A website dedicated to the vintage and old school stereos of the 1980's and 1990's. Look for in depth reviews of amplifiers, speakers, subwoofers and more.
Wow, I'm sure some of your old school guys recall this install in Car Audio & Electronics magazine back in the late 1980's...but thanks to YouTube user Manville Smith (not confirmed if this is THE Manville Smith, but once we have it confirmed, we'll update the page). It's something to see the install as pictures in a magazine, but the video just takes it to another level! The dedication to the details and the fine craftsmanship are second to none in this install! Enjoy the video!! Watch it on YouTube Here or embedded below:
Make sure to Subscribe to my YouTube Channel to stay updated of my latest videos. You can also follow me on Twitter @oldschoolstereo. Also be sure to like us on Facebook. Keep it Old School!! -BigDWiz
I'll show you a few different iterations of the MINI as well as the final install. I'm not as well versed or as tech savvy as some, so my reviews of the equipment might not be as in depth as one would like. First we have the Hifonics Series VIII Zeus and Olympus. The Zeus powered a number of 10" subs until I settled on the Treo SSi 10.22. The Olympus ran a set of Genesis Profile 16's (2-way comps).
HiFonics Olympus and Zeus VIII Ampliifiers
Pics of the amps in the Mini
I have better pictures, I just can't find them. I had never run Hifonics before, so I didn't know what to expect. I am an Orion person, but my Orion amps are all too big for this car without having a rack of some sort. A plan for an Orion system was in the works, but until then I used the MINI as a rolling test bench. Normally, when I was impressed with something it would stay in for a month or so. Such as my smaller Orions or a few of the PPI's I had. There were others, but we'd be here all day. Anyways, I picked the Zeus up from a friend of mine in Houston, and as soon as I hooked it up (4 ohms bridged) I was taken aback by the brute force of this amp. I'd run other 2x300 amps before, but not like this. Whatever I was running to my comps at the time was made negligible. And being a sucker for sets like I am, I bought an Olympus. This amp reminded me of my Orion 2150 SX. I only used two channels of this four channel amp. 110+ watts per channel was more than sufficient for my 80 to 100 rms mids. Bridging was out of the question. Anyhow, I ran these two amps for close to a year. I was thoroughly impressed with the control and detail provided. I ran no outboard processors, other than a crossover, although I wish I had a Hifonics Vesta to control the Zeus. Also bear in mind that I never turn my gains up. They are not volume knobs. I'm a firm believer in big amps and high voltage head units. And yes, I understand the concept of level matching.
Zeus VIII, Olympus VIII, Treo SSi 10.22
HiFonics Olympus VIII power and speaker connections
HiFonics Olympus VIII inputs and level controls
HiFonics Zeus VIII power and speaker connectors
HiFonics Zeus VIII inputs and gain control
How about some guts?
HiFonics VIII Amps - Zeus and Olympus
Olympus VIII Internals
Olympus VIII Internals alternate angle
Olympus VIII Transformer
Zeus VIII Internals
Another angle of the Zeus VIII's Internals
The Zeus VIII's Transformer
I need to make this shorter or I'll be here all day. So I listened to the Hifonics and myself and everyone else who heard it was duly impressed. But I got bitten by a Mantz bug and started buying Earthquake amps. But Mantz didn't make Earthquake, you say? I was actually in the middle of paying one off when I learned that. The seller even thought I would change my mind about buying it. I didn't. Mostly because I don't back out of stuff, and also because I had just spoken with someone who spoke very highly of them. So onto the next phase; Earthquake MINI. I left all of the rest of the equipment untouched and switched out my Zeus for a PA-2300, and my Olympus for a PA-4050. However, I did one thing different. I bridged the 4050 into two channels.
Earthquake PA-2300 in immaculate condition
This gut shot was taken before the amp was overhauled.
