Best class D amp brands

[Doxquzme Premium Member]

Cheaper doesn't necessarily mean bad...plenty of quality budget amps out there...

Typically a higher price tag includes better components, warranty, and customer service...at least from reputable brands

There is an old tried and true saying, "you got to pay to play". In audio, that is true too but more like, "the harder you play, the more you pay - up front or at the end of the day".

I'm a proponent of running better amplifiers with gobs of power at 2- 4ohms where most amplifiers, cheap or otherwise, do a better job of stress-less amplification. Not an option for everyone, but like I ssid, I've paid to play, many many times before. This last time, I just saved up and got what I needed, found a great Korean deigned 3K amp that puts out 1000 watts at 4 ohms all day long. Here's hoping that I wont have to pay anymore for that.

That said, the amount of inexpensive, very high-powered decent build quality amps from brands like Stinger, Recoil, NVX, Taramps is really outstanding. I would have given my left nut for a 500 watt amp back in 1980 for ANY amount of money (well, you know what I mean).

 

[TheBigPilferer]

There is an old tried and true saying, "you got to pay to play". In audio, that is true too but more like, "the harder you play, the more you pay - up front or at the end of the day".

I'm a proponent of running better amplifiers with gobs of power at 2- 4ohms where most amplifiers, cheap or otherwise, do a better job of stress-less amplification. Not an option for everyone, but like I ssid, I've paid to play, many many times before. This last time, I just saved up and got what I needed, found a great Korean deigned 3K amp that puts out 1000 watts at 4 ohms all day long. Here's hoping that I wont have to pay anymore for that.

That said, the amount of inexpensive, very high-powered decent build quality amps from brands like Stinger, Recoil, NVX, Taramps is really outstanding. I would have given my left nut for a 500 watt amp back in 1980 for ANY amount of money (well, you know what I mean).

Those are definitely some of the brands I recommend to people. Usually, I recommend Recoil first. I do recommend the Audiozerone ZE1000.1 which does rated power and is available for $78 on Amazon currently. There's no better deal anywhere for a 1000 watt amp. I do give a disclaimer that the warranty may be questionable, but the seller has responded to my questions directly thru Amazon. I've personally been testing this amp in my car for the past 4 months without issue before I starting recommending it.

I like the Recoil 2500 and 5 channel, and they have the 1200 model available in the 2 ohm di and the red 1 ohm optimized versions. I don't know if you noticed, but they also just added a couple of micro 4 channels which are pretty cool... I haven't tried them yet but I'm confident they're up to par. I also like they're PW12 subwoofer for $91. The full cover dustcap looks great on it and it's better than a Skar SDR or CT Tropo for less money. I also like their line out converters (the active ones). The one is just like an audiocontrol lc2i.

I recommend Trinity as well as Blackbrick, also. Trinity has an awesome 8 channel staggered amp which is awesome for active systems. They sold out of them finally, but Blackbrick had a 100 x 4 amp available for $69 for a while. I'm using one of them currently too. They told me that they are supposed to be getting in their new amps within a couple months...

I don't disagree with your opinion to run a powerful amp at a lower ohm load... for the same reason I made the comment in that previous thread stating you don't need to fully power a subwoofer. Both scenarios ensure long-lasting equipment with increased reliability. On people that have had low power sub setups and/or 2 ohm or 4 ohm setups, I have used the Audiozerone amp bc there's no point buying an amp that produces less power at this price point. Plus it leaves room for them to upgrade later.

 

[Eggs]

The suspension indeed does play a role but the motor and coil are the most significant (thermally). The suspension can help keep things in check mechanically (exceeding mechanical limits) but as far as thermally, its role is less significant (unless super stiff). There are pros and cons when it comes to suspension setups. I personally don’t see a point in running super stiff suspensions on setups that are going to play music for enjoyment. Enclosures start getting big, the subs don’t play very low, and it can take a good amount of power to drive them depending on enclosure size and how stiff they are.

I see you build sub, Could you help explain how much the surround effects on how the sub performs for daily music? Such as sundown megaroll, DD audio tall spl, incriminator wide roll, DC audio absolute round.

 

[djdilliodon!]

I see you build sub, Could you help explain how much the surround effects on how the sub performs for daily music? Such as sundown megaroll, DD audio tall spl, incriminator wide roll, DC audio absolute round.

Mega roll, tall roll spl, standard roll, wide roll etc the affects will all depend on the surround material and thickness. Mega and wide rolls along with tall roll spl tend to be foam or rubberized foam and are pretty thick. They are decently stiff and if used with stiff spiders don’t make for very good daily setups. These are best for high power setups chasing numbers. Those surrounds can all be used on any sub for daily just the spiders need to be matched accordingly along with how much xmax the sub will have. A subwoofer with 25mm of xmax isn’t going to benefit from using a mega roll surround taking up extra cone area for no reason.

 

[TheBigPilferer]

I see you build sub, Could you help explain how much the surround effects on how the sub performs for daily music? Such as sundown megaroll, DD audio tall spl, incriminator wide roll, DC audio absolute round.

