Your top 5 personal favorite amps and why

[AVX Mike 10+ year member]

I saw the top 5 best amps get flame so I figured I would try this another way. What are you top five favorite amps of all time and why? Can be SQ, build, power, interesting features, anything that made that amp stand out to you.

So here we go... My five favorite amps in no particular order are...

Kenwood PS400m- I had a few of these at different times when I was younger. Th oey were great power for the buck back in the day. Ran hard with no problems. Had Kenwoods sigma servo feature to keep distortion down. I can still find two of them in WI, one is a had built, but they want to much for what the amp is and it's not worth that much to relive my early days of car audio. Still a very cool amp.

Orion concept 97.3- How can you not like an amp the can do 2 x 512W @ 0.00390625 ohms Enough said on this amp

Zappco 9.0- One of the great 2-ch amps that is capable of putting a ton of power to some subs. Can be modded from Zappco for better power to ohm loads for competition. The external display box and controller are interesting pieces as well.

Focal dual monitor- It's annoyily huge to deal with for a full range amp, but the computer controlled tuning features make this amp a new favorite. Extremely clean sounding (as it should) nice build quality and again the tunability of this amp is amazing.

MMATS 3000.05, 3000.1, 3500.05 and 3500.1- I listed them all since they are minor revisions to the same amp. An excellent choice for Usaci competitions, lots of power, .5 ohm daily use. Very strong amps, good build and great support from MMATS.

Now there are others I could think of that could be on that list, but I would have to say that these were my top 5 amps. I've many amps that I've liked and will never forget, but these 5 stand out in my mind more than any of the others. So how about the rest of you?

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[helotaxi 5,000+ posts]

Orion 225 HCCA-- the original "Little amp the could"

Precision Power 2350DM--350 watts per channel meant for mids and highs at a time when that was a LOT for a sub. What's not to like?

Audison HR-100--$6,000. Nice way to make an entrance in the market, eh? Beautiful amp. Teak wood, anyone?

Phoenix Gold Frank Amp-n-Stein--Staggered power total system amp. Take 2 awesome amps and cram them into the same chassis and then grant it limited edition status and give it cool marketing and packaging.

Hifonics Series VIII Colossus--to my knowledge the most powerful ClassA/B amp into 4 ohm stereo ever made. The US Amps VLX-400 might have been able to make more power overall, but at the time you needed a ton of subs to wring all the power out of it. The Colossus was easy to please.

 

[azimuth 5,000+ posts]

Orion 225 HCCA-- the original "Little amp the could"
Precision Power 2350DM--350 watts per channel meant for mids and highs at a time when that was a LOT for a sub. What's not to like?

Audison HR-100--$6,000. Nice way to make an entrance in the market, eh? Beautiful amp. Teak wood, anyone?

Phoenix Gold Frank Amp-n-Stein--Staggered power total system amp. Take 2 awesome amps and cram them into the same chassis and then grant it limited edition status and give it cool marketing and packaging.

Hifonics Series VIII Colossus--to my knowledge the most powerful ClassA/B amp into 4 ohm stereo ever made. The US Amps VLX-400 might have been able to make more power overall, but at the time you needed a ton of subs to wring all the power out of it. The Colossus was easy to please.

^^ that's a nice list^^ the amp-n-stein i have never seen though. i have a precision power pc2350 (best single amp i've ever owned)currently, which i would add to the list. i've had an xtant for years. it has been through a serious car accident, been soaked with water, dropped more than once and has not been babied at all (it's ran numerous different subs and speakers), it's been way too hot more times than i can count. i still have it and still use it.

 

[azbass 5,000+ posts]

Dls A7

 

[Prowler573 5,000+ posts]

I'm a bit of a fan of the KAC-PS400M like the OP. I tried for awhile to locate one that I felt was worth the asking price. I was wanting it to match the KAC-PS500F I currently run but sadly was never able to do so.

Early eXcelon gear...you know Prowler's gonna be a fan. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/thumbsup.gif.3287b36ca96645a13a43aff531f37f02.gif

Oldschool Orion 2100...is that the one that was generally known as "The Beast"? If I'm recalling the correct model number then 'nuff said for those that know what unit I speak of.

My current DAT D61500.1 It sounds good. Plays hard all day long and doesn't shy away from a 1 Ohm load. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/thumbsup.gif.3287b36ca96645a13a43aff531f37f02.gif

Solid unit without a doubt.

Kenwood KAC-846. Reliable as an oak tree, versatile as you might want it to be, and can generally be sourced for $80 or under working. Tough to beat for 50x4 @ 4, 75x4 @ 2, and 150x2 @ 4.

Hmm...I'll have to think on it for a 5th one that I personally like enough to put on a top 5 list.

