Hey everyone,
So I'm on the lookout for a decent used high powered amp for my garage stereo. I'm looking for at least 150 WPC RMS @ 8 ohms. I would love to get a Carver or Adcom but they are all out of my price league. So its most likely going to be a main stream amp from the late 80's - early 90's.
I need to get a good deal on it, Craigslist or Goodwill. So what would you reccomend looking for. It takes a lot of time sifting through all the Craigslist posts. It seems like all you can find at Goodwill is surround sound stuff.
Thanks
Jordon
So I'm on the lookout for a decent used high powered amp for my garage stereo. I'm looking for at least 150 WPC RMS @ 8 ohms. I would love to get a Carver or Adcom but they are all out of my price league. So its most likely going to be a main stream amp from the late 80's - early 90's.
I need to get a good deal on it, Craigslist or Goodwill. So what would you reccomend looking for. It takes a lot of time sifting through all the Craigslist posts. It seems like all you can find at Goodwill is surround sound stuff.
Thanks
Jordon
AB International Precedent Series 600LX 2 Channel Amplifier | eBay
AB International 600LX or 400, avoid the 900.
AB made the Cinepro amplifiers, just a different face plate.
AB International 600LX or 400, avoid the 900.
AB made the Cinepro amplifiers, just a different face plate.
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I would say 150 w/ch is medium power. I picked up a blown Peavey PV-1.3k @ 360 w/ch for $55 on craigslist, then put $80 in parts in it. The PV-8c would do for you, or the PV-4 is 120 w/ch 8 ohms. These come apart very easily and unique parts like long life fans are still available from peavey. The fan runs slow at low power and is not a nuisance.
The year I spent learning how to fix the thing was not exactly free, but was a great education.
Your bargains will be transformer driven amps like those three or the CS800x or previous. the CS800x series has better speaker protection than the PV series. The CS800s and later has a switcher power supply, which is lighter but requires more skill to repair.
If you're feeling frisky, the honey badger kit from diyaudio supply is a bargain and comes with a free educational pdf file on amp design features. You could put one in a steel porta-file box or something, with a little fan. Or you could salvage a VFD motor drive enclosure with the heatsinks already installed on the back, like the semi units out of a Heat & Control fastback conveyor. These have stainless boxes with a 3 phase switch on the front.
Oh, and ditch the 1/4 phone plugs. If the dog pulls one out slightly, it shorts and blows the amp. The band that sold the PV-1.3k to me had gone to dual banana plugs on the amp end. Unfortunately good old speakers still use 1/4 phone plugs.
BTW for quickest craiglist search, try searchtempest.com Has a geographic limit of how far you want to drive, very convenient. Hits all the categories at the same time, too. Also, now that craiglist forces the picture on you of every guitar and native flute, searchtemptest leaves the pictures out for faster scanning.
The year I spent learning how to fix the thing was not exactly free, but was a great education.
Your bargains will be transformer driven amps like those three or the CS800x or previous. the CS800x series has better speaker protection than the PV series. The CS800s and later has a switcher power supply, which is lighter but requires more skill to repair.
If you're feeling frisky, the honey badger kit from diyaudio supply is a bargain and comes with a free educational pdf file on amp design features. You could put one in a steel porta-file box or something, with a little fan. Or you could salvage a VFD motor drive enclosure with the heatsinks already installed on the back, like the semi units out of a Heat & Control fastback conveyor. These have stainless boxes with a 3 phase switch on the front.
Oh, and ditch the 1/4 phone plugs. If the dog pulls one out slightly, it shorts and blows the amp. The band that sold the PV-1.3k to me had gone to dual banana plugs on the amp end. Unfortunately good old speakers still use 1/4 phone plugs.
BTW for quickest craiglist search, try searchtempest.com Has a geographic limit of how far you want to drive, very convenient. Hits all the categories at the same time, too. Also, now that craiglist forces the picture on you of every guitar and native flute, searchtemptest leaves the pictures out for faster scanning.
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Old Yamaha PA amps tend to go for very little money, but are quite good - even for home use / hi-fi.
The Crowns mentioned all use fans.
If you don't mind the fan a Crown CH1 is the contractor version of the CE amplifier series.
At 275W/8Ω per channel it should be big enough for you. I mention this series as they sell for $50~$100 less than the CE series.
The AB International have a design that is virtually identical to the Leach amplifiers, a well respected hi-fi design. A super clean AB 600 went for less than $110 (shipped) last week. If I didn't own a dozen AB amplifiers I would have bid on this one.
AB International Precedent Series 600A | eBay
If you don't mind the fan a Crown CH1 is the contractor version of the CE amplifier series.
At 275W/8Ω per channel it should be big enough for you. I mention this series as they sell for $50~$100 less than the CE series.
The AB International have a design that is virtually identical to the Leach amplifiers, a well respected hi-fi design. A super clean AB 600 went for less than $110 (shipped) last week. If I didn't own a dozen AB amplifiers I would have bid on this one.
AB International Precedent Series 600A | eBay
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