Old School Soundstream Reference 405 Amp Dyno Test

[@robligeti8353]

I had a 405 that was so good. I moved it from car to car for YEARS.... with mb quart separates and JL subs... and an alpine head unit.

[@bluev2srt]

Perhaps the best looking amps of the era! Always loved those amps.

[@wal2]

Man I agree, so simple, yet so amazing and those terminals with insulators for the wires as well as for the screwdriver!

[@ImionsaeXwb77]

PPI ART Series...?

[@radfishguy6784]

My dream amps when I was a young stereo man. Out of my budget when I was in high school for sure.

[@wal2]

I was saving up all summer for this or the Reference 604. I ended up getting neither

[@radfishguy6784]

@@wal2 disappointed for you

[@bobcat3653]

Ditto 😎 Oh and the PPI Art series, and US amps😇👌

[@Delta132]

In high school right now, running the soundstream xxx-6k and x3 15" sub, not sure they really count as old school but still sound great

[@Tesla_USA]

​@@wal2I was lucky and bought a 604 back in 2005 for $100. It's in my truck powering a single 10" and front components today. I love it

[@cm1752]

Some of the best stuff Soundstream ever made. Amps sounded so clean and were very versatile with good power ratings.

[@orangeryno]

Back in 1999 I ran 2 of the SPL 12's on an MTX Thunder 2300x. MTX gave me permission to wire the 2300x down to 1 ohm mono for competition burps. They were in a 1998 Ford Taurus, sealed enclosure facing the rear of the trunk. It metered 142.5 db on a Dr Crankenstein cassette tape track. I then upgraded to 2 of the SPL 15's and ran a PPI PC1800 Monoblock amp. I wired that amp down to 1 ohm and ran it daily. I never did meter that setup, but it was definitely high 140's. The air vents in the dashboard would slide up, down and side to side with the bass. I forgot to drop the back seats down one day and then rear deck came unclipped from the pressure. I could see it hovering in my rearview mirror. Good times. 😂

[@bobcat3653]

Heck yeah man 😎👌😅

[@Nickword1]

Them SPL10's match so good with that amp! Cleeaaan old school setup!!

[@K0Kaz]

This was my dream amp in the mid 90s!

[@jonesbrewer4398]

Back in the 90s when I had a Reference 405 running my whole system. I always wondered how much power it was really pumping out now I know! Thanks very much for this video, priceless!! I must say that your library of old school buyer's guides is beyond impressive and a joy to see! Great video video brother!

[@karlrohde9083]

Soundstream amps were super slick in the 90s.

[@yrboogiemn]

And the documentation claims the amp is 0.5 ohm stable!! Insane for the 90's.

[@ImionsaeXwb77]

Soundstream REF and the PPi Art Series was some of the cleanest sounding amp back then and if you wanted some to hit hard the Orion HCCA was the beast..

[@chriswood6218]

I had these back in the day. I really wish they would mfg there current amps with the same quality as back in the day

[@MagicTK-]

I had the Reference 500. I powered many different speakers and multiple quantity with no problems. The final connection was to my Cerwin Vega Stroker 15 back then. Only hit 140dB in 1998 - 1999.

[@mikeberndt181]

I had a soundstream reference 700sx, first 1 blew up after 1 month, but its replacement still is working. Always used it w/ JL w3s at 1ohm mono in high current mode. It was as good as the phoenix golds at the time. I think they were the zx600s. Man was the soundstream amp a beast, I wanted the reference 1000sx but I had spent so much on a pioneer primere head unit and pioneers deqp9200 single din eq with the microphone. It looked beautiful & sounded amazing

[@petersstuffs6321]

I still have one of these new in the box from a 1994. I never ended up installing it into my mini truck and it has just kind of sat in its box in the back of the closet for all those years. Perhaps it is time to pull it out and put it to use all these years later. Thanks for the cool review Derrick!

[@petersstuffs6321]

Instead of this one I ended up with a pair of PPI Art series amps powering my system back then. I still have those as well...

[@wal2]

Amp may need new caps by now even if never used. It is a great amp, happy to have one and no plans to let it go

[@steveschwartz9771]

Love to see you get a hold of a Soundstream Van Gogh VGA800.5 5-channel amp. Total SQ 5 channel beast for it's day!

