Cool Running 2 Channel Amp Suggestions

Gaara

OK Polkies what it need is simple, a 2 channel amp or 2 mono blocks that run cool and can be had for below $500. Looks isn't that big of deal, power isn't a huge issue, they just have to run cool and be below $500.

I will be using these in my system with Gallo Due's, which are 8ohm speakers and will be crossed over at 60 or 80hz. These speakers are only rear surrounds in a 7.1 system, and are not used much. They will not be getting to much info since my system is not Dolby Prologic IIx enabled. I am currently using a Halo A23 which is warm when on and can get hot in use. I have it hooked up to a pair of LSi7s right now, which are 4 ohm, but it did the same thing when hooked up to my 8ohm Gallo Ref3s. This little amp sounds fantastic, but the heat is a issue so it must go.

So far from my reading I haven't came up with much, Class D amps seem to run cool but are a little pricey. Certain Rotel models seem to run cool, but thats all I have found. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Jared

venomclan

Hi Gaara,
An amp/amps that will fit your budget and coolness are the Outlaw M200 mono's, they run very cool because they are class G after 80 watts. I had 3 of them stacked and they barely got warm. My Krell amp can cook a steak, but the Outlaws are chilly. They should be fine for surround use only.
Venom

AndyGwis

My smaller Carver TFM-6's run really cool. Not sure what makes them cool, but I had them stacked and they don't get warm at all. For two ($300 or so), they pump out 200wpc bridged into 8oms and would be good for fronts. I have one running mono for center channel right now, works great.

If you want a bargain deal for amps to power those rears, let me know and we can talk about the carvers. I would even let you demo if you paid shipping should you return them.

On the other hand, my ST-202 runs real warm.

AndyGwis

If you are looking to move the Parasound, maybe we can swap (with possible cash consideration) for a while. I would love to audition the A23 against my b&k to see how it holds.

Where are you located? If shipping is marginal, may be a good swap or cheap experiment. PM me sometime.

Early B.

Another vote for the Outlaws. You can set a beer on top of them to keep it cold.

cfrizz

Yup, Outlaws don't get even slightly warm!

del44

The Rotel RB1070 is a cool running amp. They can be had on the bay or audiogon for under $500. 130 per channel and the good looks are an added bonus.:D

halo

Sonic Impact. Doesn't get warm at all imo. The sound is clean and the price is right. Just make sure you have a 1A wall wort ac adaptor to power it.

Lsi9

I reccomend Marantz Monoblocks

dorokusai

Halo wrote:

Sonic Impact. Doesn't get warm at all imo. The sound is clean and the price is right. Just make sure you have a 1A wall wort ac adaptor to power it.

Also make sure you have the original box to pack it right back up.

halo

dorokusai wrote:

Also make sure you have the original box to pack it right back up.

Don't be a hater Russ & Chuck (among others) know what that little sucker can do!

schwarcw

Jared,

I upgraded the power cable on my Halo A21 and it runs cooler now. I'm driving 2.3's which are 5 or 6 ohm. The PS Audio Plus cable helped a lot with the heat issue. Mine never got really hot, but very warm. Now it's a low to medium warm. The bigger power cord also improved the low end punch. You may want to give this a try.

dorokusai

Halo wrote:

Don't be a hater Russ & Chuck (among others) know what that little sucker can do!

I'm aware of that information, they are my friends, but when that flag starts being waved....you let me know.

AndyGwis

Power cords help heat? Learn something new everyday.

I would like my ST-202 to run a little cooler, but it doesn't have a removeable/replaceable power cord. Any ideas on replacing the unreplaceable and/or troubleshooting very warm amp?

Add: Just hit triple digit posts, SWEET!

halo

Mark - I thought that the SI meets Gaara's stated needs:

• 2 channel amp
• Runs cool
• Looks aren't that big of deal
• Power isn't a huge issue
• Just has to run cool and be below $500

Gaara wrote:

I will be using these in my system with Gallo Due's, which are 8ohm speakers and will be crossed over at 60 or 80hz. These speakers are only rear surrounds in a 7.1 system, and are not used much. They will not be getting to much info since my system is not Dolby Prologic IIx enabled.