Earthquake PA-2300 Guts
Earthquake PA-4050c Exterior
Earthquake PA-4050c Internals
Sadly, the only pictures of the install (if you want to call it that) were on my old phone. I can give a quick review though. The difference between the Earthquakes and the Hifonics was negligible. The front amps shouldn't be a very fair comparison because they are two different class ratings. And I will say that even bridged, the Earthquake however marvelous, still did not quite keep up with the Hifonics Olympus. Normal folks wouldn't be able to tell. And the only real difference I noted between the 2300's was that the Earthquake didn't come with the same violent tendencies as the Zeus. But it did offer wonderful control over my sub and all four amps were simply amazing. I use the word "amazing" a lot when I talk about some of this stuff. Current install: Orion MINI. This is what I've been working on over the last few months. You will note that the amps are mounted to the box. Please pay this no mind as every precaution has been taken with both enclosure and mounting procedure. Normally I wouldn't do this, but for this install, my amps are very well protected.
Custom Enclosure by Solid Sounds Designs also chrome Orion XTR-2250 and "the" Orion NT 200
Front door speakers CDT ES-620 Golds and PPI EPX-205
Pioneer DEH-P80RS head unit and PPI EPX-205 Crossover
I'm still building. So this is where it's "supposed" to go. And the reason I chose to run this crossover is because I needed control over my 2250, and I wanted to supply the correct voltage to my Orions. Not just 5 volts sometimes. And anybody that has one of these Pioneers knows what I mean when I say the menus are nonsense. The configuration now is my 2250 bridged to my Treo SSi 10.22. I changed my comps out to CDT ES-620 Golds. I had to do a bit of fabbing and cutting to get these in. I was going to go active, but 1; I didn't have the time to mess with it, and 2; I like the 4th order elliptical passives just fine. I think CDT did a wonderful job on these comps. They sound darn good with no tuning and in stock speaker location. I have the Upstage kit for them. Maybe one day I'll add them.
CDT ES-620's in the door
Here are the amps:
Orion XTR-2250 (chrome plated) and Orion NT 200
Rear view of the MINI with the Orion amps
Orion NT 200 Internals
Orion NT 200 and NT 200 BIX
I didn't use my NT crossover because it requires XLR cables which I don't have. Maybe in a future install. And since I can't seem to find a picture of my chrome 2250's guts, I'll post something similar.
Orion Concept 97.3 and 2100 HCCA Competition Internals
^^Seen one, seen em' all! So far the sound is truly breathtaking. I'll give a more in depth review once I get it dialed in and have listened to it for awhile. Thanks for looking! Jason ------ And yes, if you were wondering, the Orion NT 200 you see in Jason's pictures is the one you may have seen before on this website and in my YouTube videos. Thanks to Jason for taking the time to do the review! If you'd like to write and article or make a video of your old school install, contact me through Facebook and let me know.
Make sure to Subscribe to my YouTube Channel to stay updated of my latest videos. You can also follow me on Twitter @oldschoolstereo. Also be sure to like us on Facebook. Keep it Old School!! -BigDWiz
OldSchoolStereo fans and followers...my apologies for the delay in posting new articles. I've been extremely busy with my day job and family the past few months. I just wanted to let everyone know I'm still an excited and enthusiastic member of the old school car audio scene and hope to be back with lots of more content soon. I'm just trying to set expectations that the articles and videos may not come as often as they have in the past for many more months. I truly hope you guys will stick with me and be patient as I have some big things planned for the future. Oh yeah, I almost forgot to post some recent acquisitions...see below, and also enjoy my recent videos.
Early 90's Rockford Fosgate Power 1000c Mosfet and Kicker F12-4 Subwoofers
See the recent old school 8" subwoofer demo's below! Watch the video on YouTube in 1080P or embedded below: Rockford Fosgate Punch SP-88 8" Subwoofer Demo:
MTX Blue Thunder 8" Sub BTW-834 Demo:
JL Audio 8W1 Old School 8" Subwoofer Demo: More coming in the near future...stay tuned!
