Best Power/Amp under 400 dollars..

Hey guys,

after reading the post about some of the Sunfire amps giving the impression of a little less power than oughta be.. it reminded me of my favorite bargain power/amp.

The Kenwood Basic M2a

2 channel, 35lbs, Dynamic Linear Drive (DLD),

220 x 2 amp (8 ohm) 350 (4 ohm)

350 Clean Watts Per Channel into 4 Ohms

It will bridge into 8ohms @ 700w

Guys, this is a powerhouse amp and is built like a tank. The fan on this thing is big enough for a small car ( not really, but it's freakin big ) It's not extremely powerful, but it puts down honest numbers and will put the power down at high volumes for long periods of time. I own one and I would buy another one in a heart beat.

The stats are very impressive for the money. I hate saying "for the money," but it's something we have to consider. Regardless of how much money you have, an intelligent thing to do is always find a good performance to price ratio, regardless.

Is that $400 per channel?

Best Power Amp under $400:

No doubt about it. Our tube amps we are building at Carverfest.

Best Power Amp under $400:

No doubt about it. Our tube amps we are building at Carverfest.

See, nobody told me that there was gonna be a fully functioning sweat shop at CF! Now I'm really pumped!

Best Power Amp under $400:

No doubt about it. Our tube amps we are building at Carverfest.

See, nobody told me that there was gonna be a fully functioning sweat shop at CF! Now I'm really pumped!

I think the window has closed; talk to Toy Maker if you want in...not sure if that's possible now....

Best Power Amp under $400:

No doubt about it. Our tube amps we are building at Carverfest.

See, nobody told me that there was gonna be a fully functioning sweat shop at CF! Now I'm really pumped!

I think the window has closed; talk to Toy Maker if you want in...not sure if that's possible now....

Ah, it's no big deal, really.. This will be my first CF.. so I'm just looking to meet cool people, see cool things and listen to good music. Hell that's all I want outta life in general. So, no worries.

I bet that a few more amps will be there than needed......

The Kenwood Basic M2a

I have 2 of these, 20 years, still going strong (1st real amp I ever bought)

these things on fleebay bring okay $$$....
better than the new that you find at all the box stores.....

I bet that a few more amps will be there than needed......

The Kenwood Basic M2a

I have 2 of these, 20 years, still going strong (1st real amp I ever bought)

these things on fleebay bring okay $$$....
better than the new that you find at all the box stores.....

haha, funny you should chime in.. I noticed your Kenwoods in a picture from the forum earlier today.. I said.. this guy has two Basics! He knows what I'm talking about!

I like the True Image CM-2500.

I have a Kenwood Basic M2A and it is a very good amp! For the money; truly a bargain. It handles the infamous power hogs Dahlquist DQ-10's without breaking a sweat, and it's always smooth, clean , dynamic, and grain free. It's a sleeper to be sure. The only speakers it's struggled with are the carver ribbon spkrs, and we all know those need some major power behind them., and that only for higher volume levels. If you see one in good shape, grab it as a backup, at the very least. Don't be surprised if it sounds as good as whatever you are using as your primary amp.

The only speakers it's struggled with are the carver ribbon spkrs, and we all know those need some major power behind them., and that only for higher volume levels.

Don't forget that it can be bridged into 2/ch only and put out 700 watts.

Since it seems most are leaning towards Japanese gear, my pick is the Luxman M -03. I have no idea what a used one goes for but this is a really cool amplifier. The specs are very similar to the Kenwood.

I recently heard one at a party and was really impressed with the sound. Later, when I had a look in the audio cabinet I had never seen anything like it. A relatively uncluttered black box with a couple of knobs and switches with two LED NUMERIC power indicators (one for each channel). The output is actaully expressed as a number with two decimal places and the numbers go up and down with the music. It was really mesmorizing to watch.

Anywway, if you have not seen one of these before, here is a link . . . http://www.thevintageknob.org/luxman-M-03.html

IMO it all would depend on several things since there are a lot of amps that would fit the bill on price but would never work on some speakers.

It would have been a better thread if you have asked "What $400 amp be the best for X pair of speakers".

Adcom GFA 5500 or 5800 @ 200 wpc or 250 respectively. These Mosfet amplifiers sound incredibly smooth on Klipsch speakers.

IMO it all would depend on several things since there are a lot of amps that would fit the bill on price but would never work on some speakers.

It would have been a better thread if you have asked "What $400 amp be the best for X pair of speakers".