bic f12 or psw505 ? - Page 3

Your mad because your Polk sub went out at the two year mark and you got a 5 year warranty. Hmm...

The POS is actually 3 yrs old, typo.

If you read the warranty, the amp is 3 yr and the speaker 5 year.

Would you guys recommend a pairing if the 505 with a pa120. Or should I get a second pa120.

I have all polk speakers

Great info in this thread. Thanks!

Sorry to revive such an old thread, but I figured it was better than starting a new one asking the same question.

I've put together my HT system all but the sub. I'm trying to decide between these two pretty soon. I've done so much reading over the last few days and I feel like I don't know anything more than I did a few days ago. Basically what I'm seeing is that the F-12 is maybe better for home theater use while the Polk is better for music. I'll be using the sub for almost completely movies and TV, and not music, but I'm concerned that the F-12 is going to be too loud and boomy for my use.

See, I won't be doing much music, but I live in an apartment and don't want my neighbors calling the landlord on me all the time. So when I hear something is aimed at movie use, it doesn't really strike me as a pro. I will be mainly keeping the volumes low, so I'm thinking I'd rather have the clarity. But I've also seen people have issues with the Polk's frequency response, which doesn't sound too promising.

I will be pairing this with a Yamaha RX-V671, Pioneer FS52 mains, Pioneer C22 center, and Pioneer BS22 surrounds. Part of the reason I ended up going with this setup rather than a Polk Monitor 60 or 70 setup is that, while the Polk's were clearly stronger and louder (expected for the higher price), they also sounded, to my ears, too overblown in the lows and mids. I valued the more neutral clarity of the Pioneers over the punch of the Polks. The same would hold true for the sub, and it seems like the Polk is a better fit for that.

I'm also interested in the warranty/quality aspect if anyone has any experience there. Part of the reason I'm even in this situation is that I had bought a Klipsch speaker setup with an RPW-10 sub, and the sub went out after two or three days. I returned everything and started over, and that brings me to where I am now. I don't want to go through that again. The BIC has the better warranty, but I'm the kind of person that would just rather not have to use it.

Also, my room is a smallish living room, probably 14x18 or so, but unfortunately it's directly open to the hallway and the dining room (10x12 or so), and there's even a "window" into the kitchen. Basically, the worst setup for a HT ever.

EDIT: Standard 7' ceilings and carpeted floors.

don't get the 505 its not worth it, you can go for the BIC as it sounds much better for the price.

either way both are often recommend as entry level budget subs and both have a lot of positive reviews, however due to my experience, i recommend the 505. my expereice with both has led me to like the 505 better. the bic f12 sounds like a one note wonder where as the 505 is more detailed, but neither are "great" subs.

http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volume_12_2/polk-psw-505-subwoofer-4-2005.html - Ed Mullen review of 505, little output below 30-35 Hz but still may be reasonable for music and some HT situations. “As expected, room gain helped considerably to improve deep extension, with the Polk holding flat to about 25 Hz, and then dropping to –10 dB at 20 Hz.” Polk sub amps have generally been quite reliable.

You can do a search for Archaea's review of the F12.

The 505 and F12 appear to be close enough to each other that there is no clear preference.

In the under $300 category, the BIC PL-200 is considered better than the BIC F12 or Polk PSW-505 according to individuals who have had both at the same time; in the under $400 category, the Hsu STF-2 is considered better than the PL-200 according to individuals who have had the PL-200 STF-2 simultaneously.