# Arc Audio XDi 1200.6 Review!



## kizz

I thought I would share my thoughts on Arc Audio's new class D amps. This is a review of their 6 channel version the XDi 1200.6. I apologize now for the long winded post. 

I bought this amp from Jerry (neibur3) from Hi Def Mobile Audio and once again his customer service was top notch. 
In my opinion this amp is quite easy on the eyes. Very nice to look at and when holding it feels very substantial and well built. 
This amp has a very simple yet sexy look to it with it's brushed charcoal aluminum look. I really enjoy it's visual design. 
Not every amp in this line has the same chassis, there are different sizes but they are all relatively close in size. I believe the 1100.1 mono is the same size and the 1100.5 is only 1/2" difference in length so mounting these should be relatively easy.

Stats on the amp for power,

Channels 1-4: 150 watts rms @4ohm and 2ohm.
bridging these channels gives you 300 watts rms @ 4ohm

Channels 5&6: 150 watts rms @4ohm 
300 watts rms @2ohm 
bridging channels 5&6 gives you 600 watts rms at 4ohm

Pretty powerful little guy for only being 13" x 6.25" by 2" in size.

It has bandpass crossover capabilities for channels 1&2 and 5&6. channels 3&4 you can lowpass up to 5500hz. 
In the box a remote bass knob is included for channels 5&6. It also comes with short rca cables with stripped wires on the other end for hooking up to a factory hu! nice touch.
There is a cosmetic trim on the top of the amp. This trim has the arc audio logo over the blue light in the middle and easily comes off by taking out 4 small hex bolts. This is a nice touch to prevent cosmetic damage. My amp is under my passenger seat. I don't want to risk scratching it so the cover comes off since it won't be seen anyway. If I mount it in the trunk in the future I can put the cover back on after it's mounted to make it look nice. Pretty cool if you ask me. 

There are quite a few controls for crossover and such which makes it a flexibile amp. With 6 powerful full range channels you could easily run a 3 way front stage off one amp. Throw a mono amp in there and you have a powerful 4way system in a small small package. 

After mounting it and wiring it up I turned on the power. The center light blinks a couple times before going solid and sending power to the speakers. I assume this is to avoid turn on pop? 
Wire connections are solid and easy to connect. No funny angles or funny connection devices to deal with. Everything hooked up without a hitch. All the connections are on one side of the amp which is always handy. channels 5&6 controls are on the wire connection side. channels 1-4 are under the cosmetic cover. I would have liked to not have to take the cover off to get to the gain and crossover controls but since I was taking it off it wasn't a huge deal. This might be annoying to some but not a huge deal. 

I have a tru technologies line driver sending the voltage to the amp and 4guage power sending the juice. midbass and tweeters are connected to channels 1-4 and my IDMAX 12 is connected to channels 5&6 bridged. 

The sound!!!!!!
The first thing I noticed was that this little guy makes my sub move surprisingly well. I honestly don't feel like I am missing much going from 1200 to 600 watts on my sub. I noticed a touch of dynamic loss at high volume but it is pretty minor. 
When listening to my front stage the first thing I noticed was that "it sounds different" and I still stand by that statement. I don't really know how to explain it but it does sound different than my JL Audio HD amps. If you still think all amps sound the same you have to be nuts, there was a noticeable difference. After about a week and a half of listening to this difference I can say it is a good different. The best way I can think of to describe it is "crisp." Everything has a crispness to it I was missing before. I didn't know I was missing it until I heard this amp. The vocals are more in front and stage is higher. I do feel like I lost a tad bit of depth but I could probably do some fine tuning for that. 
One anomaly with this amp that I cannot figure out is the staging of my music. I haven't touched the time alignment since I fired it up and haven't felt the need to. Vocals are pretty much center without T/A. With any other amp T/A was always needed. Ive never had an amp that gave me staging this close to perfect right out of the box. The center stage wanders a little bit but not much at all. You would really have to hear it to believe it. I can't seem to figure it out. The upper end also has a different "good" sound to it. Cymbals specifically have a really nice defined and real sound to them.

The amp seems to supply plenty of power to my front stage. I would say right there with the JL HD amps that I used previously. Detail is good, frequency response to my ears appears good and the rta on my phone showed actually a hair flatter than the previous amp although gain levels play a part in this and I haven't done any detailed tuning yet. Just going off of it's performance out of the box. I ran it pretty hard for a couple hours the other day and being in the same mounting location as my JL HD amps it actually only got about half as hot as the JL amps did. 

So to sum it up, this amp has a really nice detailed sound to it with plenty of power and dynamics. 
It never sounds harsh and to me has a unique sound to it that I have never heard before. Vocals are out in front, cymbals sound real and have really good presence, height is great and like I said before it has an awesome "crispness" to it. It's a small small sexy amp that doesn't seem to get hot and packs a punch. You really can't go wrong with it.

Pics include cosmetic cover on and off. I apologize for the crappy pics. I scratched the lens on my phone so every pic now has a fuzzness to it.


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## JSM-FA5

Great review! Now for the real question. What does this guy cost?


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## moparman79

Nice review, I will be doing one on these in a 2014 pathfinder stealth build. They retail for $779.00


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## kizz

Update. This amp is pretty dang impressive. I did some level matching yesterday. The center stage isn't quite as centered as it was now but still solidly above my dash with the majority of vocals in the center 1/3 of the dash. 

Power and efficiency still seem great! I can't wait to get another.


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## moparman79

I have 2 coming on Tuesday, cant wait to hook one up to the ground zero nuclear components.


