KEF Audio PSW 2500 Subwoofer Logo
Posted on Nov 29, 2009
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I have a Kef PSW 2500 that emits a loud buzz when on. I pulled the amp, but I'm not sure if its the speaker or amp. What should I be looking for the speaker outputs from the AMP? How can I tell if its a grounding issue?

  • androvia May 11, 2010

    Hi, I have a PSW 2500 that has exactly the same problem. I've seen the response to yours, relating to the capacitors. Can you share your actual resolution of the problem? Thanks, Andrew

  • Anonymous Jun 11, 2014

    Have a look here:http://lug.demon.co.uk/kefrepair

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  • Master 534 Answers
  • Posted on Apr 28, 2010
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Have just repaired a similar problem with a KEF 2500 - relay was chattering at 50 Hz rate, buzz in speaker output.

Problem was caused by overheated / dried out Electrolytic filter cap (C52 - 47uF 63V) on the relay coil supply feed.
The overheating is caused by adjacent power supply dropping resistors which run very hot due poor design of power supply.

A service manual for a similar model is available at following link, refer to power supply section:-
http://www.eserviceinfo.com/downloadsm/35375/kef_psw2000.html

To replace,
1) remove chassis from speaker cabinet (8 screws), disconnect red/black speaker wires from main PCB spade connectors.
2) Remove 4 screws attaching main pcb heatsink assembly from face panel - lift assembly from faceplate (a bit messy , much heartsink compound between mounting faces)
3) unplug the AC 3 pin connections adjacent to the large capacitors and the 3pin connector on end of pcb (near C52), then roll assembly over the top of the audio sub-board to access underside of pcb.
4) solder connections to C52 is accessible at edge of board without further dis-assembly.
Take extreme care replacing C52, as the circuit board is of poor quality, (usual domestic electronics quality) being single sided copper without plated through holes.
The board is already heat damaged by heat buildup from power supply resistors, so the track will most likely lift and crack when disturbed- to counter this problem link the +ve capacitor pigtail to an adjacent solder pad on the same track.
Assembly is reverse of above, take care to preserve/ensure minimum disturbance of heatsink compound.

  • 2 more comments 
  • Simon666 Nov 25, 2010

    Many thanks, this solution solved my KEF PSW2000 subwoofer hum. The total cost was 42p for the capacitor from Maplin. Much better than the £116 KEF wanted to repair it! They have already repaired it once 5 years ago and going my the soldering on the board, that was all they did previously!

    Many Thanks

  • ggcheyne Apr 08, 2011

    It may have been posted some time ago but boy what a result, 46p component from Maplin saved the day and cost of return to Kef. Many thanks for the post

  • CJ Moore
    CJ Moore Mar 15, 2016

    My father gave me this subwoofer and simply said "its broken, fix it and its yours". Thank you for this post!!! I'm an EE, so I can say that this fix was simple, but it may be more difficult for others that aren't as skilled with a soldering iron. I ended up changing C52 to a 100uF 85C cap (its all we had on hand at work). I kept the leads long on the cap to try and get it away from the power resistors. So far its been working like a charm.
    Two things I would do differently:
    1) If I were to buy a cap, I'd get one with a higher thermal rating to try and avoid the obvious heat issues that are in this section of the board.
    2) I am a bit concerned that the heat sink compound should be replaced. I may come back after getting some arctic silver to clean up this job.

    Happy fixing!

  • Kristof Derycke
    Kristof Derycke Aug 23, 2017

    THANKS A LOT !!!!!

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  • Posted on Jan 29, 2010
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I had the same buzzing on the 2500 after five years and KEF told me it was the relay that needed fixing. It costs £113 to repair and this includes it being sent back to you.

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  • Posted on Oct 25, 2012
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Fantastic, it worked for my PSW 2010 which had the buzzing sound...

:-)

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  • KEF Audio Master 5,755 Answers
  • Posted on Dec 02, 2009
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If this is a powered sub, then when the amp is not connected and it emits the buzz, then it's the sub that's at fault. It's perhaps a capacitor inside that's doing it. Have a look inside. Suspect the largest Electrolytic Capcitors first.

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My KEF (PSW 2150) ruffer speaker buzzes even with no input connection?

Your amplifier is bad. I sent mine to KEF in NY and they fixed it for $100 US.
tip

KEF PSW 2500 Relay buzzing and audio output buzz

Have just repaired a similar problem with a KEF 2500 - relay was chattering at 50 Hz rate, buzz in speaker output.

Problem was caused by overheated / dried out Electrolytic filter cap (C52 - 47uF 63V) on the relay coil supply feed.
The overheating is caused by adjacent power supply dropping resistors which run very hot due poor design of power supply.

