*RELATED VIDEOS* 2005 Rockford Fosgate Punch 45 25 to Life: ruclips.net/video/BToao8ZMI0g/видео.html 1991 Battle - Orion 222sx vs Rockford Fosgate Punch 45HD: ruclips.net/video/n043IDFugjQ/видео.html Rockford Fosgate Punch 45HD Overview: ruclips.net/video/Y6cU7mq5nP0/видео.html 3 Modes of the Amp Dyno Explained: ruclips.net/video/Q0m6NsB-HHc/видео.html See the 7 Days of Amp Tests Playlist: ruclips.net/p/PLuodE1Zx7Y-6bhrEfCERSfl43EpB3P3lS 1983 Pyramid SE909 ECHO EQ/Booster: ruclips.net/video/0fQnxpWpXVE/видео.html Brand New 37yr Old Sony Speakers: ruclips.net/video/i9zZOLvf_bI/видео.html '80s Sparkomatic Speakers: ruclips.net/video/loxJa2k2O5A/видео.html 1984 Kmart Blue Light Special Speakers: ruclips.net/video/ckvjUcq-ABs/видео.html Vintage Radio Shack Optimus Surface Mount Speakers: ruclips.net/video/hzKgtjZOaRg/видео.html The Worst $200 Speakers Ever: ruclips.net/video/S42JA00XVb8/видео.html *SHOP* Speaker/Wiring Terminal Blocks: amzn.to/4a4rIDu Elac Bookshelf Speakers: amzn.to/47Q6zw8 *SHOP AFFILIATES* SAVARD Speakers: lddy.no/1i9ss (use code WAL7 for 7% off!!) Down4Sound - Shop4Bass.com Amazon - amzn.to/3wNX6Fn Crutchfield - howl.me/cjZI33auToW _DISCLAIMER: This video and description contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase from one of the product links, I may receive a small commission. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases_
We ran one of these once at a Thunder On Wheels contest in Beaumont, TX. Used the deck power to run the highs and this little jewel was running 4 M&M 15's and 4 M&M 12's. We won the class, and got protested because 2nd place didn't think it was possible.
It's funny how loud those systems were back then compared to the watts being used these days. People can say what they want, but 1K watts now is not as loud as 200 watts back then.
Agreed! Back in the late 80’s I had a Mazda xtra cab with a Punch 45 running (2) 10” Kicker subs & a small Alpine 3522 running (2) 5 1/4 Alpine door/dash speakers and tweeters! It seemed louder than most of these 1k+ systems I have now!#RF❤#🔊@Pinion512
Back in 1985 my best friend in high school pulled into my driveway in his '83 Toyota Celica hatchback "thumping" (that's what it was called back then). I couldn't believe what I was hearing! I ran out and jumped in the passenger side seat and said "crank it up!". I had never heard bass like that and was completely in awe. He proudly popped the hatch to reveal the secret of all that bass. It was the first time I ever saw a RF Gen I Punch 75 and it was beautiful. Creating all those beautiful (by those standards) bass notes was none other than a 8" SAS Bazooka! To say that simple little setup fired up my interest in car audio would be a understatement. It was a great time to be alive. Awesome video and dyno of a piece of car audio history, Dereck! 👍👍
I have a similar story! But it was a plymouth horizon, EV subs and Kenwood amps. I couldn't believe how loud it was. Later a guy told me EV's were generally PA speakers and he was crazy for putting them in a car and that RF, Orion etc were really where it was at. Thus my epic car audio journey began.
The speakers were a lot more efficient back then. If you have a speaker that has an efficiency of 100 DB or more, you can get loud on 15 watts. In a way, we've stepped backwards with these huge amps and woofers.
In South Africa we have been using mini vans as transport 16 seater Toyota Hiace. Back in the day they would run 4x 12s / 4x 15s or 8x12s / 8x15s these were working taxis and honestly the subs were nothing powerful like to day nor the amps but man you would hear these taxis from far when they passed your home your windows would be rattling. Today we have new taxis and they just don't hit like the old school systems
The heavy cones common now allow for a much smaller enclosure as it reduces Vas, or you get a much lower resonant frequency for lower F3, but yeah it costs many dB in efficiency.
I found a Punch 45HD recently supposed to be restored by Mike Schultz for $180 in beautiful shape. I always Loved this amps capabilities not its power! I’m hoping it’s true and waiting on it’s shipment!#RF❤#thePunch45🥊@wal2
I ran a Punch 45 second gen in mixed mono with 2 8" Bazooka tubes for the thump and pioneer 6x9's in the rear deck and 3 1/2's in the dash of my Pontiac for quite a while. Everyone was more impressed with the tubes than with the fact that a single 45 watt amp was driving it all. BTW, it was running 4 ohm mono and 2 ohm stereo and never shut down, ever. Loved that old system.
One hell of an amp. It followed me from car to car for almost 20 years. Was still working when I sold it. Great memories just seeing it in this video. Thanks!
I’ve got an original punch 45 driving the OEM Bose sub in my 2003 suburban. I’ve owned the amp over 20 years. A friend gave it to me with one channel blown, I repaired it and it’s been flawless since.
The memories come flooding back with these old school vids so many good times meeting people at the Columbus Car Audio parking lot and showing off our stereos on Saturday nights when we weren't drag racing...