The SI (new model or original) is a cool running 2 ch amp below $500 with modest power for surround speakers that get limited use / info, no?

dorokusai

I know what you meant, no problem, am I not allowed to comment?

halo

dorokusai wrote:

I know what you meant, no problem, am I not allowed to comment?

Guess I just misunderstand ya sometimes Sorry bro

Gaara

Wow lots of crazy stuff going on up in here.

Venomclan,

It seems that everyone agrees with you that the M200s are great little units. The only problem with these is finding them, as the new ones sell for $625. I can wait, I haven't been using my 7.1 much, no biggie.

Andy,

Trading would not work out because I live in CT right by MA, that would be costly shipping a 40lb box back and forth. The A 23 I will be looking to sell off eventually, when I have time, which is rare. Actually I have a pair of LSi 9s and a LSi C in the hallway that I have been meaning to sell for close to six months, just haven't had the time. I'll be sure to read up on the carvers though.

Early B, CFrizz,

Thanks for chiming in, that is three votes for the outlaws. My only question now is do these little guys hum? I read somewhere that they had a problem with a slight mechanical hum. Not a deal breaker because my Cinenova does hum occasionally, as well as my SWL, just good to know beforehand.

Del44,

I have heard very good things about the Rotel units, which is why I first was looking at them. It seems they sound great, have a good price, and keep cool, everything I am looking for, plus they look nice. If I could get a RB1070 cheap or a RB 1050 I would be all over it. I love the look of them, and it would actually match my monster surge.

Halo,

Interesting idea, I actually might get one of these, just not for the main system. I always wanted something like this, because I play alot of music outside by the pool, and hate having to go find a 50ft extension cord. I would love to be able to just hook up speakers and a portable cd player and be rocking. The price to is just shocking.

Lsi9,

Marantz Monoblocks eh? I've got to do some reading on these, they look...interesting. Long and thin, I kinda like this because I could place them on the left side of my rack, or actually in back of components that aren't very deep. I could put them practically anywhere. Plus they get good reviews from what I have read, and are dirt cheap, I saw some go on Agon 5 for $575, silly.

schwarcw,

I tried using a different power cord but nothing really changed. I currently use at least hospital grade 14 gauge cords on all of my equipment, I used a VH Audio Flavor 4 cord for a while but nothing really changed. At the time I had them hooked up to my 8ohm Gallos and it still was getting hot.

Well thanks for all the comments everyone, I have more reading to do while at work.

Jared

cfrizz

I have never heard a hum from mine. I had major hum when I hooked up my Parasound, but took care of it. Naturally there is a little hiss through the speakers, but you won't notice unless you put your ear right up against it.

Keep an eye on Audiogon. Sometimes they pop up for sale there.


"Early B, CFrizz,"

"Thanks for chiming in, that is three votes for the outlaws. My only question now is do these little guys hum? I read somewhere that they had a problem with a slight mechanical hum. Not a deal breaker because my Cinenova does hum occasionally, as well as my SWL, just good to know beforehand."

Gaara

OK everyone thanks again for all the opinions, in the end I ended up going with a Rotel RB-1070 in black.

I am very happy I went this route for three reasons, first...I am an idiot. A friend came over and were were all set to play some SuperSmash Brothers...except my gamecube wouldn't turn on. So I checked to see if it was plugged in, and it wasn't. I recently cleaned and used pro-gold on my entire system, and must have forgotten to plug the gamecube in. So in the end I really didn't have one extra open outlet, and I would have had to plug one amp in with no conditioning.

The second reason I am happy to have gone this route is looks, I love the look of this thing! It looks awesome on or off, and it gives my rack and aggressive look to it, pretty sweet.