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## rdubbs

Thanks for the review Kizz! Appreciate it!


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## kizz

Sure thing! I have been very impressed with this amp. I'm loving it more every day.


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## moparman79

kizz said:


> Sure thing! I have been very impressed with this amp. I'm loving it more every day.


Are you still using your jl amps?


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## deeep

Can you put up a pic of your HD600/4 with the 1200.6 to gauge the size difference?

I may have to get this amp and sell my hd600/4. Was gonna buy a small jx amp but less wiring is intriguing. 

Did you buy it straight from them or a retailer?


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## moparman79

Here is my build log showing the size of the arc XDi 1200.6
http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/build-logs-project-install-gallery/161784-2014-nissan-pathfinder-ground-zero-arc-audio-stealth-sq-build-2.html


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## deeep

Wanted a comparison with the hd600/4 in the same pic but thanks. Beautiful components!


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## moparman79

deeep said:


> Wanted a comparison with the hd600/4 in the same pic but thanks. Beautiful components!


Thanks, here is the spec for each amp

JL Audio 600/4 4ch 150w x 4 @ 1.5 - 4 ohms $ 799.95

Height (H) 1.93 in / 49 mm
Width (W) 10.74 in / 273 mm
Depth (D) 8.29 in / 211 mm

JL Audio 900/5 5ch 100w x 4 @4ohms 75w x 4 @ 2ohms. 5ch 500w @ 1 - 4ohms mono. $999.95

Height (H) 1.93 in / 49 mm
Width (W) 10.74 in / 273 mm
Depth (D) 8.29 in / 211 mm


Arc Audio XDi v2 1200.6 6ch amp ch (1-4) 150w x 4 @ 4 or 2 ohms.
Ch 5-6 150w x 2 @4 ohms 300w x2 @ 2ohms. bridged 1 ch 600w @ 4 ohms. $779.00
Dimensions 13.0"(L) x 6.268"(W) x 2.162"(H)

The Arc Audio amp that comparable in size would be the Arc Audio XDi v2
600.4 4ch amp 150w x 4 @ 4ohm or 2ohms
Dimensions: 9.020"(L) x 6.268"(W) x 2.162(H)

In size and price the Arc amp is smaller, cheaper and the shear flexibility on system setup for active.( XDi 600.4) $479.00 and (XDi 1200.6) $779.00


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## moparman79

also soon will be out for sale is Arc Audio XDi 1100.5 which is their 5ch amp which has 150w x4 @ 4 or 2 ohms and 500w @ 2 ohms on ch 5. Has the same power as JL Audio 900/5 on the 5ch, but 50wpc more on the other 4 channels. $679.00


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## rdubbs

customaudioman said:


> also soon will be out for sale is Arc Audio XDi 1100.5 which is their 5ch amp which has 150w x4 @ 4 or 2 ohms and 500w @ 2 ohms on ch 5. Has the same power as JL Audio 900/5 on the 5ch, but 50wpc more on the other 4 channels. $679.00


The only issue with the 1100.5 is that it's channel 5 (sub channel) is only 275watts @ 4ohms. significantly less than JL's @ 4ohms. Doesn't really affect me since instead I will be purchasing the 1200.6 which has the power I want on the sub channel at 4ohms but just in case anyone else is looking at the 1100.5 it's something to be aware of.


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## deeep

One thing on the specs as listed in OP

Channels 5&6: 150 watts rms @4ohm
300 watts rms @2ohm
bridging channels 5&6 gives you 600 watts rms at 4ohm

[email protected] but bridged is [email protected]?


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## rdubbs

deeep said:


> One thing on the specs as listed in OP
> 
> Channels 5&6: 150 watts rms @4ohm
> 300 watts rms @2ohm
> bridging channels 5&6 gives you 600 watts rms at 4ohm
> 
> [email protected] but bridged is [email protected]?


Bridging makes the amp see a 2ohm load per channel but it has to be 4ohms overall so each channel pumps out 300watts so therefore channel 5 = 300watts and channel 6 = 300watts for a total of 600rms

it may actually work differently but thats how i understand it


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## deeep

I dont know either but most amps you see that can bridge two channels its mostly double of the single channel while this is quadruple at the same 4ohm.

Just figured it could have been a typo and they meant [email protected] since its [email protected]

then again maybe this amp is making way more than 150 per channel.


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## moparman79

Im sure it @4ohms
http://mediacdn.shopatron.com/media/mfg/1735/spec_file/224489752.pdf


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## moparman79

2ohms per channel = 4ohms bridged 600watts. Im sure this amp will be at least around 700wrms. Arc always under rate their amps.


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## deeep

Ok cool, looks like this is the amp for me as I wanted to try 2 8" woofers and if that didnt work....one 10"-12" enclosure. This means the amp doesnt have to move.

I mostly stick with main stream brands as they are easier to attain so hopefully this works out for me. Now I just gotta see how much room I have to work with compared to my hd600/4.


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## kizz

customaudioman said:


> Are you still using your jl amps?


No longer using the Jl Amps.

Sorry Deeep, I don't have a side by side picture and am unable to get one at this time. Size difference isn't much. The arc amp is a rectangle vs. a square and isn't as tall. Other than that they are both tiny for the power they provide.


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## 07azhhr

With channels 1-4 being 150w at either 4ohm or 2ohm I am assuming that it stands to reason that it will do the same 300x2 at both 8ohms bridged and 4 ohms bridged?

