Lightest Poweramp?

[Chef]

Peavey DPC1400. 1 rack space, 1400 watts, not cooling issues.
Combine that with your favorite 1 space preamp, and there ya go.

 

[Passinwind]

Or I could get a 3 or 4 space rack and use mounting brackets and some ingenuity to pop in the Focus.

If you're gonna do that, a rack shelf and some velcro or whatever will get you there. Most of the commercial ones are heavier than they'd need to be for the Focus, but a drill could take care of that.

What does the QSC PLX1804 do bridged at 4 ohms?

That's why I said to really look at the specs! The -04 series PLX amps might not necessarily be your best solution if you're only using a single cab. But I'd be darned sure that cab is going to work for you by itself before I count 'em out.

 

[Passinwind]

Peavey DPC1400. 1 rack space, 1400 watts, not cooling issues.
Combine that with your favorite 1 space preamp, and there ya go.

16+ inches deep though? Sigh...it's always something, eh?

What's the street price on those Alan?

 

[Chef]

Used, ~$600-750. new ~$1200. Not *too* bad.

 

[greenboy]

If Peavey could get that cost down they'd have sold many more since the first one rolled off production maybe 8 years ago when I got mine. Killer package - only recently have a few other companies gotten the weight/size/sound/specs/cost thing happening.

 

[el_Kabong]

...I bench tested a CA9 and my 1804 the same day I did the ABX testing. At 40 Hz, 80Hz, and 1Khz, @ 4 ohms, the measured power outputs at clipping were virtually identical....

Did you play them both PW? Wotcha think?

 

[BassMorpheus]

Peavey DPC 1400

1 U rack space
1400 watts

Reviewed by Bass Player magazine a while ago...

 

[Turn Em Loose]

I just got a Crown XTi2000 and like it alot. Sounds great! I've had it for less than a month though, so I can't comment on the durability of it.

It's 2,000 watts bridged @ 4 ohms and weighs under 20 lbs.

 

[Passinwind]

Did you play them both PW? Wotcha think?

I did the whole ABX schtick using the QSC comparator box, both with recorded music and playing bass through alternately a Kern preamp and a Mackie mixer into the two amps. I used an AG Tri112L and a Schroeder 21012, and I tried pushing mega-bass through them. I used a very loud backing track for some of the testing when I was playing as well. For my purposes neither amp showed any advantage whatsoever, and I might as well have flipped a coin when trying to differentiate between them.

But as usual, there were many things I would have liked to have done differently. I did plenty of peer reviewed acoustics investigations in my old day job (hydroacoustics stuff, not audio), and in fact I'm a published co-author of a few government sponsored ones. I hope to eventually design a really bulletproof protocol and dig in much deeper.

It would have been good to have a few more people involved, I did all my testing alone unfortunately. I ended up testing at home rather than in the 300 seat club I was planning on using. I only used a 4 string bass since I don't own anything else, although I did use some very bass-heavy synth material for the recorded part. I unavoidably knew which amp was A and which was B, which could arguably introduce bias. Yet I couldn't pick out which was X with any reliability at all. This was apparent in a matter of a minute or two, and nothing I did changed that. This seems to be a common thread in these tests from what I've read.

Bottom line? Both amps sounded excellent, and if you're of the mind that heavier is better somehow, I have no agenda to disabuse you of that notion. OTOH, I'm not selling any of my light stuff anytime soon.

Many thanks to Bob Lee and QSC for their generosity. I've been hanging on to the comparator for far too long as it is. As I said, I'd love to do a much more thorough test sometime, but I did what I could for now. Thanks to Arbitrary for lending me his CA9 too. Apologies if this is a letdown, I know it could be a lot better.

 

[::::BASSIST::::]

Yup. It's not like there aren't a lot of high-demand subwoofer and PA systems being driven by Class D or Class H amplifiers, systems spec'd by people who have experienced ears and know their stuff.

Just to be absolutely clear about this...

You're saying that lightweight class D poweramps are fundamentally just as good as traditional poweramps?

That's what I'm hearing from Charlie but he was A/Bing two traditional poweramps. I am assuming there is less of a difference b/n the traditional designs (even if one is lighter) than Class D versus traditional.

