Authorized Polk Repairs in Calgary

TShand

Hey there...

I have a question in regards to Polk Customer Service.

My PSW125 blew a fuse the first week of January... And Polk Customer Service was very quick to help me - they told me to take it to a local repair shop here in Calgary (Canada) and it could be fixed there.

I dropped it off at the repair shop on January 16th... Called them a week later and they said they hadn't even looked at it yet. Called them Feb 13th (they would have had it for 4 weeks then)... And they said they STILL hadn't looked at it yet - but they would make it a priority.

Called them Feb 20th and they said they had a part on order... Called them TODAY (Feb 27th) and they said the part is still on order.

They have had my sub for 6 weeks... And that seems a little excessive to me. This repair shop has ZERO customer service... All they do is tell me how busy they are - and they NEVER give me a call to let me know what's going on... And everytime I call them I get a different answer on when I can expect to get my sub back.

The repair shop is called "Bestech Electronics"... Just wondering if any other Calgary Polkies have had this experience with them... Or if this even seems like a reasonable amount of time for the blown fuse issue with the PSW125.

Polk Customer Service has been great - but it seems to me like their choice of repair shop locally is not so great.

I miss my sub... I've turned off my reciever and just watch everything thru my TV speakers which is LAME! I need my fix of BASS RUMBLE when I watch movies!!!!

TShand

TShand wrote: »

Hey there...

I have a question in regards to Polk Customer Service.

My PSW125 blew a fuse the first week of January... And Polk Customer Service was very quick to help me - they told me to take it to a local repair shop here in Calgary (Canada) and it could be fixed there.

I dropped it off at the repair shop on January 16th... Called them a week later and they said they hadn't even looked at it yet. Called them Feb 13th (they would have had it for 4 weeks then)... And they said they STILL hadn't looked at it yet - but they would make it a priority.

Called them Feb 20th and they said they had a part on order... Called them TODAY (Feb 27th) and they said the part is still on order.

They have had my sub for 6 weeks... And that seems a little excessive to me. This repair shop has ZERO customer service... All they do is tell me how busy they are - and they NEVER give me a call to let me know what's going on... And everytime I call them I get a different answer on when I can expect to get my sub back.

The repair shop is called "Bestech Electronics"... Just wondering if any other Calgary Polkies have had this experience with them... Or if this even seems like a reasonable amount of time for the blown fuse issue with the PSW125.

Polk Customer Service has been great - but it seems to me like their choice of repair shop locally is not so great.

I miss my sub... I've turned off my reciever and just watch everything thru my TV speakers which is LAME! I need my fix of BASS RUMBLE when I watch movies!!!!

Sorry - I should mention that my actual question is: Does this sound normal? Has anyone else had an experience like this? Not blaming Polk CS at all - just thought they might like to know if a repair shop they recommend is sucky.

comfortablycurt

I wasn't aware that Polk even had authorized repair shops. I've always been under the impression that they handled warranty work directly, by having you send your equipment back to them.

That does sound like an awfully long time for a fuse replacement. What kind of fuse is it? Is it just a glass tube fuse? You could probably find one yourself and replace it very easily.

TShand

Tried replacing the fuse... But nobody seems to carry the fuse that was in the sub. Tried a close match - and it blew again right away.

Polk CS said there was a reason the fuse blew, and that it should be taken in for repair. Apparently - it is a common problem with some of their subs.

The Canadian CS rep just told me to take it to this place for the warranty work.

cnh

Can't you get a fuse directly from Polk?

Among a number of subs I own, my first was a PSW12 the predecessor to your model. Never had a problem with it even blasting it--except occasional excessive vibration and a bit of port noise up high (just back it off a bit when that happens). That's not my main sub anymore but I still use it and it's been going strong for almost 3 years.

What did you do to your PSW125 to make it blow a fuse?

Just curious.

cnh

TECHNOKID

Polk Customer Service has been great - but it seems to me like their choice of repair shop locally is not so great.

