In the world of car audio we are not spoilt for choice that’s for sure. Ask almost anyone to name a list of manufacturers and they will have almost no trouble doing so. Most of these large companies spend millions of dollars in developing, manufacturing, and marketing their products and with great success I might add too. Even with this choice though, it is sometimes difficult to find something a little different. It’s even more difficult to find a company where the people who run the show love music and their job is seen as simply a bonus.

Luckily there are a number of smaller companies around the world offering the music enthusiast some choice and individuality and it’s refreshing to see the small guy releasing a range of products with the bottom line being the enjoyment of music.

Tru Technology, based on the outskirts of Los Angeles, California, USA is one of these up and coming companies. They produce a range of high quality, hand built amplifiers employing many qualities and features found in audiophile home equipment. And they’re garnering a devout following in the States and around the world. Now sometimes, small companies and hand made bespoke products can equate to large cost with what could be perceived by many as offering little value for money. Luckily for us, Tru released the T series amps, which debunks this myth.

Initial Observations
The amplifier arrived packed in a plain, well finished box with an easy to understand manual that covered the operation of both this and the T-4.65 four channel amplifier.

Its chassis is a quality custom extruded aluminium affair. The controls for gain, cross over and bass boost are on the top left of the amp. The two pairs of RCA sockets (one pair for input with the other for output to another amp) are on the left hand end of the amp whilst the power and speaker connections are on the opposite end. Power can be supplied by 4 gauge power cable and the speaker outputs will allow beefy 8 gauge cables. Provision is also made for a dash mounted bass control knob. My test amplifier came with one but check with your retailer on whether it’s included in the price of the amp.

Near the top and bottom edges are two transparent acrylic panels running the length of the amp. Visible through these panels are the eight output devices, four per side. At each end of the output devices are some of the most intensely bright blue l.e.d.’s I have ever seen. They were even brighter than the three lights on each of my Phoenix Titanium amps. Each end and the underside of the amp are finished in a Nextel type textured finish paint that is in good contrast to the silver anodized top and sides.

A peek inside the amp reveals what seems to be a mostly symmetrical lay out. There is evidence of hand soldering of components to the printed circuit board with little tell tale resin ball splatter here and there. Solid bus bars for all the power and speaker terminals get the juice to and from the internal workings. As indicated by the external sockets, the internal layout keeps input and output parts of the amp at opposite ends of the available real estate. This ensures that the more sensitive audio circuits are kept as far from the power stage as possible thereby reducing opportunities for induced noise and distortion. Browsing the online material for this series of amps reads like a home hi-fi audiophiles’ wish list in terms of design and parts with all the best aspects of car audio’s required ruggedness thrown in to boot.

I’m Hungry
As they say though, “The proof of the pudding is in the eating.” So let’s eat!

The amplifier was listened to in the context of two systems. Alpine’s new CDA-9835 headed up one system with Infinity Kappa Perfect 6.1 components taking care of front stage duties and Infinity’s Kappa Perfect 12.1 (4ohm SVC) looking after the systems bottom end. Alpine’s MRD-M500 mono class D and older MRV-F407 were also used to compliment it. In addition I was able to listen to these through Alpine’s new DLX-176A DDLinear components, albeit only briefly. Clarion’s DRX-9675z head unit was used as the source in the second system along with Kappa 42.5i front stage speakers and Infinity Beta 10 subwoofer.

Bass
This amp loves lower frequencies. Bear in mind that it is not recommended to run this amp bridged into less than the rated four ohm nominal load or two ohms in stereo. Understand this though and you can drive the amp hard (within limits of course) if you so desire with great results.

It may mean for some people that instead of choosing the subs first for their system as they build it, which is a commonly accepted way of approaching things, that they pay attention to choosing the amplifier first instead. Careful choice of total voice coil(s) impedance will then allow the system user to extract both maximum performance and reliability from this amp. Already got the sub or subs? Hey, look at it as an excuse to upgrade these as well!

I love Infinity’s subs and this amplifier compliments them very well. The combination provided great pace and timing. Creed’s strong bass lines on their “Human Clay” album played well through their intense and heavy mixes and were easy to follow without being over blown. This helped buoy the music along with well timed drive. Ed Rush and Optical’s drum’n’bass style music was reproduced with awesome weight and authority without retarding the music’s timing.

This amp maintained its composure and grip well until just before clipping. Even then, its manners were very good. It was able to easily drive my older Infinity Beta to the limits of its excursion due to the smaller available cone travel of this driver.

At sensible, ear friendly levels this amp is tuneful and accurate. My only concern was the slight lack of leading edge impact on upper bass frequencies when compared to the Class D Alpine MRD-M500. In bridged mode into the Perfect 12.1 as could be expected, it did perform better over all though especially in areas like dynamic impact and slam.

