help deciding on amp

[perch73]

hello all, i'm trying to find a good mono amp for my son and need some help. most of the brands i had in the late 80's early 90's are considered entry level or junk these days from what i've been reading (hifonics, orion, ppi, etc...) i've always heard about how good Zapco amps are and found a new ST1 STUDIO X Series 400w for $114 shipped and can't help but think this can't be a Zapco for that price. i haven't been able to find any reviews on this amp. does anyone have any experience with this amp or would i be better off with an Alpine MRV-M500 or Kicker CX series. any other suggestions on a quality amp for 2 Alpine SWE-10S4 subs.

many thanks

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[mylows10 5,000+ posts]

Really depends on your budget and needs. Most people will tell you to have some overhead on the amp so that it doesn't get pushed to hard that's pretty cheap for zapco prolly a online clise out for that price. Which can be good or bad. Good for a good amp for cheap. But bad if no warranty or only a 90 day warranty

 

[perch73]

My son is still in high school so he doesn't have a very big budget, $150-$200 on amp I could help him out some to get a good quality amp. I've always been a fan of Alpine and Fosgate amps but don't know anything about the new stuff out there. I'm not sure that he would want to buy a used amp, he likes new and shiny stuff. A lot of these newer amps have big bright lights on them to make them look cool. I'm trying to steer him clear of all the "snake oil" amps I've been seeing

 

[WhatsAminiTruck]

I've had luck with fusion and lightning audio entry level amps. Very cheap too.

 

[mylows10 5,000+ posts]

I have a newer Polk audio amp. It's about 6 months old used for 1 month. My sons amp. He said it wasn't enough power and it's 1200 rms. he wants $200 shipped But the new alpines are still decent amps the fosgates not so much unless it's a power series he might look into a soundquebed amp as well since he wants a smaller powered amp

But keep this in mind if he gets the audio bug he'll want more power soon

 

[WhatsAminiTruck]

Just buy an SAZ series amp from Sundown and get it over with >//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[perch73]

I have a newer Polk audio amp. It's about 6 months old used for 1 month. My sons amp. He said it wasn't enough power and it's 1200 rms. he wants $200 shipped But the new alpines are still decent amps the fosgates not so much unless it's a power series he might look into a soundquebed amp as well since he wants a smaller powered ampBut keep this in mind if he gets the audio bug he'll want more power soon

i looked up the soundqubed q1-750 amp and that is more in the line of what i'm looking for (price and power) how would the soundqubed amp compare to the alpine mrv-m500? i wouldn't mind spending another $60 on the soundqubed if it is a better quality amp

 

[perch73]

Just buy an SAZ series amp from Sundown and get it over with >//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

those are some impressive looking amps. reminds me of my old hifonics series VII ISIS. wish i still had that beast!!!

 

[mylows10 5,000+ posts]

i looked up the soundqubed q1-750 amp and that is more in the line of what i'm looking for (price and power) how would the soundqubed amp compare to the alpine mrv-m500? i wouldn't mind spending another $60 on the soundqubed if it is a better quality amp

The sq amp is a better amp all around plus more power. I'd pic hit over the mrp amp any day

 

[perch73]

The sq amp is a better amp all around plus more power. I'd pic hit over the mrp amp any day

alright i'll steer him towards the sq amp. your help is very much appreciated

 

[mylows10 5,000+ posts]

alright i'll steer him towards the sq amp. your help is very much appreciated

He no problem. If he really wants the alpine. I do have a used mrp 2000 for sale.

 

[perch73]

He no problem. If he really wants the alpine. I do have a used mrp 2000 for sale.

he has never been into car audio. when he got the subs for his birthday, he was excited about getting them, but said he had never heard of Alpine. :wow:i gave him a puzzled look and told him they have been around for a long time and make good stuff. i'm just wanting him to get good quality and not go down to walmart and get a cheap crappy amp because one of his friends has one and thinks its a good amp.

 

[mylows10 5,000+ posts]

he has never been into car audio. when he got the subs for his birthday, he was excited about getting them, but said he had never heard of Alpine. :wow:i gave him a puzzled look and told him they have been around for a long time and make good stuff. i'm just wanting him to get good quality and not go down to walmart and get a cheap crappy amp because one of his friends has one and thinks its a good amp.

