Some of the prices are just ridiculous....but most go for quite a bit less than what they did for when they were new....and thats without including 20 years of inflation. I just sold an amp that cost around $600 new for $225.....and it will "roast" most of the new amps....literally and figuratively...lol. Some of those old amps really needed active cooling, certainly extended their lives(and prevented the notorious heatsink "tattoo"....lol, yes I have a few).
Hell yeah, on the Godfathers! I had 2-12’s and 2-15”s in a kingcab back in the day running on a Autotek 7600BTS. They could make you nauseous at times at certain freq’s.
Been running the hell out of my gen.1 Orion 2350gx. I bought this new around 1990 and was running 6-12” Cerwin Vegas in a rabbit back then. For most of its life, it has had an 8" squirrel cage fan because it will shut down after 10-15min without it.
It has been pushing 2-15” L7’s (sealed) for the last 5yrs. I listen to rap, and I hammer this thing for 45min every single day going to and from work and its over 20yrs old.
This is why I LOVE my old school gear. I mean, the good quality old school amps were rated: true RMS at 4ohms with 12.0vdc input with distortion measured at max output. Most of the quality amps back then had .08% THD or less at max output, not 1%
In addition, I would gladly pay the extra cost for a new amp If It was US made and actually gave true specs. (Not: Peak power @.5ohm and 14.4 or 16vdc input)
Maybe I am just irritated because I don’t like that the industry is flooded with garbage and overstated specs.
This says it all! (pict. 1&2)
Been running the hell out of my gen.1 Orion 2350gx. I bought this new around 1990 and was running 6-12” Cerwin Vegas in a rabbit back then. For most of its life, it has had an 8" squirrel cage fan because it will shut down after 10-15min without it.
It has been pushing 2-15” L7’s (sealed) for the last 5yrs. I listen to rap, and I hammer this thing for 45min every single day going to and from work and its over 20yrs old.
This is why I LOVE my old school gear. I mean, the good quality old school amps were rated: true RMS at 4ohms with 12.0vdc input with distortion measured at max output. Most of the quality amps back then had .08% THD or less at max output, not 1%
In addition, I would gladly pay the extra cost for a new amp If It was US made and actually gave true specs. (Not: Peak power @.5ohm and 14.4 or 16vdc input)
Maybe I am just irritated because I don’t like that the industry is flooded with garbage and overstated specs.
This says it all! (pict. 1&2)
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Yup.....thats why i got out out the industry.....tired of replacing crappy blown gear.
a 7600 is a beast....just sold one of those too....good thing i have 6 more....lol....too bad they dont all work. Though i do appreciate the "loudness" capable from those monsters, the headroom aint too shabby for SQ either....
you say "kingcab", can I assume that was a nissan....720d?
a 7600 is a beast....just sold one of those too....good thing i have 6 more....lol....too bad they dont all work. Though i do appreciate the "loudness" capable from those monsters, the headroom aint too shabby for SQ either....
you say "kingcab", can I assume that was a nissan....720d?
yep, 1985 nissan the year before the hardbody, I think..
Those Godfathers were scared of that amp!!! 7600BTS silver w/blue stripe
I actually turned the gain to 1/8, Bass to off on the amp and HU, and it was still overpowering those subs. This was in the cab, no canopy or walk through, probably my loudest system. It seemed louder than my rabbit with 6-12's.
Man I wish I still had it.....
Those Godfathers were scared of that amp!!! 7600BTS silver w/blue stripe
I actually turned the gain to 1/8, Bass to off on the amp and HU, and it was still overpowering those subs. This was in the cab, no canopy or walk through, probably my loudest system. It seemed louder than my rabbit with 6-12's.
Man I wish I still had it.....
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LOVE the 720, sorta last year befor hardbody, there were both in 86, split year if i remember correctly. Also a huge fan of the OLD "bulletside" datsun "kingcabs" before the 720, called the 620....I think.
Got any pics of your 85? I had several 720's only took a few pics though, the one above is mostly 85, did the vert myself...im the one on the right, my cousin on the left. The bed was hydraulic, stereo was a 7300 and two kicker 15" comps like the ones pictured above. Great back massage.....and yeah wish I still had that one too. Still have the 7300 though....the 15's were sold many years ago....very well "broken in".
I installed more than a few 7600's never really "pushed" any of them. Dont think that a stock charging could keep up with one anyway. Did an install with a Colossus, and three Zeus, in a "stock" astro(wall with 2 18's and 4 10's...too many mids/tweets to count....I DID NOT DESIGN THE SYSTEM...the customer did)....he bought an alternator a week(we tried to tell him), for about a month, before we upgraded the charging system, and it still wasnt enough really....but he was out of money..... gotta remember the customer is always right.....even when they are WAY wrong....cest la vie
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I am the OP, and thanks you all guys for answering my question, I never tought it would reach almost 1000 posts!
Question for Perry Babin, I asked you one time what are the best made series of amplifiers and I think you told me the Rockford Fosgate PUNCH series from early 90s were the best.
I don't remember that. If I said that, it was likely relative. They made some good amps and I still recommend Rockford amps. No amp is perfect but the Rockford amps are generally very reliable and except for some (like the HD amps) they will last many years. Many of the newer amps (not referring to Rockford) self destruct under normal operating conditions. When they come in for repair, they have to be modified (physically.mechanically) so they don't fail prematurely again.
Set of audiomobile amps for sale on ebay
Old School Audiomobile SP300 SA1000 CXE-2 SA450 Vintage car audio not SA400 | eBay
Old School Audiomobile SP300 SA1000 CXE-2 SA450 Vintage car audio not SA400 | eBay
In the 90's I worked as an installer right down the street from A/D/S in Norwood, MA. I had worked my way up from my first rockford amp to some apline stuff, then to Soundstream and eventually to a/d/s. I still have 2 p840's and a p4100. I recently had some problems with my soundstream ref404s and substituted it for my tiny p240 to run the front a/d/s 336is seperates. What a huge sound difference for 2x40 watts at 4 ohms!
I just installed a Nak PA-300 - II and a Carver M2090i in a '92 Cutlass Supreme.
The Nak sounds as good as it did 20 years ago and would probably give a lot of newer stuff a run for its $$.
In my next and much newer vehicle I hope to install a Blade M504-W and Blade M1002, along with a pair of B&W LT40 silk dome tweets and LM50 mids that were adapted from their top-of-the-line B&W Matrix 801 series home audio speakers!
I had the B&W stuff in my '85 Blazer up until about '96, and wow! they were somethin' to behold!
I think they would still fair well against both Focal and Hertz.
Some of that old school stuff is still hard to beat.
The Nak sounds as good as it did 20 years ago and would probably give a lot of newer stuff a run for its $$.
In my next and much newer vehicle I hope to install a Blade M504-W and Blade M1002, along with a pair of B&W LT40 silk dome tweets and LM50 mids that were adapted from their top-of-the-line B&W Matrix 801 series home audio speakers!
I had the B&W stuff in my '85 Blazer up until about '96, and wow! they were somethin' to behold!
I think they would still fair well against both Focal and Hertz.
Some of that old school stuff is still hard to beat.