1. CS is right, when gear blows fuse there is more than simply replacing the fuse as there was a reason for it in the first place.

Is your product still on warranty?

If your answer is YES:

2. Totally unacceptable that your sub be there for that long!

3. Get Polk involved (formal complaint, they have to get rid of that shop, very bad CS proposing that shop and bad PR for them!) and demand that Polk take care of your product NOW, you have been waiting long enough already!

If your answer is NO:

2. Totally unacceptable that your sub be there for that long!

3. Contact your Better Business Bureau and get them involved, a FORMAL COMPLAINT should get them moving. If they don't get fixed in a timely fashion, request it be given back to you free of charge and in the same way you gave it to them and find a REPUTABLE shop to fix your gear!

Cheers

TShand

cnh wrote: »

Can't you get a fuse directly from Polk?

Among a number of subs I own, my first was a PSW12 the predecessor to your model. Never had a problem with it even blasting it--except occasional excessive vibration and a bit of port noise up high (just back it off a bit when that happens). That's not my main sub anymore but I still use it and it's been going strong for almost 3 years.

What did you do to your PSW125 to make it blow a fuse?

Just curious.

cnh

That's the best part... I did NOTHING to blow the fuse on the subwoofer. I just turned on my receiver one day and noticed the sub wasn't working. And it wasn't a surge issue because everything else plugged in was fine. I've been doing a little digging - and my sub isn't the first to blow fuses.

Technokid - yes my sub is still under warranty... It was not even a year old when the fuse went. I am sending an email to Polk Customer Service about the repair shop... It's just too bad, everytime I talk to this repair shop... It really feels like they could care less. The worst part is, it took them a month to even LOOK at the subwoofer. If they would have looked at it shortly after I brought it in - they could have ordered the part it needed much much sooner.

Sigh... I miss my sub!!!

TECHNOKID

I am sending an email to Polk Customer Service about the repair shop...

Hopefully Polk will take the matter seriously and get this moving ASAP, either they request the repair shop send the sub back to them or forward your sub to a decent repair shop!

It was not even a year old when the fuse went.

...or they could simply send you a new sub and take the matter of the defective sub into their own hands. That would definitely put in action the claim of having good CS!

It is to be noted that Polk's presence in Canada is very minimal and could use some serious improvement! After sale CS is just as important as store sales. polkaudio.ca would definitely be a good gesture too!

Cheers

ViperZ

TECHNOKID wrote: »

It is to be noted that Polk's presence in Canada is very minimal and could use some serious improvement! After sale CS is just as important as store sales. polkaudio.ca would definitely be a good gesture too!

Cheers

I have to disagree with this statement, at least for Ontario. Walter Moser (representative in Brampton, ON, north of Toronto) has always been very helpful whenever I needed help to order replacement parts for my speakers. He also gave me a free spike for my RT1000p to replace the one that got lost (free shipping too).

TECHNOKID

ViperZ wrote: »

I have to disagree with this statement, at least for Ontario. Walter Moser (representative in Brampton, ON, north of Toronto) has always been very helpful whenever I needed help to order replacement parts for my speakers. He also gave me a free spike for my RT1000p to replace the one that got lost (free shipping too).

The fact is that if I am correct, the gentlemen covers the entire country. I don't think Canada is such a small country to justify a single representative. After sale such as the OP reference authorised repair facilities is very minimal too. More representation in Canada could ensure quality authorised repair shops are readily available in all Canadian major cities. When I bought my third Polk speaker series/package (RM30s) it was somewhat anoying to check with the US in order to find if my Canadian online provider was an authorised dealer. The provider was not listed on the US Polk site but after some digging I managed to find the coordinates of the single Canadian representative in order to get confirmation. Good thing I was already sold to Polk otherwise I would have turned around and bought Canadian in order to make sure I get adequate service in Canada!

danger boy

call Polk CS and see if they know of another authorized Polk repair center in Calgary. Calgary is a large city.. i'm sure there must be more than just one authorized repair shop for their products.

