# Phoenix Gold Elite.4 amp



## boricua69 (Oct 14, 2009)

Hi guys, today i receive the new Elite.4 amp. They believe that is one of the best amplifiers in the market; Price vs Perfromance. I will do a test between 2 DLS Ultimate A3 and this Monster Elite.4

Later i will take pics on this amp.
This are some of the spec.
150 x 4 @ 4 ohms stereo
250 x 4 @ 2 ohms
300 x 4 @ 1 ohms
500 x 2 @ 4 ohms bridged
600 x 2 @ 2 ohms bridged
182 x 4 @ 4 ohms max power at 14.4vdc
292 x 4 @ 2 ohms max power at 14.4vdc

frec-respond 10hz to 50khz
signal N/R 110db
HP xover 20hz to 4khz
LP xover 40hz to 4khz
Input level range 200mv to 8volts
class a/b
burr brown op-amps OPA2228P
monolithic signal caps
massive dual package sanken output device
triple darlington ouput stage
overbuilt dual unregulated power supplies
handwound power supply transformers
isolated pre-amp section
remote voltage display
and many more...


Is very impressive and very heavy.
Phoenix Gold still alive and i'm proud for be part of the Team.


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## Heath (May 3, 2009)

I am very intersted to hear what you think about this amp. It is supposed to be really good and way overbuilt.


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## evo9 (Jul 6, 2005)

I hope they release a 5 or 6 channels option.


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## Genxx (Mar 18, 2007)

Man PG is back in full force with these. Looks like the good old days are not gone for PG. Looking at the specs. these might be the best amp they have ever released, IMO.


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## boricua69 (Oct 14, 2009)

View attachment 36141


View attachment 36142


View attachment 36143


View attachment 36144


View attachment 36145
Big amp..


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## boricua69 (Oct 14, 2009)

Only 3 models with the same chassis. 2 channel, 4 channnel and mono block


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## benny (Apr 7, 2008)

Nice. Is that a smoked plexi top panel?


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## boricua69 (Oct 14, 2009)

Yes, is a smoked plexi glass.This amp is very heavy, about 30 pounds.


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## jcollin76 (Oct 26, 2010)

Beautiful amp. I hope it lives up to it's lineage. PG makes tanks of an amp... love to run them again.


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## boricua69 (Oct 14, 2009)

Look inside.
View attachment 36146


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## jcollin76 (Oct 26, 2010)

Now that's pretty...


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## Notloudenuf (Sep 14, 2008)

I like the new Phoenix Gold because the guys in the booth at SBN gave me earplugs.
:thumbsup:


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## Morgan West (Jan 28, 2012)

Rumors are true the Elite amps are shipping.


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## newtitan (Mar 7, 2005)

How much is that 4 ch msrp?


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## oline897 (Jan 27, 2010)

Can't wait to hear the results! Very Interested in these!


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## Morgan West (Jan 28, 2012)

$1299.99 USD MSRP for Elite.4


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## boricua69 (Oct 14, 2009)

View attachment 36660


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## Viggen (May 2, 2011)

I have 3 Elite amps on the way, I will post pics when I get them. Two elite.2's and a elite.4 is what I went with. Hopefully I can post pics this week


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## boricua69 (Oct 14, 2009)

good, i hope you have the space for a clean install for those babies!


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## Viggen (May 2, 2011)

yea, hopefully we can figure a way to squeeze them in there. Not looking forward to adding 100#'s of amps back there.... do they really weigh 30#'s ea? The added weigh slipped my mind.... I guess it's just that much more of a reason to buy a sports car


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## TrickyRicky (Apr 5, 2009)

Thats weird I compared the output transistors that am going to replace in my SA3.0X with the ones used in the ELITE and it seems the ones am going to use are better.


Here is the data sheet for the ones am using.

Here are the Sanken 2SA1216 that are used in the ELITE.


For those that know how to read the data sheets can you point anything I may have missed and that the Sanken are better than the ones I will be using. Price wise the Sanken are about 8-10 bucks each (HOLY CRAP, the ELITE has 16 thats 160 bucks in output transistors) the ON that am using are 6 bucks, so their a little different in price but not much (ofcourse if your planning on using 16 then the price difference will be pretty great).


