Old School

[RFCV 10+ year member]

My last favorite would be the pre-HD Rockford Fosgate Punch 45/75/150.

Still run 2 RF Punch 150's (3rd gen from 89, just before the HD's). Have been running them faithfully since that time to now & still as powerful as new! //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/thumbsupwink.gif.129404938effda6ad9cca39e7f4b58a3.gif

All I have ever run is pre-HD RF Punch 45/75/150 & loved them all without any major issues except to change the internal & speaker fuses every so often, but very rarely.

 

[tomtomjr 10+ year member]

The old-school is the way to go if you can find them. If you plan on running them, change the caps, re-paste the heatsink, and you are good to go.

I prefer the old-school amps since I did repair on them in the 80's and 90's. So they are much easier to work on for me. Some old amps are much touchier than others. I have approx 800-900 (maybe more) old school amps in and my goal is to buy fleet of school buses and install them all. Or just hang them on the wall and look at them. (what I do with them now) . For a reliable old

amp, get some RF amps (pre-HD) , PPI (black or art series) , Orion SX (gx is not reliable in the 1st gen) , US Amps (2nd or 3rd gen) , or maybe some LP's. There are a ton of older amps out there that you can run. Just have to make sure they don't have previous bad repairs, burned holes that were patched up, ect. Then repaste, inspect, and change the caps. Then you will have a good, old, really cool amp to run...

 

[revrider1 5,000+ posts]

I have some, but dont use them...

 

[bass_lover1 10+ year member]

I used to, and then I woke up.

My current Clarions, sound the same if not better than my bonerific LP amps, and cost me a **** load less too.

 

[ciaonzo 5,000+ posts]

I used to, and then I woke up.
My current Clarions, sound the same if not better than my bonerific LP amps, and cost me a **** load less too.

No offense because I respect your choice, but that amounts to choosing between driving a '68 Camaro or a '98 Camaro. There's just something about the older one.

There's no doubt some newer amps can get the job done better and cheaper but it's nice to sport the old gear.

 

[bass_lover1 10+ year member]

No offense because I respect your choice, but that amounts to choosing between driving a '68 Camaro or a '98 Camaro. There's just something about the older one.
There's no doubt some newer amps can get the job done better and cheaper but it's nice to sport the old gear.

I do agree with you, plus you picked my favorite year Camaro so I can't argue too much there //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

Believe me, I LOVED the pair of 2.2HVs I had, but when it comes down to it, the Clarion DPX2251 I'm using now that replaced one 2.2HV, produces equal power, draws less current, and was cheaper.

Now I understand I won't get the same reaction running quad LP amps (initial plans) as I will with my three Clarion amps, but hey for me in the end they accomplish the same thing.

I did love how the LP amps appreciated in value, I've sold 4 out of the 6 I've owned, and made money on each one, so I can't be too upset with them //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[ciaonzo 5,000+ posts]

I do agree with you, plus you picked my favorite year Camaro so I can't argue too much there //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif
Believe me, I LOVED the pair of 2.2HVs I had, but when it comes down to it, the Clarion DPX2251 I'm using now that replaced one 2.2HV, produces equal power, draws less current, and was cheaper.

Now I understand I won't get the same reaction running quad LP amps (initial plans) as I will with my three Clarion amps, but hey for me in the end they accomplish the same thing.

I did love how the LP amps appreciated in value, I've sold 4 out of the 6 I've owned, and made money on each one, so I can't be too upset with them //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

I tried so hard to gather the funds to get that 2.2HV from you. It was the exact color I wanted too.

I imagine those Clarions take up a bit more real estate then the LPs did, no?

Did you end up getting the Tripath Clarion for sub duty?

 

[bass_lover1 10+ year member]

I tried so hard to gather the funds to get that 2.2HV from you. It was the exact color I wanted too.
I imagine those Clarions take up a bit more real estate then the LPs did, no?

Did you end up getting the Tripath Clarion for sub duty?

Which one, black or titanium? //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif

The DPX2251 that replaced the 2.2HV is actually a little bit smaller. The DPX1851 that replaced the 5002, is just about the same size.

The 1851 is my new sub amp, actually both Clarions are Class G/H, similar to what Arc uses in their KS amps //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[ciaonzo 5,000+ posts]

Which one, black or titanium? //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif
The DPX2251 that replaced the 2.2HV is actually a little bit smaller. The DPX1851 that replaced the 5002, is just about the same size.

The 1851 is my new sub amp, actually both Clarions are Class G/H, similar to what Arc uses in their KS amps //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

Ahh... I was mistaking the ones you have for the earlier generation I think.

Titanium. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/inlove.gif.6846f78f06b405429ef3a00129788a2a.gif

 

[bass_lover1 10+ year member]

Ahh... I was mistaking the ones you have for the earlier generation I think.
Titanium. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/inlove.gif.6846f78f06b405429ef3a00129788a2a.gif

Yea the Clarions I'm using are their current models, but apparently about two years old, or so that's what the date stamp says on the board.

Aye, the Titanium was my first LP. I sold that one bought both Clarions, and still had about 100 bucks left over //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif

 

[ciaonzo 5,000+ posts]

I love how tomtomjr says he's going to get a fleet of buses.

I laughed.

tomtomjr, how extensive is the cap replacement on the majority of your old amps? Just the ones for the power supply and such or each and every one of them?

 

[Louisiana_CRX 5,000+ posts]

I have a few old school amps myself....

 

[cleansoundzz 10+ year member]

I just like the look of some of the old school amps. Realistically, many of the car audio companies may money off of newer products and newer technology. Any amp of hooked up with the right impedance and taken care of should last. They make money when people think there is a better product out there. I like them because I know they will last. However, now I don't doubt the new ones will last either. 10 years from now the current generation of amps will also be in people's cars as well.

 

[Louisiana_CRX 5,000+ posts]

I just like the look of some of the old school amps. Realistically, many of the car audio companies may money off of newer products and newer technology. Any amp of hooked up with the right impedance and taken care of should last. They make money when people think there is a better product out there. I like them because I know they will last. However, now I don't doubt the new ones will last either. 10 years from now the current generation of amps will also be in people's cars as well.

soundstream and Orion are bringing back the old look to their new amps...

 

[tomtomjr 10+ year member]

I love how tomtomjr says he's going to get a fleet of buses.
I laughed.

tomtomjr, how extensive is the cap replacement on the majority of your old amps? Just the ones for the power supply and such or each and every one of them?

I have changed caps out on several of the amps that I plan on actually using in the future. For instance, the caps in BassLover1's 5002 (thanks for the LP!), I plan on changing out the 10 large caps (from 63V to 100V) . For the early Zapco amps, I changed out the caps in output section, and went from TIP35A to TIP35C, ect, ect... But overall, just have to go through the amps and change what is looking rough, what might go bad, and resolder everything. Then after you do all that, you will end up with a bad gain pot that is unavailable. Fun, Fun...