Kicker's New 10,000 Watt Warhorse Amplifier

November 8, 2007 by Lukas Gilkey
Filed under: Car Audio > Amplifiers > Single Channel



Take a good look at the dimensions on the picture above. This amp is nearly a yard long and a foot and a half wide. Kicker held nothing back in the creation of their new flagship power amplifier codenamed "Warhorse." The part number is simply WX10000.1, and in case you missed it there are four zeros after that one. The Warhorse took four years to design and it is a take no prisoners competition amplifier designed to push whatever subwoofers you have to their limit.

Kicker recommends at least eight 12-volt batteries and two 200-ampere alternators to provide the necessary power for this amplifier. The internals of this amplifier consist of: four custom planar transformers that handle 5,000 watts each and help boost efficiency, the latest Texas Instruments industrial-grade DSP for controlling signal processing and protection circuitry, solid-copper bus bars for maximizing current capabilities and 50-ampere Anderson speaker connectors that provide specific safeguards against extremely high voltage signal.

"Without doubt, the Warhorse has the size and power, but it also houses a secret under its enormous shroud. The WX10000.1 revolutionizes traditional amplification with its signal-modulated, ultra-high-efficiency design. It amplifies audio signal directly to DVC subwoofers from the patent-pending, signal-modulated power supply, rather than relying on help from amplification circuits found in traditional Class D or Class A/B designs."

The patent pending design of the Warhorse allows it to achieve an impressive 90-percent efficiency at a 2-ohm load and 93-percent efficiency at a 4-ohm load (full power).


KICKER WX10000.1 Mono Channel Amplifier Specifications:
Mono-Channel Model (at 14.4V)
Power (watts), Signal-Modulated 2 Ohm mono: 10,000 x 1
Dimensions: 3.75" x 17.75" x 35"
Frequency Response (Hz): 20-200, +0/-1dB
Input Sensitivity: 170mV-5V
Signal-to-Noise Ratio: 95dB, a-weighted, re: rated power
Low-Pass Crossover: 24dB/octave, variable 50-200Hz
High-Pass, Subsonic Crossover: 24dB/octave, variable 20-60Hz
KICKEQ Bass Boost: Variable to +18dB, centered at 40Hz
Warhouse Control Module: Available separately
Weight: 67 lbs.
MSRP: $9,999.95

Source: Kicker
Comments (8)
dookieface 6 months and 6 days ago

Got any internal shots?

Probably a nuclear reactor in there.
Dave Kay 6 months and 6 days ago

Less than a dollar a watt, that's actually quite reasonable. It looks to be only a few inches high though, so not nearly as big as my all time favorite amps, the Edge Reference NL monoblocks.
Doodaddy 6 months and 6 days ago

Uh, do what? 93% efficiency? When is this going to trickle down into normal sized amps?!
lukas 6 months and 6 days ago

This internal shot was posted on FloridaSPL.com

Neil Middlemiss 6 months and 6 days ago

I have heard through the grapevine that even on 2 battery systems, they are testing over 10kW at 12V.

I'm thinking one of these and 2 18" Audiopulse LMS-Ultra's.

Yeah, right...
kipplitz 6 months and 2 days ago

Yes, it is truly 93% efficient! And that is across the board, not at any particular power level. And yes, we might see this technology make its way down to smaller subwoofer amplifers.

Imagine a 1500 watt 93% efficient model that is the size of a sheet of 8 x 10 paper...maybe even smaller...or maybe even more power in that footprint.

This amplfier is truly a revolutionary design, hats off to our lead electronics designers.

If you can find a way to see one, it is impressive! :)

Kip
Doodaddy 6 months and 1 day ago

"our lead electronics designers"

Involved?
Infrasonic 5 months and 1 week ago

From what I know the Cadence A7+HC amps put out 1400+ rms and achieved 97% efficiency and all at 14.4v but I run mine at 16v off of accuvolt 1500 to get even more power at less then 80 amps of current.
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