 

[bongomania]

While I'm digging my own grave, I might as well mention that I bench tested a CA9 and my 1804 the same day I did the ABX testing. At 40 Hz, 80Hz, and 1Khz, @ 4 ohms, the measured power outputs at clipping were virtually identical. There are many other factors at work (sensitivity for starters)...

Fascinating stuff. In that last big thread I participated in on the subject, input sensitivity seemed to become the crux of the issue, supposedly the sole cause of the big perceived difference in sound between the QSC lightweights and the Crest CA's. I would love to see a similar set of tests where various popular preamps are connected to various popular amps, to record the measurable results of their interactions, and to determine whether gain matching really is the crux of the audible difference.

Edit: to Vegan- the QSC was not a "traditional" amp, it uses a lightweight power supply.

 

[::::BASSIST::::]

Uhh okay.

I was reading about a QSC "powerlight" poweramp. I forget the exact name. They call it light yet it still weighs 21LBS.

BTW, what's the weight of the Peavey DPC 1400?

 

[el_Kabong]

Thanks PW. I'd like to give a plx a spin sometime if I get the chance.

 

[fdeck]

What's wrong with the Focus SA? It seems like the dream amp. If you want a rack rig, just strap the SA down to the bottom of the rack box.

 

[Ostinato]

Thanks PW. I'd like to give a plx a spin sometime if I get the chance.

Those new shallow PLXs are very enticing...they have detented level controls too which is good for such a bare bones unit...I'm a gonna check 'em out too.

 

[seamonkey]

What's wrong with the Focus SA? It seems like the dream amp. If you want a rack rig, just strap the SA down to the bottom of the rack box.

Agreed if you already have one - why don't you ABX the Focus and some other amps and let us know?

 

[greenboy]

Think my DPC-1400X weighed in at 14.3 pounds for 1400 watts.

Got a couple of PLX 3402 each at 21 pounds for 3400 watts.

If you think that's heavy you've never lifted any lead sleds that had even half that power ; }

 

[greenboy]

I continue to be amused how many people seem to think the PLX4 thangs are somehow better than the PLX2 and the poor ol' guy is on the ropes bleeding ; } - from what I've looked at they are the same in almost all respects save for config of channels and ohms loads and I think I recall Bob saying this as well.

Actually the PLX2 are pretty shallow to my way of thinking. Fits in standard sized rack with lots of room in back. I'd never buy a shallow rack, no room to put cables and straps and my bass stand and... Where the biggest market movement has been is in the under-1000 watt category. Understandable, but a small gig bag amp isn't going to entice me away from a fairly light rack and bridgeable amps with two channels - though if I was a new buyer I'd be doing the dollars/wattage math and maybe wouldn't place the same premium on cabs with low end extension that like to see more wattage.

I figure smart bass players buying gear about now have some amazing choices available with more coming all the time. There is incentive for companies with the smarts and the resources to continue to do lighweight designs nowdays with less resistance to the technology.

 

[BartmanPDX]

I've been continually surprised that more bass players and amp companies haven't been introducing more Class D, etc. bass amps. In the world of home theater (where people get REALLY worked up over differences in cables, etc.), the newer amp designs are pretty well respected, and are widely used by some of the most prestigious subwoofer manufacturers. Weight isn't much of an issue in the subwoofer field, either, as they don't get moved around in one's home theater much.

There's still a big perception out there that weight = power and quality. I guess that myth will take as long to die out as the myth (which still persists) that advertised wattage = volume.

I will say that arbitrary's CA9 sounds terrific in combination with his Kern pre and Bergantino NV610. It's not the lightest rig in the world, though.

 

[fdeck]

I've been continually surprised that more bass players and amp companies haven't been introducing more Class D, etc. bass amps. In the world of home theater (where people get REALLY worked up over differences in cables, etc.), the newer amp designs are pretty well respected, and are widely used by some of the most prestigious subwoofer manufacturers. Weight isn't much of an issue in the subwoofer field, either, as they don't get moved around in one's home theater much.

There's still a big perception out there that weight = power and quality. I guess that myth will take as long to die out as the myth (which still persists) that advertised wattage = volume.

I will say that arbitrary's CA9 sounds terrific in combination with his Kern pre and Bergantino NV610. It's not the lightest rig in the world, though.

I think price is an issue. For the really mainstream gear, which is most of what gets bought, the conventional lead sled remains a bit cheaper to build. Also, a lot of players don't have a problem with the weight, or the head is just a small part of their overall load-in anyway.