Upgrading a car Amp, LITERALLY!

[SeasonalEclipse]

So, my brother tasked me with the project to find a place that takes car amps and upgrades their parts to make a say 300 watt amp into a 1000 watt amp. Iv tried googling and cannot find any such thing. He says it exsists because his friend had two amps sent in and upgraded. This was years ago, before the internet.. So I was curious if anyone on here knew of a site or someone that did this line of work?

[sobe]

Sure he doesn't mean upping the amperage on the alternator?

[deadlysyn]

Sorry to say it, but it isn't going to happen. The casing for the amp is the heatsink for all of the electronics inside, and the board and components inside are built to put out a given amount of power. In order to get it to put out more power, every component and the board will have to be replaced. There is the possibility of getting more power out of a 300 watt amp, by wiring it at a 2 ohm load, but you would realistically looking at closer to 450-500 watts. To calculate it is double the output at 4 ohms, minus heat. The only amp upgrades worth the money are to replace it with a new one with more output.

[EarthDog]

Sorry to say it, but it isn't going to happen. The casing for the amp is the heatsink for all of the electronics inside, and the board and components inside are built to put out a given amount of power. In order to get it to put out more power, every component and the board will have to be replaced. There is the possibility of getting more power out of a 300 watt amp, by wiring it at a 2 ohm load, but you would realistically looking at closer to 450-500 watts. To calculate it is double the output at 4 ohms, minus heat. The only amp upgrades worth the money are to replace it with a new one with more output.+1

[deadlysyn]

I used to be an MECP certified installer, at the master level, so I like to think that I know something about it.:p There were a few people that used to come in asking about this, and by the time labor, components, and a custom etched board were figured out, it usually came out to about 3 times the price of a newer, bigger amp.

[Randyman...]

I know I had my old-school 1989 Rockford POWER1000 modded by adding extra rail caps, and increased the rail voltage by 10%-15% or so. However, these amps were already massively "overbuilt", so this type of modification did not require re-working the power supply or output sections, etc (you can literally weld with this amp :) ).

For any modern amp, I'd agree with the aforementioned comments :) They just don't build them like they used to :p

:cool:

[dejo]

It was prolly a Linear Power amp and was sent back to Ray at TIPS. for the infamous voltmod

[deadlysyn]

I know I had my old-school 1989 Rockford POWER1000 modded by adding extra rail caps, and increased the rail voltage by 10%-15% or so. However, these amps were already massively "overbuilt", so this type of modification did not require re-working the power supply or output sections, etc (you can literally weld with this amp :) ).

For any modern amp, I'd agree with the aforementioned comments :) They just don't build them like they used to :p

:cool:

I have to agree with this. I used to have an old Phoenix Gold 1000 watt amp that would start a high compression Chevy 350, and keep it running with a 40Hz test tone. This was back when they were still designed and made in Portland, OR. I also have an old Asus P3 board that still overclocks like it owns Intel, but a socket A board that was made a while after that has bad caps, and did from the day I received it.

By the way, Randy, you have a very long over due PM.:thup:

[Randyman...]

It was prolly a Linear Power amp and was sent back to Ray at TIPS. for the infamous voltmod

I forgot the guy's name, but he was pretty well-known for modding Rockford Stuff back in the early 90's (has it been THAT long? :( ), and he was local in Houston. "TIPS" is ringing a bell - what exactly was that again? The POWER1000 is most certainly a linear design - not like the more complex switching amps that are common today. I'd even argue that good linear amps pwn switching amps for low frequency brawn IMNSHO (but the efficiency and size/weight tradeoffs are significant when going Linear).

PS - Deadlysyn - PM received - Good read :attn: LOL about your Pyle comments :p

:cool:

[deadlysyn]

Pyle used to be good stuff. Now it's all garbage, and I wouldn't touch it. I remember a buddy of mine had a Pyle 15" sub with a Phoenix Gold 1000 watt amp that out pounded my 2 Rockford Fosgate 12" subs at the time with the same model of amp. Of course, times change, and it's not even the same company making them. I'm not even sure of where they are made anymore. There is another company out there that is rebadging the newer Pyle stuff called Gryphon, which I don't understand. The shop I used to work at sells the Gryphon remote starts for about $350 installed, without the security chip bypass (don't remember the technical name of it). The bad thing was the cost on the unit was about $35, and 2 hours install labor (and that was if I decided I didn't want to work fast), which was at $55 an hour for shop rate. I was making $10 an hour (the guys were cheap, and refused to pay anymore, which was the reason I left), so total cost on the install was $55, not counting overhead. The bad thing was, almost every one of them would fail within 2 weeks, and others would last a couple of months. Either way, I wouldn't waste the money on anything made by Pyle these days. 15 years ago, Pyle was great, and was hard to beat.