If this is correct then 2 of these would be perfect for my system. It would net me up to 300w per midrange and per midbass and my 15 could see up to 1200w. NICE!


Edit: the manual confirms it


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## dman

hmmmmmm, put a dsp on it, and run full active, THEN you can truly see what the amp can do.... 

prev. deleted, but If I sell mine, I will POST it UP... again, get in depth with the amp to see its true potential, you would be pleasantly surprised..


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## Niebur3

dman said:


> got one for sale if anyone interested


So you don't so a FS thread, you try to thread jack a review????


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## kizz

Right?


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## dman

is being discussed so I just threw it out there.. remove it then.... 

Sent from my SCH-I605 using Tapatalk


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## kizz

I don't have that power. You could be understanding and edit your post.


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## deeep

How important is 12/24db slope? I don't see anything on this amp or have I missed it?


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## kizz

How important is it for tuning for for the amp to have it?


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## deeep

Both I guess? Last time I did a system was about 7 years ago

Im doing my new car and just buying all new stuff so Im not up to date. Especially if I go active.


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## kizz

deeep said:


> Both I guess? Last time I did a system was about 7 years ago
> 
> Im doing my new car and just buying all new stuff so Im not up to date. Especially if I go active.


Well, I am not a master tuner by any means. The slope is important for limiting frequencies at different rates and phase control. I prefer 12db slope on everything except my sub low pass. Maybe somebody with more technical knowledge can answer that.


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## simplicityinsound

very impressed with our first one, about to finish up another build with another one of these...i cant wait for the full line up to come online.

b


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## deeep

kizz said:


> Well, I am not a master tuner by any means. The slope is important for limiting frequencies at different rates and phase control. I prefer 12db slope on everything except my sub low pass. Maybe somebody with more technical knowledge can answer that.



alright thanks man




simplicityinsound said:


> very impressed with our first one, about to finish up another build with another one of these...i cant wait for the full line up to come online.
> 
> b


It says it take balanced and speaker level inputs but then the specs says Input Sensitivity (Low) 200mV - 3.5V

My dsp puts out 4v and I cant adjust it, will this be an issue?


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## moparman79

deeep said:


> alright thanks man
> 
> 
> 
> 
> It says it take balanced and speaker level inputs but then the specs says Input Sensitivity (Low) 200mV - 3.5V
> 
> My dsp puts out 4v and I cant adjust it, will this be an issue?


what dsp do you have? any deck or dsp when they state 4v or whatever that is at max volume with 0db. if you set the gains at say -5db or -10db your not going to get near 4v out. then the Arc Audio XDi amp will work since its will never see higher then 3.5v.


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## turbo5upra

Given footprint- and being easy on your electrical system I'd give this amp 2 thumbs up. I've had mine running tweeter and mid along with an ae 15 ib and am thinking about using another.


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## dman

without going into a super long description of how voltages work.. if your amplifier has a maximum input voltage of 3.5 volts then it means that the output section of that amplifier can be driven to its full output capacity with 3.5 volts or less.. 

just finished a vehicle with the amp, and a dsp with 8v output.. you don't have issues, just learn how to set up a amp/radio/dsp properly


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## moparman79

turbo5upra said:


> Given footprint- and being easy on your electrical system I'd give this amp 2 thumbs up. I've had mine running tweeter and mid along with an ae 15 ib and am thinking about using another.


cool, are you running the tweets off the rear ch and the mids off the front ch? are you active with the amp only? I guess if your using a DSP then it doesn't matter what ch on the amp.


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## deeep

customaudioman said:


> what dsp do you have? any deck or dsp when they state 4v or whatever that is at max volume with 0db. if you set the gains at say -5db or -10db your not going to get near 4v out. then the Arc Audio XDi amp will work since its will never see higher then 3.5v.


Im stuck using the stock navigation which is Alpine based so I went with the pxa-h100. Its the only one I can control through the headunit with my intravee II. It will be limited but I can do TA, phase and some eq without a laptop....Imprint too with a laptop. The h700 and up I can only select presets made through a laptop or rux.....royal pain.

It outputs 4v from what I read.

Basically I run the wires to a RF-BLD to unbalance the lines into the h100 then into the amp.


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## dman

actually doing it a bit different, as were still utilizing the HAT xovers but manipulating them through the dsp, running full range through the amp still, and flat through the head.. front on hat comps, with pro l1 tweets, rears are on overhead comps, and 5/6 bridged to a JL 8.. love the 360.3 dsp.. wanted to use the arc ps8, as a ton of control on the expert mode, but has been backlogged for a bit, and we already ordered the 360, so went forward with that.. Do a lot of wranglers, as the alpine system is CRAP... and only real way to fix the issue is to GUT and start over.. Only issue were having now is the 8000NEX head keeps locking up on IPOD control. Pioneer has not been real good about addressing the issue so far.


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## Coppertone

^^^. I was soo close to ordering that Pioneer piece NEX 8000, and then I realized that I have not had any good luck with any newer head units...


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## therealdeal74

I had 3 different versions of these mini budget Arc amps. All 3 of them made noise. Are you experiencing any noise issues with this amp?


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## turbo5upra

therealdeal74 said:


> I had 3 different versions of these mini budget Arc amps. All 3 of them made noise. Are you experiencing any noise issues with this amp?


small turn on tick- only bothers a judge... lol


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## dman

therealdeal74 said:


> I had 3 different versions of these mini budget Arc amps. All 3 of them made noise. Are you experiencing any noise issues with this amp?


no issues at all..


