Polk hts 10 - low continuos power?

scipath

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Last year I purchased a Polk hts 10 subwoofer. I didn't think too much before my purchase and thought of buying the best my budget could allow. Since my speakers were Polk, and I liked them, I thought Polk subwoofers would go well with them. So I narrowed my options down to hts 10 (https://www.polkaudio.com/products/hts10) and dsw 550 (https://www.polkaudio.com/products/dsw-pro-550-wi), both 10 inch. I was more inclined towards dsw, because it had more power (200 W vs 100 W) and came with a remote, and had some features like night mode, 'room optimizer' which is basically four preset dsp, four phase knob, all of which hts 10 lacked. Unfortunately the store didn't have dsw 550 (had 660, which is 12 inch) so I couldn't compare the sound. The store owner told me hts 10 is a much better sub than the dsw, even though on paper dsw looks better. I trusted him, so purchased hts 10. And so far, I have no regrets. But I wonder how it is possible for a less powerful sub to do better? In his words, hts 10 was a 'well made' sub and sounded more powerful, probably because it is front firing driver with down firing port. Is there any truth to this? Also, 100 W rms seems to be very low compared to most other 10 inch subs I see. Is there any reason a company would choose lower power for a sub(Other than making more money)?
 
Subs are of various types, sizes and power....each one has their own characteristics and I support the view on HTS series....I seen them last year for the What Hi Fi show in Mumbai...the sales guy Manoj knows me well (ProFx) and gave a demo of HTS 10 and 12.....the 12 is better...the 10 is good.....

These links might help....to understand about subwoofers......



 
You didn't have the chance to compare both the subs so you can't conclude that hts10 is better. Most probably the dealer wanted to push the sub which he had in stock and thus recommended this one. As long as it fulfills your requirement, it's fine. Dsw550 is also a good sub and in a larger room it might do better than hts10.
 
You didn't have the chance to compare both the subs so you can't conclude that hts10 is better. Most probably the dealer wanted to push the sub which he had in stock and thus recommended this one. As long as it fulfills your requirement, it's fine. Dsw550 is also a good sub and in a larger room it might do better than hts10.
Thanks. I don't think the dealer just wanted to sell me whatever he had, because I purchased all my audio equipment from him and everything else I bought, speakers amps etc I, he did not have in stock and had it ordered for me. I think he genuinely believed hts 10 is better. Whether he is right or wrong, I do not know.
Edit: he suggested me the norge 2060, which I didn't know existed, and it sounds to me as good as stereo Amps 5 times the price, even though it lacks bells and whistles. That's why I trusted him with the sub
 
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Thanks. I don't think the dealer just wanted to sell me whatever he had, because I purchased all my audio equipment from him and everything else I bought, speakers amps etc I, he did not have in stock and had it ordered for me. I think he genuinely believed hts 10 is better. Whether he is right or wrong, I do not know.
 
But I wonder how it is possible for a less powerful sub to do better? In his words, hts 10 was a 'well made' sub and sounded more powerful, probably because it is front firing driver with down firing port. Is there any truth to this? Also, 100 W rms seems to be very low compared to most other 10 inch subs I see. Is there any reason a company would choose lower power for a sub(Other than making more money)?

There is no way to determine which of the two subs is better until & unless, they are measured for response in the same room.. So anyone who is blindly saying (without measurement) that a sub is better than an other sub is just "Imaginery"..

So I narrowed my options down to hts 10 (https://www.polkaudio.com/products/hts10) and dsw 550 (https://www.polkaudio.com/products/dsw-pro-550-wi), both 10 inch. I was more inclined towards dsw, because it had more power (200 W vs 100 W) and came with a remote, and had some features like night mode, 'room optimizer' which is basically four preset dsp, four phase knob, all of which hts 10 lacked.

I don't know much abt EQ settings on subwoofer, nor have used such subs..

From the specs, it appears that DSW 500 is a better one with more features than HTS10, but only if you would use those features (EQ) on the subs and if your AVR doesn't have EQ feature.. It has DSP presets, probably to give more flexibility to the user in positioning the subs and partly addressing the low freq issues in the room..

Most AVR's today have EQ inbuilt to address some of the low freq issues.. So it is just fine to pick a sub without EQ settings..
 
There is no way to determine which of the two subs is better until & unless, they are measured for response in the same room.. So anyone who is blindly saying (without measurement) that a sub is better than an other sub is just "Imaginery"..



I don't know much abt EQ settings on subwoofer, nor have used such subs..

From the specs, it appears that DSW 500 is a better one with more features than HTS10, but only if you would use those features (EQ) on the subs and if your AVR doesn't have EQ feature.. It has DSP presets, probably to give more flexibility to the user in positioning the subs and partly addressing the low freq issues in the room..

Most AVR's today have EQ inbuilt to address some of the low freq issues.. So it is just fine to pick a sub without EQ settings..
Thanks. So usually when purchasing subs do people bring a couple of subs to their homes and try them out at their homes and then decide? I notice people advising this is forums, but do dealers in India usually entertain such requests?
 
Thanks. So usually when purchasing subs do people bring a couple of subs to their homes and try them out at their homes and then decide? I notice people advising this is forums, but do dealers in India usually entertain such requests?

Nope.. No dealer will let you take the subs for home demo..Not remotely possible until you know the dealer very well..

A sub is to produce the deepest lowest freq response.. The best one can do when deciding for sub is to look for a sub with biggest possible driver (preferably 12 inch), which can go deeper than the smaller driver in the same lineup and add atleast one more, making it dual which have some advantages over any single sooper expensive sub..
 
The sub woofers you have listed are identical on their frequency response. The difference is in their design and construction which can lead to a change in how bass is produced.

Having listened to a Polk Rti A9 extensively, a speaker that follows the concept of Power Port, which is a flared bass port design, similar to what you see on the HTS-10, I have more confidence in this design that the usual boxed/port approach employed on the DSW Pro 500.

To figure out what sounds better can only be understood by listening to them.

If you have a long time relationship with your dealer, then it should be easy to ask for a demo piece of the DSW and compare them.

Never, ever buy a speaker without a demonstration.
 
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