[Niku-Sama]

pyle and fisher, the hill billy dream.

i have to agree, you can up the AMP output in an alternator with a mod on some of the more common parts (i.e. domestic) but i havent ever herd of any thing that major for an audio amp. generally though if you want more alternator amps you swap it with a GM one wire or other compatable higher output alternator

my car for instance i used a 1987 Alternator which produces 90 amps over the factory 280zx's 60 amps and its been nice but 60 amps wasnt enough to run the cars own electronic equipment let alone a radio. now no more droop, nice and steady output.

also i dont know how much it affects the stereo because its not installed!

[SeasonalEclipse]

Sure he doesn't mean upping the amperage on the alternator? No he means the actual amp.

It was prolly a Linear Power amp and was sent back to Ray at TIPS. for the infamous voltmod
His friend had some early 90s or late 80s sony amps he sent in and got them upgraded some how SUPPOSEDLY



Thanks guys for the help! Just didnt know if anyone had offered this sort of business wide scale or not. Ill let my brother know that amps now a days cant handle upgrades due to their casing and what not and that few people even offer this anymore.

[four4875]

If you were to put in bigger switchers and rectifiers you could probably run a lower impedance load without killing the amp, but to have any guarantees on power you'd have to reverse engineer the whole thing, then figure out the weak links, the output switchers, output filter, power stage which should have its own switchers... traces on the board might be too thin to handle power...

unless someone already has modified that model or had access to the manufacturer's schematics and design info, it would take so much time and work that it would be easier to just buy a bigger amp. or maybe more efficient drivers / enclosures.

[CGLOCK19]

Alot of memphis 1000ds can be had for 150-225 on craigslist. There are tons of ways to get more power but if the amp is not a true mono block its pointless. Also the power is sooo cheap now days. I used to pay over a dollar per watt in the 90s. Anybody remember the ppi a1200?

[MadMan007]

Today's watts aren't like the watts of yesteryear :p Nowadays all the stuff is quoted at like 10% THD and if you're lucky they aren't quoting 'peak music power' bs too.

Heck, back in the early 90s I had what wasn't a crazy system but it got loud and sounded very nice - no tubby bass distortion - it was a Pioneer CD head unit with only a front amp and rear line level outputs. The factory rear 6x9s were replaced with decent Pioneer units and driven by a 35W/channel stereo Alpine Amp.

[Wicked Klown]

I loved my old Orion HCCA amp from back in the 90s.

[deadlysyn]

Anybody remember the ppi a1200?

If I remember right, the gain on that bad boy was set with jumpers.

I loved my old Orion HCCA amp from back in the 90s.

One of my buddy's was running an old HCCA 2550, driving something like 8 10" subs. They were stable down to like 1/4 or 1/8 of an ohm, but the power output at 4 ohms was almost nothing. I miss the old high current amps. If I remember right, the HCCA amps were anodized red?:shrug:

Edit: Now that I think about it, I still have an old Sherwood 35x2 amp sitting around. I think the output mosfets are blown out, but the thing was a tank. It drove a pair of Autotek 10" subs like nobody's business. The measurements on it were similar to my newer Kenwood amps with more than 10 times the power output.

[CGLOCK19]

Back in 98 I was running a.1200 on six 10s and two a.600 for mids...5x9s, 5.25, 4x6s. The good old days of highschool. The last system I had was 8 memphis 4000d's on two T-3 Audios 18s but, it only played 62-63 hertz :)

[deadlysyn]

Back in 98 I was running a.1200 on six 10s and two a.600 for mids...5x9s, 5.25, 4x6s. The good old days of highschool. The last system I had was 8 memphis 4000d's on two T-3 Audios 18s but, it only played 62-63 hertz :)

The last system I had for competition was 4 15" JL Audio W6's with 4 1000/1 amps driving them. All of this was in a custom enclosure that took up the back seat and the trunk of a 2001 Honda Prelude. I hated the car, but the subs could get down to 15Hz. My last competition, I got up to around 150db. Having a sponsor who also happens to be your boss can be fun.:D The bad thing, is that my hearing has suffered greatly.