The shop I worked at had a display that used 1 punch 45. A 7th order CV 18 for bass. 4 punch 5 1/4 mids. 4 punch tweets. 2 punch 8in for mid bass. With lots of bass chokes and coils plus a few tx-124 and 128 passive xovers. We tried doing the same setup with the 1st gen bi-polar punch 45s. They did not last. The 45 MOSFET did the trick and display was slamming hard. Was always amazed at how much power these little amps pumped out. Just unreal in the 80s. We used 45s in many 2 and 3 amp systems. Over $250 in the 80s for a 45 watt amp was insane. Soundstream and ads were also very popular too. Love your old school vids they always take me back to my wild youth days. 😊
I'm not aware of a bipolar P45, there was a Punch 40 prior to this one that was bipolar, pre-MOSFET. It had the slider bass and treble, is that the one you're referring to? That sounds like a sick setup for a display!
I think back in my car audio days I had heard that Rockford had a car in Tempe that has maybe 32 total speakers running off of these, or maybe a punch 40, regardless, an awesome display!
I think you are correct. I believe it did have sliders and my friend who owned the shop said there also was a pre amp(before PA-1) from Rockford that had 3-5 sliders that were diagonal with LEDs that lit up in a Y.
The early to mid 80's was a real evolution for solid state power handling. I first came across Mofsets in a RC car speed controller and they were hundreds of dollars each. But everything form Car amps to welding machines to CNC machinery really advanced once decent mofsets became available.
These vids are literally a labor of love. I don't really make anything on them, but I have a lot of fun showing off old school amps and talking about the history
Yeah I used to run alpine decks fosgate amps and alpine speakers with kicker subs back in the mid 90’s I miss them days. All the brands are basically trash now days.
I completely agree with running the Rockford fosgate amplifiers and I would run the MB quart separate components 6.9 everything Boston acoustics each section of the amplifiers front's mids separate 6 by 9 each on their own amplifier and then having the crossover control all of that with a bass knob also don't forget to put 310 w 6 JL audio's and now you are talking about sound and subwoofer kicker could never touch the JL w6 in that era for today
Thanks as always Big D. Good stuff. Love the old school RF stuff. How I cut my teeth in the business. RTTI graduate 1988. That was a mind blower for my young ass.
I had a black Punch 45 running two Kicker Competition 15” subs! It is amazing what those little amps would do back then! You had to be VERY careful with them as they would get hot enough to burn you badly! Thanks for the trip down memory lane Big D!!!
In 1988, I installed one of these Punch 45s in a guy's 87 Camaro, with a 10" dvc sub mounted on a baffle board and used the spare tire compartment for the enclosure. My car had a Harman Kardon CA-260, so I didnt think his bass would be very loud. But wow! His bass hit waaay more than mine!!!
Had a Fosgate Punch with the switches in a 1980 Monza. Clarion head unit - one of the first with a digital readout. They powered 2 Cricket 4x10s in the deck and hit hard. I moved that head unit and amp to a 1982 Accord hatchback and threw in 2 home stereo sealed 12" 3 way AAL speakers woth horn tweeters. The hatchback glass at 45 degrees threw the sound forward. They were very efficient, and needless to say hit so hard it was difficult being in the car at full tilt. No one could believe that little amp mounted below the dash pushed 2 home stereo speakers like it did. Great little amps. They ran hot but always performed. Run DMC, Kool Moe Dee, LLCoolJ, Billy Idol, Yes, Talking Heads, Beastie Boys. Keep posting the old school stuff. You reach a huge age range audience.
I had one back in 86' and also an Alphasonik 2075, very well made for amps of there time, and this was when I getting into the scene, have always enjoyed your videos and that amp dyno is something wished they had that back in the day, keep up the good work.😉
Never forget, a kid in my HS removed his back seat and replaced it with MDF. Installed 2 Kicker 15 free airs. Powered it with a punch 45. It slapped hard. The amp plus the probably having his car being acoustically perfect made it seem like he had 10x the actual watts he did.
If all they did was slap you must have hooked something up wrong.. Slapping is weak sauce. Where I'm from we prefer systems that bang. You hook up some shit in ride and all it does is slap I want my money back. Slapping is weak
young chaps today may laugh at this legendary amp, but it was a gigantic leap forward because a lot of aftermarket head units back in the 80’s could only squeeze out around 4-7 watts rms per channel. So having a 150 watts to a sub or an array of several speakers was huge and ahead of most systems out there
There is some great power to be able to run a mixed setup! I love small amps running great power. Especially at the age they sit! I love it, fun stuff!!
I have the Punch 45. I have the fan shroud. I also have a Orion 222 SX. I also have a Orion 225 HCCA. In 1992 Martin Mohr set the worlds record in Tulsa at the IASCA finals in the 0-100 watt Novice category using 2 Fosgate Punch 45s. He went 131 db. Bear in mind back in the day we used a very expensive Bruel & Kjaer RTA. The mic alone was more than an Audio Control RTA and it was way tougher to hit numbers on than an Audio Control RTA. It also had to be tested 26 inches off the drivers seat in a real car that drove and you had to play commercially available music. I know how much softer an Audio Control RTA is, I owned one of the first with an SPL 170 upgrade, the first in Canada. I have gone up against the Audio Control, the Coustic, the B&K, the Goldline and a few others.
