Are any of these subs a good match w/ Polk RTA12a mains & a good price?

[steelglam]

Hello,

Here are a few used subs that I've seen locally. Do folks think any of these are good subs to match with a pair of Polk RTA12a mains and an ADS Atelier A2 preamp, and at a good price?

1. Cerwin Vega LW-12 ($150)
2. Yamaha YST-SW320 ($75)
3. Yamaha YST-SW60
4. Polk PSW50 ($200)
5. Polk PSW10 ($50)
6. Mirage PS-12-180 ($225)
7. Energy ES-8 ($75)
8. JBL PB10 ($50)

Thanks!

[nooshinjohn]

you can have my es-8 for 60 bucks plus shipping its a great hard working little sub

[steelglam]

A local guy just put up a listing for a $50 JBL PSW-1000 sub. Does anyone have any thoughts on that sub for music and whether or not it's a good deal?

[NJPOLKER]

You really do not need a subwoofer.

[steelglam]

You really do not need a subwoofer.

Then, how do I get the kick drum in a rock song to be a bit more punchy? (I play drums, so I'd like to get a bit more of that bass drum feeling you get when you stand in front of a drummer.) How do I feel a little more of what warmth and rumble of a note on the low E string of a bass guitar, how do I get my Polks to make me "feel" those low basslines as much as hearing them? And lastly, how do I feel a bit more bounce from the low bass in a hip-hop song? I want to add more presence and definition in the low end, definition in the sense that I want to hear more punchiness and less muddy-ness, and presence in the sense that I want to be able to "feel" the bass as much as listen to it.

[NJPOLKER]

Well this is just my opinion. I have not heard the 12's however I do have SDA2a's and have them in a large room. I do not need a subwoofer. I also have SDA SRSII's and when I swap them around with the 2a's there are some things I like more. The 2a's are similar to the 12's so thats why I am making the compairsons. Maybe the difference might be with other components like cables, power or x-overs.
I just feel that the 12's have all the potential to provide you what your looking for and maybe more! On top of that who really want a subwoofer.
Here is an idea for you. Spend some cash on the x-overs for starters, we'll help you do it too! What tweeter is being used? Good quality IC's and Cables will also help. You should do these upgrades regardless of a subwoofer for the type of performance you'll looking for. Again this is just my opinion, and its right :p
Drew

[steelglam]

Well this is just my opinion. I have not heard the 12's however I do have SDA2a's and have them in a large room. I do not need a subwoofer. I also have SDA SRSII's and when I swap them around with the 2a's there are some things I like more. The 2a's are similar to the 12's so thats why I am making the compairsons. Maybe the difference might be with other components like cables, power or x-overs.
I just feel that the 12's have all the potential to provide you what your looking for and maybe more! On top of that who really want a subwoofer.
Here is an idea for you. Spend some cash on the x-overs for starters, we'll help you do it too! What tweeter is being used? Good quality IC's and Cables will also help. You should do these upgrades regardless of a subwoofer for the type of performance you'll looking for. Again this is just my opinion, and its right :p
Drew

The crossover and tweeter that I'm using are those that came with the Polks. I'm not sure about the crossover, but the tweeter is awesome. I do not want to change that. In fact, from what I've read here and other places as well, a lot folks feel it was one of the best tweeters Polk ever made.

I'm using 12-gauge cables. I've used 18-gauge and 16-gauge, as well as Monster Cables, in the past, and there is definitely an improvement but the change has not given me the degree of punchiness and rumble in the speakers that I'm looking for.

As for amps, I have both a Yamaha MX-1000 and Crown DC300A. The former is 350 WPC continuous and the latter is 200 WPC continuous. The RTA12a's can handle 10-500 WPC, and Polk recommended running at least 200 WPC since they are inefficient.

[NJPOLKER]

So the tweeters must be the Peerless tweeters, thats a really good thing as you have stated.
Quality cable/IC is far more important than gauge.
I am not familiar with either amp but again quality is far better than quantity. A good quality amp/pre or integrated amp with 50 to 75 wpc can blow away a lesser quality amp/ pre/integrated of greater power.
I am not knocking anything here just trying to guide you with some of the things I have learned here.
Maybe others that have the same speakers will chime in and add to this.
Where are you located?

[steelglam]

So the tweeters must be the Peerless tweeters, thats a really good thing as you have stated.
Quality cable/IC is far more important than gauge.
I am not familiar with either amp but again quality is far better than quantity. A good quality amp/pre or integrated amp with 50 to 75 wpc can blow away a lesser quality amp/ pre/integrated of greater power.
I am not knocking anything here just trying to guide you with some of the things I have learned here.
Maybe others that have the same speakers will chime in and add to this.
Where are you located?

I can tell you that the Crown amp is divisive: people either love it or hate it. But even among those who hate it, they seem to acknowledge that it provides good bass. I came across one at a dirt cheap price so I picked it up.

I did a bunch of research and asked around a lot on the Yamaha amp, and it seems to be highly regarded, with many folks saying its one of the best amps Yamaha produced. Like the Crown, its bass performance also seems to be lauded, but the reviews and opinions also generally praise its performance across the frequency spectrum.

From my perspective, I think the Crown performs better in the mids and highs than a lot of its detractors say. But I do think the Yamaha is the better overall amp of the two...lots of clean power, good dynamics, sweet highs, smooth mids, and a nice bottom end.

So if given all that, the bass performance of my speakers is still not what I desire, I guess my thought process is that I need to add a sub. I have well-balanced but slightly warm speakers paired with two amps that are noted for their bass performance and I still am not getting the punch and rumble that I want in the low end. I think it's because I'm looking for more bass that I can "feel" as opposed to just "hear": I want the kick drum to punch me in the face more and the deep bass of a funk, electronic, or hip-hop song to rumble the floors a bit more. I love the Polks, don't get me wrong. I think they've gotten me about 80-85% of the way toward the sound I want: they are well-balanced, the highs and mids are nice and smooth, the soundstaging is great, and they have a nice bottom end. In fact, I'm sure the bottom end for the Polks is sufficient for a lot of people; in fact, when I have demoed them for some folks, the Peerless tweeters and the bottom-end performance of the speakers seem to the most applauded aspects. But I still want to add a bit more bass.

Then again, maybe I don't know what the heck I'm talking about.

What kind of cables would you suggest that could give me the rumble and punch I'm looking for?

[NJPOLKER]

Maybe I could be wrong here!!
Anyone else have an opinion?

[RyanJoz]

I would find a sub that will dig deeper on the freq spectrum such as the dsw series....I always say go big or go home because you can always turn the sub volume down if it is overbearing but you can never turn it up beyond a certain point without damaging your equipment.

That said I just purchased a pair of RTi12's (upgraded from RT35i's) and paired them with a previously owned psw404. The low end frequencies are much more present with the sub to where it is maybe about 10 o'clock on the sub. I do have these in a very small room for now (bedroom at home.....moving out in may after graduation) so I have to sit in a certain place to experience the bass.....but I always go bigger than I need and scale it back to my preferred sound.