[CGLOCK19]

The Chevy Luv truck did 167.3 on the termlab before she got sold. 2006

[deadlysyn]

The Chevy Luv truck did 167.3 on the termlab before she got sold. 2006

Were you competing in IASCA? I was doing db drags, and did pretty well in the class I was in. If I were to start competing again, I would probably go for the SQ. I have met Alma Gates several times.:p

[TaCoSwInDeZ]

I love my ARC Audio KS300.4. I've got to find some nice components for my next upgrade but right now its running a pair of cheapy pioneer 4 ways in the doors for the front two channels and a pair of Elemental Designs 3.6 6 1/2 subs in the sail panels of my Trans Am, sounds good enough for me but I got a 10" sub planned in a stealth box so I can retain my T-Top holders and get the low notes I want.

I've also got another not so dinosaurish amp thats been absolutely lovely and you can't find em anymore. It's an older Pioneer Premier PRS-X220. Ratings were 30 watts at 4 ohms and 120 bridged at 4 and the birthsheet it came with showed 68 and 242 respectively. They were sold as a class A amplifier but they weren't trully class A, they were just high bias current class a/b to reduce switching distortion. I ran that on a an older set of MB Quart components when they were actually still MB Quart and it sounded lovely.

[deadlysyn]

I ran that on a an older set of MB Quart components when they were actually still MB Quart and it sounded lovely.

I miss the days when MB Quart was still German made. The sound was so clean and crystal clear. Now they are nothing more than an over priced Rockford Fosgate. I don't have anything against Rockford Fosgate, but MB Quart just hasn't been the same since. I still love the Kenwood that I have all the way around my truck, and my wifes deck, amp, and subs are Kenwood.

[CGLOCK19]

Were you competing in IASCA? I was doing db drags, and did pretty well in the class I was in. If I were to start competing again, I would probably go for the SQ. I have met Alma Gates several times.:p Won DB Drag superstreet 1-2 in 06 World Finals. One of my old team mates ran some Iasca at Usaci finals but I could not tell you the class.

[neonblingbling]

...The bad thing, is that my hearing has suffered greatly.

Did you use any sort of heating protection? I like to turn it up on stretches of road in the middle of no-where, but while wearing the foam stick-in-your-ear plugs. However, it seems that these do not block out any sort of power dished out but subs... Any personal experience with what works and with what doesn't?

[deadlysyn]

Did you use any sort of heating protection? I like to turn it up on stretches of road in the middle of no-where, but while wearing the foam stick-in-your-ear plugs. However, it seems that these do not block out any sort of power dished out but subs... Any personal experience with what works and with what doesn't?

I never used any kind of hearing protection, but now I wish I would have. When I installed the competition system in the Prelude, I had toggle switches on all of the remote lines for the amps, so when I wasn't competing, I could turn 3 of them off. In the truck I drive now, I only have 2 12"Kenwood Typhoons driven off a KAC-8152D, which is rated at 550W RMS at 2 ohms. It runs about 125db, by my guess. My music interest has changed drastically since then. I'm listening to black metal, so it seems louder.

The foam ear plugs seem worthless, atleast when you have a huge amount of power. I think the ear muff type made for the shooting range may be the type of hearing protection that is going to work the best.

[sobe]

I miss the days when MB Quart was still German made. The sound was so clean and crystal clear. Now they are nothing more than an over priced Rockford Fosgate. I don't have anything against Rockford Fosgate, but MB Quart just hasn't been the same since. I still love the Kenwood that I have all the way around my truck, and my wifes deck, amp, and subs are Kenwood.

I've been rather fond of Alpine. Specifically the Type-R. Don't have the extra money for the Type-X :P I now have my GrandPrix GT with all Alpine Type-R speakers, tweeters, head unit, 12" sub in a ported bassworx box, and a MRP-M500 amp and KTP-445 head unit amp for the speakers.

Used to be a huge fan of Pioneer, but when I looked around at the newer speakers/subs they have available I just honestly was not impressed. Even with their Champion series.