An excellent budget amp.
Written: Jul 10 '02 (Updated Jul 10 '02)
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Pros: Easy hookup with adequate clean power.
Cons: Big size. High fuse rating. Hard to find.
The Bottom Line: This amp is a solid performer when coupled to some quality speakers with matching handling. The price and package is definitely hard to beat.
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| acidman32405's Full Review: Audiovox KA5 Car Amp |
First of all this amp is monstrous and a bit on the heavy side. I'm not sure what it weighs but, it measures 22"x11"x2" roughly. Still has the power features of the xa series: mosfet power supply, bipolar ouputs. This is supposed to be jensen's competition line or least that is what I was told. Anyway, the front and rears remain bridgable at 4ohm, while the sub is 1ohm stable. Rated THD at .05% 4ohm, 1% when bridged or at 2ohm and 1ohm. Wattage rms at 50x4 and 125(sub) 40hm. 20hm the sub reaches 250 and 1ohm 300 rms. It carries two 40 amp fuses so the power output is not surprising! In fact it should put out some more with that kind of fuse rating. I take it they are for if you decide to bridge the whole amp. The sound is clean with a sense of warmth possibly due to the bipolars. The power is great, though volume threshold is a little low for this size amp. It still gets pretty loud and stays clean just until it peaks. The sub channel is a bit underpowered at the lowest ohm load. Still it is strong enough to run some woofers within it's range with some authority. It is more efficient at 2ohms though. It has a fully variable boost of 45hz of up to 12db, which I don't use, for my box was designed not to need it. The x-overs are variable 50-250 12db(hp,full,low) front and rear with the sub (low only) at 18 db. The sub's input is a mono jack but, it can be fed internaly off of the front or rear via a switch (very good). All you need are two sets of preouts. Since the ouputs are not mosfets this baby does generate some heat after some vigorous playing but, that is normal. It has protection circuitry which hasn't been triggered at all. It should be noted that most bipolar amps run at a higher temp than a fully mosfet one anyway. So nothing unusual. This amp is power-hungry so if you run one, it wouldn't hurt to use a bigger battery or a stiffening cap. The power terminals are big enough to accept 8awg so that is a plus also. Overall this amp can be a top performer in the budget class if ran with good quality speakers that match the power handling. The cons are not enough to cause a stir. With some of the same features as the xa series it is hard to beat as far as performance, package, and price goes.
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 150+tax.
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Epinions.com ID: acidman32405
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Reviews written: 2
Trusted by: 0 members
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