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## Viggen (May 2, 2011)

I have no clue.... but it seems weird tha tPG would spend more money on a inferior product since I doubt people but the Elite amps just due to the Sanken chips..... interested to see what others state


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## SDB777 (Apr 15, 2012)

Being the last PG amp I owned was the MS250(ran the whole audio system from this one amp-I knw 'old school', but it worked)....I think things have changed at PhoenixGold in the right direction.



The price tag is the only thing that really bothers me about this product....I'd have to wait awhile and hope to find a lightly used one after someone gets bored and needs something newer.






Scott


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## eprater1 (Dec 13, 2010)

im with Scott on this one, 1300.00 seems a bit steep to me but 300x4 in one package is pretty strong. just cant help but think for going active and 1300.00 i would probably be looking more towards an Arc SE 4200 or Genesis. that being said i does look to be an amazing unit, reminds me of the old days when an amp was rated at 50x4 @8ohm but could be bridged and ran down to 1/2 ohm per channel and make 1600 rms. oh the days of cheater amps.


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## Viggen (May 2, 2011)

I didn't pay close to 1300 ea, more like JL HD600/4 money


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## robert_wrath (Apr 24, 2011)

Nice to see quality components inside the Elite amps. Looks like a OS throwback when the M Line premiered decades ago.


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## smgreen20 (Oct 13, 2006)

And here's your review.

Phoenix Gold Elite


Enjoy.


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## circa40 (Jan 20, 2008)

"A tribute to the old school" Nice! What a bad time for me getting out of car audio


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## GlasSman (Nov 14, 2006)

evo9 said:


> I hope they release a 5 or 6 channels option.


Makes no sense in an amp of this high caliber.

Is there a 5 or 6 channel in the Arc SE series?


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## GlasSman (Nov 14, 2006)

Viggen said:


> I have 3 Elite amps on the way, I will post pics when I get them. Two elite.2's and a elite.4 is what I went with. Hopefully I can post pics this week



Can't wait to see the internals on the Elite2.....can't wait.:rimshot::biggrinflip::rimshot::biggrinflip:


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## Viggen (May 2, 2011)

I started a thread with some pics of my amps, they arrived & I only unwrapped one of them completely. Going out of town & will take some more closeup pics next week.


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## goodstuff (Jan 9, 2008)

very cool.


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## smgreen20 (Oct 13, 2006)

There are internal pics in the review link I provided above.

Morgan has already confirmed, NO 5/6 ch Elite amps will be made. Granted things change, but as of this time, no plans in the works.


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## GlasSman (Nov 14, 2006)

smgreen20 said:


> There are internal pics in the review link I provided above.
> 
> Morgan has already confirmed, NO 5/6 ch Elite amps will be made. Granted things change, but as of this time, no plans in the works.


Seen that already.

Just curious how the internals look on the 2 channel.

Very good decision not going with the 5 or 6 channel models as it goes against the grain of _*high end*_ if you ask me.


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## smgreen20 (Oct 13, 2006)

While I agree, I still love my Audison LRx5.1k


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## rc10mike (Mar 27, 2008)

I still wish the Elite.2 was more like the HRU.2 power wise...


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## WLDock (Sep 27, 2005)

smgreen20 said:


> While I agree, I still love my Audison LRx5.1k


Yeah, that Audison is nice and is nicely sized. A 5-6 channel Elite would be as large as some of the amps from back in the day and pricey. I doubt they would sell that many. Better to just offer a powerful 4 channel and mono.

Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G using Tapatalk 2


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## wdemetrius1 (Aug 16, 2007)

That was a great review of the amp.


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## Bluenote (Aug 29, 2008)

I recently saw the PASMAG review for the Elite 4 and the guy said it could be bridged or ran in 3 Channel mode. Does anyone know what the RMS power and Ohm rating would be in 3 channel mode? I even downloaded the spec sheet but nothing about 3 channel mode there... Thanks!