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## dman

Coppertone said:


> ^^^. I was soo close to ordering that Pioneer piece NEX 8000, and then I realized that I have not had any good luck with any newer head units...


Did everything.. still issues with ipod and iphone.. Were having to replace the unit per pioneer.. Really ticks me off after all the work..


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## 727south

How they compare to JL HD in sound quality? do the amp shut off when it getting hot?


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## dman

727south said:


> How they compare to JL HD in sound quality? do the amp shut off when it getting hot?


never a shut down.. better than the JLhd... only issue we had was the pioneer head, replaced that, and no issues.. just luck of the draw I guess.. love the amp..


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## momax_powers

simplicityinsound said:


> very impressed with our first one, about to finish up another build with another one of these...i cant wait for the full line up to come online.
> 
> b


I know its not listed as being able to but how do you think it would handle a 2ohm bridged load on channel 5-6? 

Going to be using it to replace some jl slash amps


and heres a comparison of of the xdi1200.6 and jl hd for those wondering









and some guts


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## turbo5upra

customaudioman said:


> cool, are you running the tweets off the rear ch and the mids off the front ch? are you active with the amp only? I guess if your using a DSP then it doesn't matter what ch on the amp.


Sorry- just saw this! My H800 took a dump on me- So I ended up running 6 channels out of my alpine 149bt to the amp... this allowed me active crossovers for the subs and time correction. 

I then ran the tweeters off the rear channel of the amp using the onboard crossover- mid's off the rear channels of the headunit- front channels on the amp.

I had time alignment through the headunit- car sounded pretty good....


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## J.novak

momax_powers said:


> I know its not listed as being able to but how do you think it would handle a 2ohm bridged load on channel 5-6?
> 
> 
> I was using channels 5 and 6 to power a 10w7 @ 3ohms, it worked perfectly. I talked to arc audios tech guy before I powered up my sub (just to cover my arse) and he couldn't officially tell me that I could or should run it at a 3 ohm load, but off the record, he said that the amp was overbuilt and would handle it like a champ. He also estimated output at 3 ohms to around 800w.


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## bengl3rt

Bump to say how happy I am with my 1100.5. Makes my Integras sound so sweet. Good amount of slam through the 8" as well.


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## kizz

These are definitely quality amps. Glad you are enjoying it


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## CoLd_FuSiOn

If anyone's heard the Zed Audio Leviathan and the Arc Audio Xdi 1200.6 v2 which one would you prefer in terms of their sonic characteristics? Can someone please shed some light on this?


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## turbo5upra

CoLd_FuSiOn said:


> If anyone's heard the Zed Audio Leviathan and the Arc Audio Xdi 1200.6 v2 which one would you prefer in terms of their sonic characteristics? Can someone please shed some light on this?


both are very clean... the zed trumps it in output but also in size. For reliability I'd go with the arc though.


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## CoLd_FuSiOn

turbo5upra said:


> both are very clean... the zed trumps it in output but also in size. For reliability I'd go with the arc though.


Size isn't an issue for me, I've read there weren't any issues in the third version plus the leviathan is made in the USA, if the criterion was just the sq capability which one would you get assuming that you've heard it?

Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk


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## turbo5upra

I've owned both. I now own 2 xdi v2's. ;-)


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## 727south

dman said:


> never a shut down.. better than the JLhd... only issue we had was the pioneer head, replaced that, and no issues.. just luck of the draw I guess.. love the amp..[/QUOTE
> Dman i need to talk to you text me 727 238 1232 thanks


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## HighQman1974

Just picked up a 600.4 this weekend. WOW what an amp.


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## EricB

Anyone know where I can get a deal on a Xdi1200.6. Fed up with my PDX issues. I dont think there are any dealers around the Sarasota FL area. They dont sell them online do they??


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## sirbOOm

CoLd_FuSiOn said:


> Size isn't an issue for me, I've read there weren't any issues in the third version plus the leviathan is made in the USA, if the criterion was just the sq capability which one would you get assuming that you've heard it?
> 
> Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk


Made in the USA convinced me to get two of the latest version of ZED amps. Both are out for repair before I even installed them. If I could do it all over, I'd just get the XDi and a sub amp. But I am confident the ZEDs will outperform the XDi amplifiers... when they're fixed. So... there's that.


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## CoLd_FuSiOn

turbo5upra said:


> I've owned both. I now own 2 xdi v2's. ;-)



Thank you sir 


sirbOOm said:


> Made in the USA convinced me to get two of the latest version of ZED amps. Both are out for repair before I even installed them. If I could do it all over, I'd just get the XDi and a sub amp. But I am confident the ZEDs will outperform the XDi amplifiers... when they're fixed. So... there's that.


Wow,that's kind of a bummer.I was inclined towards it in the first place but now I think i'll just have to look elsewhere,appreciate your feedback though.


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## momax_powers

EricB said:


> Anyone know where I can get a deal on a Xdi1200.6. Fed up with my PDX issues. I dont think there are any dealers around the Sarasota FL area. They dont sell them online do they??


I have one thats been used less than 8 hrs total playing time...i believe you can order it new from arc site and woofersetc



sirbOOm said:


> Made in the USA convinced me to get two of the latest version of ZED amps. Both are out for repair before I even installed them. If I could do it all over, I'd just get the XDi and a sub amp. But I am confident the ZEDs will outperform the XDi amplifiers... when they're fixed. So... there's that.