[@whitmorestrains]

My ref 405 did a great job running a pair of JL 8w6s and JL XR 5.25s in my 90 integra back in the day.

[@JacobFrey]

Simply beautiful, and beautifully simple. I love this design.

[@99Duds]

Fun Facts, the large number of small caps is better than a few large caps. They have a lower ESR and can respond quicker to power draw. The Darlington configuration helps with transistor switching noise and a slight efficiency boost. A true Audiophile Amplifier.

[@chris9202011]

i had the 405 for my components and the Ref 500 for 4 Orion 2NT 12”s in my 1990 Honda CRX Hatchback 146-150 db. On the single car battery and Rock 1fd cap. Talk about chocking the system:(

[@Choralone422]

Back in the mid 90s I so wanted to build a complete system using this amp. It had the perfect specs at the time. Even today, it would make for a great 5 ch amp in a SQ focused system with some backbone.

[@tedtan6449]

SQ indeed. In 1996 the equivalent of Car Audio Mag in UK, Had an SQ shootout with different amplifiers. Soundstream won second, only because the amp it was against ran in class A, at a certain wattage, but was really AB. That was the Genesis amplifier. I still use the Reference line of Soundstream. Vocal rendition is huge, other amplifier pale in comparison.

[@wal2]

I was downright impressed on how it drove those 10" subs with around 300W

[@Welcometofacsistube]

I had these back in the 90's GREAT AMPS!!

[@rickmarshall943]

Had the 405 running the doors in my 95 Jetta and a reference 500 running 2 JL 12w3’s

[@magnumcipher4971]

Ready to see that Continuum on the dyno.

[@JackTorrance333]

I gave a buddy of mine one of these back in the 90s. He still has it! Bulletproof

[@TheAquaponic1]

These are still such good looking amps. Having been in the game since 1986, there were some amps that just looked good enough to eat. When the HCCA's popped that red omg, and the Blue heatsink with this line IMO, just gorgeous. Even though I did not like the the PPI smooth skins, the ART series were sooo nice as well. Thank you for keeping this stuff fresh in peoples minds. Good Times man.

[@wal2]

Great memories!

[@envisionelectronics]

I had an all Soundstream Reference system in my Jeep about 10 years ago under the back seat as a demo for the DCX2496 power supply I sold back then. Great amps.

[@chrishuyler3580]

I picked up a Reference 604 recently. Man does it make some power and sound good. Only downside is that it really drains your battery quick!

[@turbo5483]

My first soundstream amp was The Continuum, I remember being 21 years old and I maxed out my credit card to get it, it ran all my MB Quart speakers and Kicker 15” subwoofers, I miss the 90’s 😢

[@nunyabizznizz7326]

boy, how things have changed..... 😮

[@corysykes9191]

I still have the Reference 200 and 300 in their boxes. They were in my old S-10 regular cab. The 200 ran Soundstream Reference components in QForm kick panels. The 300 was bridged on 2 JL Audio 10w1s.

[@rexxx927]

Still rocking my ref 500 sounds great it runs a RF HX210" and a Ref 300 up top

[@ponokanaka]

Always loved those reference amps. My buddy had a 500 on two JL10W4s and they sounded so good

[@Natetron1000]

Those are some well built amps and have definitely stood up to time. All those caps tho!! I agree about the plexiglass glass! I’d love to be able to have something close to this in a full setup. To quote Hustle and Flo, “everybody gotta have a dream!”

[@raymo6795]

I have one of these. I bought it from Eric , from "Eric's Amp repair". I think he beefed it up a bit. It is great sounding amp. I also have a Rubicon 405, NOS..I paid dearly for that one. Also a great amp..I have many Soundstream amps including ones I bought new and kept for the last 30 years. .I noticed you teased a shiny Soundstream a couple of videos ago...maybe a Picasso?...Renoir?...D'Artagnon?...looking forward to seeing that one, Great show Big D

[@littlejln213]

Eric redid one of my 644s. Good guy

[@raymo6795]

