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Review 3 of 7
Price Paid:
$220.00 Year / Model Reviewed: 2000 Strengths: Fairly cheap, -18 dB/octave adjustable LPF, puts out over 400 RMS @ 4 ohms ... Weaknesses: Produces less than rated power (410 RMS), loud fan, goes into protection with 4 ohm mono loads on hot days (Even though I have 10% tint protecting it), inefficient, gains possibly mislabeled Summary: I've owned this amp for almost 2 years now and I can't say it isn't durable. I, however, can say that this amp isn't all it's cracked up to be.
Value - ~400 RMS for $400 Canadian is pretty good. However, it says 460 RMS but mine benched at 408 RMS into 4 ohms @ 14.4 Volts. Carsound.com did a review one this amp and it did 418 RMS (2x214 RMS into 2 ohms stereo) into 4 ohms mono @ 14.4 Volts, so it's very likely that if you buy this amp, you won't be getting 460 RMS as stated.
Sound Quality - Loud fan, clips pre-out voltage is matched (Could be mislabled, but all I know is that I have 1.1 V {measured} pre-outs and I have to set this amp to 1.8 Volts to prevent it from clipping.), turn-on bumps are muted pretty well, crossover is alright, overall sound quality is average at best.
Design/Appearance - While I love the blue LED, it's kind of ugly.
Durability - Lasted 2 years ...
Features - Bass expander makes bass sound boomy (That's bad, unless you like that stuff). Bass boost has a pretty narrow Q, so you get very peaky bass. Crossover is -18 dB/octave and adjustable between 50-200 Hz. It prevents turn-on/turn-off bumps well. Power supply is pretty basic and will not support 2 ohm mono loads very well. With 60 amps worth of fuses (2x30A), I expected a lot more power, but, as it turns out, this thing is just really inefficient. My Class A Pioneer Premier puts out 390 RMS with just 40 amps worth of fuses and it's a Class A (Most inefficient class of amplifiers)!!! Mind you, that amp is worth almost twice as much as this one, but still ... that's an inefficient amplifier if I ever did see one ...
Overall - It's all right, but I'd recommend another amp. The fan will drive you nuts after about 6-9 months and the overrated power and high distortion rates do not turn me on. The US Acoustics USX2150 is a much better amp that puts out more power, puts out cleaner power, has better crossovers, and costs less. Similar Products Used: Pioneer Premier GM-X1020
US Acoustics USX2080
Clarion APX200.2
Rockford Fosgate Power 500.2
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