OWM3

by Ruben Lopez, July 21, 2008

Strengths:

Wall mountable with a down angle that orients the sound where you want, directly to the listening position.

Weaknesses:

I haven't found any weakness to mention.

Review:

I bought two sets of OWM3 speakers for my 7.1 home theater system. It’s great to know these can placed on the walls with at a downward angle. Because my home theater room has a tall roof, I put the surround speakers in high position to clear the furniture. Also the sound is very good considering this is used for surround sound, too. When I listen to music I can now get involved like in Broadway and now I can enjoy the A/V receiver surround sound for movies. Another factor that was good for me was that they are easy to mount because they have the slots well located. In conclusion you can get very satisfied with the purchase of these speakers and I recommended them for your home theater.

by Cary, August 11, 2008

Strengths:

no muffleing of sound...clear and crisp. Has about 7 different mounting holes which is essential to get the best sound for my room.

Weaknesses:

none yet

Review:

good clear sound...nice highs for my surround sound rear speakers.

by David G, September 21, 2008

Strengths:

Silky smooth highs and plenty of mid range. Just great sounding speakers, they live up to the Polk name and reputation.

Weaknesses:

No weaknesses found...

Review:

I purchased these to use as surround speakers. I was impressed with the mounting options and the ability to aim the sound at the desired listening location. Great speakers and at a bargain price. These speakers will not dissapoint you.

by Shane, November 26, 2008

Strengths:

Sound...clarity and detail. Powerful for the size and look great too. Very versatile speaker.

Weaknesses:

None

Review:

I bought these a few months ago to replace my RM101 surrounds. The Onkyo 705 and the Sony bluray player brought these bad boys to life! I can't say enough about the way they blended with my Polk monitor 70's and CS2 Center. Only wish I had enough room to add 2 more for 7.1...

by Derek, April 25, 2009

Strengths:

Clear. Attractive, flexible design.

Weaknesses:

No bass! Flimsy snap-on pedestal/foot attachment.

Review:

The OWM3 speakers are truly designed as surround speakers - they are not full range or "bookshelf" speakers and do not reproduce low frequencies. I even compared it to a couple other speakers with a laboratory frequency generator to make sure I wasn't deaf. The speakers sound OK, but the marketing claim that "This speaker's careful design and smart technology ensure punchy low frequencies" is fraud. Polk's advertised CCT (Capacitive Coupling Technology) doesn't deliver the goods. In truth, low frequency output rolls off much faster than on other speakers with similar driver sizes and frequency range specifications (e.g. 100-20kHz at -3dB). The sound is fairly clear (you can hear the texture of drum heads and cymbals and voices) and they are reasonably well built, except for the removable vertical stand/foot. When coupled with a subwoofer or full range primary speakers, they aren't bad. Also note that with a sensitivity of 89dB, they are pretty quiet. Given their lack of low frequency output, they are rather large boxes. I'll wait a couple days before making a decision to return my pair to Crutchfield - they were intended as speakers in a spare room, but are ill-suited to the task unless I decide to drag in an ungainly subwoofer.

by Kevin, February 23, 2009

Strengths:

Replaces another bookshelf size speaker set,I am very amazed at the performance.

Weaknesses:

none

Review:

Great mid-speakers for my 7.1 surround system. Clear,powerful,sleek looks - who could ask for more!

by Frank, March 31, 2009

Strengths:

Sound quality and clarity. They also look good.

Weaknesses:

None

Review:

Purchased these to replace a set of HTD middy's and to complement my RTi6's, CSi3 & PSW404. Could not be happier. Sound is much cleaner and the movie watching experience is much better!!

by Steve, July 24, 2009

Strengths:

They are a well thought out design. The sound is superior to the "cube" style satellites of other manufacturers.

Weaknesses:

None.

Review:

These sound very natural and make more bass than you should expect from satellite speakers with a 4.5" woofer. But I wanted more bass, so I added a Polk PSW10 powered sub-woofer. Using the receiver's sub out for the PSW10 and the left/right channel speakers set to "LARGE", they have the full range and a nice warm sound.

by Anand, September 28, 2009

Strengths:

Flexible mounting options, very large presence.

