Customer Reviews

Pyle - Mini 2x75W Stereo Power Amplifier - PCA3

5 star:		(55)
4 star:		(32)
3 star:		(10)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(9)

 

 

I have a living room setup with two Sony SS-F7000 floor-standing speakers. This amp powers them very nicely for my purposes. To me it sounds perfect - strong bass (main concern before buying) and with bass/treble controls that I leave set in the middle. In this fairly small room, I use it up to about 1/2 volume (at which point it is way too loud).

I don't want the complexity of a Stereo receiver with source selector, and so I combined this amp with a simple mixer: American Recorder PMIX-100 3-Source Personal Audio Mixer

This way I can have all my sources always on, it's just a matter of starting/stopping them.

I am going to replicate this setup for all my rooms, potentially with a smaller speaker like SS-B3000 which I already have a pair of (also sound ok with this amp). The single sound source in the other rooms will be an Apple Airport Express, for sound distribution. So far I'm really pleased with the sound setup - simple, cheap, and music to my ears.

I bought the Pylepro PCA3 amy to run off my computer for music. Hooked to a pair of Polk Audio speakers. The system is better than the sound system with the computer. However, when you read the specifications is is only a 15 watt @ 1% distortion which is how typical amplifers are rated. The specification continue that at 10% distortion it can reach 75 watts / channel. ...sure... I do like the product and for the price it is a fair priced item.

A very compact little unit that is good for applications that call for clean but non-critical audio. I use it to power Polk speakers connected to a computer. Gets me very clean sound from iTunes, etc. -- vastly superior to the sound-in-a-box computer speakers.

I have bought several of these to use w/ my Sonos system. They work fine to power the speakers for the Sonos ZP90's I already had. Pay attention to the gauge of the speaker wire, however.
I had hooked up one of the units to some light gauge wire that came with the speakers (don't know maybe 26 gauge - very thin)- result no sound - nothing - checked the fuse - fuse OK - after playing around, a bit, I thought to change out the speaker wires to a heavier 16 gauge - problem solved - played just fine. I have read complaints on some reviews, and now cannot help but wonder if this was the problem some others were having. This issue is a traffic-stopper - most peolpe do not have the patience to experiment with the unit and they would probably thingk the unit DOA - really Pyle ought to put a print-out in the box to advise about this issue (use only 16 gauge wire or heavier) - they would probably get less returns. Thought I would pass that along.

I purchase a 42" HD LCD TV, close to two months ago. The quality and volume of sound coming from the unit was insufficient for my taste. I decided to add external speakers to it. In reviewing the owner's instructions manual, it stated that speakers can NOT be installed directly to it but must go through an amplifier. Also, being that I wanted the speakers where I sat meant stringing wire to them or getting a wireless speaker system. I went with the wireless.

After ordering this amplifier and a wireless speaker system, receiving both in just a few days, I then set them up. Except for the extremely bright, constantly flashing LEDs on the front of the unit (others had the same complaint on reviews I read {putting 2 strips of black electrical tape fixes the problem}), the entire set-up WORKED great for just over 3 weeks. I had the amplifier set to 1/3 volume and the speakers to even less, with the quality of sound being an improvement over what the TV alone produced.

I started to get distortion and then the audio from the speakers just ceased. In troubleshooting, I determined this unit had failed since audio signal still existed coming from the TV and the speaker system functioned properly when I tested with a different signal source. I began preparing to repack the unit for return shipment but after reading the requirements of PYLE PRO on returning the failed item for repair or replacement, I decided not to. It was MY COST to send the unit back and then MY COST AGAIN, paying an additional $20 for THEIR return shipment back to me. I decided it was not worth the expense, since for a few dollars more, I could get an entirely new unit. I've decided to look for an amplifier made by another Manufacturer.

I originally recommended this unit but because of its immediate failure, I have serious doubts on its quality and it hurts me to say that I NO LONGER recommend this unit. I do recommend the "Royal Machines 29297W WES 600 Wireless Stereo Speaker System" that I purchased though, a great addition for under $80.