@@littlejln213 …I thought so too. He repaired several amps for me. But I sent him 3 to be repaired, 1 came back fully repaired, the other 2 were not. I reached out to him, he offered some explanations, and questioned my equipment, but did not seem to want to repair them. I offered to pay additional, on top of the $300 I had already paid him,but he continued to question my equipment, which works fine on my other amps in my extensive collection. In fairness, one of the amps is a PG, Eric stated he did like to work on them, but made an exception because I had several repaired before…I grew tired of arguing with him and cut my losses. I am currently sending my amps to Jason Gibson at Freeman’s car audio. He is good, but takes a while….Eric, if you are reading this, I am willing to give you another opportunity to repair my Soundstream MC series and my PG 4300, I will pay what you ask, as long as amps work perfectly…even though I have paid you already.

[@wal2]

I have lots of cool SS and will show them in upcoming vids

[@Delta132]

Loving these Soundstream vids

[@flashbacks7892]

Inside guts looks super nice and clean, great quality, thanks.

[@bennyblanco14]

Not only do these amps look great, but they are some of the cleanest signals with very low distortion

[@AllboroLCD]

Hell yes! Im bumpin a newer Soundstream Picasso 5ch in my current vehicle, seems to be a damn good amp so far. I really want one of their old school 25w x 2 amps now for my dash speakers to round out my rig nicely : )

[@mattm2684]

Best door amp I've ever owned

[@theone148]

"LETS GO FIND ANOTHER AMP!!!" haha... that was/is so me. hahah... I missed the ole days and the old school amps. Thanks Big D, I really appreciate your content you share.

[@wal2]

Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@adampaffrath4299]

I miss the old day setups of two tens or 12s in a sealed box or those ones with the weird tweeter setups lol, some coaxial in doors and just og bumping . Those two 10s had my shop system bumping , two 6.5 recoil loud speakers which I really love the ones with the fake bullet but they sound great and a 12 American bass titan. All coming off that small bt amp that I got cause of you . Forget the name the small one with the wood grain and all the lights it’s perfect for my small area and bumps! You the man bid D !

[@jdmintegradp]

Reference class a 10.0 ! Best amp ever made, imo.

[@wal2]

Link in video description to my test of a 10.0 and also a 10.2

[@jdmintegradp]

Thanks Big D

[@1BAD14GT-1BADAT4X]

I had 2 Reference 500 amps 1 running 2 15” Kickers and 1 running 4 12” Kickers back in 1993 in an 1985 Camaro I removed the rear seats and built a wall. They would really get down for the time.

[@kennypinkerton5818]

This reminds me of when I ran a Ref 300 and a Ref 1000s. In my 1995 Nissan 240sx, "Teamstream" windshield sticker installed. 3 JL 12w6 wired to 1 ohm... inverted mounted on a spare tire fiberglass enclosure, that had 2.8 cu ft. Sealed. ref1000 immersed into the 45 degree angled right side, and the reference 300 embedded on the left sid in the same fashion, running the fronts, the rears were powered by the Alpine CDX-something-removeable-faceplate-mid-line-headunit... One of my favorite creations. I did 133db with it back in 1999/2000. My competition was a brand new stereo shop with 20 10's in a Honda civic, running 4 or 5 mmatts 50 watt cheater amps. I was crushed.

[@kennypinkerton5818]

My best friend at the time was running 4 mtx blavk gold 15s in a box i designed built in the bed of his 91 obs chevy stepside. With a bedcover, so it was hidden, but you could roll the bedcover up, and see the subs through a plexi cover on the box. He hit 148. Later we redid his truck again with my box design, and he had 4 alpine MRV-1000's running 16 rockford fosgate punch 12's in a diamond shaped tunnel. He had a fiberglass "caper shell" top... he lined everything with asphault sealer... (we didnt have rhino-liner back then), and i think he hit iver 148 db... then he got a new truck and did 2 jl w13s, and 2 mtx 1500w amps, and hit about 150.3 db. We were always 3db behind the pros... but we learned a lot, and we had lots of fun. Thank you for the memories. I am currently buolding a small 600w subwoofer system for my 2018 ram 1500 using a Sundown E10 v4. I hope it will remind me of my youth. I miss my 1990s Soundstream system.