 

[SPL140.2 5,000+ posts]

i loved the old mtx thunder amps like the 280, 2160 etc... Very underated and strong.

 

[req 5,000+ posts]

DLS amps, because they are way sexy.

memphis XX-1300. 75x4@4 and 1100x1@1. whats not to like?

oldschool audio art gain blocks. i tell ya what. the thing had like a 8"x8" footprint, but it made two sets of NEXT components rip my face off. i am not happy that i sold that sucker //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif

soundstream rubicon\reference - great build quality, love the wires on the side designs, and all around great amps. put out some serious power back in the day.

butler tube drivers. i mean cmon. they are fucking tube amps.

 

[Paul73 10+ year member]

PPI 2350- power, SQ, build quality

US Amps VLX 400- Raw unadulterated power, SQ

PPI Art Series Ax606.2 - SQ, flexibility, bullet proof, build quality

a/d/s/ 850mx Power Plate - SQ, flexibility, bullet proof, build quality

Rockford Fosgate Punch 40- absolutely mind blowing what this little thing will do...setup a system with three Vega H.E.D. 12s and one little 40 powering it. It blew minds, even before they saw the amp //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[cjj2d 10+ year member]

Kenwood KAC-714 (one of my first amps and held strong)

PPI PC2150- the BEST amp I have ever owned! SQ out the ***, consistant power and build like a rock.

PPI PC2350- same as above only major SQ, and a massive amount of CLEAN power, and build quality like no other.

(of course I can sall most all PPI PC and Art series amps as I have owned many)

and gotta throw in my old PPI 200IQX.... just cause I loved it and it was **** good to me.

 

[azimuth 5,000+ posts]

Kenwood KAC-714 (one of my first amps and held strong)
PPI PC2150- the BEST amp I have ever owned! SQ out the ***, consistant power and build like a rock.

PPI PC2350- same as above only major SQ, and a massive amount of CLEAN power, and build quality like no other.

(of course I can sall most all PPI PC and Art series amps as I have owned many)

and gotta throw in my old PPI 200IQX.... just cause I loved it and it was **** good to me.

that's what i run. fvcking unreal what it can do. prepare for electrical upgrades with this one.

 

[desertheat 10+ year member]

DLS A7 - because it is the most flexible class a/b 5 channel I know if, dead sexy and is pretty much flawless performance wise. 1 ohm stable on the sub channel

Helix A6 - for the same reasons as the DLS A7 but less power for the money. Better looks than the DLS IMO but not enough on the sub channels

DLS A3 - About the best two channel I can possibly think of in car audio period. Specifications are flawless, powersupplies are insane and overbuilt like old school amps. Can get down right brutal for class a/b at 1 ohm.

All Phoenix gold ZPA series - Just stellar amps with there own unique look and style.

McIntosh MC4000M - Not the best in any category, but it is a freakin mc4000m.. need I say more..? Still drool worthy after all this time and a MONSTER. Anytime you see one in a trunk you know your looking at a true car audio baller //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[azbass 5,000+ posts]

oh yeah forgot to mention the MC4000M

 

[galacticmonkey 5,000+ posts]

Orion 2500D - Know lots of ppl who have em and they're strong amps.

Sundown SAZ-1500D - I love mine.

Kicker ZX2500.1 - Rock solid amp thats does lots of power. Just plain sexy.

Power Acoustik A2400B/A3000B - Amp is great for the money.

Clarion DPX11500 - Great amp for the price. Does solid power and is very strong.

I also love just about any old school amp from Kicker, RF, PPI, Orion, etc. They are just very cool in their own way.

 

[AVX Mike 10+ year member]

Wow, it's great to see a real discusion going on on a forum. Keep them coming guys.

 

[jmanpc 5,000+ posts]

Lightning Audio X1.800.4 - As much hate as LA recieves... this amp is a beast. It's an f'n tank.... I ran it at max volume for 2 hours playing Demon Hunter [Metal] and it didn't complain. No sputtering or anything. It was hot enough to cook on, but it was crammed in the little mexican compartment beneath my floor.

MTX Thunder 152... stout little tank of an amp. It's just a little 35 x 2 amp, but a very capable little bugger

My old 1989 Punch 75. It looks like an f'n grill, but it's charming. Just gain, bass and treble controls. And did I mention SMALL? Let me just say... it deserves its reputation

Go ahead and laugh, but I had a little Pyramid 35x2 amp that was f'n unbreakable. I ran it on my lawnmower for a while powering some Bose speakers. I frickin did everything I could to that thing.... it has been wet, hot, cold, kicked around.... it sat in a trash can with various junk for a few months, and i pulled it out and it worked... cranked the gains, stripped the case off it... and it took it.'

Of course my X1.2000.1. It's a beast. Nuff said.