That sucks man....read many people have had issues with their levi III right outta the box... Maybe a bad batch, hope it all works out for you


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## Orion525iT

EricB said:


> Anyone know where I can get a deal on a Xdi1200.6. Fed up with my PDX issues. I dont think there are any dealers around the Sarasota FL area. They dont sell them online do they??



What issues with the PDX?

I was weighing out the PDX over the Arc, since the Arc is another step up in price.


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## EricB

I dont want to knock the PDX-Vp, I think I have just had bad luck. Both of the amplifiers, from two different suppliers, have had an overheating issue. Both amps start to heat up immediately. Within 45 minutes of being on, they were both too hot to put a hand on. I am running a Hybrid Clarus set active with a bmk IV sub. Gains set to abolute minimum. The amp still overheats with no sub, listening to an audiobook for an hour. Red light starts flashing and goes into reduced power mode. I am running 4 Ga from the batt and a 4 Ga ground that is less than 3'. I think the design and footprint of the amp are amazing but I just got two duds. Plenty of power, my last had a birth sheet of 4 x 130 with sub channel at 581.


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## Hoptologist

^^I'm never getting Alpine amps again. I've only had one, but the experience was so bad that it put me off from ever trying them again. Overheated constantly, super hot to the touch. Got a JL after that one and no overheating problems, so it was definitely the amp. Of course, every line of amps will have issues or no issues for a given population. I've had no issues with JL and Arc, but others have.


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## moparman79

I have yet to have a problem with the arc audio xdiv2 amps. Good, small powerful amp.


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## UNFORGIVEN

I have one XDI 1200.6 brand new in box sitting for a couple months. Not sure if I want to install it though


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## EricB

I picked up a new one from a member here and I cant begin to tell you how impressed I am with it. It runs very cool, unlike my Alpine Space heater. The built if fan is quiet and keeps it very cool, while producing gobs and gobs of power. Its a noticeable difference from my Alpine PDX-V9. I am SOLD!! Now to get another BMKIV so I can really turn it loose! I absolutely love it!!


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## 1fishman

EricB said:


> I picked up a new one from a member here and I cant begin to tell you how impressed I am with it. It runs very cool, unlike my Alpine Space heater. The built if fan is quiet and keeps it very cool, while producing gobs and gobs of power. Its a noticeable difference from my Alpine PDX-V9. I am SOLD!! Now to get another BMKIV so I can really turn it loose! I absolutely love it!!


I've been trying to decide how to use my 1200.6 with my single BM MKIV sub. Would it be better to bridge 5&6 for ____?___watts running the sub at 8ohms , or use 5 OR 6 for 300 watts running the sub at 2 ohms. Any thoughts ?


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## EricB

I am running mine series at 8 ohm bridged on 5 & 6. Just make sure you set the switch to >4 ohm. It crushes my BMKIV, all the reason for ordering another one!!!!


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## momax_powers

EricB said:


> I am running mine series at 8 ohm bridged on 5 & 6. Just make sure you set the switch to >4 ohm. It crushes my BMKIV, all the reason for ordering another one!!!!


I have a similar dilemma and wondering if they are built stout enough for a 2ohm bridged load on the 5+6 channel


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## 1fishman

EricB said:


> I am running mine series at 8 ohm bridged on 5 & 6. Just make sure you set the switch to >4 ohm. It crushes my BMKIV, all the reason for ordering another one!!!!


Great, thanks.


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## EricB

I called and asked an Arc. Tech and was told to absolutely NOT run bridged 2 Ohm. I was told the amplifier matches impedance so it will still produce full output wattage even at 8 Ohms.


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## turbo5upra

I'm running mine at 8 ohms and it keeps me happy.


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## KBT2011

I am excited to try this amp. I won't be running an active setup though. I'll have HAT unity' up front and HAT mirus rear fills with an IDQ 10 bridged 5&6 at 600 RMS. Anxious to see how it sounds. Before others chime in, yes I may try and switch it up to an active setup down the road lol.


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## Roper215

I'm excited too, mine should arrive in less than a week.


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## DavidRam

Kinda hard to find a 6 channel... I agree that this amp is top notch. Not to mention, it looks really cool. To bad it's hidden under my passenger seat, lol.
I got a great deal on mine from Niebur3.


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## KBT2011

Looks like Arc marked this amp up in the last couple of days :sad: now it is $859 on their website. I'll likely still dish out the cash in a couple months.


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## aznlunatic

Ive listened to this amp in person, amp was installed in a new ford f150 running image dynamics xs-57s in the front and rear doors and two stereo integrity bm mkiv's with a bit ten processor. This amp sounds really good for the small form factor and puts out good clean power. I was impressed how loud and clean all the speakers and sub got in my friends truck. The new $859 price tag is on the high end for me, and in my opinion overpriced.


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## mark620

$739 at woofers inc..


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## aznlunatic

mark620 said:


> $739 at woofers inc..


They are not an authorized dealer, which means if it craps out you will have to pay for repairs unless woofersect offers their own warranty for it.


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## subwoofery

KBT2011 said:


> Looks like Arc marked this amp up in the last couple of days :sad: now it is $859 on their website. I'll likely still dish out the cash in a couple months.


For that price, I'd get the Mmats one. 

Kelvin


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## KBT2011

Which MMats one would that be? I didn't think they made a 5+ channel under $1500


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## subwoofery

KBT2011 said:


> Which MMats one would that be? I didn't think they made a 5+ channel under $1500


HiFi-6150D 

I believe some got those for less than a $1000 through dealers. 

Kelvin


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## goodstuff

I will agree with the original review. This amp sounds "different". Crisp is an accurate description. Worth every penny of the asking price, imo. 
On my short list when my lrx 5.1k dies.