[Deleted User]

Hello,
I'm certainly sorry you have been experiencing a problem. I've sent Walter Moser a copy of the first message you posted. I'm sure Walter will be on this quickly, he's the best in supporting our customers. If you want to telephone him you can reach him at 1-519-853-8244 or email him at wmoser@polkaudio.com.
Regards, Ken

ViperZ

Kenneth Swauger wrote: »

Hello,
I'm certainly sorry you have been experiencing a problem. I've sent Walter Moser a copy of the first message you posted. I'm sure Walter will be on this quickly, he's the best in supporting our customers. If you want to telephone him you can reach him at 1-519-853-8244 or email him at wmoser@polkaudio.com.
Regards, Ken

519? Where did he move? Hamilton or something?

janmike

I always had (905) 457-0164 as a contact for Walter. Then again, I do not work for Polk.

TShand

Ok - so today was the day that I FINALLY got my subwoofer back from the repair shop... So here is the "official" tally on the days it was in for service (it turns out all they needed to do was replace the amp inside):

Friday January 23rd is the day I dropped the subwoofer off.

17 business days later, on Feburary 17th, is the first time they actually LOOK at the subwoofer to see what the problem is.

Today - Monday March 9th is the day I picked the subwoofer up.

That is a whopping 31 business days (I am not counting weekends here) that it took this repair shop to fix the amp of my subwoofer.

I don't know if that sounds acceptable - but it seems a little excessive to me.

At the very least - I am VERY happy to have my subwoofer back!:D

disneyjoe7

I worked in a service center once many moons ago, 31 days seems bad but not really. 17 days just to open it up to find problem seems a bit much, but again if backed up with repairs even this doesn't seem all that bad either. Then ordering the part, installing part, testing it, and getting back to you seems ok.


Glad you got it back enjoy.

danger boy

overall 31 days seems about average to me.. yeah we all wish they could repair things and turn them around in a week or so.. but most repair shops i've been in lately. have been very backed up.

last year the repair shop I took my amp to, went out of business.. closed their doors and gave MY amp to a Ebay liquidator :eek: I had to track it down by doing my own detective work to get the amp back.. and the repair shop never fixed the amp.. but still had the balls to charge me the $75 service fee. those rat ****, I'm glad they folded.

ANyway. glad you got your subwoofer back and it's up and running again.

TShand

My subwoofer worked for a whopping 2 hours tonight... And same problem again. It happened partway through Heroes, all of a sudden... No subwoofer.

It is not getting power at all - after they just replaced the amp and the fuse.

I am not happy at all. Going to be making a call to Polk and a call to the repair shop first thing tomorrow morning. This is a little ridiculous.

And no - there was no power surge or anything to blow the thing... It was plugged into the same outlet it was plugged into for over 6 months before it died the first time.

Is this normal????
:mad:

danger boy

wow.... i am stumped that it only worked two hours. Sorry to hear that.. i know it can be frustrating.

yeah, call Polk customer service up and see what they suggest at this point.

do you think it's just a fuse this time? either way... it should not be blowing fuses or amps.

disneyjoe7

Sorry it sounds to me you're pushing the sub too hard. It could be your setup, or just too large of a room area to bass up with that sub. Or you could add a sub to help fill the room.


Just my $.02 take it or leave it.

TECHNOKID

disneyjoe7 wrote: »

Sorry it sounds to me you're pushing the sub too hard. It could be your setup, or just too large of a room area to bass up with that sub. Or you could add a sub to help fill the room.


Just my $.02 take it or leave it.

I tend to agree with disneyjoe. If they REALLY replace the amp, the fuse shouldn't be blowing anymore. Either there is a problem within your system or you drive the sub too hard. As far as I am concerned no amps should be driven much more than half its power. If you have to drive it more than that, I agree that you should consider a second sub or a larger one.

Good luck, hope it doesn't take that long this time around!

danger boy

disneyjoe7 wrote: »

Sorry it sounds to me you're pushing the sub too hard. It could be your setup, or just too large of a room area to bass up with that sub. Or you could add a sub to help fill the room.