I fully understand you. There. That's why I started selling car audio equipment I the first place and also to try to educate people that don't know what to look for and what questions to ask

 

[bbeljefe]

You already have the subs so, too late there but, consider this before you buy an amplifier....

That Alpine amp is the best selling amplifier in the country, by a pretty good margin. Now at first blush, that sounds pretty good but not so much so once you think a little deeper into it. Since Alpine sells so many of those amps, then it stands to reason that we would see a lot of them at car audio competitions, right? After all, if I wan't quality, I don't want to know what my accountant neighbor uses, I want to know what the pros use.

You can visit a few car audio competitions or, even easier, you can surf Youtube and see clips from the winning runs of myriad competitors. You won't see many Alpine, Kicker or JL Audio amps in the vehicles with the trophies beside them, if you see any. What you will see is the brands mentioned above by others, along with CT Sounds, Crescendo, RD, Incriminator Audio and a few others.

As an example, the Alpine amp you mentioned does 500 watts at 2Ω. It doesn't like 1Ω and, it's $200.00 and it is rated at 14.4 volts, which is the highest voltage most cars will produce. For a little less money, the CT Sounds 500.1 is rated at 600 watts at 1Ω and 12.8 volts. This means that once you actually install it and use it with the car running, you're going to be getting even more power from it. Most likely ~725 watts. And it's stable down to .5Ω, so a 1Ω load at full tilt isn't going to be stressing the amp at all. It also has tiffany style rcas, which provide both a very secure signal path as well as a very impact resistant connection. It is also strappable, so when your son gets ready for more power, you don't have to scrap it or sell it on the cheap. You just buy another 500.1, strap the two and viola, you've doubled your power with little more out of pocket expense and the two amps will work together like one. Moreover, that amp has a volt meter, a clipping indicator, a power light and an on/off switch on the bass knob.

Lastly, it has a 1 year no questions asked warranty. All that for less money than the most popular amp in the US.

 

[perch73]

You already have the subs so, too late there but, consider this before you buy an amplifier....
That Alpine amp is the best selling amplifier in the country, by a pretty good margin. Now at first blush, that sounds pretty good but not so much so once you think a little deeper into it. Since Alpine sells so many of those amps, then it stands to reason that we would see a lot of them at car audio competitions, right? After all, if I wan't quality, I don't want to know what my accountant neighbor uses, I want to know what the pros use.

You can visit a few car audio competitions or, even easier, you can surf Youtube and see clips from the winning runs of myriad competitors. You won't see many Alpine, Kicker or JL Audio amps in the vehicles with the trophies beside them, if you see any. What you will see is the brands mentioned above by others, along with CT Sounds, Crescendo, RD, Incriminator Audio and a few others.

As an example, the Alpine amp you mentioned does 500 watts at 2Ω. It doesn't like 1Ω and, it's $200.00 and it is rated at 14.4 volts, which is the highest voltage most cars will produce. For a little less money, the CT Sounds 500.1 is rated at 600 watts at 1Ω and 12.8 volts. This means that once you actually install it and use it with the car running, you're going to be getting even more power from it. Most likely ~725 watts. And it's stable down to .5Ω, so a 1Ω load at full tilt isn't going to be stressing the amp at all. It also has tiffany style rcas, which provide both a very secure signal path as well as a very impact resistant connection. It is also strappable, so when your son gets ready for more power, you don't have to scrap it or sell it on the cheap. You just buy another 500.1, strap the two and viola, you've doubled your power with little more out of pocket expense and the two amps will work together like one. Moreover, that amp has a volt meter, a clipping indicator, a power light and an on/off switch on the bass knob.

Lastly, it has a 1 year no questions asked warranty. All that for less money than the most popular amp in the US.

i knew there were better subs out there when i bought the Alpines, but with the limited space and depth we have to work with they seemed to fit the bill. he has an ext.cab dodge truck and i was wanting the subs to fit under his back seat without any major mods. to the truck. we only have about .5 to .7 cubic ft. to work with for each sub and only about 6 inches depth. i'm loving all this info u guys are giving me and i will surely look at the CT amp as well.

thanks again more all this great info