Make sure to Subscribe to my YouTube Channel to stay updated of my latest videos. You can also follow me on Twitter @oldschoolstereo. Also be sure to like us on Facebook. Keep it Old School!! -BigDWiz
Special edition amps are always cool. You know, the ones with the unique colors, fancy designs, hand-picked components? Many amplifier manufacturers made these types of amps in the 1990's, as a way of differentiating themselves not only from other amps on the market, but even from their own product line. The amplifier we are going to discuss today was available in 1996 from Orion with an MSRP of $1200 US. The NT200 has one of the most unique paint schemes I've ever seen on a car audio amplifier...even to this day. It's a marbled purple and must be seen in person to be appreciated. The NT200 and brother NT100 were designed as no compromise, no excuse sound quality (SQ) amplifiers. See the ratings below for the NT200:
Two Channel Amp rated at 100 watts x 2 channels at 4 ohms
Dual Mono Design - Two separate power supplies
Bridgeable to 400 watts at 4 ohms
No built-in crossovers
Balanced inputs via mini XLR connectors
2 ohm stereo / 4 ohm mono stable (rated)
Dual 30A internal fuses for power
Optional NT200BIX balanced crossover
1996 Orion NT 200 "Dual Mono Block" Special-Edition Amplifier
The NT200's balanced audio inputs served two main purposes...to keep the audio signal as clean as possible and to minimize unwanted noise. The only issue with these types of inputs is they are incompatible with the standard RCA wires used in most aftermarket installs (without adapters). However, Orion's decision to use balanced inputs on these amps showed they were serious about these amps and their dedication to sound quality. Alternatively, you could also use the standard Orion DIN plug connection with an Orion (or PPI) crossover or signal processor.
Orion NT200's Balanced and DIN inputs
Before I received the NT200 at the OldSchoolStereo.com labs, I thought this amp was going to be an Orion 250 HCCA all packaged up into a fancier heat sink. Boy, was I wrong! Just check out the internals of these amps and you can see there is a BIG difference in them! You can easily see the NT200's larger capacitors and dual power supplies. It really makes the 250 HCCA look rather anemic!
Here's another picture of the 250 HCCA vs. NT200. Both amps are gorgeous in their own way, but if you're ever forced to choose one or the other...go with the NT. Not that the HCCA is a bad amp, it's actually pretty fantastic in it's own way (and a high-current version of the 2150SX). More about the HCCA's on another day.
Orion 250 HCCA vs. Orion NT200
See the video's about the NT200 below! Watch the video on YouTube in 1080P or embedded below: Photo and Video Montage of the Orion NT 200:
It has sort of been a dream of mine to put my old school equipment into a showcase, sort of a museum. Unfortunately, I don't currently have a good room to showcase my gear, but maybe one day. In the meantime, check out this guy "Danny" in Germany and his awesome collection of old school car audio and an incredible display of it all. I'd call this the ultimate man cave! Although some of the text is in German, all of the pictures are in English ;-) http://www.carhifi-magazin.de/ch_blog/?p=723 Keep it old school, more goodies on the horizon! -BigDWiz
Yes, I know, if you guys watch my YouTube videos, then you've probably seen my old resistor bank (aka "Fred Sanford" - Big Dummy). This resistor bank was comprised of (16) 50W resistors for a resulting load of 800W at either 2 ohms or 8 ohms. It was a great starter resistor bank, but in testing amps such as the Orion XTR-2250 and Rockford Fosgate Power 1000 Mosfet, I needed not only more power capability, but also configurations for 4 channel loads at 2 ohms. Before I get too deep in the discussion of the new resistor bank, let me digress and explain my use of the resistor bank. In this case, I use the wirewound power resistors for testing audio amplifiers power output (in watts). Many people use speakers when attempting to calculate amplifier wattage output, but fail to account for the fact a speaker is a reactive load and other factors must be calculated to obtain wattage. When using resistors, the wattage calculation can be more easily obtained using Ohm's Law. We use a Velleman HPS-50 o'scope/True RMS Volt meter, Fluke 85III True RMS Volt meter, Steve Meade Designs/ D'Amore Engineering DD-1 (aka SMD DD-1) along with our resistor bank to calculate continuous (RMS) power output from the amplifiers we test. For more information on how I test my amplifiers, see this video (to be updated soon). I recently invested in (32) 120W 16 ohm wirewound resistors so I could test a wider variety of amplifiers. See the result below:
Custom 3840W Resistor Bank made from PC Tower
The OldSchoolStereo.com 3840W Power Resistor Bank has the following features: - Custom PC Gaming Tower - (8) Separate 480W 4 ohm loads - Supports 8 channel amps down to 1 channel monoblocks - (3) Internal 12V fans in push/pull configuration for maximum air flow - 12VDC 600mA AC Adapter for powering the fans - capable of testing 4 channel amps with all channels driven at 2 ohms (960W each) - configurations for high-current amps at 1/2 ohm mono (3840W) - multiple configurations for 1 ohm and 2 ohm loads (both stereo and mono) - safely test amplifiers silently at various test tone frequencies - Acrylic window showing off my lackluster wiring skills
Rear view of the 3840W Power Resistor Bank
Stay tuned for an upcoming video overview of the 3840W Air-Cooled Power Resistor bank. We also have MANY amplifiers to test in the upcoming months, so stay tuned for updates, tests, overviews and more!
