PSW-450 Randomly cutting off and back on during play

rshores84

So I've had this PSW450 for a few years now and it's always been an excellent powered woofer along with my Yamaha YSP-4000 soundbar, but the other day I noticed a few pops or clips coming from the woofer as I was listening to music. Shortly after it would randomly loose all woofer input during the song and then randomly come back in for a short period of time before cutting off again.

If anyone knows what these symptoms could be or what my next step should be I would greatly appreciate it. I went ahead and got a PSW-505 for the time being but I'd like to have this unit fixed if at all possible. If it's not a model that can be currently serviced or have parts sent out for replacement what would be my next step? Take it down to a local car audio place and have them test the amp and the woofer to determine where the problem lies?

Thanks again for all of the help.

-Randy

[Deleted User]

Hi Randy,
It might be a good idea to look inside the unit and make sure the positive and negative wires that go from the bass amplifier to the woofer are making good contact. To do this unplug the AC power cord and remove the screws that go around the circumference of the amplifier's input plate. Then use a putty knife to loosen the plate so the complete amplifier comes away from the cabinet. You should see a red wire and a black wire connected to the amplifier's circuit board that goes to the woofer's terminals. These can sometimes become intermittent and cause your kind of symptoms.
Regards, Ken

rshores84

I went ahead and did exactly what you mentioned. I was extremely careful when removing the amp and took a look inside with a flashlight before full removing the amp. Everything looked to be fasented tightly , but I went ahead and removed each connector and reconnected the firmly. I reassembled everything and plugged the unit back in. It worked for about three songs then I just lost all woofer input again. It's just weird.

KennethSwauger wrote: »

Hi Randy,
It might be a good idea to look inside the unit and make sure the positive and negative wires that go from the bass amplifier to the woofer are making good contact. To do this unplug the AC power cord and remove the screws that go around the circumference of the amplifier's input plate. Then use a putty knife to loosen the plate so the complete amplifier comes away from the cabinet. You should see a red wire and a black wire connected to the amplifier's circuit board that goes to the woofer's terminals. These can sometimes become intermittent and cause your kind of symptoms.
Regards, Ken

[Deleted User]

The problem could be a short in the woofer's voice coil, causing the bass amplifier to go into a protection mode. You can remove the grille cover and take out the screws that go around the circumference of the woofer. Then using the same putty knife technique pull the woofer from the cabinet and disconnect the two wires that run to the amplifier from the woofer's terminals.
The next part will require a volt/ohm meter which you connect to the woofer's terminals. There should be around 4 ohms, give or take an ohm.

rshores84

Trying that tonight, thanks for all the help and input everyone.

KennethSwauger wrote: »

The problem could be a short in the woofer's voice coil, causing the bass amplifier to go into a protection mode. You can remove the grille cover and take out the screws that go around the circumference of the woofer. Then using the same putty knife technique pull the woofer from the cabinet and disconnect the two wires that run to the amplifier from the woofer's terminals.
The next part will require a volt/ohm meter which you connect to the woofer's terminals. There should be around 4 ohms, give or take an ohm.

rshores84

If and when I do this I don't get the proper readings what should my next step be? Replacing the woofer? Scrapping the unit?

KennethSwauger wrote: »

The problem could be a short in the woofer's voice coil, causing the bass amplifier to go into a protection mode. You can remove the grille cover and take out the screws that go around the circumference of the woofer. Then using the same putty knife technique pull the woofer from the cabinet and disconnect the two wires that run to the amplifier from the woofer's terminals.
The next part will require a volt/ohm meter which you connect to the woofer's terminals. There should be around 4 ohms, give or take an ohm.

[Deleted User]

If the problem proves to be the woofer itself it came with a five year warranty. If you're beyond that then buying a replacement (a CP membership will help reduce the cost) is the reasonable thing to do.

rshores84

Okay, I did what you told me to do and the reading was 3.8 to 3.9 ohms

KennethSwauger wrote: »

If the problem proves to be the woofer itself it came with a five year warranty. If you're beyond that then buying a replacement (a CP membership will help reduce the cost) is the reasonable thing to do.

rshores84

Is there anyway to check the amplifier to get any readings that might be helpful?

[Deleted User]

There are ways to check the bass amplifier, but that would require some test equipment that most people don't have. It would be best to remove the bass amplifier (package it carefully) and send it to Polk's service center at: Polk Service, 1 Viper Way, Vista, CA. 92801 tele: 1-888-267-5495.
Include a short note giving them your name, address, telephone number, email address and description of the problem, also the date and place of purchase would be a good idea. They'll quickly figure out the problem and contact you. It might be something as simple as a faulty volume control.