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## jimmyjames16

Might be a stupid question but.. does anybody know if these amps would overheat (despite having a built in fan) if installed upside down under a rear deck?? Put an external fan on it?

I saw a forum member install (3) Hertz Hdp4's upsidedown under his BMW rear deck..

Was just wondering... I have a xdi600/4 coming in the mail soon... trying to figure out mounting options


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## sunshinefc3s

jimmyjames16 said:


> Might be a stupid question but.. does anybody know if these amps would overheat (despite having a built in fan) if installed upside down under a rear deck?? Put an external fan on it?
> 
> I saw a forum member install (3) Hertz Hdp4's upsidedown under his BMW rear deck..
> 
> Was just wondering... I have a xdi600/4 coming in the mail soon... trying to figure out mounting options


I got an email from Arc saying that the KS series is ok to mount in any configuration (those are H class, IIRC ?) . Makes me think that these class D's should be ok then too. FWIT.
-a


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## foreman

They should be fine. I had a first gen Xdi 805, and currently a PG ti2 1600.5 invetted under my rear deck. Run great, no issues.


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## jimmyjames16

Yeah... I was just concerned about its longevity.. and not killing a $500 amp..


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## Roper215

jimmyjames16 said:


> Yeah... I was just concerned about its longevity.. and not killing a $500 amp..


The heat sink was not designed to be mounted in that configuration. Make standoffs and a plate and mount to your rear shelf, and orient the amp correctly. No additional space will be used. Yes it will require more time, but it's also the better solution. Just my .02


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## jimmyjames16

Right.. but the controls are on the top of the xdi amp.. so if I do what you said it would be hard for me to tweak once installed on a platform under the deck.. I would need some access to it like these folding brackets to get to the controls.. this is why my JL MHD900/5 works perfectly for that reason:


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## aznlunatic

jimmyjames16 said:


> Might be a stupid question but.. does anybody know if these amps would overheat (despite having a built in fan) if installed upside down under a rear deck?? Put an external fan on it?
> 
> I saw a forum member install (3) Hertz Hdp4's upsidedown under his BMW rear deck..
> 
> Was just wondering... I have a xdi600/4 coming in the mail soon... trying to figure out mounting options


My friends has this same amp in his truck, we drove around for an hour playing music pretty loud, after the drive the amp was warm, and fan never kicked on. I would say your safe with mounting it under the deck lid.


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## jimmyjames16

aznlunatic said:


> My friends has this same amp in his truck, ...


Your speaking of the Arc xdi correct?


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## aznlunatic

jimmyjames16 said:


> Your speaking of the Arc xdi correct?


yes arc xdi 1200.6, running 4 components speakers and two SI BM MKIV's all from that amp and he pushes that amp pretty hard


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## jimmyjames16

Ok.. good to know.. thanks.. btw.. how did those SI's sound?.. was thinking of adding them to my upgrade


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## aznlunatic

jimmyjames16 said:


> Ok.. good to know.. thanks.. btw.. how did those SI's sound?.. was thinking of adding them to my upgrade


They sound amazing, fast, accurate, loud, and digs pretty low which is very surprising for a shallow mount. They sound soo good after listening to them in my friends truck I bought two for my car and I havent regretted that purchase one bit.


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## foreman

Oh, and i called Arc and PG tech support asking them about my install, and when i said "are you sure i can mount them inverted?" Well, lets say they made me feel silly for asking


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## WhiteL02

Foreman, I was thinking about the arc xdi 1100.5 or 1200.6 and pg ti1600.5. How do you like the 1600.5? I know the sub channel has more power but not sure which one would sound better.


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## HulkSmash

This was perfect timing for me. I'm looking at the 1200.6 to run my 3way active front end. Is there a dealer on the site? I don't have one near me.


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## raamaudio

Great to see these so well liked as I have 4 to install.

Dually, 600.4 on BL 6.5 and 1.0 bi amped, 1100.1 on BL 12 under dash in console mount

Fiesta ST, 1100.5, Dayton Esoteric 7.0, Viva "nipple" tweets, SI low profile in hatch. 

Toyhauler, 1100.1, BL 12 under stairs, installed but not fired up yet.


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## sirbOOm

Alright guys, I give up... how are you guys getting your regular 4AWG wire into the power terminals without seeing the copper if you move the wire even just slightly? The jacket of my wire will not also slip into the hole like in most other amps causing this.

Thinking about getting some of these: http://www.amazon.com/Morris-90971-Products-Connector-Compression/dp/B00UKGB4PO


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## moparman79

I just use heat shrink, it helps to keep the strains together tight. I never have a problem with copper showing.


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## Robertvon

Definitely thinking of getting one of these to pair up with my ARC PS8 , has anybody use this combo yet?


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## Babs

sirbOOm said:


> Alright guys, I give up... how are you guys getting your regular 4AWG wire into the power terminals without seeing the copper if you move the wire even just slightly? The jacket of my wire will not also slip into the hole like in most other amps causing this.
> 
> Thinking about getting some of these: http://www.amazon.com/Morris-90971-Products-Connector-Compression/dp/B00UKGB4PO


I suggest these with shrink to hold them. CAF did a youtube on it. 
Uninsulated Ferrules for Classes H, I, K and DLO Conductors at Ferrules Direct


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## sirbOOm

Well I love the amp but the power supply connection for + and - suck. The opening is too small and the opening doesn't allow for the jacket to countersink. Not the worst of faults, though compared to what all could go wrong in this world so I'm not worried about it.