I do a lot of audio and video work on my home PC, and as a long-time audio guy I've never been happy with these little PC speakers with a boomy subwoofer on the floor. I've always wanted to get a pair of real near-field monitors, like these Polk Audio Monitor 30 2-Way Bookshelf Speakers (Pair, Black). Problem was, I needed a power amp to drive them, and I wanted something compact on my desk, preferably not rackmounted. This Pyle amp is IT, I couldn't be happier. It has enough juice to drive the Polk cabinets, includes Bass and Treble controls so you can sweeten the sound a bit, and best of all, one nice-sized stereo volume control so I can easily lower or raise volume without 42 mouse clicks on some Windows Sound Control Panel somewhere. I haven't added the Polk PSW10 Subwoofer, but if I did this would be a compact but monstrous setup. Great little power amp, I might need to grab a couple more for future applications. It's well-built and will give me a nice flat response when needed for post production, and a bass/treble-boosted tone for audio playback, all with a few turns of a knob. Great stuff.

Using this Amp to drive outdoor Bose speakers. Getting the signal to the amp using WiFi in the house and an Apple Airport Express situated next to the amp. Works great. I can play my itunes library, Pandora and other internet radio to the back yard now.

Amp worked perfectly to provide the missing link to my outdoor speakers.

I bought this amp as a sub-woofer amp and it does the job! My new Pioneer 919 blahbitty blah receiver has a PRE OUT SUBWOOFER (RCA style) output, and I happened to have a new-in-the-box 12" woofer from Radio Shack that I picked up years ago on clearance for 10 bucks. Add in a $40 sheet of plywood and my build time, and I've got a low cost, high quality sub-woofer.
The Pioneer receiver does just about everything except run out and start my car (and I'm wondering if it'll do that!), so it's too dad-gum complicated. In contrast, this amp could hardly be simpler. It has two RCA style inputs (Left and Right), two speaker-wire outputs (Left and Right), Treble gain, Bass gain, Volume, and an On/Off switch.
I saw on other reviews that people used the amp to power an old pair of speakers while playing their iPods. I felt that if the sub-woofer thing didn't work out, I could still do that as Plan 'B'. Fortunately, Plan 'A' is working. I have a nice Belkin 25 foot cable with RCA ends coming from the Pre Out Subwoofer out of the receiver and going into one of the channel inputs (Left) on this amp. Then I have a monster cable, bare-end wires coming out of the corresponding (Left) channel output going directly to the Radio Shack 12" woofer. No crossover or filtering! I'm not sure, but I'm guessing the receiver filters out the high freqs and passes only the lower freqs, 800 hz and below.
Anyway, it sounds good, does what I want it to do, and even has nice blue LED indicators that light up when the bass pounds out the beat of a song, or explosions from a game. It's about the size of a thick paperback book, and if I needed too, I could easily unplug everything and take the amp out to my garage for duty playing my iPod.

I bought this unit for one purpose - to turn the sound from my HDTV around (the TV speakers naturally face backwards!) and hear it in true stereo. It works just fine for doing this. I was attracted to it for its compactness and simplicity, as well as its very affordable price. I don't need a tuner or multiple inputs nor do I need enormous volume in the small room I'm using it in. The sound quality is surprisingly good, although admittedly I'm not using the best available speakers. The dynamic range is fine and I was surprised at the bass quality. And when the scene is supposed to have no sound, there really is none - I don't hear humming or hissing, even with the sound turned up quite high. I really, really appreciate the unit's compactness given the crowded space in the cabinet I've placed it in.

I have two minor complaints about this unit. One is the very meager amount of documentation about the unit provided in the manual and the other is the blue LED dB level display. The LEDs are just too bright! If the unit is facing in the same direction as the TV screen the blazing lights are distracting. Of course it is not a problem if there is something like an opaque door blocking the light. The unit has no remote but that is actually fine with me, given my constantly proliferating collection of remotes for all of my components.

A basic, uncomplicated quality sound amplifier was what I was looking for, and it was what I got.

I have this amp hooked up to Apple Airport express for streaming sound over an Apple feature called Airtunes (Can stream music, listen to radio, and adjust volume from my Iphone / Ipad / home server) to a nice set of Polk speakers. I can say it works perfectly and recommend this setup, it sounds great and full volume would be too loud for any room, so I have the max (amp volume setting) at about half. I liked is so much I bought a second setup for the Kitchen.

My major concern when purchasing this product is that there might be hiss coming from the amp when music was not playing, which is a problem I've had with other amplifiers. I can say with the two of these amps I have they are perfectly silent when music is not playing.