About Phoenix Gold Amps
08-17-2003, 06:48 AM
#1
What about them?
I want to know owner's opinions on them. I want to know if they're really worth to buy the newest line. Currently I'm confused with the latest product lineup because apart from appearance, I can't tell which are higher/highest end.
How would they compare to their old-school stuff, like the M series?
Any feedback/comments accepted. [img]smile.gif[/img] Thanks
I want to know owner's opinions on them. I want to know if they're really worth to buy the newest line. Currently I'm confused with the latest product lineup because apart from appearance, I can't tell which are higher/highest end.
How would they compare to their old-school stuff, like the M series?
Any feedback/comments accepted. [img]smile.gif[/img] Thanks
08-17-2003, 07:09 AM
#2
1000 Watt CAFz'r
Join Date: Apr 2003
Posts: 1,692
there are ti(titanium) which are class ab amps that are excellent for sound quality. then there is t(tanrum) which are class "d" which are powerful amps. now all ti's are air cooled and are very light compared to other amps . these are all the rave with sq and import guys. the t amps are great for competing , they are power hogs that require alot of power and can be a great way to make your subs sound great. apart from that there are newer amps like octane which just came out and has a medly of ab and d class at a more affordable price. the best of both worlds for a cheaper price(easy on the wallet). so all you have to do is decide which one you want and how many. PG amps are awesome. i use them and i compete with them. see web site below for pics. our t1200.1 uses about 160 amps of current and we're at 15.5 volts. Moe in toronto (breaker of the iasca record with a 173.2(i think) so now he's the loudest iasca car ever and he has phoenix gold amps. I think it's the best amp i've used, ever. PG amps are damn good in my book.
[ August 17, 2003, 08:10 AM: Message edited by: pat28ca ]
[ August 17, 2003, 08:10 AM: Message edited by: pat28ca ]
08-17-2003, 09:24 AM
#5
Ok, good stuff. Has anyone also heard the old M-series stuff? Currently I have the M50 running for sub-bass, and it's impressive although I have the ability to cook food on it after a few short minutes. I'm wanting to know now if anyone had heard the difference between the old-school and now these newest offerings.
08-17-2003, 09:47 AM
#6
Join Date: Apr 2000
Posts: 1,220
Pat, the only tantrum amp that is Class T, is the ta1200.1. The rest of the tantrum line is A/B. The mono-block octane amps are class D, with the rest being class a/b.
Chadxton at the time the M line was one of PG's top of the line amps.. I prefer the Titaniums to the M series amps.. But i would take the M over the Tantrum or octane. One big improvement PG has made in there amps is the xover section. there very flexiable specially with the aux. output.
Chadxton at the time the M line was one of PG's top of the line amps.. I prefer the Titaniums to the M series amps.. But i would take the M over the Tantrum or octane. One big improvement PG has made in there amps is the xover section. there very flexiable specially with the aux. output.
08-22-2003, 07:42 AM
#8
500 Watt CAFz'r
Join Date: Sep 2002
Posts: 610
In it's day and even today, the M series PG amps really rock(ed). There's a funny story about how the name of the amp came to be... when it was first designed, the engineers at PG wanted an amp that would handle insane loads, so no matter who hooked it up and even if they hooked it up wrong, it wouldn't blow up. In other words, a "Moron" could hook it up and it would still work. So guess what the "M" stands for !
I know quite a few people that have one of these amps since new and still use it today. When it was new on the market, many installers would run a complete system off of one amp using passive xovers. Installers would load them down below 1 ohm with front and rear speakers and one or two subs all running off two channels... yes, the amps ran very hot but never broke down, but alas, the cost to produce was very high. Therefore, the perception of PG amps being expensive was born.
And yes, they still make high end amps (Titanium series) that are pricey, but so do all the other manufacturers. Has anyone ever done a price comparison between PG and other brand amps in the same class/output range ? If you look at other high end SQ amps like Arc Audio, MacIntosh, Zapco, Orion, Xtant and other brands, I believe you'd find PG amps to be priced fairly and competitively, offering very good value for the dollar.