Front Stage
This is where I found that this amplifier really excelled. Whereas the bass performance of this amp was very similar to the high standard of the Alpine M500, the mid/bass through to the treble was definitely superior to Alpines two and four channel amps. Bass response was again strong especially when running the front stage full pass. My benchmark for a long time now has been Alpine amplifiers. Not because I think they’re the best amplifiers period but because I believe they offer excellent performance for the dollar. The T-2.100 was without a doubt the better product in sound quality terms. In fact, it comes very close in performance to my Phoenix Gold ZX Ti amps (which are double the price) when it comes to musicality and transparency.

These two terms are regularly used by followers of high quality home equipment to describe the sound they hear. I’m not talking about your run of the mill Japanese spec pieces either (ok I’ll admit that’s a bit of a generalization) but the better English, European and American home Hi-fi. Do the comparison if you haven’t already and you’ll come to understand what I mean.

The Tru does a superb job of making sure that it’s the music rather than the equipment that grabs your attention. Play something through this amp and you will feel the emotion of the artist. Change to something a little different tempo wise and you’ll find yourself feeling different. Changing from Sarah McLaughlan’s sweeping “Angels” on her Surfacing album, for example, to Annie Lennox’s “Legend in My living Room” off her Diva cd moved me from a floating serene feeling to sheer foot tapping, seat dancing. Very musical indeed!

The ability of this amp to portray a three dimensional, transparent stage with good scale and depth of field was easily the best I have heard in its class. It became very easy to hear where things were placed in relation to each other. Especially on simple music such as Ian Anderson’s “Divinities” where the stage was very expansive. It was so good that the speakers almost disappeared. Combine this with a beautifully liquid mid and sweet treble and you have an amp that makes you want to listen more and more. Dave Steels’ guitar lost none of its bite yet remained easy to listen to even at levels that would almost grate on the ear with some lesser amps. I experienced no fatigue at all when listening to this amp. My benchmark of the past few years just couldn’t resolve the detail while maintaining the listen-ability of the Tru.

Summary
I found this amplifier was very hard to fault. It sets a very high standard and raises the bar for amplifiers of similar retail value with the added points earned for its relative uniqueness. The music lover who is prepared to lash out just a little more will not be disappointed.

It’s not a cheap amplifier at AU$978 / NZ$1199 recommended retail but it is a bargain for the asking price. Definitely highly recommended if you value your music and at the same time want something a little different to what the masses would settle for.

The only niggle: I had to dig out my Imperial allan keys to tighten up the speaker and power connections which was a small inconvenience in what is largely a metric world.

Would I buy one? Yes, definitely, but if Tru’s entry level amp is this good, it’s hard to imagine how good a TO-3 or even a Copper Series amp will sound. Two thumbs up!

Go to: www.trutechnology.com Those on dial-up connections will need a little patience as the site recommends broad band due to its content and format.

T Series Amplifier specifics
Broad Range 2 & 4 CH Class AB Amplifiers
Constant Rated RMS Power Output until Thermal Shutdown
2 oz. “Pleated Hole” PC Board
High Current Unregulated Bi-Polar Power Supply
Hand Soldered 10 Gauge Power Wire on to the PC Board
Discrete Amplifier circuitry
PROPRIETARY RF grounding techniques used for Improved Reliability and HF noise rejection
(2) Differential pairs of complimentary input transistors
(8) ON® TO-3 Metal case audio output devices
(8) I.R.® HEXFET® Power Inverter for Efficiency
(2) Power Transformers
(4) 2,200mf 50 Volt Capacitors on Rails
(2) sets of High-Speed rectifier diodes
Symmetrically mounted heat generating parts
18dB Hi/Low pass filter (50Hz ~ 500Hz)
Thru Output (RCA: Not affected by X-over or Gain)
Variable Low Frequency Boost Circuit (T-2.100)
Optional Remote Bass control knob (T-2.100)
4 Gauge Power/Ground Input
8 Gauge Speaker Wire Output
Hand Built in California, U.S.A.

Model: T-2.100
Channels: 2 CH
Frequency Response: 10Hz ~ 45KHz ±1dB
Rated Power: 14.4 Volts DC
T.H.D.: < 0.05%
4 Ohm RMS: 100W x 2
2 Ohm RMS: 200W x 2
4 Ohm Bridged: 400W x 1
S/N Ratio: > 100dB
CH Separation: > 70dB
Input Sensitivity: 0.16mV ~ 4 Volts
Damping Factor: > 400
Efficiency: 65.70%
Fuse Requirement: (2) 30 Amp
Power Supply: 11 ~ 16 Volts DC
High Pass @ 18dB / oct: 50Hz ~ 500Hz
Low Pass @ 18dB / oct: 50Hz ~ 500Hz
Remote Bass Knob: Yes
Bass Boost: Yes
Dimensions: (L x W x H): 12 5/8″ x 10 5/8″ x 2 3/8″
Weight: 8 1/2 lbs. / 3.9 Kg

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 20th, 2004 at 10:42 am and is filed under Product Reviews. You can trackback from your own site.