[@Wolverines1]

Pretty respectable tests and she sure is a beaut!!

[@kennypinkerton5818]

They finally showed off those caps with some plexiglass with the reference 1000s.

[@blackymadd336]

Wow! Talk about memories! My first system was all Soundstream(real Soundstream of course). My system consisted of the Reference 404s and Reference 500s along with the SPL series 6 1/2"components installed in my front doors and SPL series 5/14" coaxial speakers in custom built rear shelves along with 2 SPL 12's in a 6th order bandpass enclosure. All of this great car audio equipment installed in a 1989 Geo Spectrum by Scott Owens at Sound on Wheels at the time.(No longer in open here in Colorado😢😢😢) 🤔😯😲😳

[@In_Need_of_a_Savior]

Had a few of those. Would always blow the right front channel Sounded great though!

[@SnubBarracuda]

Those guts are SO clean!

[@bobcat3653]

Oh these and A/D/S amps were my unobtainable grail amps lol

[@carlsandrews266]

i had a 10.0, guys back in the day i had quite a few amp's when 500 watts was alot. i promise you 2 punch 8 ohm 12's wired to 4ohm with 500 watts was no joke. i mis efficient woofers with a "small amp". 1 SPL15 on a mtx500d was probably the best sound i ever had.

[@L-Booggie]

Great video. I have 2 Soundstream SPL-10's I would like to use. They're in great condition except for one of them is missing the top cork gasket. I'm going 3.0ft2 sealed and ran off a Kicker ZR360. I'm going to test it first on my a/d/s PQ20 1st to see how does. I want to use all a/d/s but having problems tracking down some a/d/s subs. Keep up the great content. Looking forward to the next video.

[@KRAMITDFROG]

I wasn't big on Soundstream speakers. The components were decent, very smooth. I took MB Quart there. But, for subs, JL Audio dominated and I went with them and never looked back.

[@thebreakbarrelshow]

Such a nice looking amp. I also love the lay out. Makes .uch more sense and wo Der why it isn't done today ?

[@georgeflynn2819]

i had this amp loved it was in my camaro

[@hotrodandrube9119]

I remember they made a 705 that i lusted over too. Was there a simple difference between high powe mode and high current mode?

[@hot99pas]

I bought this amp back in 1999 for $500 and it rocked. The sound was very good until one of the channels blew. Id buy it again😂

[@JaimeVelazquez-dr8hk]

Hey BIG D big fan here, just wondering how your views do on these older amps that are hard to get vs Amps currently for sale on Amazon? I only ask because I really enjoy watching videos on amplifiers that I can pick up for a good deal knowing they hit specs or close to it off of Amazon and have it delivered within 2 days vs watching old school amplifiers that I can’t even get my hands on. Just my opinion, I’m sure there people out there completely opposite as me. Thanks for all the knowledge you drop on us!!!

[@wal2]

I do the old amps as a hobby mainly as they don’t get many views overall. The Williston Audio Labs channel is for the new stuff

[@littlejln213]

Sickkkk! Man I have a perfect one redone by jsl. As well as some nib spl 15s, and a pair of mules. My spls are rhe blue basket but my mules look like your tens.

[@demonxanthwataru]

I've wondered, if you assembled a banging system with 1994 parts, what would it take to match it with small and cheap 2024 parts.

[@wyattrose8101]

Just bought one for 100$ working.. wow I knew I should’ve taken it

[@mbfcamanslife]

Always wanted one of those but they were way out of my price range then and still are now if you can find one.

[@o0Donuts0o]

Are these magazines from the 90’s archived on the net anywhere?

[@theMick52]

I actually have one of those, it needs maintenance. But it's a great amp!

[@wal2]

Check ShawnKAudio.com as he can repair

[@JulioSanchez-l7o]

The price of amps is quite low nowadays, but the cost of quality speakers is still pretty high

[@SnubBarracuda]

I still have 4 of the Best Buy clearance 12-inch ported boxes. ;)

[@wadeokamura7028]

Great video. I still have mine, but the sub channel went out. It's an awesome amp. 👍

[@wal2]

I'm betting it can be repaired

[@2226cc]

I seriously need to get my 405 running again. I've had it for well over 20 years. Going to need recapping as precaution, I guess.

