Don't let the looks fool you
Pros:
No hiss, clean sound, lots of power for the money
Cons:
hard to find, not very common, cheesy design
The Bottom Line:
If you are in the market, take the chance, you won't regret it.
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Overall Rating:
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Author's Review
If you've read any of my other reviews you know that I've been running a JVC KS-AX504 4-channel amp. I have no complaints except... I'd like a little more power. The 504 is rated at 40x4 RMS. When I started to shop around I came to the same conclusion as before: amps that delivered the power I wanted were either bottom line and didn't meet spec (Pyramid, American Legacy, etc.) or were on the expensive side (Alpine, Rockford, etc.) So, having been pleased with the JVC I decided to shop around and see what they could offer. I ran into someone selling out this model on ebay for $85 plus shipping. I decided to purchase based on the performance of my current JVC amp.
It turned out to be a good idea. On the good side, this has all the features one could want in an amp even if purchased at typical retail pricing (around $175). Hi-pass or lo-pass crossovers with fully adjustable crossover frequencies, variable 45hz boost (45hz being the most difficult frequency to reproduce in an automobile), 4/3/2 bridgeable outputs and 70x4 RMS. The amp also features fully discrete power transistor outputs for greater reliablity and sound quality. It also features a built-in fan which is what allows them to produce that much power in such a compact design as it actually has a smaller footprint than many 2 channel amps.
On the down side is the cheesy design which I'm assuming is meant to resemble the top of a car engine. The illuminated control panel is nice when you initially set up the amp but rather garish otherwise (my apologies if you like that sort of thing). Since mine is mounted in my trunk I could live with the looks. Specs are 70 watts x4 at 4 ohms from 20-20,000hz at 0.08% THD. Unit can be bridged to 140 watts x2.
The sound is excellent, crystal clear highs, no smearing in the midrange, no hiss. I'm running JL Audio VR600-Cs speakers in front and TR600-Cx speakers in the rear and they tend to be very unforgiving. The detail and fidelity of this unit are excellent. I tend to drive it pretty hard too and thus far I have not encountered a thermal shutdown nor tripped any of the protection circuits.
I will reiterate what I wrote in my review of the 504, it appears to me that JVC is very serious about their move into the mobile Amp market and the two amps I've owned show every indication of being well thought out, well made, and undermarketed which means excellent bargains for those willing to take the chance.