Always wondered growing up getting into car audio and still being into it at 53. I have dabbled with installing my own stuff for years and do ok, but can someone explain how people that built systems back then and even in that store display on how they would run all those speakers off one of those tiny little amps ?? Just had that question for the last 40 years or so .Thanks for all the great videos Big D !!
I have used these amps through all my life and would use the Punch 45 in many systems for long periods of time with its ability to run multiple speakers in stereo and subs in mono! Nothing quite like the small power of the Punch 45!#RF❤🥊🔊@manchvegasurguayguy
I do believe if RF built a replica with new parts with the same board layout, same design, same font and all the instructions screen printed on the back that people would buy it. Throwback series amplifiers. One year only. Four best selling models from before 2000
Cheapest to just buy whatever aluminum extrusion is available that you can fit your product into. There were probably a few products made with it, but it's cool you recognize them from the good ol days of CB!
I had on for years it was the craziest amp ever made mine had 2 fuses on the board as well as in the speaker wires , I played mine in a sound competition in the 0-200 w class Bridged 2 ohms on 2 JBL 15 subs no issues
Multiple speakers on a single amp was the thing back in the day. My system was on a 100w pawn shop amp. Total of 7 speakers. No idea what the load on the amp was, but that was the beauty of being 16 and learning. Everything was on in-line crossovers from radio shack.
I use to work for Al’s and Ed’s Autosound when it was Mobileworks at the La Mesa, Ca store when we ran the fosgate stuff and had to be Rockford fosgate certified as an installer
Great work as always, keep it up. I would love to see you test the following amps? Diamond audio (Previously esoteric amps) Blue tube driver from Butler Zapco AG (White amps) or the Reference series (Black) Brax or helix amps from Audiotec Fischer. As well as sound demos of Seas Lotus loud speakers. Granted, very expensive stuff here but never know.
Had one of these power an enclosed fosgate sub box with two Alpine door speakers and a Alpine head unit. That system was crazy good for a budget system. Loud and crisp with just enough thump for the rock that I listen to. I have the reissue punch 45.2 but wish I had kept the original. I have run newer P4004 and a p 3001 combined and it kicked but that little punch45 amp was stellar for its size.
My friend ran a RF Peanut in 3 chan mode. IIRC it was the next one down, that was smaller than the 45. In his 2 door accord. MB Quart separates, MTX 12" sub in a big ported box. It was a SQ install. It was surprisingly loud too.
Yup - I had my very first RF amp failure… tookout a JL sub with it…. And due to the electrical smell I had to ditch the box…. No bass for the past 3 years now 🤣
I had one maybe more like 2 but i ran one on lows and one on highs. 4 - 12’s lows 4 pioneer 6x9’s and boy did i bang hard sub’s was pioneer. The radio was an Alpine 7272 and I had the Alpine EQ. Love it but was stolen about 3 times. Before car alarms. Stole the whole Camaro one time so you get the system in the motor and the training I found it stripped down and nothing. The junkyard after the police found it. Love the videos. Thanks.
@@wal2 you said a mouthful. Got me so many times. I was the big dj back then so the club banged so the car had to also. Hard to go from the club and car. my booth had 2 18”s just for me the club had like 10 18” and 8 12”s with mids and horns.
The other issue you are hearing in the "tri=mode" was the High pass filter was only 6db slope so there was still quite abit of low end still going into the Elacs
I used to use the Rockford 25p amp that you could bridge 2 amps together back in the 90’s think it made like 400 at a 2ohm load have always loved the old fosgate stuff, they are not the same company though.
I was 16 years old and that explains why teenagers (in my area) couldn't have high end car audio. Luckily, my dad was a street racer/mechanic/auto paint and body.... So, I drove a '78 Camaro (sb 350) to school before I had a license. The ONLY bad thing- it took 3 of us to push it out the yard for a late night cruise! 😅. Couldn't wake Pop up!
#Question: You always show tests with the ELAC speakers. Have you ever considered GR Research? ELAC Debut 2.0 B6.2 Upgrade Kit to test. Maybe as a collaboration. And your opinion on the difference in component quality, does it make a difference or not.? let's discuss Great video thumbs up!
That s encouraging . I actually have 2 punch 100 s look almost the same but have switches instead of knobs. I have never tried them out yet . they say 100 wrms on it. I will have to make time to try them soon. love the old stuff. . I have never seen Big D or anybody Dyno a Hollywood Sound Labs . would love to see it. THANKS for the videos.
Nice old amp. Don't want to alarm you but that power resistor by the B+ lead is smoked. Those things run hot AF normally and probably should get replaced. You can see it clearly at 12:50.
I used to be into phoenix gold amps back in the day. I was told they were called cheater amps , and under rate the output so you could qualify in a lower watt catagory in competitions, and completely dominate. amps rated at 50x 2 could produce almost 1000 watts , when wired correctly and with supporting wires, batteries, caps and alternator.