Weaknesses:

Binding posts will be hard to reach in certain mounting options.

Review:

These are awesome pair. I received these free when I purchased DSW Pro 500 from Crutchfield. They would be just as great if I purchased them outright. I am using them for my rear back surround speakers, but they have a large presence. In fact, these would be great even as the main front speakers - especially with flat panel TV setup. I am actually considering replacing my fronts with these.

by Russ Gates, November 2, 2009

Strengths:

Polk quality and value, great sound. Almost endless mounting possibilities.

Weaknesses:

Slightly lean bottom end, even with size taken into consideration.

Review:

Polk has done it again with an affordable, versatile, GOOD sounding multi-application loudspeaker. Fit and finish is excellent, driver components lean towards a more expensive MSRP. Great in a multiroom system, home theater, or near field monitors (as I used them with my laptop).

by Don, June 26, 2010

Strengths:

Can put them virtually anywhere. They look especially good in corners. Sound much better then Bose 161 or Klipsch S1 speakers.

Weaknesses:

None that I've found

Review:

Trying to find the right speakers for my 7.1 HT receiver. The main room in my apartment is wider than it is deep making it impossible to have speakers any distance behind me. Mounting them on the wall behind my sofa did not work as I was beneath the speakers and could not hear them well. I found a pair of OWM 3's and mounted them in the corners for the Surround Back. and they work great. A tremendous sound improvement over the Bose 161's they replaced.

by Tom@3121, August 6, 2010

Strengths:

Weaknesses:

Review:

they are small enough for sattellitle speakers and sound really good.The price is good and the quality is on.I especially like all the mounting options,shows someone is on the ball.I would buy these again in a minute.

by Richard Ciuffa, January 8, 2011

Strengths:

Quality, sound clarity, VALUE/PRICE, numerous mounting options.

Weaknesses:

Like many small speakers, the OWM3s lack low end punch, but anyone expecting these to do the job of a subwoofer or larger speaker/woofer is being unrealistic--especially at this price point. These are a deal!

Review:

I bought (4) of these OWM3s as surrounds and back surrounds to complete a 7.1 set-up in an oddly shaped living room. I run Monitor 70s as front, JBL Studio3ways for front high, a Polk CS1 center, and a Polk PSW505 powered sub--all handled by an Onkyo A/V receiver. The OWM3s bring have good clarity at the mid and high range, they look exceptional, and are well constructed. For the rears, I used Omnimount10 wall/ceiling mounts just so I could rotate them at any angle I desired. With the existing slots, I could have mounted these a dozen different ways quite nicely. The options add to their versatility and allowed for the other surrounds to be placed tilting toward the listener. Sound quality is surprising for this price range--and I have used small JBL and BostonAcoustics shelf speakers as rears in the past for comparison. The JBLs sounded somewhat raspy (highs a little extreme). OWM3s were an improvement and are solid performers. For the money invested, these are a true value.

by Claude Rodrigue, February 4, 2012

Strengths:

Very natural midrange Smooth highs Good efficiency

Weaknesses:

Need a subwoofer

Review:

I bought these speakers as a replacement/upgrade of Logitech Z-2300 satellites. The improvement is big : better efficiency and much better sound quality. The sound is more warm and natural, with very good midrange rendition. Highs are smooth like butter, yet detailed.

by Jeff H., January 6, 2013

Strengths:

Work very well as either surrounds or as rear speakers. Lots of mounting options for difficult room placements.

Weaknesses:

No weaknesses for what they are designed for.

Review:

These are pretty awesome little speakers. I have them set up as the rears in my 7.1 system which is all now Polk speakers driven by the Onkyo TX-SR608, As the rear speakers in my setup they perform very well. The mids are solid and clear and the highs are crisp and clear not harsh. Everything sounds so much better now that it is voice matched. My wife likes them too as they are smaller and sound better than the ones they replaced.