I just did the trusty solder the end of the wire before removing the sheathing trick. It's fine now.


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## CoLd_FuSiOn

Finally bit the bullet and bought one of these. Having come from Mcintosh amps, I'm totally satisfied with my purchase,smooth, dynamic and tons of power.


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## Lunchbox89

Been eyeballing this amp for quite some time now. Thanks for your review. I want one!!!! Lol


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## mrgreenjeans71

Sometimes you'll hear a somebody say, "this amp is underrated." Meaning they think the amp has more power than they advertize. I don't think I've ever heard that about a class D amp. It's true that most Class D's already have plenty of power, so maybe it's just that their are no 50W D amps that need to sound louder?


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## Kriszilla

Depends on the amp. The 2 Alpine PDX-V9's and the PDX-M12 that I ran before my Arc's all had much higher than expected numbers on their birth sheets.


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## Dynamic SQ

Kriszilla said:


> Depends on the amp. The 2 Alpine PDX-V9's and the PDX-M12 that I ran before my Arc's all had much higher than expected numbers on their birth sheets.


....and I'm sure it was at a voltage 99% of the public will never maintain in a car.


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## Kriszilla

Even so, at 12v it's still going to put out more wattage than normally rated for that voltage.


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## Reerun_KC

How does this amp compare to the audison av 5.1k?


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## The Max

Robertvon said:


> Definitely thinking of getting one of these to pair up with my ARC PS8 , has anybody use this combo yet?


Works great. Oddly enough, with my PS8, I find that I'm using my XDi v2 600.4 with the gains turned all the way down to minimum. I'm guessing they're a perfect match, so no gain from the amp required but I would've expected the minimum gain setting on the amp would be something less than unity.

At any rate, it sounds WAY better than the ****ty Rockford Fosgate Power T800-ad that I had in there before. Much lower noise floor and the higher end of the spectrum in the audio playing doesn't sound rough anymore. Fantastic little beast and the perfect partner for the PS8.

Like everyone else though, the power connection sucks balls. That's a fundamental design flaw which I'm surprised Arc got wrong. The Rockford had more generously sized terminals to accommodate the 4GA cable. I ended up using ferrules that I had spare in my toolbox to keep them in place, though sirb00m's idea of thinly tinning the front end with solder and then stripping the end of the cable is an acceptable trick too.


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## CoLd_FuSiOn

The Max said:


> Works great. Oddly enough, with my PS8, I find that I'm using my XDi v2 600.4 with the gains turned all the way down to minimum. I'm guessing they're a perfect match, so no gain from the amp required but I would've expected the minimum gain setting on the amp would be something less than unity.
> 
> At any rate, it sounds WAY better than the ****ty Rockford Fosgate Power T800-ad that I had in there before. Much lower noise floor and the higher end of the spectrum in the audio playing doesn't sound rough anymore. Fantastic little beast and the perfect partner for the PS8.
> 
> Like everyone else though, the power connection sucks balls. That's a fundamental design flaw which I'm surprised Arc got wrong. The Rockford had more generously sized terminals to accommodate the 4GA cable. I ended up using ferrules that I had spare in my toolbox to keep them in place, though sirb00m's idea of thinly tinning the front end with solder and then stripping the end of the cable is an acceptable trick too.


The gains on this amp start from 3.5 volts that's why with most high voltage sources it's not necessary to turn them up. 

It does sound great even at high volume levels. 

Another alternative is you can divide the stripped off wire end into half and use a cutter to cut one half off and then use the remaining strands to hook up the wire to the amp, having tried it myself no problems at all. 


Sent from my One Plus One using Tapatalk


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## The Max

CoLd_FuSiOn said:


> The gains on this amp start from 3.5 volts that's why with most high voltage sources it's not necessary to turn them up.


Makes sense.



> Another alternative is you can divide the stripped off wire end into half and use a cutter to cut one half off and then use the remaining strands to hook up the wire to the amp, having tried it myself no problems at all.


And you're right, there wouldn't be any problems but I'm a perfectionist. All in or all out.


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## Go2Sleep

im running one of these in my vehicle and love it. 

I have two morel ultimo's single 2ohm each and strapping:

(2) 1100.1 xdi strapped @1ohm 

highly not recommended or can they handle it?


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## eviling

I'm looking for the damping rating on these i cant seem to find it..the xdi manual doesnt say either from what i've seen. i didn't read it 100% but i read a fair bit and read all the specs but nothing :-\


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## WhiteL02

I called and talked to them awhile back and they told me it was 300 at 4ohm.


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## eviling

really? i wonder what the damping rating on the moto's are, that must be the big difference in the amps. I really want something high end...well i just want as much as i can get and i wanna run my arc black 12 at 4 ohms,


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## Onyx1136

Damping factor specs are possibly the most overrated and meaningless specifications. It doesn't make one amplifier better than another, and it certainly doesn't mean a paticular amplifier is "high-end" because it has a high damping factor.


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## eviling

oh? well just trying to decide practicly, if i can't read specs, how can one decide what to buy purley on what people say they think sounds good  car audio's annoying at times...just trying to bring some sense to the madness. I do like how this OP compared the HD's because i was considering the HD's vrs these right now. their pretty comparable it seems in many reguards, i still dont understand the difference in the moto line from arc :\


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## Onyx1136

That's not to say that no specifications matter. Just that damping factor isn't a useful specification for comparing one amplifier to another. 