I beleive mike pezdirz (old Canadian Rockford rep) at one point had a system capable of 130+db on Rockford deck power. It might have been his daily driver while he was repping. Really cool guy. You should try to get him for an interview. He branched out and started “hog tunes”. Audio for motorcycles out of his house and grew it from there. He did cool stuff like making prefab ABC boxes with the brand name MEGAHERTZ
Hey big D! For love of God! Would you PLEASE! do an amp dyno on a RF 100ix! I've been a devoted watcher for 4 years and I've also watched older videos. And I've been waiting for the day you test that amp. But it has not come to fruition. So I'm sending a comment for help! Please! I have one of these amps and it's one of my favorite. I just wanna know what it's ratings are. Thanks Big D!
A few years ago i had two punch 75s that were newer then that and one that looked just like that but lost them in a house fire. Though I might have gave one to my sister and If I can find it I'd like to send it to you to test
No fuse... interesting?... Didn't that rockford bass boost knob boost bass but also serve as a subsonic filter? Thought I read that somewhere decades ago. These amps sounded really good.
I have two of those Old School Rockford Fosgate amps, going to be installed later on this year.. hit that subscribe button befor Big D sends me out of here🎉🎉😂😂😂
The setup should be correct imp across the spectrum to work correctly..the sub should be at 8 ohm mono and each upper end cabinet should be at 4 ohm.. was your upper end crossed over at 100hz and up lets investigate why you had popping.. it should have no problem running trimode.. I have many..ill consult my friends and lets find out the truth.. love you guys..thanks for loving the amps we made ..
Compare this video to the HiFonics PLUTO amplifier video ya made and ya get an idea of what was REALLY competitive in the late 80's... Small amp with many speakers. Passive crossover days. I recall this price point being the big seller back then. Lots of competition in this category. COOL. BDBD/2024
a factoid. the amplifier designer david hafler worked with r-f on the design of their amplifiers. the man was a genius in amplifier design and the development of the stereo format early on in audiophile history. slop in design and execution was not allowed.
*RELATED VIDEOS*
2005 Rockford Fosgate Punch 45 25 to Life: ruclips.net/video/BToao8ZMI0g/видео.html
1991 Battle - Orion 222sx vs Rockford Fosgate Punch 45HD: ruclips.net/video/n043IDFugjQ/видео.html
Rockford Fosgate Punch 45HD Overview: ruclips.net/video/Y6cU7mq5nP0/видео.html
3 Modes of the Amp Dyno Explained: ruclips.net/video/Q0m6NsB-HHc/видео.html
See the 7 Days of Amp Tests Playlist: ruclips.net/p/PLuodE1Zx7Y-6bhrEfCERSfl43EpB3P3lS
1983 Pyramid SE909 ECHO EQ/Booster: ruclips.net/video/0fQnxpWpXVE/видео.html
Brand New 37yr Old Sony Speakers: ruclips.net/video/i9zZOLvf_bI/видео.html
'80s Sparkomatic Speakers: ruclips.net/video/loxJa2k2O5A/видео.html
1984 Kmart Blue Light Special Speakers: ruclips.net/video/ckvjUcq-ABs/видео.html
Vintage Radio Shack Optimus Surface Mount Speakers: ruclips.net/video/hzKgtjZOaRg/видео.html
The Worst $200 Speakers Ever: ruclips.net/video/S42JA00XVb8/видео.html
*SHOP*
Speaker/Wiring Terminal Blocks: amzn.to/4a4rIDu
Elac Bookshelf Speakers: amzn.to/47Q6zw8
*SHOP AFFILIATES*
SAVARD Speakers: lddy.no/1i9ss (use code WAL7 for 7% off!!)
Down4Sound - Shop4Bass.com
Amazon - amzn.to/3wNX6Fn
Crutchfield - howl.me/cjZI33auToW
_DISCLAIMER: This video and description contains affiliate links, which means that if you purchase from one of the product links, I may receive a small commission. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases_
We ran one of these once at a Thunder On Wheels contest in Beaumont, TX. Used the deck power to run the highs and this little jewel was running 4 M&M 15's and 4 M&M 12's. We won the class, and got protested because 2nd place didn't think it was possible.
Oh man, love the story! That's awesome 👏
Punch 45. The original cheater amp for sure. They definitely made the power.😊
Do you remember the thunder on wheels at the autorama that what got me hooked
Yes sir!!!... RF was doing cheater amps well before the rest of the industry caught on to it.
@@tminusoftexas3224 I never made it to that show but I knew of it.
It's funny how loud those systems were back then compared to the watts being used these days.
People can say what they want, but 1K watts now is not as loud as 200 watts back then.
Agreed! Back in the late 80’s I had a Mazda xtra cab with a Punch 45 running (2) 10” Kicker subs & a small Alpine 3522 running (2) 5 1/4 Alpine door/dash speakers and tweeters! It seemed louder than most of these 1k+ systems I have now!#RF❤#🔊@Pinion512
Back in 1985 my best friend in high school pulled into my driveway in his '83 Toyota Celica hatchback "thumping" (that's what it was called back then). I couldn't believe what I was hearing! I ran out and jumped in the passenger side seat and said "crank it up!". I had never heard bass like that and was completely in awe. He proudly popped the hatch to reveal the secret of all that bass. It was the first time I ever saw a RF Gen I Punch 75 and it was beautiful. Creating all those beautiful (by those standards) bass notes was none other than a 8" SAS Bazooka! To say that simple little setup fired up my interest in car audio would be a understatement.
It was a great time to be alive.
