The Pioneer GM-6500F vs Alpine MRP-f300-which one is better?

[iCeNN 10+ year member]

I recently returned a refurbished Sony Xplod amp, because it made speakers crackle/pop, and now I'm in the market for a good quality 4 channel amp(not that Sony isn't good quality) to power my 4 Alpine speakers and Sony sub. I've come down to the Pioneer GM-6500F and the Alpine MRP-f300. Here are the specs for each

Pioneer:

4-channel car amplifier

60 watts RMS x 4 at 4 ohms (85 watts RMS x 4 at 2 ohms)

180 watts RMS x 2 in bridged mode (4-ohm stable in bridged mode)

CEA-2006 compliant

4-channel variable high- and low-pass filters (40-500 Hz, 12 dB per octave)

MOSFET power supply

speaker-level inputs

preamp inputs

Alpine:

4-channel car amplifier

50 watts RMS x 4 at 4 ohms (75 watts RMS x 4 at 2 ohms)

150 watts RMS x 2 bridged output at 4 ohms (4-ohm stable in bridged mode)

2-, 3-, or 4-channel output

variable high-pass/low-pass filters (50-400 Hz, 12 dB/octave)

selectable bass boost (12 dB at 50 Hz)

subsonic filter (15 Hz, 18 dB/octave for channels 3 & 4)

MOSFET power supply

CEA-2006 compliant

STAR Topology (minimizes internal noise and prevents ground interference)

speaker- and preamp-level inputs

gold-plated screw terminals

I should mention my budget is no more than $140. I'm also looking at the Kenwood KAC-8405, and Pioneer GM-D8604( 100 watts RMS x 4 at 4 ohms), selling for $140 shipped at Amazon. Which amp do you guys think will perform better? The Pioneer GM-D8604 puts out most power (100 watts RMS x 4 at 4 ohms). Is the more power generally the better?Could this be a deciding factor? I'm leaning towards the Alpine, but if my setup could benefit from the extra juice both Pioneers put out, I might go with one of the Pioneers. Also, the Alpine has bass boost. If I use it very sparingly, could the bass boost be a nice bonus? Thank you!

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[GreekBrotha8 10+ year member]

Never really liked Kenwood or Pioneer for anything other than headunits, but that's just me. I'd go with the alpine. Also if you're looking for suggestions, mb quarts have proven to be very good budget amps.

 

[iCeNN 10+ year member]

Thank you for your response. What about the power difference between the Pioneer GM 6500f and the Alpine? Would I notice the extra power put out by the Pioneer?

 

[iCeNN 10+ year member]

Anyone else?

 

[zako 10+ year member]

Alpine is a solid amplifier for the money. This TEST shows that every measurable parameter is in a respectable range. Perhaps it's not the most powerful, but it's quite robust overall. It still did 64/100 watt RMS at 4ohm/2ohm in the test. For $140 you will not find another quality Class D amplifier. In fact, the Alpine's are priced below $150 because vendors are just selling off the likely discontinued F300. I believe, the F300 was replaced by MRX-F35/F65. Perhaps there are Class A/B amps in your budget that may perform fine. The trade off is that you get a little bit more power in exchange for bigger size and less efficiency. If you want a Class A/B amp, take a look at MB Quart ONX4.125, ONX4.80 or PPI Black Ice series amplifiers.