Velodyne DD15 - worth repairing the plate amp?


The amp in my 2008 Velodyne DD15 is dead as a door nail. 

How good is this old marvel compared to today's offerings?

Worth investing another $500 (to have amp repaired, incl roundtrip shipping, tax, etc)? Or just use as passive sub?

How does it compete to modern subs, for example SBS SB-2000 or SB-3000 (both under $1k pre owned)?

kraftwerkturbo

You can replace the plate amp yourself. Try google for a compatible replacement. I would imagine this would save you a few dollars.

I had the amp from my 2006 DD18 repaired just in the last few weeks.  I used "the amp man" who you can find on ebay.  I was somewhat surprised it could still be fixed but I had it back in about a week and couldn't be happier.  Total cost to me was around $400 including shipping.  I really don't think it gets much better than this if you're using it at true subwoofer range.  Plenty of output and the servo means no distortion.  I was eyeballing SVS before I decided to see if it could be fixed and I'm glad I got it fixed.  There's no way a 13 inch sub with half the surface area could compare.

Amp man directs you to a video showing how to remove the plate amp in the description.  Disconnecting is easy, take a few pictures before disconnecting the wires for when you're reconnecting.  No cutting or soldering required.  

 

Velodyne Subwoofer Repair Service DD Series (authorized service center) | eBay

I used a Hyped plate amp for my DIY subwoofer.  Liked it so much I replaced the plate amp in my B&W subwoofer with a second one 

If wanna go the cheap route buy a used crown xls amp for a couple hundred and run it directly to the woofer is what I did with my old Paradigm Servo15. This will have a crossover and probably sound pretty good. Maybe better ? I wouldn’t spend more than a couple hundred on it. I’m sure the hypex is fine too if you can find a fit for the box. I just sit the Crown on top of the sub.