Awesome video and dyno of a piece of car audio history, Dereck! 👍👍
I love hearing these stories and going down memory lane!
Oh yeah, those Punch 75s were really powerful back in the day!! The 45s even hit hard!
I have a similar story! But it was a plymouth horizon, EV subs and Kenwood amps. I couldn't believe how loud it was. Later a guy told me EV's were generally PA speakers and he was crazy for putting them in a car and that RF, Orion etc were really where it was at. Thus my epic car audio journey began.
I had a Punch 45. Insanely great Amp. Just insane. Shame their current stuff isn't this good.
The speakers were a lot more efficient back then. If you have a speaker that has an efficiency of 100 DB or more, you can get loud on 15 watts. In a way, we've stepped backwards with these huge amps and woofers.
I prefer low power and efficiency myself
In South Africa we have been using mini vans as transport 16 seater Toyota Hiace. Back in the day they would run 4x 12s / 4x 15s or 8x12s / 8x15s these were working taxis and honestly the subs were nothing powerful like to day nor the amps but man you would hear these taxis from far when they passed your home your windows would be rattling. Today we have new taxis and they just don't hit like the old school systems
The heavy cones common now allow for a much smaller enclosure as it reduces Vas, or you get a much lower resonant frequency for lower F3, but yeah it costs many dB in efficiency.
I found a Punch 45HD recently supposed to be restored by Mike Schultz for $180 in beautiful shape. I always Loved this amps capabilities not its power! I’m hoping it’s true and waiting on it’s shipment!#RF❤#thePunch45🥊@wal2
I ran a Punch 45 second gen in mixed mono with 2 8" Bazooka tubes for the thump and pioneer 6x9's in the rear deck and 3 1/2's in the dash of my Pontiac for quite a while. Everyone was more impressed with the tubes than with the fact that a single 45 watt amp was driving it all. BTW, it was running 4 ohm mono and 2 ohm stereo and never shut down, ever. Loved that old system.
That is what was so Beautiful about these Punch 45 amps!#The🥊#RF❤@CharlesHeitz
One hell of an amp. It followed me from car to car for almost 20 years. Was still working when I sold it. Great memories just seeing it in this video. Thanks!
I’ve got an original punch 45 driving the OEM Bose sub in my 2003 suburban. I’ve owned the amp over 20 years. A friend gave it to me with one channel blown, I repaired it and it’s been flawless since.
The memories come flooding back with these old school vids so many good times meeting people at the Columbus Car Audio parking lot and showing off our stereos on Saturday nights when we weren't drag racing...
The shop I worked at had a display that used 1 punch 45. A 7th order CV 18 for bass. 4 punch 5 1/4 mids. 4 punch tweets. 2 punch 8in for mid bass. With lots of bass chokes and coils plus a few tx-124 and 128 passive xovers. We tried doing the same setup with the 1st gen bi-polar punch 45s. They did not last. The 45 MOSFET did the trick and display was slamming hard. Was always amazed at how much power these little amps pumped out. Just unreal in the 80s. We used 45s in many 2 and 3 amp systems. Over $250 in the 80s for a 45 watt amp was insane. Soundstream and ads were also very popular too. Love your old school vids they always take me back to my wild youth days. 😊
I'm not aware of a bipolar P45, there was a Punch 40 prior to this one that was bipolar, pre-MOSFET. It had the slider bass and treble, is that the one you're referring to? That sounds like a sick setup for a display!
I think back in my car audio days I had heard that Rockford had a car in Tempe that has maybe 32 total speakers running off of these, or maybe a punch 40, regardless, an awesome display!
I think you are correct. I believe it did have sliders and my friend who owned the shop said there also was a pre amp(before PA-1) from Rockford that had 3-5 sliders that were diagonal with LEDs that lit up in a Y.
The early to mid 80's was a real evolution for solid state power handling. I first came across Mofsets in a RC car speed controller and they were hundreds of dollars each. But everything form Car amps to welding machines to CNC machinery really advanced once decent mofsets became available.
I love the old school stuff. Great work, Big D.
These vids are literally a labor of love. I don't really make anything on them, but I have a lot of fun showing off old school amps and talking about the history
@@wal2 Thank you for that.
Believe me , we all appreciate the HELL out of what you do , Big D , no matter how old it makes me feel .
RF was so cool back then and through the 90s. I have one of these 45s too, in black.
I remember back in the day, started driving in 88, and putting my first system in. If you had Punch, PPI, or Kicker, you had it going on..
Facts
Yeah I used to run alpine decks fosgate amps and alpine speakers with kicker subs back in the mid 90’s I miss them days. All the brands are basically trash now days.
I completely agree with running the Rockford fosgate amplifiers and I would run the MB quart separate components 6.9 everything Boston acoustics each section of the amplifiers front's mids separate 6 by 9 each on their own amplifier and then having the crossover control all of that with a bass knob also don't forget to put 310 w 6 JL audio's and now you are talking about sound and subwoofer kicker could never touch the JL w6 in that era for today
Thanks as always Big D. Good stuff. Love the old school RF stuff. How I cut my teeth in the business. RTTI graduate 1988. That was a mind blower for my young ass.
I had one running two 12” it pushed 127db. I had an alpine head unit with a 6 disk changer.
These days, it’s easy to forget that CD changers were once a big deal.
