Product Review Thread: Amplifiers

[LastResort]

Purpose:
To end all those "Someone please recommend me an amplifier" threads.

The rules are simple:

• Review the products you have, have helped install, or have more than just casual exposure to.
• No arguing. This is a review thread, where people express their opinions. I want to keep it that way. If a friendly mod would please delete anything that is inflammatory or a response to a flame, I would be much obliged.
• No offtopic discussions. Keep it to Amplifiers, if this thread works, I'd like to do more threads for more components.
• Ask questions If you have a question about a function, performance, etc, please post it up, but don't bump it needlessly. But please don't go overboard, there is a PM button.

My thoughts:
The product doesn't even have to be current, as I think past reliability and performance from a manufacture is a good indicator of the future. At the same time, let's try to keep it somewhat relevant to products sold today. I know a couple of you are just itching to review that 8 track player. Also, please mention the other equipment that is directly connected if they relate, ie speakers/amplifier but not color of your car.

Glowing one line glowing reviews of a product do another shopper no good. Please list your complaints, triflingas as they may be, they could be a major issue for someone else. So please put some thought and time into these reviews for the other people.


One Last Thing (TM): A suggestion was made to list your experience level, So I tentatively suggest these categories.
None, Little, Moderate, Amature, Professional.
Just keep in mind, that if you didn't install the part, you're probably not what I would consider an amature. Which is fine, we're not bragging here, just giving some compartive value. Feel free to expound on your experince.

I'll post a quick one as an example of the format I'm hoping to see.

* Registered users of the site do not see these ads.

[LastResort]

Product:
A/D/S/ P440.2

Accessories:
Alpine CDA-7863, JL Audio 2 way components, and a 6 disk CD changer.

Cost:
I can't remember

Review:
This is really one of my favorite amplifiers for a number of reasons. For one, it came in 2,4, and 6 channels. It's incredibly small, with controls on the front, and all the power connections in the rear. The wires are actually connected to a phoenix style removable terminal block. The only improvement on this feature, was PPI, who added a sleeve for wire. It runs cool. With built in crossover, mixed mono, and easy to reach controls. It's an installers dream. It absolutely crushes most amps that are rated significantly higher, even quality brands. I have it running my JL Audio two-ways, and a DD Audio sub.

The bad news, it's discontinued. And it was expensive at the time. But if you are shopping for used equipment, it would be a great deal.

Conclusion:
Find it on Ebay. Buy it.

Audio Experience:
Amature, I've done some professional work before, and I lust for equipment I can't afford.

[anickode]

Product:
Pyle Pyle Dryver PLAD 250

Cost:
~$120

Review:
I bought this budget amp 2 years ago on ebay. It's a 2000 watt 2 channel amplifier, but being made by Pyle, It's probably more realistically a 1200 watt amp. I've been running some Audiobahn subs with 4 ohm dual voice coils, wired to 2 ohms per channel. Never had a problem with it. It stays cool under full drive power and comes with a remote bass control. I have since moved on to better quality products, but for $120, if you want a decent amp that can drive some larger subs, this is a cheap way to go.

Conclusion:
It's a cheap amp, but it seems to be reliable and relatively powerful. Buy it if you want cheap power.

[jay25RS]

Product:
McIntosh MC4000M 6 channel amp. 100 watts x 4 & 300 watts x 2

read about it here http://www.roger-russell.com/caraud.htm

Accessories:
Eclipse CD-8455, Boston Acoustics SPZ 60 components bi- amplified, 2 10" Boston Acoustics G2 subwoofers in G-Tuned enclosure.

Cost:
$4000.00, I got it for free!!!

Review:
By far, the best amplifier for sound quality. Specifications are .005% THD, power rated at 12 volts is guaranteed minimum. Every McIntosh amp can play momentarily up to 4 times its rated power. Every amp must play into a dead short for 30 seconds before it is shipped. It weighs at least 40 pounds and is about 30" +- wide. Beautiful blue watt meters. Sounds like you are at a concert!

It's no longer made. You can purchase a 4 x 100 and 2 x 300 watt McIntosh today but not in 1 chassis. They only make a 50 watt x 4 and 100 watt x 2 6 channel now.

Conclusion:
If you come across one and can manage the cash, do it!

[Daishi00]

Product:
Polk C400.4

Accessories:
Eclipse CD7000, AC Matrix, Seas Lotus Reference components, bunch of other stuff that doesn't really matter here

Cost:
$500 retail. paid $182.50 (gotta love dealer prices )

Review:
I was in the market for some nice quality amps for my high end SQ system i was putting together. I was set on giving the new Eclipse XA amps a shot, or the new Alpine PDX amps as well. A friend convinced me to try out the Polk, which I fought him for days about. I will freely admit I was a moron fighting him as the amp is EXCELLENT!!!