The third reason is this thing runs cool, extremely cool. I let it play for three hours with no crossover into my rear surround, with music with lots of deep bass just to test it out. When I came back, much to my surprise, the left side was slightly warm and the right side was cool. I expected it to be warm all over and maybe a bit hot, but nope barley warm on one side and cool on the other. Very happily surprised.

So everyone thanks for the advice and you will be seeing my little Halo on the flea market any day now.

Jared

cfrizz

Congrats! Enjoy the Rotel, they make great equipment!

ohskigod

cant go wrong with Rotel no matter how you slice it, I allways liked that brand. Rotel amps have served me well for a long time

GATOR3000

cfrizz wrote:

I have never heard a hum from mine. I had major hum when I hooked up my Parasound, but took care of it. does hum occasionally, as well as my SWL, just good to know beforehand.

cfrizz,
How did you get rid of hum on your Parasound amp? I have Parasound amp and have hum in my L/R speakers. It is very loud 10' away.

Thanks

Gator

steveinaz

1. Do you have a television hooked into your system?
2. Try the "ground lift" switch if your Parasound has it
3. If it doesn't, use a cheater plug and try your plug into the wall reversed

If the answer to #1 is yes, do you have a ground loop isolator connected from your cable wall jack? Cable drops are the #1 cause of hum in systems. The hum is transferred from your connected DVD or VCR and/or the TV itself if you have the TV connected to an input.

GATOR3000

steveinaz wrote:

1. Do you have a television hooked into your system?
2. Try the "ground lift" switch if your Parasound has it
3. If it doesn't, use a cheater plug and try your plug into the wall reversed

If the answer to #1 is yes, do you have a ground loop isolator connected from your cable wall jack? Cable drops are the #1 cause of hum in systems. The hum is transferred from your connected DVD or VCR and/or the TV itself if you have the TV connected to an input.

Hi Steveinaz,

I do have TV hooked up un the same line. Don’t have the ground switch on Parasound amp. (Paraspond HCA 1500A). Don’t know what is a cheater plug. Can I make one? If so how?

Have to look if the ground loop isolator is on my TV line in. Is it kind of cylindrical device about 2” long on my cable line?

The hum comes out of the L/R speaker after source connection to the amp from my receiver’s preouts.

Thanks for your help.

Gator:)

Gaara

Halo,

The Sonic Impact was a great idea. I didn't use it for my main rig but have it running downstairs right now in a secondary system. I got the Super to try for now but may move that upstairs for my computer system and get the standard for downstairs. So far it plays plenty loud, sounds great, and is still cold after being run continuous for about three hours now. Thanks for the recomendation; you are the one that got me reading about these units.

Jared

jdhdiggs

CARVER, CARVER, CARVER, CARVER...

The way they are built/desing them makes them SUPER cool. I had one rated at 400W@4Ohm blasting my maggies for a couple hours with more than half the vents blocked and the thing was still at room temp. This was an a500x that I got for around $350 shipped and will give you 250W @8 per channel.

halo

Gaara wrote:

Halo,

The Sonic Impact was a great idea. I didn't use it for my main rig but have it running downstairs right now in a secondary system. I got the Super to try for now but may move that upstairs for my computer system and get the standard for downstairs. So far it plays plenty loud, sounds great, and is still cold after being run continuous for about three hours now. Thanks for the recomendation; you are the one that got me reading about these units.

Jared

Wow, happy to help and I'm glad it worked out for you Shocking results, eh? I still have mine even though I'm in an all tube rig now.

When I sold my RTA 15TL's (local pick up thank gawd) I had the SI and a Philips portable CDP hooked up so the guy could demo them. When he asked me how much power I was sending to them I said "About 5 watts". At first he kind of laughed and looked at me like I was nuts. I pointed out the little amp to him. He had no idea what to make of it so I told him to go ahead and put it at full volume. His jaw hit the floor after that.

I appreciate the credit but if it weren't for madmax and faster100 I never would've bothered with it either. Makes you really wonder if IC's, PC's, and speaker cables really make a difference