@@matthewstorm5188 your right
Ive been waiting years for you to review this amp. It was my first amp. On two kicker 10s.
I had a black Punch 45 running two Kicker Competition 15” subs! It is amazing what those little amps would do back then!
You had to be VERY careful with them as they would get hot enough to burn you badly!
Thanks for the trip down memory lane Big D!!!
Def the amp that turned me on to RF
So cool!! I rocked Rockford back in early 90s loved them !!
I didn’t know what these were capable of until I went to my first “Sound Off” competition in the late 80’s. These Punch 45’s dominated the scene!
The true "Old School Stereo" right there! Thanks for sharing this Big D!
I want my Punch 150HD back. I lost it in a flood in New Orleans. Bwaaah. It made badass bass.
Oh man that sucks
OMG ,My 1st amp was THAT Punch 45 haha Man THANKS for the flashback WOW !!!!
Punch 45 was the amp to have back then
@@waynejones4005 any Rockford amp.
In 1988, I installed one of these Punch 45s in a guy's 87 Camaro, with a 10" dvc sub mounted on a baffle board and used the spare tire compartment for the enclosure. My car had a Harman Kardon CA-260, so I didnt think his bass would be very loud. But wow! His bass hit waaay more than mine!!!
Doesn't ALWAYS seem like the system you put in someone else' car sounds hetter than yours?? Lol i used to hate that
Nice! I still have a Gen 2 45 and a 25 To Life 45, both still new in the box and neither have had power.
Had a Fosgate Punch with the switches in a 1980 Monza. Clarion head unit - one of the first with a digital readout. They powered 2 Cricket 4x10s in the deck and hit hard. I moved that head unit and amp to a 1982 Accord hatchback and threw in 2 home stereo sealed 12" 3 way AAL speakers woth horn tweeters. The hatchback glass at 45 degrees threw the sound forward. They were very efficient, and needless to say hit so hard it was difficult being in the car at full tilt. No one could believe that little amp mounted below the dash pushed 2 home stereo speakers like it did. Great little amps. They ran hot but always performed. Run DMC, Kool Moe Dee, LLCoolJ, Billy Idol, Yes, Talking Heads, Beastie Boys. Keep posting the old school stuff. You reach a huge age range audience.
I love how you treat these amps as if they were brand new. It's nice to see that kind of respect for vintage hardware.
That chrome shroud is beautiful! Those are never found in such good condition! That is a nice display piece in the collection right there!
I had one back in 86' and also an Alphasonik 2075, very well made for amps of there time, and this was when I getting into the scene, have always enjoyed your videos and that amp dyno is something wished they had that back in the day, keep up the good work.😉
Never forget, a kid in my HS removed his back seat and replaced it with MDF. Installed 2 Kicker 15 free airs. Powered it with a punch 45. It slapped hard. The amp plus the probably having his car being acoustically perfect made it seem like he had 10x the actual watts he did.
If all they did was slap you must have hooked something up wrong.. Slapping is weak sauce. Where I'm from we prefer systems that bang. You hook up some shit in ride and all it does is slap I want my money back. Slapping is weak
young chaps today may laugh at this legendary amp, but it was a gigantic leap forward because a lot of aftermarket head units back in the 80’s could only squeeze out around 4-7 watts rms per channel. So having a 150 watts to a sub or an array of several speakers was huge and ahead of most systems out there
There is some great power to be able to run a mixed setup! I love small amps running great power. Especially at the age they sit! I love it, fun stuff!!
Tom is a walking "RF Archives" 😊
Awesome video. I had the puch150 with black shroud. I miss that amp. But still have my 2 45hd.
WWWWOO !!! My buddies had 45s sounded like 500 watts back in the day !!!
I have the Punch 45. I have the fan shroud. I also have a Orion 222 SX. I also have a Orion 225 HCCA. In 1992 Martin Mohr set the worlds record in Tulsa at the IASCA finals in the 0-100 watt Novice category using 2 Fosgate Punch 45s. He went 131 db.
Bear in mind back in the day we used a very expensive Bruel & Kjaer RTA. The mic alone was more than an Audio Control RTA and it was way tougher to hit numbers on than an Audio Control RTA. It also had to be tested 26 inches off the drivers seat in a real car that drove and you had to play commercially available music.
I know how much softer an Audio Control RTA is, I owned one of the first with an SPL 170 upgrade, the first in Canada. I have gone up against the Audio Control, the Coustic, the B&K, the Goldline and a few others.
Always wondered growing up getting into car audio and still being into it at 53. I have dabbled with installing my own stuff for years and do ok, but can someone explain how people that built systems back then and even in that store display on how they would run all those speakers off one of those tiny little amps ?? Just had that question for the last 40 years or so .Thanks for all the great videos Big D !!
I have used these amps through all my life and would use the Punch 45 in many systems for long periods of time with its ability to run multiple speakers in stereo and subs in mono! Nothing quite like the small power of the Punch 45!#RF❤🥊🔊@manchvegasurguayguy
I have a box of goodies for you brother, will get it all together this weekend.
You are the man! I appreciate your support greatly over the years!!
I had a Punch 45 a Punch 75 and Punch 150 in my 87 Sentra with a 12 inch Punch infinite baffle setup. Brings back memories!
