SUBSERIES 450

Product highlights:

• Frequency response: 20-150 Hz (±3dB)
  • Low frequency cutoff (-10dB): 15 Hz
• High-current Class D Discrete MOSFET amplifier custom built by NAD Electronics
• Power output: 400 watts RMS (1,000 watts dynamic peak)
• Front-firing 12" polypropylene woofer cone
• Two 10" side-firing passive radiators
• Bass-reflex (passive radiator) enclosure
• Continuously variable low-pass 50-150 Hz crossover
• Rear-panel volume, crossover, and variable 180° phase controls
• Line-level and LFE inputs/outputs
• Gold-plated binding post speaker-level inputs
• USB power port (5 volts, 500mA) for wireless adapters
• Remote trigger input
• auto on/off
• Ultra-low, energy-saving <0.5W standby power consumption
• Detachable power cord
• High-gloss black lacquer finish
• (W x H x D) 390 x 384 x 420mm
• Weight: 19.5 kg

Features

12" Woofer: The 12" woofer is built on a powerful motor using a 2.1kg magnet and a 70mm voice coil for high efficiency and power handling. The 6" spider assures perfect alignment at high SPLs which directly translates into very low distortion. The treated felt cone offers an ideal combination of stiffness and damping. Combined with a 25mm rubber surround, this driver can respond to the lowest frequencies while maintaining perfect pistonic motion without "cone breakup" often encountered on lesser drivers.

Dual 10" Passive Radiators: To extend bass response into the infrasonic region, two 10" passive radiators are used to sum the back wave output of the 12" woofer with the front wave. The two passive radiators are free of any wind noise or "port chuff" that can be a problem at very high sound pressures.

Class D Amplifier (by NAD): The PSB SubSeries 450 employs a very advanced amplifier developed by NAD specifically for this application. The massive power supply is capable of the instantaneous high current required for accurate and powerful bass response and is combined with an advanced Class D output stage. This amplifier features an extremely high damping factor and high current output, two of the most important parameters for tight and powerful bass output. It is also highly efficient and includes a very low power (<0.5W) standby mode, making the woofer instantly available yet very low in power consumption.

DSP (Digital Signal Processing): The use of digital signal processing has allowed PSB's engineering team to maximize all aspects of performance; low bass extension with low distortion, the flattest frequency, freedom from overload, and ideal crossover characteristics. As a result, the PSB SubSeries 450 powered subwoofer meets the demands of the most dynamic and explosive movie and music soundtracks

High-Gloss Cabinet: The PSB SubSeries 450 powered subwoofer features a soft-edged, cubic shaped cabinet with a beautifully, high-gloss black lacquer finish.

Controls: Adjustments for crossover frequency and volume level, as well as variable phase/delay, perfectly align the PSB SubSeries 450 powered subwoofer with the full range speakers in your system. These controls are found on the rear-panel of the powered sub.

• Volume Level: The rotary volume knob controls the output level of the powered subwoofer, relative to the volume of the other speakers in the system.
• Variable Crossover: The low-pass crossover adjusts the high-frequency roll-off of signals sent to the subwoofer. The control is continuously variable from 50 Hz to 150 Hz, and allows you to precisely match the subwoofer's bass production with your system's main left & right stereo speakers.
• Phase/Delay Dial: The phase/delay dial allows for the adjustment of the phase & delay of the subwoofer in relation to the speakers used in the system. The phase/delay is adjustable from 0 to 360 degrees.

Connections: The PSB SubSeries 450 powered subwoofer offers multiple connection options.

• LFE Input/Output: A single gold-plated RCA jack (LFE) is provided for connecting the powered subwoofer to your AV receiver's LFE output. Since the subwoofer/LFE outputs are filtered by most receivers/processors, the subwoofer's variable low-pass filter is not required and is bypassed. The powered subwoofer also has an LFE output for adding additional subwoofers.
• Stereo RCA Inputs: Two gold-plated RCA jacks are provided for connecting your source unit via the low-level input. If your receiver or integrated amplifier has preamp outputs, or if you are using a preamplifier without a designated subwoofer/LFE output, the preferred connection is to use a stereo RCA cable plugged into both left and right inputs. If the preamp outputs are unfiltered, the subwoofer's internal crossover should be used.
• Stereo RCA Outputs: The sub also has gold-plated RCA low-level output jacks, useful if your amp has pre-out/main-in jacks, or when using a separate preamp and amplifier. The low-level output is internally processed by the sub's active crossover; the high-pass slope is 12dB/octave and the crossover point is fixed at 80Hz.
• Speaker-Level Input: Two pairs of 5-way binding post terminals (for left & right channel) are provided for connecting the powered sub with speaker wire. The terminals will accept bare wire, spade lugs, pin connectors, and single or dual banana plugs.

Auto On/Off: The powered subwoofer features a main power switch on the back panel. When switched to On, the subwoofer is initially in stand-by mode, awaiting the presence of an audio signal. When the signal is received, the subwoofer turns on automatically. When no signal is detected, the sub's amp will automatically turn off after approximately 15 minutes. In the Off position, the subwoofer will not power up.

Canada is almost as far away from New Zealand as you can get, but it seems we are close on more than just stunning scenery and a large neighbour.
We also appear to share similar tastes in a great sounding loudspeakers. For over 30-years Canadian speakers have been popular addition to New Zealand homes. The Canadian sound differs from USA and UK markets, with their scientific approach being woven into the DNA of their products for the last 4 decades.
Perhaps inspired by nature, science or both, PSB are among the most awarded and reviewed Canadian loudspeaker companies.

THE “NATURAL AND OPEN” CANADIAN SOUND: INSPIRED BY NATURE In 1974, Paul met Dr. Floyd Toole, a world renowned psychoacoustician at the NRC, who conducted numerous studies to understand how sounds were interpreted by the human sense of hearing at both the psychological and physiological levels. To Paul, who had devoted much of his childhood to become an accomplished violinist, it was a “Eureka” moment. He had long puzzled over how to consistently reproduce on a set of speakers the unique timbres of different violins exactly as they would sound to him when he played them. What Paul immediately recognized upon listening to Dr. Toole describe his research was that his findings gave him the formula he needed to design speakers that to the human sense of hearing, would be perceived as organic sounding. In other words, he could create speakers that wouldn’t fatigue a listener over long periods of listening because the listener would perceive those sounds in the same way they would the nature’s roaring thunder of Niagara Falls to all the subtleties of the soundscapes at the Algonquin Provincial Park. In Dr. Toole, Paul found a lifelong friend and peer who would influence him and whom he influenced, all in the pursuit of a way to reproduce sounds that listeners would perceive as equivalent to that which was real, alive, and natural.