Pros: Accepts up to 8V input signal, puts out ~20***37; above rated RMS power output, has a massive amount of heat sink area, covers to hide all the wiring, accepts up to 4 gauge for power wire and up to 8 gauge for speaker wire. Also has front/rear gain/x-over/slope adjustments. One of the coolest features (on paper) is the "auto eq" feature which allows you to push it and automatically set all crossover and slope points on the system allowing you to run the Carbon series component drivers in an active setup. The amp has a very high S/N ratio (greater than 105dB) and a lower THD rating as well. As someone called me the other day though...basing things off specs is "dumb". Guess I'm a big dummy then as this thing is just a great amp and I purchased it based on the specs Paired up with a line driver allowed me to run the amp with the gains set all the way down keeping heat to a minimum while keeping the volume high. This is possible with the high 8V input that many amps, including high end units can't handle. This gives one more options with HU choices and gives you plenty of flexibility for signal matching. I can say that there was no noticeable coloration of the music tracks during my initial testing. This has led me to believe that this amplifier is excellent due to it's transparency with the incoming signal and truly does just "amplify" the incoming signal. In fact I am in the process of buying another C400.4 to add into my existing system in an active 4-way configuration because I am so impressed with this amp.

Cons: Thing is BIG. It is the absolutely largest amp you can fit under a seat in an Impreza based car. It's HEAVY (great for heat dissipation, bad for keeping your system weight down). The rear mounting screws are a specific type used as they go through the entire height of the amp. This could make it a bit difficult to replace if you lost/damaged one unless you go through Polk directly. It's getting up there in terms of amp cost. With a MSRP of $500 it is approaching low line Zapco and Arc Audio equipment, which can make the decision on what to buy a bit more "crowded".
Conclusion:

if you can find it for below the MSRP buy it...and love it.

[Daishi00]

Product:
Polk C500.1 (the review is almost the exact same as my C400.4 review above)
Accessories:
Eclipse CD7000, AC Matrix, !2" Alumapro Alchemy RX SQ, bunch of other stuff that doesn't really matter here

Cost:
$500 retail. paid $182.50
Review:
I was in the market for some nice quality amps for my high end SQ system i was putting together. I was set on giving the new Eclipse XA amps a shot, or the new Alpine PDX amps as well. A friend convinced me to try out the Polk, which I fought him for days about. I will freely admit I was a moron fighting him as the amp is EXCELLENT!!!

Pros: Accepts up to 8V input signal, puts out ~10***37; above rated RMS power output, has a massive amount of heat sink area, covers to hide all the wiring, accepts up to 4 gauge for power wire and up to 8 gauge for speaker wire. Also has gain/x-over/slope adjustments. The amp has a very high S/N ratio (greater than 105dB) and a lower THD rating as well. As someone called me the other day though...basing things off specs is "dumb". Guess I'm a big dummy then as this thing is just a great amp and I purchased it based on the specs Paired up with a line driver allowed me to run the amp with the gains set all the way down keeping heat to a minimum while keeping the volume high. This is possible with the high 8V input that many amps, including high end units can't handle. This gives one more options with HU choices and gives you plenty of flexibility for signal matching. I can say that there was no noticeable coloration of the music tracks during my initial testing. This has led me to believe that this amplifier is excellent due to it's transparency with the incoming signal and truly does just "amplify" the incoming signal. The limiting factor is my sub, not the amp.

Cons: The rear mounting screws are a specific type used as they go through the entire height of the amp. This could make it a bit difficult to replace if you lost/damaged one unless you go through Polk directly. It's getting up there in terms of amp cost. With a MSRP of $500 it is approaching low line Zapco and Arc Audio equipment, which can make the decision on what to buy a bit more "crowded".
Conclusion:

if you can find it for below the MSRP buy it...and love it.

[YANG_STI]

Product:
Alpine Pdx 1.1000

Accessories:
alpine 9885, 2 type-x 10" subs, pdx 4.100, mb quart 5.25ref, audiobahn 7 eq,
Cost:
800

Review:
the amp does a fine job pushing the type-x. No distortion.

Conclusion:
good amp but pricey

Audio Experience:
Amature, I've done some professional work before

[snorekl]

Someone didn't read the thread title. That was a subwoofer review and this thread was supposed to be for amps. Oh wel..

[Daishi00]

I let Mulder know...hopefully he can move it to the correct thread.

[MatchstiK]

Product
Blaupunkt VA2200 (2 x 100w)

Accessories
12" Dayton Audio HO Sub

Cost
$130

Review
I bought this amp (and sub) on recommendation from another forum, and he had already steered me well on building my own set of bookshelf speakers, so I trusted him. I was leery of Blaupunkt, but he swore that they belied their price, and was a solid amp. He was completely right. The amp is really clean, and drives the 12" sub perfectly. It's not the perfect amp, but you'd be hard pressed to find something better for the price. I believe it's been discontinued though, so eBay is the best source. I just bought a matching VA2100 to drive my new MB Quart components, so we'll see how it goes.

Conclusion
Great amp for the price. Performance belies Blaupunkt name.

[EGY5]

Product:
Audiobahn A800V (800x1@2ohms)

Accessories:
MB Quart PWE354, Two (2) ACAP7P 1F caps

Cost:
Amp = $190 (woofersetc)

Review:
This amp delivers on everything you need from a sub amp. I had never worked with a 2ohm set up before, so for some reason I was expecting some delivery/instability issues. I was not expecting the kind of reliability and performance I got. After doing some diagnostics during tuning, I was completely impressed with the smoothness/stability of the amp. If it wasn't for the rattling I'm having trouble controlling I could push it even further.

Easy installation, GREAT look, and the digital voltmeter is always helpful. Only downside was no screws included with the amp for mounting. Not that big a deal but slightly annoying.

Conclusion:
If it matches your needs I don't see how you can have a better amp for the price.

Audio Experience:
Amature, installations and simple scope/meter readings for these kinds of power levels.