And once you reach a certain minimum build quality, most all amplifiers are going to have very similar specs. Picking between one amplifier and another based on specifications is a crap shoot at best. Even low quality products can have published specs that are just as good as a high-end product. There's no governing body that fact checks the manufacturer to make sure they're playing fair. 

If you're deciding between the Arc xdi and JL HD amplifiers, IMO you really can't go wrong either way. Both are well built, sound clean, and make plenty of power. If the look or finish of a certain amplifier fits better in your install, that's as good of a reason as any to choose that particular one.


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## moparman79

eviling said:


> oh? well just trying to decide practicly, if i can't read specs, how can one decide what to buy purley on what people say they think sounds good  car audio's annoying at times...just trying to bring some sense to the madness. I do like how this OP compared the HD's because i was considering the HD's vrs these right now. their pretty comparable it seems in many reguards, i still dont understand the difference in the moto line from arc :\


The Moto Amplifier was designed to fit in a motorcycle. pretty much the same specs as the xdiv2 600.4. The Moto is smaller in size to help with mounting in the fairing.


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## eviling

customaudioman said:


> The Moto Amplifier was designed to fit in a motorcycle. pretty much the same specs as the xdiv2 600.4. The Moto is smaller in size to help with mounting in the fairing.


Yeah that's what it looked like thought maybe it was a higher end version with gold capped caps and or something along them lines. But it had the same sowcs I was like why would they even waste time. 

Sent from my A0001 using Tapatalk


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## moparman79

eviling said:


> Yeah that's what it looked like thought maybe it was a higher end version with gold capped caps and or something along them lines. But it had the same sowcs I was like why would they even waste time.
> 
> Sent from my A0001 using Tapatalk


yeah your paying the extra for the smaller size( size of a single din headunit), the weather protected board which can withstand outside exposure temperatures and elements.


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## MrGreen83

Sorry to resurrect an old thread BUT... 

Thanks for this review. I've been toying with the idea of finding a 6 channel amp (that had enough power at 4 ohms) to run my whole front stage (3-way) active...minimizing the amount of amplifiers I have to mount in my vehicle.

I guess my biggest concern was....will doing a Class D amp on my mids/tweets sacrifice some SQ compared to running a Class A/B. (And I'm sure the answer is yes in some form or fashion)

Sounds like these things still do the job well enough tho. Thinking of pairing this one, with the Arc Audio KS 2500.1...it does 1400 watts at 2 ohms. 

Feed it to my two Audiofrog GB12D2's. 700 watts to each sub....golden! 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## The Max

If I had the space in the car, I'd definitely opt for class A/B but I have to say, though influenced by the lack of space in the trunk of my car, I'm loving the sound of my Arc XDi v2 amp.


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## foreman

I'm running my entire car off of one 1200.6(check my sig) and it does it with ease. I would prob use a second 600 if i went with a second sub.






MrGreen83 said:


> Sorry to resurrect an old thread BUT...
> 
> Thanks for this review. I've been toying with the idea of finding a 6 channel amp (that had enough power at 4 ohms) to run my whole front stage (3-way) active...minimizing the amount of amplifiers I have to mount in my vehicle.
> 
> I guess my biggest concern was....will doing a Class D amp on my mids/tweets sacrifice some SQ compared to running a Class A/B. (And I'm sure the answer is yes in some form or fashion)
> 
> Sounds like these things still do the job well enough tho. Thinking of pairing this one, with the Arc Audio KS 2500.1...it does 1400 watts at 2 ohms.
> 
> Feed it to my two Audiofrog GB12D2's. 700 watts to each sub....golden!
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Joe r

Great review. I have two of these coming with two black twelves and two sets of black 6" components. I am stoked!


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## Go2Sleep

amazing amps! lots of clean power. love them


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## BlueAc

Why is the 1200.6 more popular than the 1100.5? When it seems most people use it in the same configuration you would use the 5 channel in? I went with the .5 because it allowed me to run my stealthbox at 2 ohms. 


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## metanium

BlueAc said:


> Why is the 1200.6 more popular than the 1100.5? When it seems most people use it in the same configuration you would use the 5 channel in? I went with the .5 because it allowed me to run my stealthbox at 2 ohms.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Me too. If my sub was 4-ohm, I'd probably gone the .6 though.


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## BlueAc

metanium said:


> Me too. If my sub was 4-ohm, I'd probably gone the .6 though.



Yea I just went and checked. I see it's 600 @4 ohms. I guess I answered my own question. Lol


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Joe r

1200.6 has more power output with less power input consumption. And if you decide to go 3 way active you can add the 1100.1 and it matches exterior specs.


I purchased two 1200.6 thinking I would do a true "left/right" amp install but I think the one 1200.6 is perfect. Keep an eye on the forsale forum.


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## MrGreen83

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## Joe r

MrGreen83 said:


> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


Tried too send you a pm, your box is full.

Still looking for a 1200.6?


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## BlueAc

Joe r said:


> 1200.6 has more power output with less power input consumption. And if you decide to go 3 way active you can add the 1100.1 and it matches exterior specs.
> 
> 
> I purchased two 1200.6 thinking I would do a true "left/right" amp install but I think the one 1200.6 is perfect. Keep an eye on the forsale forum.



Wondering if I made the right choice with the 1100.5 now.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## danno14

Joe r said:


> I purchased two 1200.6 thinking I would do a true "left/right" amp install but I think the one 1200.6 is perfect. Keep an eye on the forsale forum.


Exactly why I picked up my second 1200.6 



Rainey, right?


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