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## jriggs (Jun 14, 2011)

Bluenote said:


> I recently saw the PASMAG review for the Elite 4 and the guy said it could be bridged or ran in 3 Channel mode. Does anyone know what the RMS power and Ohm rating would be in 3 channel mode? I even downloaded the spec sheet but nothing about 3 channel mode there... Thanks!


http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum...scussion/128206-phoenix-gold-elite-4-amp.html

bridged is 500 @ 4ohms


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## Bluenote (Aug 29, 2008)

Thanks, but I understood the review referred to a "3" channel mode as opposed to "2" channel mode. Bridged only accounts for a two channel set up. Idk, maybe he mis-spoke.


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## [email protected] (Jun 12, 2008)

Bluenote said:


> Thanks, but I understood the review referred to a "3" channel mode as opposed to "2" channel mode. Bridged only accounts for a two channel set up. Idk, maybe he mis-spoke.


Bridge channels 3&4 for 500 watts, then run front channels 1&2 in stereo, bam 3-ch mode.


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## subwoofery (Nov 9, 2008)

lol 

Kelvin


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## Rrrrolla (Nov 13, 2008)

TrickyRicky said:


> Thats weird I compared the output transistors that am going to replace in my SA3.0X with the ones used in the ELITE and it seems the ones am going to use are better.
> 
> 
> Here is the data sheet for the ones am using.
> ...


Looking strictly at the collector current, it looks like the Sanken can output a little more power. Not too many amps are going to have interchangeable transistors though. The amp is pretty well designed around the specs of the transistors being used.  Those Sanken transistors look pretty beefy!


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## Morgan West (Jan 28, 2012)

For the record, I NEVER ruled out a five channel Elite amp.

But back to the Elite.4.


Elite.4 PROS:

- Insanely large and fast output devices. 
- Audiophile pre-amp section design and components.
- Two huge, overbuilt power supplies.
- Excellent fit n' finish inside and out. Attention to build quality.
- Able to fully active power a set of components.
- Vastly underrated power output.
- Massive headroom and sound quality.
- Drives difficult reactive loads with ease, 1 ohm stable. 

Elite.4 CONS:

- Its expensive.
- Its a big and heavy.
- Demands more current than a full range class D amplifier.


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## Guest (Feb 8, 2013)

Morgan

Thank you so much for bringing these wonderful amplifiers to market !

True classics !


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## Bluenote (Aug 29, 2008)

Morgan, if running multiple Class D amps ( JL HD) at what point do the inefficiencies balance out? I am contemplating running two Elite 5's and one Elite 2. The alternative plan is to add to the existing set-up with 2 HD750/1 3 HD600/4 1 HD1200.
Would the current draw be the same between these two configurations? 

So, 3 Elites compared to 6 HD's. thanks


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## Morgan West (Jan 28, 2012)

Short answer is the Elite setup has the potential to draw more current. 

Making some VERY BIG assumptions and in a perfect world.

On paper, at full power output, lowest impedance load and 14.4 volts the Elite setup will pull around 550 amps. JL will pull around 400 amps.

But that is just not realistic for real world applications. Current demands vary greatly with music. Amplifier efficiency will change with the power level, impedance load and other factors. Most of the time when you listen to music the average current consumption will be 30% to 60% of the above. But that’s still a lot of current in this case, not to mention you are never going to see 14.4 volts at the terminal of the amps. 

JL makes fantastic product, HD’s will be smaller and more efficient. However, most old school/audiophile guys (there are still a few left around here I hope?) still prefer the sound of a well designed class A/B amplifier.

Comparing two different, but well made/designed animals at the end of the day...


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## Bluenote (Aug 29, 2008)

Thanks Morgan! That was very informative and relatively easy to understand for a novice like myself. I agree that there is little to be desired from the HD's respective to their sonic values and size but I would'nt mind trying out another highly rated classic brand like PG either. The Elites have a very bold but understated design, and I really like the potential with the power configurations. thanks for the quick lesson


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## mikelycka (Apr 4, 2008)

I know this is a old post I got my two elite.2 amps
huge look great but will not fit in my setup
if anyone wants pics etc I can take them im going to be force to trade them or sell them
lmk


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## mikelycka (Apr 4, 2008)

I have 2 elite.2 for sale and they will be less than MSRP for the pair..


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## mikelycka (Apr 4, 2008)

super super nice amps just to large for my set up


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