If anything, PG has always been guilty of not building "exciting" looking products. They've always had performance, but not overly strong on looks... in other words, lots of "steak" and no "sizzle". This year they've finally produced product lines that offer both, like the Tantrum X and Octane R series amps, subs & accessories. And the pricing is competitive too; like the Octane R8.0:1 d class monoblock, rated at 800 watts at 2 ohms. It's retail price is $799.00 and you know most shops sell way below retail, so you're getting a lot of bang for your buck.
Anyway, that's my two cents. And by the way pat28ca, I actually live in Huntsville, which is about two hours north of Toronto. You were right about the record though, our car hit 173.2 at the triple point IdBL event in Syracuse, New York, using four PG Titanium Elite 12" subs and twelve PG Tantrum T1200.1 amplifiers. And I'm also very proud to say that all the equipment in our car is right out of the box, no mods. Everything in the car is available through retail channels and nothing has been tweaked or modified.
Gotta go, customers in the store. Have to make a living! Talk to you all soon.
[ August 22, 2003, 08:45 AM: Message edited by: Moe Sab ]
I know quite a few people that have one of these amps since new and still use it today. When it was new on the market, many installers would run a complete system off of one amp using passive xovers. Installers would load them down below 1 ohm with front and rear speakers and one or two subs all running off two channels... yes, the amps ran very hot but never broke down, but alas, the cost to produce was very high. Therefore, the perception of PG amps being expensive was born.
And yes, they still make high end amps (Titanium series) that are pricey, but so do all the other manufacturers. Has anyone ever done a price comparison between PG and other brand amps in the same class/output range ? If you look at other high end SQ amps like Arc Audio, MacIntosh, Zapco, Orion, Xtant and other brands, I believe you'd find PG amps to be priced fairly and competitively, offering very good value for the dollar.
If anything, PG has always been guilty of not building "exciting" looking products. They've always had performance, but not overly strong on looks... in other words, lots of "steak" and no "sizzle". This year they've finally produced product lines that offer both, like the Tantrum X and Octane R series amps, subs & accessories. And the pricing is competitive too; like the Octane R8.0:1 d class monoblock, rated at 800 watts at 2 ohms. It's retail price is $799.00 and you know most shops sell way below retail, so you're getting a lot of bang for your buck.
Anyway, that's my two cents. And by the way pat28ca, I actually live in Huntsville, which is about two hours north of Toronto. You were right about the record though, our car hit 173.2 at the triple point IdBL event in Syracuse, New York, using four PG Titanium Elite 12" subs and twelve PG Tantrum T1200.1 amplifiers. And I'm also very proud to say that all the equipment in our car is right out of the box, no mods. Everything in the car is available through retail channels and nothing has been tweaked or modified.
Gotta go, customers in the store. Have to make a living! Talk to you all soon.
[ August 22, 2003, 08:45 AM: Message edited by: Moe Sab ]
08-24-2003, 03:50 PM
#9
1000 Watt CAFz'r
Join Date: Apr 2000
Posts: 1,085
Pricey? Yeah I guess so, but look at the Importer of it. Figure an American price and convert to our dollars, there is where you will see the difference.
Met up with Harold Navorone here in PG. This guy has some cool PG gear in his Astro van. We played around with a pair of 1200.1`s and put one of them on 4 of my XS 12`s. Holy shoot was that some awesome power compared to both my zx 350`s.
I honestly think it comes down to what you are trying to achieve from your system. I hold a great sentimental value on the old gear like the M and MS series, even more fonder of my ZX because of the abuse it has been through and would more than likely hold the new seriescloser to heart than the prevous gear in relation to performance and price.
Met up with Harold Navorone here in PG. This guy has some cool PG gear in his Astro van. We played around with a pair of 1200.1`s and put one of them on 4 of my XS 12`s. Holy shoot was that some awesome power compared to both my zx 350`s.
I honestly think it comes down to what you are trying to achieve from your system. I hold a great sentimental value on the old gear like the M and MS series, even more fonder of my ZX because of the abuse it has been through and would more than likely hold the new seriescloser to heart than the prevous gear in relation to performance and price.
