Brian Demeter

I'm looking to upgrade my amps and I was wondering - who makes the best amps for SQ? I was thinking along the lines of Arc Audio, Sinfoni, ADCOM, A/D/S, etc. Has anyone here tried Monitor amps? So far, I've tried Planet Audio 754 (used tubes for pre-amp section), Audiobahn A4601, and a JL 300/4. The planet audio lacked mid-range body and the highs were a little glaring. The Audiobahn was very powerful, but sounded a little 'flat' and dull. The 300/4 was better and was a little more dynamic and 'black' than the Audiobahn.

Right now, I'm powering everything off a JL Audio 500/5 with decent results - BUT I just blew out the two front channels. That really sucks since the one amps powers all my channels and sub. Now I don't have anything to listen too.

I want to replace the 500/5 with a 70~100W 2-channel amp for the front (CDT Audio components), and a smaller 35~50W x 2 for the rear coaxials. Maybe a JL 500/1 or JBL 600Wx1 for the Infinity Perfect 10 sub. I also need them to be small, maybe 9" x 10" or smaller. Any suggestions?

ChameleonGreen

Diamond Audio D7 Series
Zapco

sc93

sinfoni amps are outstanding,
brax and helix also come to mind.
Also check out Lunar

www.ampman.com

rthompson

I love my Arc amp, but when it comes to high end you really should notice nothing but the difference in power from one amp to the next. Good quality is good quality, period.

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Sony, Arc Audio, Infinity, Adire Audio, A/D/S

redz_02

If you got money, look into the brax or the helix. I still believe in power is power it just depends on how truthfull the manufacture is. But brax and helix are both made from the same comp. and are usualy picked for SQ. But if you want more SQ i would also look into a JL W7 over the perfect.

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'02 Red Z28, ebony leather, M6, T-tops, Trac. cont., hurst shifter
Borla (the expensive cut-out), Wisperlid W/K&N, FRA, Cags eliminator, Strange 4.10's, G2 Rear Girdle, Valv. Synthetic 10W-30, Redline gear oil, Fat hurst shift ****, Lead foot

Soon to be:
Alpine Screen, Orion xtr 800.4, xtrpro 1000, Kicker 12L7 in a milhouse, Focal polykev K2's, Focal utopia 6" audiom midrange.

rthompson

i agree completely, the speakers are going to make a lot more difference in the sound than the amp (if the amps put out similar power).
I will have to add that you don't need to go as expensive as the W7 if you want something that sounds better than the perfect. For half the price of the W7 the Adire Brahma and the ID Max are great subs, and completely blow the Perfect away. For about 1/3 the price of the W7, the Eclipse Aluminum just kills the Perfect in SQ. For 1/4 the price of the W7 the IDQ V2 and the Adire Shiva are both better sounding.... and cheaper than the perfect. The perfect is a good sub, but it doesn't take a lot of $$ to get a better sub.

Basicly if you are looking into better SQ you will be better off getting different speakers than amps.


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Soundillusions.net
The ultimate in caraudio.

Sony, Arc Audio, Infinity, Adire Audio, A/D/S

[This message has been edited by rthompson (edited August 13, 2002).]

Brian Demeter

Well, for the sub I was thinking of going with 2 10's in a Millhouse box powered by a Harrison Labs 800W amp. I was just going to get another Infinity, but maybe I should switch to a better brand. Right now, the Infinity is in a JL Vantage stealthbox (powered by a JL 500/5 - 250W) and it does sound good, but a little on the loose and muddy side. The first sub I tried in the JL box was an Audiobahn Alum10X, powered by a Planet Audio Vector 1200D. That hit very low and hard, but it wasn't very tight. The second sub I tried was a JL 10W3D4 wired for 2ohm and powered by the 500/5. That was the worst of the bunch. It didn't hit very low. In testng with Bass Mechanic's test tones, the 10W3 gave up @ 32hz or so. Anything lower than that was inaudible. It also had a very cheap, vibrating-paper type of sound. It had good artticulation, but on most songs it came across as very peaky and one-notey. It gave me a headache.

The Infinity was the best of both worlds. It hits the lowest notes with ease and sounds very smooth and even from 20hz to 70hz. No peaks or dips. It blended the best with my main speakers; which at the time were Focal Utopia's and JL XR series. It still had some problems with definition and could sound a little loose at times, but the trade-offs were much less than the problems with both the Audiobahn and JL 10W3.

I just ordered CDT's new Eurosport ES-620 component speakers, along with a Arc Audio 2100CXL amp for my front stage. I may change head units from a Pioneer DEH-940R to an Alpine CDA-7998. My plan is to get rid of the stealthbox and order a Millhouse box from www.subthump.com setup for 2 10's. I want to power the subs with a Harrison Labs 800W amp. Anyone have any experience with the HLabs sub amps?

The only thing I'm not sure on yet is the subs to replace the Infinity. I hear alot of good things about the Adire lineup of subs on here and other forums. What model would work best as a pair in the Millhouse box? Is the Millhouse box good for SQ?

Thanks for the suggestions!

eyeoutthere

I am real happy with my Xtant amp.

And I applaud your decision to get rid of the Infinity Perfect. I have one and I am not that happy with it.

Houdini

One more vote for Xtant!

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97 WS6 TA Conv.

CNC LT4 Top End Package
Full Length Headers
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389 RWHP - 365 RWTQ

rthompson

well, a single Shiva or a single Brahma 10 or 12 would do well in a Milhouse. The Shiva is a 12" sub so you really can't get a pair of them in there....
The Brahmas are VERY heavy (39 LBS) so a pair of the tens would make for a lot of mass.... A single ported ten or a sealed 12 will sound WAY better than the Perfect (so will the Shiva) and the box can be really small.

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Soundillusions.net
The ultimate in caraudio.

Sony, Arc Audio, Infinity, Adire Audio, A/D/S

redz_02

Forgot about the brahmas and shivas, i went with an L7 because i wanted more SPL b/c i was going with 1 twelve. Pretty much most high dollar amps are good quality for any application other than Class D amps, for highs that is. It all mainly depends on the speakers, has alot to do with what the speakers were made for.

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'02 Red Z28, ebony leather, M6, T-tops, Trac. cont., hurst shifter
Borla (the expensive cut-out), Wisperlid W/K&N, FRA, Cags eliminator, Strange 4.10's, G2 Rear Girdle, Valv. Synthetic 10W-30, Redline gear oil, Fat hurst shift ****, Lead foot

Soon to be:
Alpine Screen, Orion xtr 800.4, xtrpro 1000, Kicker 12L7 in a milhouse, Focal polykev K2's, Focal utopia 6" audiom midrange.

Lynxis

U.S. AMPS

just kidding..

my vote is for McIntosh

limige

dude listen to tompson, l7s are garbage for sq, w7's way too pricey, id max, bramha, digital designs 9900 series, or resonant engineerings XXX would be much better pics.

amp wise, butler, brax, mcintosh, xtant, a/d/s, zapco come to mind.