ART SLA-1 100-watt Power Amplifier Reviews

While it's not a top of the line studio monitor amp, it is more than sufficient for use in my music room (calling it a studio seems pretentious given the room's construction and my gear).

The sound quality is as expected given the specs and the reviews I read prior to purchase. Which is to say it has excellent sound quality particularly at its price point.

While the fan is audible, I do not notice it when I'm reviewing tracks or mixing. While recording I see no reason to have it powered up so the fan noise does not bleed into my tracks (unlike some of the noise I get from the lack of studio quality wall, ceiling, etc. construction).

Would I use it in an expensive professional recording studio? Of course not. But for producing demo's and streaming material for my various projects, it's more than adequate.

In sum given the whole diminishing returns thing and my music budget, it is ideal.

Excellent power amp for the price. I use it as a guitar amplifier in combination with a preamp.

I run the guitar through a pedalboard and into a custom version of a Fender Twin tube pre-amp that weighs 5 lbs! That goes into the SLA-1 which outputs to (2) 12" speakers.

It's got a great clean sound and the rig takes pedal very well. I don't have any issues with the fan noise that some people had. Didn't notice any extraneous noise.

In case anyone wonders the class of this amp it is Class A/B. Got that from ART.

I use the SLA-1 mainly in the rehearsal studio but have also used it for gigs and it does great. I also have a Fryette 2502 that I use for gigs. It's an improvement for sure, but it costs $ and weighs over 30 lbs.

Each has their use. I think the SLA-1 is a great amp at a great price.

I was looking for a single space rack mounted amp. This model suited the situation perfectly i9n size, weight, and power. It is the second SLA1 I have purchased. The first has been in operation for approximately, ten years.

I'm using this as a way to use Neural DSP from my Laptop thru my focusrite interface into a 2x12" cab. Let me just tell you. It does a great job! Would highly recommend for anyone else looking to do something similar.

I bought this unit strictly for my Axe FX III. All I had to do to get it to work for me was buy a couple of banana-to-1/4 female adapters, because the outputs are a positive and negative connection.I use both outputs as a stereo out into my mesa 4x12 cab. It works perfectly for my setuo and I couldn't be happier.

I use it as my monitor amp in studio. No problems what so ever. Loud and drives the monitors as loud as I want, I monitor at low, medium, and loud volumes. Great amp, have had it for many years now.

I hear the complaints re: the fan noise. Yes, its a bit noisy but I use as a monitor amp so thats not an issue for me. When I'm tracking in the control room, I'm monitoring with headphones, so the ART is off. Again, no issues for me. If you need super quiet, this is not the amp for you. The advertised low noise as one reviewer said is probably the signal to noise ratio, which is nice and low. Thats important no matter what.

Why the fan then? I think thats how they keep it slim (one rack space thick). A 100w amp is most likely going to take up 2-rack spaces due to heat sinks built in.

For me, its five stars. No matter the money, this is a very professional sounding amp with the benefit of a budget price. If the fan noise won't bother you (its really not that loud, but present), then you really can't go wrong with these.

Great amp. Drives my Renkus Heinz's just dandy!

I bought the sla over a year ago to power my AxeFx and LOVE IT! Having used it for a full year on an almost daily basis I have had zero issues. Few ppl said they heard the fan. The only way I can hear mine is if I go right up to the unit and put my ear to it. If u are hearing it loud or any type of him there's something not right. As stated I am powering my AxeFx and running it through my Marshall JCM900 cabinet and it sounds awesome! I used it bridges to one channel. I wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone else looking for a power amp!

Love this Amp thin and powerful use this on my Alesis Monitor One's in my control room.
Comes with a lock out cover plate which is nice.

What a great little amp. It is build like a tank. Heavy and substantial feeling for sure. I use this to power my Auratone 5C speakers at the recommendation of my sales engineer. Very happy with the pairing for sure.