Just my $.02 take it or leave it.

i would think the driver would blow before the amp actually.. subs can take quite a beating before they blow.

disneyjoe7

Given the time it took to blow up, I believe the amp was HOT.

It's not really nice if Polk as an amp that can be up loaded get hot, then dies. It should of been shutdown when it got hot, both the output transistor just short out then blows the fuse.

Again it's just my $.02 I never seen this sub / amp and I don't know how it was designed. Believe it or not I had a job like too, a field technician I had to figure out why it dies and tell the engineerings what they should do. I loved that job

TShand

I don't know how I could have "pushed" the sub to blow after two hours. It worked fine for almost a year before blowing the first time... And it's not like I changed the settings or anything when I plugged it back in last night. Turned the sub volume to about 1/2 to 2/3... And that was it. It didn't pop, it didn't make a noise... It just stopped working.

It is hooked up to a Yamaha HTR 6080...

All I can say is - I am not waiting another 31 days for a repair. I don't see how I could have pushed the sub too hard to make this happen a second time.

[Deleted User]

Hello,
Can you, please, send me an email message giving me your telephone number, send to kswauger@polkaudio.com. I'll work with Walter Moser to replace your complete sub-woofer.
Regards, Ken

disneyjoe7

Polk Rules baby

TShand

I am very impressed with Polk Customer Service... There is a silver lining to this cloud!!!

When the sub is replaced - I'll have to post about the settings etc... Make sure I have everything set correctly... I am better when it comes to the video side of things (I work in Television)... But can be a little weak when it comes to getting audio set just right. I try to go by what sounds best to my ears...

Thanks for the feedback, everyone.

Travis

TECHNOKID

Well done Polk! 5 stars service on this one! Now let's get some viable Canadian repair shop!!

Cheers!
Ren

TShand

You are not going to believe this...

Got the new amp that Walter Moser sent today... Swapped it out with the one that died. It worked for almost two hours again... And died.

Am I going crazy???

If it helps - here are the facts of the matter:

-the sub was plugged into a surge protector
-the sub is connected to a Yamaha HTR6080 receiver via Monster Sub Cable,
into the LFE port on the back of the sub
-on the back of the subwoofer, the Phase was set to 0, Low Pass to 80, and
volume to 2/3rds
-the settings on the receiver were
Front, Center, and Surrounds set to SMALL (the RM85 pack)
Sub was set to YES
Crossover - was set to 120hz, but I moved it to 80hz
Sub Phase - set to NORMAL
LFE Level - set to -5db (have the choice of -20db to 0db, had it set for -10
but moved it up to -5)

Speakers and sub are about 12 feet away from listening position, sub is in the corner next to the left front speaker, facing slightly inwards towards the middle of the room.

When I initially got the sub working tonight - I tried a few different sources as I checked all the settings... A scene from Cloverfield on Blu-Ray, a scene from Saving Private Ryan on DVD, a little bit of satellite TV, and a scene from King Kong on HD-DVD via my Xbox 360.

Any ideas on what the hell is happening??? Because I am stumped!!! I sent an email to Ken Swauger and Walter Moser with these same details... I don't know what else to do at this point.

I am glad Polk has great CS, otherwise I would be going nuts right now.

Travis

danger boy

I think it's your electrical outlet or the surge protector.. something there is not right. amps don't just blow because of use.. that's silly.

I would not plug your next amp into the surge protector or that outlet...

sorry.. but man I have never known anyone to go through what you are going through.

also. might as well get a different subwoofer cable.. that too could be the culprit.

good luck.

danger boy

running your sub at 2/3 is to high as well.. 12 0'clock is what's recommended.


maybe with your next sub... instead of playing any movies.. for the first 24 hours let the sub sit idle, just plugged into the wall and turned on. with no signal going to it.. see if it blows even without being in use. then that would point to either your electrical problem or something else.