Buying a New Amp

[xluben 10+ year member]

I recently posted on whether or not to have someone build me a ported box, or buy a new amp. At the time I favored the ported box because it was cheaper, but I now realize that unless I can find someone local, shipping will make it cost nearly as much.

I also posted looking for an amp that will do 800W x 1 @ 2 ohms to power my two 12" Assassins in a sealed box (for now). I was originally looking at a couple Kenwood models, but now these are my choices:

Kenwood KAC-9102D

http://www.techronics.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=2648

Hifonics BX1205D

http://www.techronics.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=2635

PG Xenon X600.1

http://www.techronics.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=1652

I've searched the forum and found that the Kenwood has been benched at around 800W @ 2 ohms. That Hifonics have a tendancy to be over-rated (but no specific bench tests for that amp). And the Xenon supposedly puts on 800+ no matter what the birth sheet says, and has a mod to do double that at 2 ohms.

Right now money is pretty tight and if the Kenwood will do 800+ for under $200 shipped I'd be pretty happy. The Xenon has a good rep on this forum, but it scares me that it's only rated at 600W, and unless I buy on eBay it will likely cost more than the other two.

Any suggestions/opinions welcome!

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[neonrt 10+ year member]

kenwood ftw in your situation. is that the pg that does 600 from 1-4 ohms? if so dont buy it, lots of problems, never saw a pg amp that boasted same output at all ohms last a year. kenwoods on the other hand i have seen last forever. never saw a blown one yet, and thats with some people that know jack shiz. and if i am right the new kenwoods are cea compliant.

 

[neonrt 10+ year member]

or you could build a ported box yourself(slot it) and save some $$$. they are easy to build. if you were in my area, i'd build you one for a 2-4(mmm beer).(if you bought the wood, and glue/screws).

 

[Towncar 10+ year member]

kenwood ftw in your situation. is that the pg that does 600 from 1-4 ohms? if so dont buy it, lots of problems, never saw a pg amp that boasted same output at all ohms last a year. kenwoods on the other hand i have seen last forever. never saw a blown one yet, and thats with some people that know jack shiz. and if i am right the new kenwoods are cea compliant.

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The xenon will have no problem doing over 800 watts +. Much better quality amp than kenwood. I dont see any comparion between these amps.

 

[Beerdrnkr 5,000+ posts]

I've seen a lot of post with people having problems with the newer kenwood amps. I would go PG.

 

[xluben 10+ year member]

I think I'm about ready to pull the trigger on a X600.1 on eBay for around $200 shipped.

I just hope it'll actually do 800+ like everyone says, or I'll be paying $200 for only a little over 100 more watts than I have now //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif

But I could alway try the mod to get full 2 ohm power out of it (1800W, or so I've read) //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/eek.gif.771b7a90cf45cabdc554ff1121c21c4a.gif

 

[zachzchw 5,000+ posts]

kenwood ftw in your situation. is that the pg that does 600 from 1-4 ohms? if so dont buy it, lots of problems, never saw a pg amp that boasted same output at all ohms last a year. kenwoods on the other hand i have seen last forever. never saw a blown one yet, and thats with some people that know jack shiz. and if i am right the new kenwoods are cea compliant.

Never seen a tantrum, then?

the xenons had problems with the initial production run, but have since been solved.

PG is far superior to kenwood, anyday.

Hell, even the biggest kenwood fan on this forum will tell you that the Kenwood's are known to NOT run at 1 ohm, as rated.

 

[xluben 10+ year member]

so PG is the way to go?

am i guaranteed to get 800+ from the x600.1 or is that just some of them that bench that high?

 

[jasperpso 10+ year member]

i am telling you.. i have 2 ascendant audio assassins 12s, and i am using them in a sealed box.. and the PG x600.1 has enough power that i only have the gain up about half way.. with no bass boost. it has all the power you will need, and more.. i have heard from a reliable poster on here that they ALL will do better then 800.. not just some of the best.. they ALL WILL.. now i was also worried until it arrived, but it didnt dissappint.. i got mine through ebay from millionbuy.com.. everything went slick.. they sent me a tracking # the next day and it arrived in no time

 

[xluben 10+ year member]

yeah, i was going to order through millionbuy on ebay. i bought a lot of my other car audio stuff on there normal website, and was very happy with their service (except that they only ship to your banking address). i'm pretty much ready to order them, i'm certain they'll do a lot more power than my profile amp, but i'm just hoping it'll be worth the $200.

also, gain settings have nothing to do with how much power an amp puts out. it only has to do with the preout voltage of your head unit. i think i read a post of yours saying you turned the gains down when you put in a new head unit. this just means that the hu was sending a higher voltage to the preout and you didn't need the gain set as high to match it.

 

[jasperpso 10+ year member]

it does matter how strong your preout signal is for the reason of the garbage in garbage out theory.. yes, my stronger head unit made a difference, but if you dont think the gain knob is a poteniometer controlling power output you are incorrect. i know there is a point of were it would start clippin, but there is more juice then i am using..

all i am saying is that i know these subs can take over 400rms daily.. and this amp pushes mine to the limits, and has tons of power to spare.. and stays cool doing it.. good luck with it.. i cant imagine anyone not being impressed with it.. i was a little worried at first, but i read all the positive posts on here, and i figured it would be ok.. it is all i want and more.

props to this forum, i read on here a couple weeks, and have assembled one helluva system..

 

[xluben 10+ year member]

well, it should be on it's way soon.

is it significantly louder than your old amp (400W total, i think)?

 

[jasperpso 10+ year member]

yes, significantly.. but i am running two subbs now, instead of just one.. the orion pushed the single well with its 400X1 rms, but this amp does even better.. leading me to believe that mine is doing BETTER THEN 800 watts..

 

[xluben 10+ year member]

well i'm probably only giving mine 400-450 (total), so this should be a pretty big jump in wattage. Hopefully I'll get a full 3 dB more for my $200 //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[MJ-tC 10+ year member]

Just want to say I love my X600.1