Probably one of the best subwoofers out there, the Polk Audio PSW505 is an affordable and extremely capable addition to your sound system. It provides you with a clear and powerful bass which paired with the accuracy of voices and a design that prevents noise whilst also keeping steady on the table, gives you one of the best sound experiences you can get. For another high quality way to transmit your audio, take a look at our Skye WiFi Music receiver review too. With all that at such an affordable price with the high discounts available frequently, the Polk Audio PSW505 is your best go to subwoofer for the money. If you want a sound system that also stores your music, try our Olive 03HD music server review.
Why We Like It – Polk Audio PSW505
With a good enough frequency response and powered by up to 460Watts of power, the Polk Audio PSW505 offers you an amazing bass that is neither too boosted nor distorted at high volumes. It has a perfect noise cancellation system which paired with its motor design and long suspension gives you a great sound quality even at the highest of volumes. And so, with all that at a very affordable price, the Polk Audio PSW505 is your go to subwoofer for both studio and home. If you want to upgrade your surround sound, also check out the Involve Audio Surround Master SM-645 review.
- Accurate and clear sound
- Magnetic shielding preventing noise
- Extremely budget friendly
- A seemingly small port noise at high volumes
- Muddy and distorted at low frequencies
Performance
The perfect addition to your home theater the Polk Audio PSW505 comes powered with 460Watts peak power, 300W basic and a frequency range of 23-160Hz. Although this is a lower peak power than what the Polk Audio PSW10 and the BIC America F12 offers, it still stands out with a really good bass level and distinguishable voices thanks to the higher constant 300W power. The bass is both powerful and turbulence or distortion free, giving you an amazing feeling when watching action movies. And thanks to it’s special motor like design and a longer suspension than what you usually get in a subwoofer, the PSW505 makes those calm and peaceful melodies all the more enjoyable to listen to. While all this makes your sound experience much more enjoyable, the Polk Audio PSW505 does fall behind when it comes to certain areas. Low frequency sounds may get muddy or distorted at times while there’s also a slight bit of port noise present at high volumes. This won’t affect your home theater experience keeping watching movies the same but affecting music quality moderately. However all of this is greatly understandable considering the price and with the Slot load venting you actually get a pretty great deep bass powered subwoofer.
The PSW505 does however stand out with a great amount of functionality ranging from being able to take off the front subwoofer grill and having a line and speaker inputs as well as outputs. What’s even greater is that you get a toggle switch that allows you to run more subwoofers if needed. Furthermore, you even get options for an adjustable low pass crossover and phase switch apart from the main volume control making the most of your speakers. You can even adjust the voice volume to be higher than the background sounds making voices in movies much more understandable and enjoyable simultaneously.
Finally, the Polk Audio PSW505 comes with a extremely convenient automatic feature which turns on the Subwoofer whenever there’s a sound signal present in its vicinity, and if there are not signals available for 15 minutes straight, the subwoofer will automatically turn off, being both useful and power efficient.
Design
Measuring to be 16 x 15 x 18 Inches in size and weighing around 48 pounds the Polk Audio PSW505 is pretty easy to move around and fit in spaces. And thanks to its magnetic shield you can now place it near your TV without having to worry about noise distortion or interference. But even so, it would be best to place it slightly away from TVs as a precaution considering how the magnetic shielding will not be 100% effective. The legs on the PSW505 are stable, preventing the box from moving around on the surface even if the bass is too high.
As for the ports on the device, you get a slot styled port with speaker inputs and outputs on the back of the box along with the controls. This will make it a bit harder to reach the controls but it really isn’t much of an issue for most people. The speaker diameter measures to be 12 Inches, larger than that of the Sony SACS9 as well as the BIC America F12. Apart from that, with the controls on the back and a full black design and a real wood veneer with sharp details, the PSW505 actually looks pretty sleek but it isn’t what makes it great.
Value
Priced at $300 normally, the Polk Audio PSW505 has a slightly over the head price, but when it lowers down to $200 with the ever so frequency sales going on, the Polk Audio PSW505 might just be one of the best subwoofers you can get for the money. It comes with everything ranging from good noise cancelling a pretty good frequency range with a larger than usual speaker diameter. And so with all that a moderately good looking design, the PSW505 is a great subwoofer coming at a great price, especially when the discounts come in.
Polk Audio PSW505 Wrap Up
Although it may not have the widest frequency response range, the Polk Audio PSW505 manages to provide you with a deep bass covered with very vibrant and clear melodies. It even features magnetic shielding for better placement and with the added automatic on/off feature you can now play audio and save power seamlessly. It does fall behind with the ports being harder to access at the back, but being a small compromise for the price it comes at, the Polk Audio PSW505 may just be one of the best additions to your home theater system. But do keep in mind to look out for the discounts that will surely appear.
