small underrated amps? kicker/orion/usacoustics?

[ngsm13 5,000+ posts]

I would class US acoustics right alongside Profile. Slightly over-rated (you'll likely not get quite rated output) but uber-reliable and tough to beat for the money. I've owned a few US acoustics amps and I have to wonder if they aren't made in the same buildhouse as Profile as they resemble one another more than a little inasfar as how they're put together.
Anyone looking to get into car audio on a budget (for amps anyway) I usually tell them to look to Profile or US acoustics first.

US Acoustics (at least the previous USX line, what I've previously used numerous times) was rated @12.5v for RMS power. So, usually they were slightly underrated. They are solid amplifiers, and if bought authorized offer a THREE YEAR warranty. I love them, and have never had problems with them at all (can't say the same about Profile //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif ). My g/f is still using a USX4065 I bought near 3 years ago.

NG

 

[jsloan10 10+ year member]

I agree with most of that excepting:
While I agree that a considerable part of the price difference is going to be marketing and paying for nothing more than a brand name. But you also have to consider a Kicker amp will be more well constructed than a Profile of comparable actual output.

No, I couldn't tell one specific brand from the other looking at a ***** circuit board but I bet if you were to put say a Kicker and a Profile or an Alpine and a US acoustics board next to each other even a novice will be able to detect an obvious difference in the quality of the components used to build each example.

To use the same manufacturers as you did for an example let's compare the Kicker KX450.2 and the Profile AP1200.

The former is rated @ 150w X 2 @ 4 ohms stereo and 450w X 1 @ 4 ohms bridged. The latter is rated for 200w X 2 @ 4 ohms stereo and 600w X 1 @ 4 ohms bridged. Kicker generally being underrated and Profile on average overrating their amps let's assume for the sake of argument that the actual usable output of each amp is roughly the same.

Using Crutchfield as a guide to average retail pricing you're looking at a $400 amp vs. a $170 amp.

Do you really think the SQ of the Profile will be as good as the Kicker? I don't believe it will, myself. I can't say for certain if the quality difference will rate the Kicker costing over twice as much but a difference will be there nonetheless.

Interesting piont. but is the difference in SQ big enough to warrant the extra 230$?.

We need some A/B listening comparo's to see.

 

[Prowler573 5,000+ posts]

US Acoustics (at least the previous USX line, what I've previously used numerous times) was rated @12.5v for RMS power. So, usually they were slightly underrated. They are solid amplifiers, and if bought authorized offer a THREE YEAR warranty. I love them, and have never had problems with them at all (can't say the same about Profile //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif ). My g/f is still using a USX4065 I bought near 3 years ago.
NG

The last US acoustics I personally owned, NG, was a USB-4065 ~ most likely very similar to the one your g/f is using now. IIRC output ratings were 65w X 4 @ 4 ohm stereo or 180w X 2 bridged, ratings given at a slightly higher 12.9vdc input than your USX-series unit. Used it for over a year then sold it along with an Alpine MRP-T130 together on eBay for close to what I had invested in the both of them.

If purchased through Crutchfield the Profiles carry a 3 yr warranty as well. (like they did for USa when they still carried them)

I've owned several Profiles and none of them ever gave me a moment's trouble. Matter of fact two older California-series Profiles that I sold to a friend as a set (an 440sx 4 ch and a 400sx 2ch) over two years ago are still in complaint-free use in his pickup. Are Profiles great amps? No. Are they worth what they cost? IMO, absolutely.

 

[Proskier 10+ year member]

the USacoustics USX-2050 is rated at 50x2 at 4 ohms, will it do that much?

 

[guru 10+ year member]

yes and a little bit more