A service manual for a similar model is available at following link, refer to power supply section:-
http://www.eserviceinfo.com/downloadsm/35375/kef_psw2000.html

To replace,
1) remove chassis from speaker cabinet (8 screws), disconnect red/black speaker wires from main PCB spade connectors.
2) Remove 4 screws attaching main pcb heatsink assembly from face panel - lift assembly from faceplate (a bit messy , much heartsink compound between mounting faces)
3) unplug the AC 3 pin connections adjacent to the large capacitors and the 3pin connector on end of pcb (near C52), then roll assembly over the top of the audio sub-board to access underside of pcb.
4) solder connections to C52 is accessible at edge of board without further dis-assembly.
Take extreme care replacing C52, as the circuit board is of poor quality, (usual domestic electronics quality) being single sided copper without plated through holes.
The board is already heat damaged by heat buildup from power supply resistors, so the track will most likely lift and crack when disturbed- to counter this problem link the +ve capacitor pigtail to an adjacent solder pad on the same track.
Assembly is reverse of above, take care to preserve/ensure minimum disturbance of heatsink compound.

A user tip- don't leave unit switched on when not in use- heat buildup will eventualy cause it to fail due dried out electrolytic capacitors.
Poor power supply design is the main source of the standing heat buildup.
0helpful
1answer

Hello ! I'm not sure how to connect my kef psw 2500 sub to my yamaha amp. I've got a subwoofer out on my amp but there's 4 inputs on the sub and I don't no which one to use ! Please help as getting...

Just for clarity, I need to explain what the four inputs are on the KEF subwoofer. There is a left and right RCA input which is the input signal to the subwoofer and there is a left and right RCA output which is the High Pass output from the subwoofer.

On the back of the Yamaha receiver, you said you have a subwoofer output. This output is most likely the mono subwoofer part of the home theater system and can be used if you like. The left right signal input into the KEF is summed into mono so if you only connect one channel you will basically reduce the signal level by 1/2 (-3dB) but it will work fine.

Alternatively, if your Yamaha receiver has monitor out and monitor in, you can run the monitor output signals to the subwoofer and you can then run the high pass outputs from the subwoofer back to the monitor in. This will give you the subwoofer and provide a smoother signal matching with your audio system.

It is not always easy to connect the subwoofer up to an integrated receiver/home cinema system using the high pass channels of the subwoofer as you don't always have access to the analog output and input of the front channels. In this case, just use the Subwoofer output or just the monitor out only.

I hope this solution is helpful.
6helpful
1answer

Can you please tell me how to connect my kef psw

If your amp has a "sub out" jack, that's the best way to hook up this sub. You'll just need a single RCA (also called "phono") cable. Connect it to the Left input on the sub, which should also be marked as "mono"

If your amp just has speaker-level outputs, then connect the left and right main speakers from your amp to the sub's high-level inputs, and then run wires from the sub's high-level outputs to your speakers.

If you're running a surround-sound setup, use the front-left and front-right speakers for this hookup.


If this helps, be sure to hit the "thumbs-up" button for me!
If not, post back with the "Add comment" and I'll do my best to answer any questions you've got.
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yes. A good idea. Kill power to the sub, then unplug and remove everything from the sub. go ahead and plug it in again and check for buzzzz.
That is test one. if you have buzz still, its the sub assembly. bad luck, but not impossible. If the buzz is gone its one of the signals to the sub. They can produce a buzzz without any signal coming from your stereo equipment. Replace the feed line, enjoy! BTW...Kef sure does sound clean. good choice.
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Buzzing noise from electric imput its been left on for last 2 years

Sounds like bad capacitors in power supply.you`ll need to take it to a repair shop if your not handy with lectronic parts and tools
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I just bought a KEF PSW2500 subwoofer and am trying to connect it to a Yamaha v663 receiver. However, I went from a subwoofer pre-out 1 to the right line in on the sub. I don't hear any sounds from the...

HI,go into the yam setup menu and make sure you have the sub turned on and cross over set to about 80hrtz if this suits your speakers,set sub level to about -5 on amp and say half way on the sub,this should work if not pull out sub cable at amp and touch the end,you should get a hum,if not you may have no power,faulty cable or sub.
PS>make sure you are pluged into the sub PRE OUT and NOT the six channel in.
Hope this helps.
CABLE GUY.
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I'm looking for a KEF PSW 3000 manual download

Try this website for KEF. They have all the manual downloads and I fixed my circuit board from calling them and asking for advice for free. The number or email to get a reply is here. Happy Holidays.

Mike

http://www2.kef.com/us/support/warranty
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