There are a couple of really nice touches too:
1) The level controls are push-push to recess them into the chassis. If you want to set the levels and "lock them in" then you can do so.
2) In order to lock in the levels, not only do the level controls recess into the chassis, but another front panel face comes with the amp that has no access holes to the level controls. So you can set your levels, press the controls to recess them into the chassis and then install the included alternate front panel and nobody will ever be able to access the level controls. This is perfect for any application where others will be around the equipment, like club or restaurant workers or patrons (or kids too I suppose).

I can think of many uses for this amp as others have mentioned here. A really great, solid, well-spec'd product for a very reasonable price.

I love this amp. I've had it for years. I used to run a small 1 watt Hughes & Kettner Cream Machine through it, then a Hughes & Kettner Blues Master, then moved on to a Pod HD500. Been working with the Pod running through this then 2 - 2x12 cabinets. Best sound I've ever has. This is light weight, 1 rack space, very quiet, and VERY transparent as well. Love this amp!!

The ART SLA-1, is a 2-Channel Power Amplifier, 130W RMS/ch at 4 ohms, with a silent, thermal-dependent cooling system, (That Requiers A Fan?) wide frequency response, binding-post outputs (meaning banana plugs or bare speaker wire).

So just to be clear on this: Yes it does come with a built in fan. Yes The Fan Will Turn On. The " silent, thermal-dependent cooling system statement" may confuse some people as it did me. Yes you will hear the fan a little, but not as much so as to become an annoyance (as of yet). The key is to shut it off when your tracking or just not using it. I don't hear the fan when the music is playing.

I am using this Amp to power my 8 ohm JBL-J216A (early 80's) book shelf speakers. The ART SLA-1 is functioning by coming out using XLR cables into the Drawmer MC2.1 monitor controler. The ART's connection to the speakers is by using old fashion speaker wire with banana plugs.

I AB between my powered Yamaha HS series studio monitors and the JBL's. For me, ABing this way gives me a quick idea of how my mix is translating to some reasonably priced HI-FI Stereo Speakers. I can add the Yamaha HS8 sub woofer, with out taxing the ART SLA-1 thanks to the monitor controller.

Now relating to this ART SLA-1 Power Amp: I was reluctant to go with this amp because I've always purchased crown power amps. But my man Jimmy Hart at Sweetwater advised me that there was no need for me to spend that much money for this particular purpose. After all, these JBL's are not big money speakers and so this type of a match up seems to be the correct way to go.

Well, so far so good. I haven't worked the ART SLA-1 to hard as of yet. It is sonically quiet, (no hums) and it seams to have the right stuff for the 8 ohm 100 watt JBL's. The ON blue light is a bit over the top. There is a optional protective nob cover that cuts the blue light down a tad but there will still be no doubt that the amp is on when its on. All and all I'm a happy camper..

We shall see how this Amp holds up over time as I do not have any past experiences using this particular brand of equipment.

So there you go, thanks again to Jimmy Hart, EX-1223. He's been known to save me a buck or two.

I don't normally do product reviews, but based on some of the cons pointed out in others, I thought I'd share my experience. The power and price range fit my needs. But I've had some experience with 1u 40mm fans being real screamers. So that and the complaints in other reviews made me a little uneasy about it. But I took the chance and am glad I did. I'm mostly using it in 180w bridged mode and have yet to get it warm enough to shift the fan to high speed. The fan noise at low speed is totally acceptable. Those having noise issues with this amp should perhaps have their units serviced while they still are under warranty.

Fan volume in rack ok, plenty of power for standard listening area, indented pots fine, L/R db values close, good sound quality - a bit more towards PA than HiFi as expected - still very useable for monitoring popular audio, but maybe not warm enough for some, mixing classical and softer jazz.

I'm using this as a stereo power amp for my Avid Eleven Rack preamp/processor to a stereo speaker cab for live use. Plenty of power and quiet,,, sounds great!... only giving 4 stars as it only has Binding Post (banana) speaker outputs.

