Home Theaters

While it is nice to be able to build and buy a compact, or inexpensive system, we all lust after the best. It’s in our nature. Every American grows up to think that getting the best is first priority. For many of us, it is something we aspire to obtain, and remains a goal for quite some time.

Between the logical steps to a home theater, and the forced frugality we all experience, the soul needs to fly, and covet the best that is available…

You might have noticed I like powerful amplifiers. Powerful amplifiers are useful for more than volume levels that make the neighbors run. A powerful amplifier that is of great quality will bring out the best from all products connected to it. It may also reveal flaws in those pieces, but overall, the results will be positive.

Many years ago, the first really high quality, high power amplifier design was put out by a company called Great American Sound. The company was started by a man named James Bongiorno.

Mr. Bongiorno had quite a career going before making the move to his own company, having worked on some of the original Marantz power amplifiers, back before the name was bought by a Japanese conglomerate, and the man who owned the company was named Saul Marantz. Marantz was probably the first audio company with an eye on fidelity more than the profit line.

Bongiorno’s next designs were as part of the Dynaco team in the early 60’s. Several of those designs remain today, cherished like jewels of quality and design. The Stereo 400 amplifier was a Bongiorno design, and was the peak of excellence when offered for sale.

James Bongiorno was to go to SAE from Dynaco, where his designs were some of the best available at any price. SAE was known for high power, low distortion, and affordable price.

The designs from GAS, where he then went, are the best remembered by many audiophiles of the 70’s and 80’s. Ampzilla, Ampzilla II, and Son of Ampzilla were amplifiers that anyone who knew they could never afford tube gear aspired to obtain.

After the demise of GAS, a critical success but commercial flop, Mr. Bongiorno, after a time, set up Sumo as the place to extend his legend in the world of electronics design. Names like The Power, The Gold, The Nine, Andromeda, Electra, and Charlie - the Tuner, are well known to audiophiles of the era, and whether or not you owned any of them (as I do) you always wanted to listen to music through them.

Eventually, Bongiorno grew restless at Sumo, and left the company he started. For quite a while, he seemed to be content staying out of the limelight, sailing his boat (so we were told).

A few years ago, he started yet another company, Spread Spectrum Technologies, so that we could benefit once again from his designs.

Ampzilla 2000 is the result of better parts, now available, and the designs he has now fully realized with those parts.

Ampzilla 2000 - this is audio Nirvana, brought to you by the man who has been doing it for longer than anybody else.

Real amplifiers are HEAVY!

Quality amplifiers have BIG toroidal transformers and use HUGE heatsinks instead of fans.

The above pictures show the monoblock Ampzilla 2000, an amplifier that, unlike many today, behaves as a voltage source. It provides 100 W into 16 ohm loads, 200 W into 8 ohm loads, and 400 W into 4 ohm loads. Although not specified, I would expect it to output 800 W into a 2 ohm load before thermal shutdown. That’s power baby! It is also control. Amplifiers like this exercise complete control over the woofers of your system, providing exceptional powerful, tight, and fast bass. It is the kind of power that makes you wonder why those speakers you thought needed to be replaced, never sounded quite so good.

It’s also the kind of power that can get you into serious trouble with your neighbors - they will get mad that you’re not inviting them over to listen.

In the same manner as Krell Amplifiers, Ampzilla 2000 amplifiers will make you know why high end audio was invented, and why listening to music through a great system, or watching a great movie, knowing the sound is as it should be, is so much like a drug - you crave the fix of great sound.

Those grand of ear, but smaller of wallet will be happy to know that, just like long ago, with Great American Sound, there is a junior model, less costly, but no less accomplished. Son of Ampzilla 2000 is a stereo amplifier, with less beef, but like the stuff from Kobe, is just as fine.

Smaller output, but the Son is just as sweet to listen to as the father.

Same beefy construction as Ampzilla 2000.

I know you’re wondering why a basic amplifier design, instead of an integrated one. Just like the Kenwood L07, these designs are meant to be placed near the speakers, and connected to a pre-amplifier with long, quality interconnects.

Wipe the floor when you leave.

-