best amps?

sntnsupermen131 · January 2003

What are the best class d amps anyone on this forum has used or heard about?

PoweredByDodge · January 2003

Class D's going to see its day end soon... disgustingly High THD ratings and poor damping factors will be the doom of it... even tho I myslef use two class D's for my subs, I still believe that class AB is a better choice -- problem is -- 1000 class AB watts cost a lot more than 1000 class D watts... anywho, here's my opinion, in some sort of order....

ZAPCO C2k 6.0... when the C2k 9.0 came out, i drooled over it and wanted it before i ever heard it in action... then everybody started knocking it for one thing or another... the final straw being that it did not hit its "reported" 2200 RMS... that it only pushed 1750... however the 6.0's got a bit better reputation... rated at 1350 rms, it supposedly will do that and a bit more... thd is disgustingly low... i believe 0.04% if i'm not wrong... the damping factor over 700 ... its a nice piece of equipment... only problem is you need a symbilink processor or you can't hook the damn thing up -- no RCA in's... that and the cheapest i couldfind one was 900 dollars used (demo model) from a dealer in WAshington State. It's not really class D though. its class T... but anyway...

ROCKFORD BD 1500.1 ... for its class, it has low thd, gets a bit too hot for my taste, but its a STUD... you'll get a solid 1750 out of it. sure, 1000 bucks is a lot to retail an amp at, but its still a lot less than a dollar a watt. I'm no rockford fan, but its a good amp, and I've seen it do good things.

MTX 1000D / 81000D... solid amps that push around 1200 watts. It's also fairly low profile, by no means "huge", and stays cool under duress.

MTX 6500D/500D -- see above... 500d's came outa the box 700 - 750... nice amps... 6500's only did 600 - 650.

Crossfire 1000.1... it won't do over spec, but its cheap, and its fairly clean... cleaner than the mtx... then again a lot of amps are. Crossfire has been a part of many show/comp cars and has done quite well for itself.

JBL BP 1200.1... I've been "pushing" this amp to everone that wants 1000 watts but doesn't want to pay over 200 bucks... it'll do about 1300 if you're lucky, is quite reliable, not dirty at all, but it lacks a subsonic filter... its a basic bare bones amp... not much of a bass boost either -- 6 db at 40 hertz... but still... 230 bucks shipped off ebay is a no brainer.

JBL BP 600.1 / 300.1 ... see above.

[[ insert silence -- watching video - "Deana Carter - there's no limit" -- screaming "NICE SHORTS BABY!" -- *drool*]]

Keske944 · January 2003

If you got the money you can do what I did. Go Audiobahn. They have some nice calss D with very low THD levels. For example the A18001DQ can pump out 1800 w @ 1 ohm and only has a 0.05% THD. If you need something smaller check out the A8001D (800 w x1 @ 1 ohm with 0.05% THD). Or the middle of the road A12001D (1200 w x1 @ 1 ohm 0.05 THD). These are excelent high quality amps and are all fan cooled to stay cooler. I started off with Kenwood amps but fell in love with the look and power of the Audiobahns. More expensive but I am working on building a 2480 w system with Polk/MOMO and Audiobahn. Check out thier amps usually around $235-$500 on ebay.

PoweredByDodge · January 2003

when i was deciding on what to power my idmaxes with i saw an audiobahn high current comp amp that was somethin fierce like 3000 rms or something... i wish i remembered the model.... it wasn't class D tho... it was AB... but god was it nice lookin. Massively out of my price range though, and my price range was almost 1,000 bucks, so that tells you something.

Jstas · January 2003

I have a recommendation that some are going think badly of but I don't care.

I put a HiFonics Zeus 5 channel amp in my girlfriend's car and it's very nice. Very clean.

They also have Class D amps in their D-CLASS range. They are powerful and fairly clean. Decent prices too, especially at the online wholesalers.

But, if you can find a dealer and they have one hooked up, take a look at the HiFonics Generation XI series. Very high power very clean sound and pretty expensive but worth every penny.

HiFonics has been around for a while and not a whole lot of people know of them. I remember a friend having a Hawk and an Eagle amp from HiFonics and they worked very well and had a nice clean sound. They didn't come cheap but they were worth the money. A very under-rated company who should have a better reputation, IMO.

