# Soundstream TN5.950D Review



## newport2002 (Oct 7, 2009)

I have been meaning to complete the audio system for the last few years. The Nakamichi head unit has been flawless and the Hertz component system has been smooth and a dream to listen to...I just need MORE POWER! So I have been doing tins of research and while my last audio build was probably a $5000+ system, I wanted to be a lot more modest with this build. So I chose the Soundstream Tarantula Nano series 5 channel amp. This amp shares parts with the Precision Power, Polk Audio, Hertz, and NVX. Some say its a clone of these, some say its got the same board. I don't know exactly but its the least expensive of the bunch and has the best specs, or equal to that of the Hertz which is the most expensive of the bunch. Whats great about this amp is its a Class D all digital amp that has a high clean power output with very low noise and very little power drain. It also has a very small footprint and generates almost no heat. Whats not to like right? Oh and the price was probably about 1/5 the price of my last amp, the Audison 6.9. Would it sound as good? No. I am sure of that, but that was in a newer Porsche Carrera, with modern insulation and a relatively quiet cabin. The BMW 2002 is loud. Vintage. No AC, so the windows are always down, and on nice days the roof is open. Tons of engine noise and wind noise. So do I need the supreme audio quality? No. This is part 3 of my audio system. Part 1 was the Nakamichi head unit. Part 2, the Hertz components. This will be part 3 the amp install, and the last part will be the Subwoofer to round out the system.


Amp configuration.

This is a 5 channel amp and since I am running front speakers and a subwoofer I only need 3 channels. This will allow me to bridge the component speakers and run a clean 230 watts to them. They are rated at 250 watts so thats a perfect match. The sub will then get a clean 300 wats from the 5th channel. All controllable from the head unit. Nice!










Initial impressions

Well its a beautiful little amp. The size is small for a high power amp, but its solid. Like an aluminum brick. Its got a very nice milled aluminum look, like a Retina MacBook Pro. Sexy. Its got TONS of switches and pots on the side of the inputs. This is because of the active crossovers this unit has. High and low pass filters on the front 4 channels and a low pass filter for the subwoofer channel. It also has 2 channel or 4 channel inputs, separate sub inputs and a subwoofer volume remote that can be mounted up front to control just the sub volume. On the other side are the power connections as well as the speaker outputs. Nice layout and there is a nice overhang so all the wiring will be concealed once mounted. My mounting location will be under the rear seat on the drivers side. The subwoofer will be under the rear seat on the passengers side.

Installation

This was very straightforward. I bought a wiring kit and ran the wire into the engine bay, wired a fused, to the battery and ran things under the carpet for a no wire install. I ran all the power wires down one side of the car and ran all the audio wires down the other side of the car so there would be no interference. I ran 6 channels of RCA outputs from the head unit. The 4 front channels and the subwoofer channels. In no time all wires were run and it was time to turn the power on and test it.










Turned the key....lights!

Ok...good sign...turn the volume up slowly and no sound....

Uh Oh.

Turn it up a bit more...it was nearly all the way up and now I am beginning to hear it just barely...wait. Its no louder than the head unit alone! No way. Then I realize there is an adjustable gain. Turn up the input gain and then there is this nice, warm, clean sound....YES! The tarantula on the top of the amp lights up in blue and there is a blue power LED on the side. Very cool, except in my car this will be hidden. No one will ever see this...lol. Oh well.


The sound. One word. WOW!

I put on some Steely Dan, turned up the volume and the music literally jumped out of the Hertz component speakers. Turned the bass up and wow. Those speakers were happy and the sound was impressive. Loud, clear, and zero distortion. I quickly played everything from Jay Z to the Beastie Boys to Jamiroquai to Sade to Esthero. All clear and crisp with full low end. The details in the sound were amazing. Hearing the reverb tails, the violin bow in string sections, all these things were INSTANTLY apparent on songs that I have never heard these details before, especially in the car. This was with virtually zero tuning and the gain not really set. It was also in 5 channel mode. The amp is rated at 85 watts per channel in 5 cannel mode. Tomorrow I plan on setting the gain and trying it in bridged mode. This will put 230 watts to the speakers. What I also noticed was that there was VERY little power drain on the system. With the head unit alone when turned up the lights would blink and the head unit was flickering. With the amp, even with the volume cranked there was zero gauge flickering or dimming lights. Wow I am impressed and after about an hour the amp was cool to the touch. The head unit was hotter than the amp. 

Conclusion

Well this is a GREAT amp and lots of bang for the buck. Super flexible, clean, lots of power and easy to install and setup. I am MORE than impressed and when I add a sub this little system will POUND. I wish I had done this a long time ago. My only reference is my Porsche Audison system with Focal 3 way separates in the front and coax in the rear with a custom box with a JL Audio sub. With the Kenwood head unit that system was about $5000 in parts alone. This system is about 1/4 that price including the sub and it may not be as good, but it will be close! Any gripes? Minor. The gain is not labeled. The manual is awful. I downloaded the Polk Audio manual and it was much better.


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## rton20s (Feb 14, 2011)

Can you tell how easy it would be to remove the black tarantula strip from the amp? Is removing the two screws on the exterior enough to pull it off? 

I ask because I thought about picking up this amp for the wife's car, but that glowing spider just isn't going to cut it.  The piece would need to be either vinyl wrapped or painted.


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## Rogue740 (Aug 6, 2010)

rton20s said:


> Can you tell how easy it would be to remove the black tarantula strip from the amp? Is removing the two screws on the exterior enough to pull it off?
> 
> I ask because I thought about picking up this amp for the wife's car, but that glowing spider just isn't going to cut it.  The piece would need to be either vinyl wrapped or painted.


If all you care about is the glowing spider, I'm sure you can just unplug the LEDs for that section. I kind of doubt they would be hardwired.


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## rton20s (Feb 14, 2011)

Rogue740 said:


> If all you care about is the glowing spider, I'm sure you can just unplug the LEDs for that section. I kind of doubt they would be hardwired.


If that piece is easily removable though, it would be simple enough to vinyl wrap or even pasti dip. That way you have an easily reversible way way to get rid of that objectionable design without risking warranty issues.


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## EricP72 (Mar 23, 2008)

Thanks for the review. I have been looking at these but with no review I was kinda skeptical. 
I have a question. I would like to run 2 of these for a 3 way active front. Can u tell me what the xover range is for the sub channel? I'm hoping it's starts at least at 300hz.


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## 1fishman (Dec 22, 2012)

manish said:


> Thanks for the review. I have been looking at these but with no review I was kinda skeptical.
> I have a question. I would like to run 2 of these for a 3 way active front. Can u tell me what the xover range is for the sub channel? I'm hoping it's starts at least at 300hz.


I wanted to do the same but...

The amp shows 40-220hz as lpf for sub, but the website says 45hz -450hz  

I think 220hz is the correct number.


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## newport2002 (Oct 7, 2009)

40-220 is what the polk specs show and thats the manual I used since the Soundstream manual is not very good.


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