There have been some cheaper subs that will implement a massive roll on the surround purely to look cool and sell more woofers.

 

[Water Bear]

Mega roll, tall roll spl, standard roll, wide roll etc the affects will all depend on the surround material and thickness. Mega and wide rolls along with tall roll spl tend to be foam or rubberized foam and are pretty thick. They are decently stiff and if used with stiff spiders don’t make for very good daily setups. These are best for high power setups chasing numbers. Those surrounds can all be used on any sub for daily just the spiders need to be matched accordingly along with how much xmax the sub will have. A subwoofer with 25mm of xmax isn’t going to benefit from using a mega roll surround taking up extra cone area for no reason.

I've wondered about this. Like the American Bass Xmax Monster has all of 20-22mm one way yet a mega roll surround of some kind. Meanwhile the Sundown X is 30mm and that's not even that much by competition standards which are like 40. it feels like it's more for show than effect.

 

[spokey9]

My sql-15's have 28mm one without a big roll surround

 

[djdilliodon!]

as far as xmax goes, this is what I use surround wise.

Standard tall roll = 25 mm or less

Big/wide roll = 35 mm could probably get away with 40mm.

Mega roll = 50+ mm

Spl style tall roll = 40mm

These styles can vary on surround height, width, and thickness depending on who is making it or what specs are given for them to be made. The same goes for frames, these have xmax limits as well.

 

[joeFi]

Im a retired audio installer…..so I know the good old school stuff….but recently I’ve been doing research on the new class D stuff coming out of Korea ….Taramps is a decent brand. Only downside is they require a lot of amperage….Deaf bonce is another good brand….but I’d have to say the truest wattage I’ve found to date is Toro amplifiers….ive hooked them up to my equipment and ran numerous tests….yes they require good power, but the wattage seems true (even coming in higher than rated)…..the key to a lot of wattage is having a crap ton of amperage coming off your vehicle and a few lithium batteries in series……amperage =watts …..this is a no brainer….even in the old days you needed a lot of power…but these new generation of amplifiers require even more…..if you want 10k watts you need to upgrade your alternator, excess batteries and low gauge welding wire is my suggestion….i found using tightly wound welding wire you get much better power flow…..yes it’s more expensive…..but required for hard hitting bass…….the welding wire has about 50% more strands of minuscule wire strands versus audio wire . So you get a much more stable connection….

 

[joeFi]

Is that for pretty much any amp across the board, or is there a cutoff somewhere? For example, would I notice a difference if I got a Skar audio amp vs a high priced one?

Yes price has a lot to do with the quality of parts in the amp…..I find the more you pay, the better the caps, diodes, resistors and mosfets. Although class D run on a whole different platform than the old school class A and B amplifiers……you get a lot more bang (or boom) for your Buck…..you just need to make sure you have decent amperage and batteries to back store the energy…..I would suggest a high output alternator……and maybe 2 deep cell batteries for anything over 3k watts…..and remember amperage= wattage…..the more power you have, the more wattage you’ll produce…I did a test on a taramps 3k amp….with a alternator putting out 320 amps per cycle and two deep cell lithium batteries I was able to produce a true 3300 watts…..welding wire is a much better conductor than that 0 gauge crap audio companies sell…..more expensive, but worth the price…..good luck to you…if you have any questions, fell free to text me back…..

 

[joeFi]

Is that for pretty much any amp across the board, or is there a cutoff somewhere? For example, would I notice a difference if I got a Skar audio amp vs a high priced one?

Mounting an amp anywhere can be achieved…you’ll just need a fan or two to blow air on it to lower the temperature (especially if it’s somewhere hidden from sight)……the fins on the amplifier need a cool air running across them when trying to get maximum wattage out of them….especially when you heat the amp up running below 2ohms…..the lower the impedance, the hotter the amp gets…

 

[Old_Slapper]

My son has a 2004 Ranger. He wants it to hit really hard, but as usual for a teenager, he is on a budget. What do y'all think about the Taramps TS400x4 (run at 2ohm each) and the HD3000. I have about 2 cubic feet for a box, so I was going to run 3-8" subs in a ported box.

What are your guy's thoughts on this setup, the reliability of these amps, and the accuracy of their watt rating?

 

[Doxquzme Premium Member]

3 8s is not a cheaper option and 8's should only be used where space is ,limited and you have no other options. What is the budget? Are there location constraints?

 

[Old_Slapper]

3 8s is not a cheaper option and 8's should only be used where space is ,limited and you have no other options. What is the budget? Are there location constraints?

His budget is about $800 for the amps and subs. His truck is an extended cab, but he needs to keep his back two jump seats. And, if you have ever sat in those, there isn't much space. A cut through is not likely. 2-10s might be a better option, but I know 3-8" will move more air. I have been out of the car audio scene for 10 years, so I am not sure what is out there anymore.
Now thinking about it, 2-10" subs, at the price of 3-8" subs, might be the better route.

Toughts?

 

[Doxquzme Premium Member]

year, make and model of the truck? Do we need an amp wiring kit too?

Edit": sorry, just noticed that info - stay tuned...