[@wal2]

Check with ShawnKAudio.com he can get you handled

[@2226cc]

@@wal2 Gonna be a bit heavy on the shipping. 😁 I'm in South Africa.

[@LeroyColeJr]

Where can I find those spl sub

[@jimtruett8130]

Rail caps look to have been made 19th week of 1994 so definitely original.

[@wal2]

I'll get it recapped and see how it performs. I know they need to be replaced

[@blainerd53549]

Remarkably similar heatsink to a Fultron 5/6 ch

[@stevemccauley5734]

Hey Derrick could you find a Ref 705 amp to test? I’ve owned both & in my opinion the 705 is a much better amplifier in every aspect. Besides just being a lot more power output. A D’Artignan would be cool to see too. I had one of those once too.

[@wal2]

I have one but it needs to be repaired. The Continuum I show at the end of the video is essentially a 705 with polished heat sink

[@terrenperez]

I wish I never sold my Soundstream SPL 160 15 inch subs. They were beast for there time.

[@bayramoglumurathan925]

Thanks old school.

[@timpindell8178]

Sold a few of these, along with it's big brother. The sub outputs were lackluster and didn't make sense when you could run a different combo at a better price than the 5 channel versions. They sounded amazing, just meh on the sub output.

[@aaronbaker8091]

Are there any major differences in the 405 & the 405s?

[@wal2]

The “s” is a newer model but there were lots of QC issues with that series. I don’t know the component differences

[@DerrickCortezCortezHD]

I thought you were supposed to use high current mode for loads below 1ohm not high power mode ?

[@wal2]

Yeah it would just lower rail voltage and lessen output

[@philipeli1192]

Big d soundstream has the power class 5 ch pc1000.5 with twice the power of this amp for 122.00 business price on amazon!!!! You tested the mono amp,wish you would test the pc1000.5.

[@jasonrickett561]

I had one in my ‘93 eagle talon TSI…….

[@luisserafim4828]

eu tenho um Soundstream Rubicon RUB1000-2 ca em casa muito bom

[@Fister_of_Muppets]

I bought one of those amps. It gave me a chub. Nuff said.

[@keithgrills5330]

Please do the high current tests on the sub channel. 12.5 volts and 14.5 volts. Please Please.. thanks great job. Loved the video.

[@wal2]

I didn't run it at 0.5 ohms and high current mode because the caps haven't been replaced

[@CHEVYK10]

sony xm2002gtr please

[@purplehazeffc]

How good would a pair of those running a 3 way front end.. Ohhhh the sound quality

[@envisionelectronics]

Would need a 6 channel for an active 3 way setup.

[@petjapyykonen8285]

Goin to try, but with 705's 🤗

[@wal2]

only issue would be using the sub ch for midbass would be in mono

[@petjapyykonen8285]

@@wal2 with two amps?

[@purplehazeffc]

@@envisionelectronics Each amp is a 5ch amp. So if you had a pair, you would have 10ch of amplification. Using the 2 5th channels for the mid bass. 2ch for front tweeters, 2ch for front mids. The remaining 4ch could be used for a 2way splits for rear fill. Have a hidden DSP mounted for an Old School looking setup.

[@ericrouse6745]

I have one of those in my closet that’s a four channel 75x4 loved it in my car but one of the risers has a bad connection. Put a jl audio 4x75 in its place did not sound even close to as clear

[@wal2]

It can be fixed

[@swizlstik]

What’s with the giggles??

[@keithmorris2366]

Those amps never really put out impressive power but always had beautiful boards. The yellow caps on this one looked a little swollen.

[@StorytellingByCarlos]

Mine says 405s but only one channel works

[@wal2]

Check ShawnKAudio.com as he can repair

[@davidwilson705]

Is it just me or the left sub seems to be moving more?

[@davidwilson705]

On the last song

[@brs5490]

Phoenix Gold you need to find one and test. The old school made in the usa with military grade parts. Awesome amps and not like today's Chinese crap.

[@rublescube1]

Ads and Soundstream and Orion what is my dream apps

[@JackTorrance333]

Linear Power

[@only126db]

12.5v

[@PVW4EVER]

Big D