Here is a link to thier site:
HiFonics Website

sntnsupermen131 · January 2003

anyone know why hifonics hasnt made a big name yet?
is audiobahn the "premier brand" of amps?

PoweredByDodge · January 2003

audiobahn is by no means "premier" -- they're in the same "upper mid class" range as mtx / fosgate / cadence / jbl / alpine and the likes...

the only thing premier about audiobahn is their prices -- thats the ONLY reason i dont "like" audiobahn... they make a great product, but its overpriced.

as far as why hifonics hasn't hit paydirt --- i dunno... they're just not a real "stud" amp like zapco, xtant, alphasonic, harrison labs and the like. once they start making amps that can really compete with brands like mentioned above, then they'll probably start to make more "friends" in the industry.

hifonics also doesn't have a good marketing department... they're not sold in many retail chain stores -- and they really ought to try to get in there... they'd sell a lot more product. god knows they're better than a lot of the junk you see on the shelf now a days.

sntnsupermen131 · January 2003

so what class d amps are in the "upper class"?

PoweredByDodge · January 2003

honestly dude -- there are no "upper class" class D amps -- least none i've been made aware of... high end companies dont make class D amps... least not usually.

Zapco makes a class T amp -- which while related to a D, is not by any stretch of the imagination a D... it's like sayin a 1970's VW Beetle is the same as an 1986 Ferrari because "They're both cars, not trucks"...

Orion is straying away from the D's -- at last i checked, they're not making a monster class D anymore -- the last one being a 2300 watt x 1 job, now they've got these HCCA high current amps.

Earthquake makes a class D that's supposed to bring the wood, but Earthquake has never been one for sound quality -- and seeing as these amps are only making inroads in the SPL comp scene, I tend to believe that is their purpose. But even earthquake is not a "really good" name in the industry.

The only one i can think of -- and i'm shocked i even thought of this one -- the Oz Audio Triagle amp... 2100 watts rms x 1. Oz audio is a true SQ company... their components and woofers are of a superb quality... they only make one amp, the 2100 x 1 triangle amp. I've never heard it, nor have i ever even read a review on it... but I consider Oz Audio to be "upper class", and they do make that one class D amp -- so there ya go. ... last i checked it was like 2,000 or 3,000 dollars, something fierce.

If you want power these days, and want to be "high end audiophile" at the same time then its high current amps -- usually around 0.5% thd, give or take depending on the manufacturer... damping (usually 500 - 1000) is often 3 times that of your better class D's. And overall sound quality is better. They also cost a small fortune. I priced some HC amps when i was lookin for the 81000d's -- and it was that drastic price difference that made me say "i'll live with not so great amps for now when they're 350 each rather than spend another 2,000 bucks for two HC 1200 watt amps"...

US Amps out of Tampa is a company that skirts the line between "upper class" and the "upper mid class" -- asthetics and price being the difference... US Amps are cheaper and more basic looking in appearance than most of the "permier" gear like Alphasonic / Zapco / or Brax... but they perform as well. they're all class AB or class A vaccuum tube amps. The thd is sick low.

Someday - I'm buying a 98 Cadillac Eldorado... signature vogue rims, but goodyear eagle 1 race tires... and i'm going to fill it with Zapco Studio Series amps, IDmax subs, Oz Audio midbass woofers, Focal Utopia component sets, and an Alpine head. Then, then I'll be happy.

TrappedUnder Ice · January 2003

Vinnie...you Ghetto monster you ........:)

Class D amps came about to supply the SPL needs of the {BASS-0-Hollics} in the lanes.. provide a lot of dirty power and not suck your electrical system as dry ( depending on size of amp).

personaly... I'm an old school A/B guy and not a real bass head. Never really thought of getting a Class D amp..

Systems · January 2003

Blaupunkt makes several class "T" amps. Not sure if they were first tho. They are compact and run cool enough to be covered in a plastic case. Of course they dont make the power of a class "D". Nor do they claim to be 1ohm stable like most of them.

19ram98 · January 2003

I like my mmats d200 class d amp. The bass is tight and controlled. The amp itself is compact, reliable, and does not get hot, barely warm for that matter. The THD <.1% at rated output. I personally will only use class d amps for subs. AB designs are too expensive to get comparable power and they waste too much energy. just my$0.02

best amps?

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