Researched and narrowed it to three, which would you choose?

[quattro88]

AQ if you have the money. It'll be hard to find an amp in the same class as that AQ with better quality. If you do decide to go with the quart, though, you can get them cheap.

Yup, certainly have the cash. Figured anything around the $250 mark was fair for my needs. Good lookin out on the link.

Too many people confuse amps that do rated power with those that are underrated. I highly doubt that the AQ is underrated. Too many nuthuggers on this forum to cover up to proof. I don't see any reason, besides looks, why the AQ should cost any more.

Given that the MBQ has the highest power rating, that is more than likely honest, I would go for it. But watch out for the mounting feet, they are plastic. Good lookin amps though, and stout power delivery. I have had experience with the ONYX 1000.

IIRC, the AQ was benched a bit higher than what it's listed at but I do recall the owner of AQ stating in a thread somewhere that it was very important to give an honest rating on his amps. From his other comments, seemed to coincide... and you can always believe everything you read on the interwebs. Oh wait.

To your point, the slightly lesser power level of the AQ is something that didn't go unnoticed but since @ 2ohms we're only talking a whopping 130watts... eh, can't make a massive amount of difference. That and if the AQ runs cleaner it'll sound better at lower levels anyway. But again, this might be splitting hairs a bit.

EDIT: Audio Troll Dad avatar = winning

[Bumpin' Goalie]

There's more to an amp than RMS rating, power provided. Important to remember this, regardless the amplifiers in question.

[BlactimusCrime]

AQ 1200 fo sho. i run the 2200, and you can have it wanging at 1 ohm for a long time and it doesnt get warm. Id say it does rated or better. and its ****.

If i was going with any others it would be a MBq, but i would try to find a used Discus 1500, i think they are a bit better than the Onyx

[Suicide Bobb]

Proof that the AQ puts out cleaner power than the MBQ?

[Cruzer]

imo, price doesnt = quality, but when u go down the ladder at some point it comes into play.

why stop at the mb quart? why not grab a boss amp that says it does 1500@1ohm but its even cheaper? why? because u have heard boss amps ****.

my point is this, the mb quart is probably the cheapest i would go. just look what happens when u go to hifonics thats generally slightly cheaper. u see a lot more problems come up with them.

so whats that tell you? no u dont have to pay $300-350 for the sundown 1200@1ohm, that an AQ1200 will do just fine and it saves u money. well u dont have to pay $250 for 1200@1ohm, u can get the mb quart for 200 that does "1500@1ohm" but dont u find it funny it does more power than both the sundown and aq yet is cheaper? that means the parts that build it are of lesser quality. how do i know? maxxonic wouldnt make much of a profit if it cost the same to make as the aq1200

if u want to play the card that mb quart is legit and the aq is just over priced, then what about the sundown? because its nut hugged its not overpriced for the same 1200-1500@1ohm?

[quattro88]

There's more to an amp than RMS rating, power provided. Important to remember this, regardless the amplifiers in question.

QTF, I could not agree more.

This was a major factor in my urge to create this thread. That and since it was easy to find more than a few ppl who are always in need of similar power requirements (ex: I just scored two Type R's! What to power them with??), figured some in depth discussion on these three similarly rated amps would be of benefit to more than just myself.

[Suicide Bobb]

imo, price doesnt = quality, but when u go down the ladder at some point it comes into play.

why stop at the mb quart? why not grab a boss amp that says it does 1500@1ohm but its even cheaper? why? because u have heard boss amps ****.

my point is this, the mb quart is probably the cheapest i would go. just look what happens when u go to hifonics thats generally slightly cheaper. u see a lot more problems come up with them.

so whats that tell you? no u dont have to pay $300-350 for the sundown 1200@1ohm, that an AQ1200 will do just fine and it saves u money. well u dont have to pay $250 for 1200@1ohm, u can get the mb quart for 200 that does "1500@1ohm" but dont u find it funny it does more power than both the sundown and aq yet is cheaper? that means the parts that build it are of lesser quality. how do i know? maxxonic wouldnt make much of a profit if it cost the same to make as the aq1200

if u want to play the card that mb quart is legit and the aq is just over priced, then what about the sundown? because its nut hugged its not overpriced for the same 1200-1500@1ohm?

Marketing. Take Bose for example. You don't think that this $1750 system is worth $750 more than a $1000 Denon setup, do you?

Bose Lifestyle T20 Home theater system

Part costs are not the only factor here. Same goes for JL. Do you think that the 12W7 is worth the $600 more than a BTL 12" because of parts?

[quattro88]

AQ 1200D no question.

AQ 1200 fo sho. i run the 2200, and you can have it wanging at 1 ohm for a long time and it doesnt get warm. Id say it does rated or better. and its ****. If i was going with any others it would be a MBq, but i would try to find a used Discus 1500, i think they are a bit better than the Onyx

Again, props for the feedback. While I'm sure my heat issues are less about German engineers and their love of a well insulated trunk and more about Alpine's cooling issues, if you're flogging a 2200 @ 1ohm and it's not warming up this is great to hear.

I'm split over the Discus vs Onyx thing. MBQ had a bad batch of Discus amps, which was rectified, however it seems that the rebranding to Onyx was only to leave the somewhat negative past behind as IIRC the internals have not significantly changed.

[Bumpin' Goalie]

Marketing. Take Bose for example. You don't think that this $1750 system is worth $750 more than a $1000 Denon setup, do you?

Bose Lifestyle T20 Home theater system

Part costs are not the only factor here. Same goes for JL. Do you think that the 12W7 is worth the $600 more than a BTL 12" because of parts?

This is a good point, but it works against your original argument. Your two examples show the larger company charging more due to marketing, etc. In this comparison, Maxx is the larger company, AQ is the smaller. Therefore, Maxx would be the company charging for "marketing".

