Anyone own a sunfire or outlaw amp?

Shell

I would like to know the opinion of the sunfire cinema 5 and outlaw 755 amps? I have Lsi 9's speakers. Does the sunfire really stay cool like they say, with the technology Bob Carver uses?

Thanks
Ps don't leave me hanging. I will even welcome being flamed to being ignored.

madmax

I have the sunfire 300 stereo amp. It stays cool. Same design.
madmax

amulford

I have a Sunfire Ultimate Receiver. 200 WPC x 7. It isn't one of their dedicated amps but uses the technology , too. It has seen some serious use, and does run as cool as they claim.

Shell

Thanks for the quick replies. How about the sound? I keep reading that the sunfire is a very warm sounding amp. I have the outlaw 950 pre/pro.

My cabinet is semi enclosed so a cool running amp would be best. A used sunfire is about the same price as a new outlaw amp, and you hardly ever see used outlaw amp for sale.

Thanks again

Frank Z

I've been running an Outlaw 7100 for well over a year and haven't had any problems with it at all. You might want to check out their site and see if you can get a discount since you've already purchased from them in the past.

How about a few words from you regarding the 950's performance?

PolkWannabie

I have dual Sunfire Cinema Grand II Sigs ...

I would not classify them as overly warm in their sound with the exception of the optional current outputs which imho are a little too warm for my taste but to each his/her own.

I find them to be excellent cool running amps for music and HT which will drive any speaker out there well.

Shell

Thanks PW.

How about a few words from you regarding the 950's performance?

Actually Frank, I got the 950 on the flea market here from jholmes (great seller) about 3 months ago and do not have an amp to run it. So I can not tell you how it sounds yet. I am running my LSI 9's with an old yammie that has a 6 ohm switch, they still sound great. What are you driving with the 7100 and is it enough power for a fairly large room?

Outlaw has B stock amps for the 7100 $825 with free shipping, but I am worried the 100 WPC will not be enough. Unfortunately they are sold out of the 755 B stock amps (200wpc), so I would have to buy a new one for 1299 plus shipping. I just saw a sunfire cinema grand 5 that is 200 wpc go for 1124 plus 25 shipping. Plus the sunfire has XLR hook ups as well as RCA, and it runs cool. Also, they have two types of speaker outputs one current the other volts. The current I believe is suppose to sound like a tube amp. Yes I have been reading up on the sunfire. So I am kind of sold on the sunfire if I can get a good deal on a used one.

Shell

Frank, I just clicked on your link. Holly crap that is a dream setup. Are you running the 15's with the 7100, if so how do they handle them power wise?

If I had those chairs my friends would never leave.:D

madmax

With the sunfire 300 I am not happy with the sound of my SDA's as compared to tubes. However, when bi-wired with my LSi7's I am very impressed. The sunfire will kick **** when high current operation is required. Musically it sounds great with the '7's but here again, with the SDA's it cannot compare to the tubes. Different animals these LSi's and SDA's.

madmax

Frank Z

Shell,
Thanks for the kind words.

I'm running all 7 speakers with the 7100. The 7100 puts out 165wpc x 7 @ 4 ohms with all channels driven. I've turned the volume all the way up (only once) and the amp kept right on plugging along, the speakers sound incredibly loud, but still incredibly clear.

Dr. Spec

3 stacked M200 monoblocks (300 into 4 ohms). All run cool during normal HT use. During aggressive extended music use (putting the spurs to them as Russ would say), they barely run lukewarm.

Toxis

We have the Sunfire Ultimate Receiver at work running a 7.1 setup in our lil custom room. It's at the bottom of a huge rack of electronics built into the wall. The circulation is almost non-existant and it never has cutout or overheated. Everytime I think about it (rarely), I open it up to see if it's getting hot and it's barely breathe warm to the touch.

nemos2

Shell,

I have the outlaw 755, and while not the ideal setup, I keep it in a mostly enclosed cabinet, although there is a fair amount of space on all sides of the amp. I am using it to Drive my LSi15's and my LSiC, and it never gets more than luke warm. When I am running the amp for longer amounts of time, I do open the door to the cabinet a little to Vent the amp, but again, It has never gone into protection mode, or been to hot to touch. So....

I love the 755, just make sure that you are ready to move 90 some pounds around.....its a beast.

Ian

Shell

I appreciate all the input. This forum is great. So here is the long version of what I decided, if anyone cares.:rolleyes:

Rating the two amps.
Heat- A wash between the two amps. Both owners have had no problems with heat.

Sound- Another wash. From reviews and couple of comments here it sounds like the sunfire is a warm amp. I know the sound is mostly controlled by other factors, but sunfire uses a low slew rate (whatever that means) to make it sound warm. However, I am fairly happy with the sound of my cheap Yamaha receiver, so both amps will sound great to a novice.

Price- Outlaw wins. I could get a used sunfire on ebay for less, but then I have to go through the hassle and stress.

Power- A wash between the two. If the 7100 is powerful enough to run Frank's awesome setup it will be more then enough for mine.

Made in the US- Sunfire. A big selling point to me. Outlaw is designed in the US but outsources the manufacturing. However, if I buy a used sunfire on Ebay, then no money will be going into American manufacturer pockets.

I decided to go with a B stock outlaw 7100 for $825 delivered. I only have a 5.1 system and can use the two extra channels to bi amp my mains, if I need more power for two channel music.

Thanks everyone.

marcpam

you won't be dissapointed, good choice

nemos2

Shell,

I could be wrong, (but I do not think so...) The 770, 755, and 7100 are built in the USA I thought. I am not sure about the 950, but I was pretty sure that the outlaw amps were built here in the US.

Maybe I am wrong.....off to go do some searching..

Shell

nemos2, you could be right. I was reading about the 950 being outsourced to Taiwan. So the amps very well could be made here, which would make me happy.