I did it 2-15 no problem one of the best amps I ever had
I do believe if RF built a replica with new parts with the same board layout, same design, same font and all the instructions screen printed on the back that people would buy it. Throwback series amplifiers. One year only. Four best selling models from before 2000
I show the 25 to Life version in the video. It’s a different beast. Also link to that video in pinned comment
In 1990 I had a Punch 75 that was a few years old when I bought it. Loved that amp.
I love the old school stuff
Thanks! Doing another old school RF amp on the Williston Audio Labs channel for this upcoming
Sunday as well 👌
Those heatsinks and chassis were used quite often in older rf amplifiers aka CB amps
Yeah we called 'em footwarmers! ;-)
Cheapest to just buy whatever aluminum extrusion is available that you can fit your product into. There were probably a few products made with it, but it's cool you recognize them from the good ol days of CB!
I always went Orion HCCA225. But the Punch 45 ran well but got hot when pushed too hard.
I had on for years it was the craziest amp ever made mine had 2 fuses on the board as well as in the speaker wires , I played mine in a sound competition in the 0-200 w class Bridged 2 ohms on 2 JBL 15 subs no issues
I had that same generation Punch 150. It was a little monster!
I loved these amps as well as the Power series. When I sold my Power 650 in the classified ads, I listed it as "Too much power" LoL.
Multiple speakers on a single amp was the thing back in the day. My system was on a 100w pawn shop amp. Total of 7 speakers. No idea what the load on the amp was, but that was the beauty of being 16 and learning. Everything was on in-line crossovers from radio shack.
Ah, I called these 6x9 amps back in the day!
I use to work for Al’s and Ed’s Autosound when it was Mobileworks at the La Mesa, Ca store when we ran the fosgate stuff and had to be Rockford fosgate certified as an installer
This is the one we started out with. it was very popular at the time.
Great work as always, keep it up.
I would love to see you test the following amps?
Diamond audio (Previously esoteric amps)
Blue tube driver from Butler
Zapco AG (White amps) or the Reference series (Black)
Brax or helix amps from Audiotec Fischer.
As well as sound demos of Seas Lotus loud speakers.
Granted, very expensive stuff here but never know.
Had one of these power an enclosed fosgate sub box with two Alpine door speakers and a Alpine head unit. That system was crazy good for a budget system. Loud and crisp with just enough thump for the rock that I listen to. I have the reissue punch 45.2 but wish I had kept the original. I have run newer P4004 and a p 3001 combined and it kicked but that little punch45 amp was stellar for its size.
I had one of these in high school in the 90’s. Powered a Vega folded horn 18 with it. I thought I was so cool. Hahaha
My friend ran a RF Peanut in 3 chan mode. IIRC it was the next one down, that was smaller than the 45. In his 2 door accord. MB Quart separates, MTX 12" sub in a big ported box. It was a SQ install. It was surprisingly loud too.
Sad to see Fosgate now
I was a installer from 1988 till 2010 and amp are not as good today !
Yup - I had my very first RF amp failure… tookout a JL sub with it…. And due to the electrical smell I had to ditch the box…. No bass for the past 3 years now 🤣
I had one maybe more like 2 but i ran one on lows and one on highs. 4 - 12’s lows 4 pioneer
6x9’s and boy did i bang hard sub’s was pioneer. The radio was an Alpine 7272 and I had the Alpine EQ. Love it but was stolen about 3 times. Before car alarms. Stole the whole Camaro one time so you get the system in the motor and the training I found it stripped down and nothing. The junkyard after the police found it.
Love the videos. Thanks.
Car stereo theft was def a problem, easy money for the lazy
@@wal2 you said a mouthful. Got me so many times. I was the big dj back then so the club banged so the car had to also. Hard to go from the club and car. my booth had 2 18”s just for me the club had like 10 18” and 8 12”s with mids and horns.
Very cool amp
Seeing all this Rockford stuff makes me want to build a system again. On a side note is that HI-Q 6.5 from Vega?
The box, yeah he made it for me a few years ago
I still got two 2nd gen Punch 45's.
The other issue you are hearing in the "tri=mode" was the High pass filter was only 6db slope so there was still quite abit of low end still going into the Elacs
Yeah... some passives were better at 12 db / octave slope. Depended on the circuit though.
They can handle much more power at full range including the lows.
The 150hd is the one I have. I blew away a punch 45 with a Kenwood 921 ( that I still have) and it had a fan
I used to use the Rockford 25p amp that you could bridge 2 amps together back in the 90’s think it made like 400 at a 2ohm load have always loved the old fosgate stuff, they are not the same company though.
Punch 45 on the highs, Punch 150 on a pair of 12s or 15s wired 2 ohm mono. Killer combo BITD. Usually run by a half din eq with sub out and a nice HU.
Man that fan shroud beautiful love your vids.
Thanks for watching and commenting!
Man i bought atleast 3 punch 200's when i was in the game, my trunk stayed thumpn 24/7
I was 16 years old and that explains why teenagers (in my area) couldn't have high end car audio. Luckily, my dad was a street racer/mechanic/auto paint and body.... So, I drove a '78 Camaro (sb 350) to school before I had a license. The ONLY bad thing- it took 3 of us to push it out the yard for a late night cruise! 😅. Couldn't wake Pop up!
