Not having much luck, but I'm looking for ideas with regards to a head unit that does preamp only output (I don't even know if this is available outside of stock/competition HU's?), no internal power amplifier. Obviously I have the required amplifiers, but finding a HU that doesn't boast a (claimed) massive power output is impossible!.
Spec me a preamp only headunit
- Thread starter benneh
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Soldato
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Most decent quality heads come with a pre-amped output in addition to the powered output. Without spending masses of cash I cant think of any that only have a pre-amp.
Soldato
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it is suprising that they arent more readily available. there are people who arent going to need internal amps at all, but thats not an option unless you spend mega bucks? i would have thought stripping the amps out and concerntrating on the line output quality at sensible costs would have been a good money earner for those manufacturers.....
well, all i can say to that is who cares if you arent going to be using it anyway lol
well, all i can say to that is who cares if you arent going to be using it anyway lol
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Alpine used to make head units without an internal amplifier. Haven't checked their range recently so not sure if they still do though.
When after market HUs were BIG money (back in the late 90s and early 2K) Pioneer used to sell a pre-amp only HU which was about £800. It was quite literally awesome.
Pass through HUs will never quite make the same grade even if you can turn off the internal amp, but to the average human ear you would never notice, especially if you are playing MP3's or similar.
IMO current daddy would stil be a Pioneer, the DEX-P90RS which RSPs for £1100 but can be bought for nearer £700.
Pass through HUs will never quite make the same grade even if you can turn off the internal amp, but to the average human ear you would never notice, especially if you are playing MP3's or similar.
IMO current daddy would stil be a Pioneer, the DEX-P90RS which RSPs for £1100 but can be bought for nearer £700.
Hi guys, cheers for the advise. The reason I want to go for a HU sans internal amp is because in my experience (circa 6 years of sound engineering at college/uni and lots of messing around!) cheap internal amps are largely a waste of time. It's much better to rely on quality preamp outs, and decent amplifiers.
Plus for me heat is an issue. The HU in my e36 sits just below the heater vents, and just above the climate control unit, and it gets as hot as hell (the heatskink on the back gets way too hot to even touch briefly, and you can smell that hot pcb smell in the cabin after a while - same goes for another 3 HU's I've tried, although my favored pioneer HU does tend to run a little hot anyway) - tbh I think the heat is due to the impedance of the factory speakers, and possibly an issue with the existing factory amplifier (original HU would have been a low output unit) - the whole thing's being removed/re-wired at the moment, which is a complete PITA!.
The search continues..
Plus for me heat is an issue. The HU in my e36 sits just below the heater vents, and just above the climate control unit, and it gets as hot as hell (the heatskink on the back gets way too hot to even touch briefly, and you can smell that hot pcb smell in the cabin after a while - same goes for another 3 HU's I've tried, although my favored pioneer HU does tend to run a little hot anyway) - tbh I think the heat is due to the impedance of the factory speakers, and possibly an issue with the existing factory amplifier (original HU would have been a low output unit) - the whole thing's being removed/re-wired at the moment, which is a complete PITA!.
The search continues..