And if your, and thus my, statement is considered true, that means that the actual value (not price) of the MB Quart would be lessened even more so.

Not picking fights, choosing sides. Simply pointing out some things.

If A=B, and B=C, then A must also be equal to C. Gotta love the transitive property

[Cruzer]

This is a good point, but it works against your original argument. Your two examples show the larger company charging more due to marketing, etc. In this comparison, Maxx is the larger company, AQ is the smaller. Therefore, Maxx would be the company charging for "marketing".

And if your, and thus my, statement is considered true, that means that the actual value (not price) of the MB Quart would be lessened even more so.

Not picking fights, choosing sides. Simply pointing out some things.

If A=B, and B=C, then A must also be equal to C. Gotta love the transitive property

this... and did u even read what i said bob? i said u dont have to pay $300-350 for 1200@1ohm like tons of people tell u buy sundown, u can get away with an aq1200@1ohm for cheaper, and it will do the full rated power
then u can go down and get an mb quart and it probably does rated power, but each time u go down in price ur giving up stuff. for example the sundown probably does more power than the aq, but u pay for that. the aq is probably more clean power, and more reliable than the mb quart. the boss amp will not do rated power, and will not last as long as any of the other amps suggest, hence its cheaper/cheapest

here is another for you. i could have got a full size dodge ram truck i would have paid plenty for it. or i could get a dakota, pay a little less, have similar size/powerful engine, smaller cargo space, possibly smaller truck bed. then i could go even cheaper and get like a ranger. sure price goes down, but i lose power, cargo space, etc. not to mention the parts on it are going to be cheaper, less quality. i doubt it will last as long as the v8 engines, and the lesser quality parts means it will probably need repaired more often than the others

[quattro88]

Just typed a large reply concerning the price / marketing / large corp vs small indy factors and economies of scale but scrapped it as this makes more sense.

While all points mentioned certainly have validity, I have a far more holistic view when it comes to pricing and chose these three amps as they are all both rated and priced similarly. True, one might be less expensive to produce but if the production process is not the same (ex: small vs large company) then overall that comparison is largely apples to oranges.

Bottom line, the end result of each is key... performance and quality. And since the price range is similar, I'm willing to put less weight on saving a few dollars.

However, this elevates to an interesting juxtaposition when looking at all three companies from the global level (size, history, brand perception, market share etc etc).

[Suicide Bobb]

this... and did u even read what i said bob? i said u dont have to pay $300-350 for 1200@1ohm like tons of people tell u buy sundown, u can get away with an aq1200@1ohm for cheaper, and it will do the full rated power
then u can go down and get an mb quart and it probably does rated power, but each time u go down in price ur giving up stuff. for example the sundown probably does more power than the aq, but u pay for that. the aq is probably more clean power, and more reliable than the mb quart. the boss amp will not do rated power, and will not last as long as any of the other amps suggest, hence its cheaper/cheapest

here is another for you. i could have got a full size dodge ram truck i would have paid plenty for it. or i could get a dakota, pay a little less, have similar size/powerful engine, smaller cargo space, possibly smaller truck bed. then i could go even cheaper and get like a ranger. sure price goes down, but i lose power, cargo space, etc. not to mention the parts on it are going to be cheaper, less quality. i doubt it will last as long as the v8 engines, and the lesser quality parts means it will probably need repaired more often than the others

All of that is based on assumptions though. You are assuming that you can tell a difference between the Sundown, AQ, and MBQ. I doubt it, by my assumption isn't worth any more than yours is.

[Suicide Bobb]

This is a good point, but it works against your original argument. Your two examples show the larger company charging more due to marketing, etc. In this comparison, Maxx is the larger company, AQ is the smaller. Therefore, Maxx would be the company charging for "marketing".

And if your, and thus my, statement is considered true, that means that the actual value (not price) of the MB Quart would be lessened even more so.

Not picking fights, choosing sides. Simply pointing out some things.

If A=B, and B=C, then A must also be equal to C. Gotta love the transitive property

I'm not pointing out that the larger company wins via advertising. That's not always the case. The amount of advertising and the believability is not relative to the size of the company in all cases. Bose only got where they are today because of advertising. They made 3 good speakers, the 301's, 601's, and the 901's, all up to series 3. They started out small, and got big because they demanded high prices for their terrible equipment by making the consumer believe it was worth more than the competitors products.

Everything has an opportunity cost. I just believe that the opportunity cost of getting an AQ versus an MBQ is too high. For that reason, I don't think it's worth getting the AQ. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, and that's where I stand, against the majority of car audio's number one nuthugging site.

[Suicide Bobb]

MB Quart DSC 1500.1D 1500W Discus Series Class D Monoblock Amplifier w/ Remote Bass Level Control

$195 for an amp that has been clamped between rated an 1700 watts rms, or $50 more for an amp that barely does over its rated power, and is supposedly better quality. It's your call. I'm not saying the choice is obvious, but I'd rather get the DSC. Both are made in China or Korea or something like that, so I wouldn't consider either of them to be quality anyways. But I'm kind of a built-in-USA nuthugger, so go figure.

[Cruzer]

All of that is based on assumptions though. You are assuming that you can tell a difference between the Sundown, AQ, and MBQ. I doubt it, by my assumption isn't worth any more than yours is.

im not saying u would notice a difference, u really woudlnt unless the mbq clipps at higher power

another thing imo u have to question is this. if the mbq does more power than sundown and aq, costs less, why isnt mbq doing better than sundown? why isnt mbq the forum boner and nut hugged company?

the fact its cheaper and does MORE power, makes me question the quality of the power. i have no proof, im not claiming its clipped or dirty power, but it just makes me think/wonder/question.