#Question: You always show tests with the ELAC speakers. Have you ever considered GR Research?
ELAC Debut 2.0 B6.2 Upgrade Kit to test. Maybe as a collaboration.
And your opinion on the difference in component quality, does it make a difference or not.? let's discuss
Great video thumbs up!
would love to see that P45 push the quad box..
😂I thought, I was bumping with this punch 45 and 2 12 kickers freeairs back in the 90s😂
That s encouraging . I actually have 2 punch 100 s look almost the same but have switches instead of knobs. I have never tried them out yet . they say 100 wrms on it. I will have to make time to try them soon. love the old stuff. . I have never seen Big D or anybody Dyno a Hollywood Sound Labs . would love to see it. THANKS for the videos.
HSL was on Family Matters back in the ‘90s. I’ll show one eventually
@@wal2 no way. never seen that. Hollywood has been my favorite since like 1990 . I heard them at show loved the sound and was hooked . Thanks
I remember that one. Turned out all the equipment was stolen.@@wal2
@@wal2 Big D , Great tip . s4 e22 . Great looking subs and amps. Very cool to see . Thanks.
Nice old amp. Don't want to alarm you but that power resistor by the B+ lead is smoked. Those things run hot AF normally and probably should get replaced. You can see it clearly at 12:50.
1991, two Alpine 10" subs on 100 watt Alpine amp. Pounded all day and night.
Yes correctly spoken. Wish it still ran at that price.
I don't understand the "real world". Alternators didn't output 12v in the '80s, it's always been ~14.4v.
I still have my 2 punch 45hd in the closet. I ran (4) 15s rockfords and (4) 6.5s on the other one.
Buddy ran punch 45 on 2 Pyle 10s in single cab Ranger . Sounded pretty damn good for way back then
I had one of these back in the day. It used to get down pretty good. You could fry an egg on it when you pushed it hard though.
From the 1980's and still works well......
I used to be into phoenix gold amps back in the day. I was told they were called cheater amps , and under rate the output so you could qualify in a lower watt catagory in competitions, and completely dominate. amps rated at 50x 2 could produce almost 1000 watts , when wired correctly and with supporting wires, batteries, caps and alternator.
He has tested a few on here
I beleive mike pezdirz (old Canadian Rockford rep) at one point had a system capable of 130+db on Rockford deck power. It might have been his daily driver while he was repping. Really cool guy. You should try to get him for an interview. He branched out and started “hog tunes”. Audio for motorcycles out of his house and grew it from there. He did cool stuff like making prefab ABC boxes with the brand name MEGAHERTZ
Hey big D! For love of God! Would you PLEASE! do an amp dyno on a RF 100ix! I've been a devoted watcher for 4 years and I've also watched older videos. And I've been waiting for the day you test that amp. But it has not come to fruition. So I'm sending a comment for help! Please! I have one of these amps and it's one of my favorite. I just wanna know what it's ratings are. Thanks Big D!
Man when I stopped collecting DSM amps, the 100ix is the only one I never got. The standard 100DSM should be the same power. Some day…
Memories my first real system consisted of 3 of these lil fellows....altec lansing mids and highs and punch 10s
A few years ago i had two punch 75s that were newer then that and one that looked just like that but lost them in a house fire. Though I might have gave one to my sister and If I can find it I'd like to send it to you to test
Hi brother, great videos, where can a guy get some of those choke coil crossovers ?
Parts Express has the components so you can build your own
@@wal2 thank you for the information
the chrome is awesome 👌
No fuse... interesting?... Didn't that rockford bass boost knob boost bass but also serve as a subsonic filter? Thought I read that somewhere decades ago. These amps sounded really good.
No mention of low frequency cutoff in the patented “Punch EQ” circuit
I have two of those Old School Rockford Fosgate amps, going to be installed later on this year.. hit that subscribe button befor Big D sends me out of here🎉🎉😂😂😂
I’ve been looking for a pair of those Tri-Mode x-overs for a while. Can you post a link or item number from that one please?
It’s a Phoenix Gold XVR-4 but from the ‘90s. There are guides on how to make them I believe.
I have two THE PUNCH PR-2100 TYPE II's stashed away, what year did they come out?
Late 70’s as Fosgate branded them there were some around 80/81 that were RF branded
Never heard a tribe mode but Rockford fosgate back in the 80s and 90s used to call it mixed mono
So much money back then and I just bought a used pioneer 900w for $20
The setup should be correct imp across the spectrum to work correctly..the sub should be at 8 ohm mono and each upper end cabinet should be at 4 ohm.. was your upper end crossed over at 100hz and up lets investigate why you had popping.. it should have no problem running trimode.. I have many..ill consult my friends and lets find out the truth.. love you guys..thanks for loving the amps we made ..
Legendary!
Compare this video to the HiFonics PLUTO amplifier video ya made and ya get an idea of what was REALLY competitive in the late 80's... Small amp with many speakers. Passive crossover days. I recall this price point being the big seller back then. Lots of competition in this category. COOL. BDBD/2024
Rockford unicorn 🦄 amp... 👍😎
a factoid. the amplifier designer david hafler worked with r-f on the design of their amplifiers. the man was a genius in amplifier design and the development of the stereo format early on in audiophile history. slop in design and execution was not allowed.