Blown PSW350?

bug1124

Hi guys,

Over the weekend I was pushing my old PSW350 pretty hard. After about 6 hours of a reasonably high volume it began buzzing pretty bad. Before I shut it down I noticed the back panel was quite hot. The next morning I pulled the driver which appeared to be intact. It measured 3.2 ohms across the terminals. There was a faint electrical smell as well. I re-assembled and tested it on a low volume. On certain frequencies it seemed to sound ok, but most were very buzzy and distorted.

So the question...what did I break - the amp or the speaker?

And to follow up is it worth $175 to replace the amp or is that money better spent on something newer/bigger

Thanks in advance,
Michael

wutadumsn23

Is the $175 a price from Polk CS to replace the amp? If not, give them a call and see what they can do for you, mention you are a Club Polk member for a discount. As for the money being better spent elsewhere, if you like your sub, then IMHO, no it's not. Having said that, you could be halfway to a PSW505, and a couple hundred more clams from a decent entry level SVS, Velodyne, Epik sub on the used market if you can find one local. Pretty much a coin flip if you ask me, give Polk a call and see if they can give you a better price though, can't hurt to ask. Welcome to Club Polk.

-Jeff


1-800-377-POLK (7655)
9AM-5:30PM EST Mon-Fri

bug1124

Hi Jeff,

Thanks for the reply. I called Polk yesterday and they gave me the amp pricing and mentioned that if I join the forum I could get a discount and free shipping. That comes out to $175 delivered if it is in fact the amp that is dead.

I have always felt that I had to really push the psw350 to get what I want so I am not sure if a new amp will improve things or get me back to where I was with it.

Currently, I have the opportunity to buy a 3 month old DSW pro 500 for $325 locally. Would that be a better way to spend the money? I guess I am wondering if the DSW would be a big enough step up since it is still a 10".

Thanks,
Michael

comfortablycurt

I say go for the DSW500, especially since it's local, and for $375. That's a pretty good deal.

You mentioned always feeling like you had to really push the PSW350, and by replacing the amp, you'd basically be right back to where you started.


Even though it's a 10", the DSW500 will dig deeper and go louder than your PSW350, and with more headroom. The older PSW series subs aren't the greatest. They're decent for their prices...but the newer DSW series subs are a whole different animal.

wutadumsn23

I agree with Curt on this one, the DSW series is a much better sub than the older PSW series, esp. for music. That or the PSW505 is on sale at Newegg for $229.99 w/ free shipping for the next few days. Have heard nothing but good things about that sub from the many people here who have bought them, I am trying very hard myself not to get one, lol.

-Jeff

bananaboy69

I have a similar problem. I own a PSW 202 Active Subwoofer and I usually use it with my home theatre to watch tv. I've used it for almost 3 years now and tonight, it started making intermittent buzzing noises. It sounds almost like a blown speaker but I inspected the cone in the front and did not find any rips or damage. What is the cause of this and how do I fix it? Thanks!