically making the woofer a lost cause at this point.
    If the voice coil is rubbing, it may mean that the voice coil was not centered properly when you glued it back...
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