Once again, I've slacked off posting on the blog here. My apologies, I've been focusing on creating more content for my YouTube channel. Make sure you subscribe so you can stay updated and notified when I upload new content. My goal is to upload at least one video a week and for the past few weeks I've been doing 3 videos per week! See some of my recent video uploads below.
Wow, check a MINT copy of a mid-1970's Fosgate PR-235 amplifier. These amps are ULTRA-RARE and finding one in this condition is almost unheard of. Big thanks to Mike for sending this one my way!
Next up, a patiently awaited power output demo of a MINT Lanzar Opti Drive 50c ultra-cheater amplifier from the mid-1990's. Can it meet or beat it's 800w rating at 1/2 ohm mono? Watch the video to find out!
What about a purple beauty? Say what? The mid-1990's rare special edition Orion NT 200 arrives to the OldSchoolStereo.com labs for testing. This amplifier is a dual-mono design and was built to the strictest standards to ensure the best sound quality possible. Watch me un-box and show off this beauty!
Now, here's another very interesting power output demo. We test the Orion XTR-2250 "The Beast" amplifier to see if it can stand up to it's name. Well, do you think it can match or exceed it's rated 1000w output at 4 ohms bridged? No spoilers here, watch the video to find out!
Orion XTR-2250 RMS Power Output Video
***Amp output tests coming soon. We also have lots of cool overviews of some fantastic Old School Car Audio Thanks for your patience!***
I recently accidentally deleted several emails from my phone and found they were not put in the deleted folder, but deleted entirely. I had a couple of people inquire about donating items to OldSchoolStereo. I'm hoping you read the website and see this post and send me another email. You can feel free to use the donate section of this website or contact me if you have amps, speakers, head units or other old school gear you want to donate. I will most likely sell many of the donated items to help pay for the website and test equipment. Thank you for your support! -Dereck
I've uploaded several videos since the last blog post here on OldSchoolStereo.com. There are three videos about the Fosgate "Frequency Energizer" Model 201 processor. If anyone has any further details about these units, please contact me at oldschoolstereo[at] gmail dot com.
First up, see the Alpine 3342 11-band EQ / Sound Field Processor. Just a quick overview of the EQ and showing it in action!
Next up, see baby Lanzar Opti Drive Plus 50 amplifier. I've had several people request I show off how I test amplifiers for operation when they arrive at OldSchoolStereo's labs. This is not a power output test, rather a simple speaker test of each channel and bridged operation.
Next up, see the BIG Lanzar Opti Drive 50c "Ultra-High Current" amplifiers. You'll see an early 1994 blue model and a later 1996-1998 black model. I overview the connections and check the amplifier "guts" for differences between the models. In a future video, we'll also bench test each of these amps for power output. Do you think there will be a difference in the output at 1/2 ohm mono? It will be interesting to see...
Now, here's some vintage gear from Fosgate Electronics. Yes, I said Fosgate, not Rockford Fosgate. This means pre-1980, folks. The Frequency Energizer you'll see is from around 1973 and is the foundation for the Punch EQ circuit used in Fosgate and later Rockford Fosgate car audio amplifiers.
Fosgate Frequency Energizer "Teaser" Video
Fosgate Frequency Energizer Overview Video Fosgate Frequency Energizer Demo Video See the vintage sound processors in action! ***Amp output tests coming soon...I've done tests on the Lanzar 50c and Orion XTR-2250. As soon as I get a chance to edit the videos, I'll have them online. Thanks for your patience!***
Make sure to check out the links near the top of the site...we've added links to our Forums, Videos, Donations and most recently, Installs. If you have an old school install you'd like to share, let me know about it in the forums.
More info and what you've all been waiting for....Amp Tests coming soon!