Good Clean Power from The ART SLA-1. Use it to power a pair of passive monitors and you'll be pleased with its performance. The IU rack space sizing makes it ideal to set up in your rack and use is very convenient.

Great amp per price point. Solid construction. I bought this amp to power a pair of NS-10's and they do a great job. With the amp turned all the way up there is minimal amp noise in the speakers. When the cooling fan kicks on it can be too noisy for a control room if it is close to the listening position.

I've only been using the SLA-1 for a few weeks, but so far I'm very impressed. Good sound, plenty of power, simple design--works as advertised. I only give it 4 stars because I've had it for so short a time. If it's still kicking in two years, I'll give it five.

And on that topic, I have every reason to believe that this amp was built to last, if nothing else because of it's sheer weight. I couldn't believe how heavy it was (in a good way) when I lifted it out of the box. Compared to the endless march of plastic-enclosed and planned-obsolescent products, the SLA-1 is a tank.

I'm powering a pair of NS-10M's. Accurate clean sound but the fan is loud.It runs all of the time and it sounds loud enough to be cooling a 5000 watt amp, but the price is right. A thermo-coupler would make this a really great amp.

The amplified signal is has a low S/N ratio, which is what I believe the advertised "ultra-quiet" and "clean, quiet" and "ultra-low noise" marketing copy refers to. To say that the amp itself is quiet is terribly misleading. Don't plan on keeping this amp in the control room. The fan runs constantly and emits lots of noise with a prominently loud 300 Hz hum. Definitely disappointed by how loud it is - especially since this amp was purchased to replace a loud amp, which is actually quieter. :/

I bought this to power a pair of secondary passive monitors in my project studio. Simple piece of gear, easy to hook up, it looks nice, has plenty of power, good clean sound. 5 stars for all of that.

But the cooling fan in this thing sounds like a vacuum cleaner. 0 stars for that.

I mean this fan is enormously loud. Come on, ART, this is totally unacceptable. What were you thinking? Do you not realize this amp will be used in recording studios? If I had a separate machine room where I could stick noisy gear, it would be okay. But I don't.

Back it goes to Sweetwater. Better luck next time, I hope.

my sweetwater rep, who is great, sold me this amp thinking it was fanless - it is not. i tried it anyway, and immediately heard and disliked the high-pitched whine of the 2-speed fan...one of the speeds is NOT "off," so it's always running. it was like having a bee in my studio. we thought maybe this unit was defective, so they shipped another one out, but it had exactly the same noise. to his credit, my rep took full responsibility and allowed me to return the second unit as well, even after i kept it a week trying to live with it. for an amp's fan to be too noisy in a home studio in nyc is pretty impressive...other than that, it sounded great, and was well powered for my situation. but the fan noise was unacceptable.

Intro:

This amp really delivers! For around two hundred bucks its a steal for its quality. The construction is great, with heavy aluminum and steel.


Looks:

The black brushed front with the bright blue LED looks sharp as well...very impressive. Two stepped pots on the front for volume. They feel solid and have a definate detent to the steps, however they spin a bit too easy and you can accidentaly spin it too far. Logos are sharp and classy, however the front scratched easily...not a big deal but kind of annoying.


Hardware:

The fan seems quiet enough, although the picky ones can just disable it from inside. Heat sinks are solid and perform well, nothing too special. The connectors on the back are decent quality, with XLR and bal/unbal 1/4". The outs connect bare wire, spades, and bananas equally well. Ground lift is a nice touch.


Performance:

The sound is slightly upwardly balanced, and a tad harsh on the high end, however it isn't terribly noticable and a good working in might smooth it out a little bit. Seems to perform well with my mixes, and i can tell a definate improvment in the detail of the sound compared to my old pioneer amp. Well worth the money, although if its just for mains and if you have the money, you might try something a little smoother sounding. However, if you need a good amp that puts out good sound for very little cash, this is a sure bet. The only other competing amp is the Alesis SA300, but its more expensive and only puts out 90W. Can't say on its sound quality, but it'd have quite a fight with this guy.