which amp should i buy

[RoLLa 3]

hey i have 2 pioneer 10" subs and they are 250w rms each which would be 500w rms and they are 500w max each meaning 1000w and the are both 4ohm some people say buy a amp with less max like 800w so you don't blow them n some people say worry about the rms so what exactly am i look for???

[supertownace]

forget the crap "max" figure. its the rms value you need. the amp you will need depends if you want to run those subs as a mono or stereo setup. also the amp you choose should be 2 ohm stable if you want to use the subs as a mono setup.

stereo subs sound better as opposed to mono subs. stereo is where you use BOTH channels of a 2 channel amp. whereas a mono setup uses both channels of a 2 channel amp but they are "bridged". this means both channels are grouped together to provide one output.

the best amp-to-sub match is where your amp rms output is the same or slightly less in value than your subs. this is so that at full noise your amp won't try to push the cones out of your subs or at least fry the voice coils.....trust me...you KNOW when you fry a sub!!!....it STINKS!!. (it happened to me with a pair of 18" 1000w rms subs....we put a 3500w per channel amp on them!!....to be honest we wanted to fry them.....they needed to be re-coned)

if you setup your subs as a mono arrangement wire them so BOTH positive(+) and negative(-) speaker leads go to the respective (+) and (-) on the amp....most amps will have this printed just above the output terminals anyways.

in your case i would shop around for an amp around 220w to 250w rms per channel (stereo) into 4 ohms.(if you want a stereo setup)

or for mono subs look for an amp around 450w to 480w rms in bridge mono and 2 ohm stable.

cheers

[STYLSH]

Sorry have to disagree. The best match for amps and speakers is to have the amp producing MORE than the sub. So I would be more inclined to use a 600w or more rms mono amp than a 450w rms mono amp. Reason behind this is that you can tune a more powerful amp to run at 70% and have clean power. If you have an amp at or less than what your subs can handle, then you'll be running your amp at 100%. On the off chance that you accidentally turned it up too much or the song is louder, your amp will then be running at 110% which would cause it to clip and blow stuff up. It is also more efficient to run a bigger amp at 70% than a smaller amp at 100%.

This is a tried and tested method in many cars in comps. I currently have 400w rms going to each side of my front speakers which are rated at 150w rms and they are fine and has been for 2 years now. Before that I had 80wrms going into each of my stock fronts rated at 15w and it didnt blow up either - made them sound heaps better too.

[edit] For us to recommend an amp we'll need a budget.

Edited July 13, 2008 by STYLSH

[scracy]

It is allways better to have a higher amp power and a lower speaker power rating. Whilst power can destroy a sub or any other speaker generally

its the amount of distotion that the amp produces that destroys speakers.When an amp distorts its driven into "clipping" its this clipping

that destroys speakers as the amp is no longer able to control the speaker.If your sub is rated at 250watts rms a 250w rms amp or higher

would be ideal something like pioneer gm-7300 for each sub.

[HI ROLLA]

Sorry have to disagree. The best match for amps and speakers is to have the amp producing MORE than the sub. So I would be more inclined to use a 600w or more rms mono amp than a 450w rms mono amp. Reason behind this is that you can tune a more powerful amp to run at 70% and have clean power. If you have an amp at or less than what your subs can handle, then you'll be running your amp at 100%. On the off chance that you accidentally turned it up too much or the song is louder, your amp will then be running at 110% which would cause it to clip and blow stuff up. It is also more efficient to run a bigger amp at 70% than a smaller amp at 100%.

This is a tried and tested method in many cars in comps. I currently have 400w rms going to each side of my front speakers which are rated at 150w rms and they are fine and has been for 2 years now. Before that I had 80wrms going into each of my stock fronts rated at 15w and it didnt blow up either - made them sound heaps better too.

[edit] For us to recommend an amp we'll need a budget.

STYLSH is right. u dont want to be clipping, as thats what does the damage. higher rms amp than the sub is the way to go.

[¥uri]

hey guys,

would this theory also apply to powering a set of component speakers? Currently i have a pair of Kenwood splits with an rms max output of 65w and was also wanting to know what amp specs would be best to buy?

aswell, how would one setup an amp to run, for example at 70% load without 'cooking speakers with lower handling figures?

p.s looking at an all Kenwood setup, price/cost permitting

apologies for my n00b-ness everyone

yURI

[STYLSH]

Yes it is for all speakers.

To properly set up a system/speaker.

Turn the gains on the amps to minimum. Set the volume on the head unit to desired number, somewhere around 25-30 if your headunit max is 40, this way it'll give you a bit of leeway to play with for quieter songs. Play a song you know and slowly turn the gains up until you hear it sound funny. (Popping, or thudding or if it sounds like it is hitting something). Then back off the gains a smidgent and enjoy your system. You'll just have to remember NOT to turn the volume past whatever you have just set.

Also never get the some brand for everything as each brand has their own speciality. And i would personally advise against getting a mainstream brand such as kenwood, sony, etc. This is because they dont build their own stuff. They get other people to build it and then stick a brand plaque on it. I'd look at brands such as alpine or if you want something better and wont hurt the hip pocket too much, Audiosystem amps (NOT audioline).

[¥uri]

Yes it is for all speakers.

To properly set up a system/speaker.

Turn the gains on the amps to minimum. Set the volume on the head unit to desired number, somewhere around 25-30 if your headunit max is 40, this way it'll give you a bit of leeway to play with for quieter songs. Play a song you know and slowly turn the gains up until you hear it sound funny. (Popping, or thudding or if it sounds like it is hitting something). Then back off the gains a smidgent and enjoy your system. You'll just have to remember NOT to turn the volume past whatever you have just set.

Also never get the some brand for everything as each brand has their own speciality. And i would personally advise against getting a mainstream brand such as kenwood, sony, etc. This is because they dont build their own stuff. They get other people to build it and then stick a brand plaque on it. I'd look at brands such as alpine or if you want something better and wont hurt the hip pocket too much, Audiosystem amps (NOT audioline).

Cool! thanks heaps for the write up, i'll look into it more..

[RoLLa 3]

okay well my budget is less then $150 and i only want the one amp for 2 subs....

Thanks

[dannywss]

$130 is too little.. and for that price, forget about quality.. just look at the rms...

[¥uri]

Also never get the some brand for everything as each brand has their own speciality. And i would personally advise against getting a mainstream brand such as kenwood, sony, etc. This is because they dont build their own stuff. They get other people to build it and then stick a brand plaque on it.

looking back at this post, would you have reference to prove this.. especially regarding Kenwoods.. as for Sony, i say they're better suited for home entertainment not i.c.e

[trentmeyer23]

okay well my budget is less then $150 and i only want the one amp for 2 subs....

Thanks

Well maybe something out of the Jaycar catalogue, but i dont even think they'd be cheap enough. I never thought id say this, but if u want cheap look at ebay, but expect it to be nasty too. Along with the other guys, 500WRMS is a minimum that ud probably wanna run.

[STYLSH]

Just an example

Sony/Kenwood makes most of their money from their home theatre, comsumer electronics, home appliances etc (lets say 90%)... Their car audio accounts for a very small percentage of this (say 10%). Now one can easily see where most of their R&D is going to go. Thats right, not in their car audio products.

I've been shown a while ago a brochure from a chinese manufacturer of car audio products asking if a shop would like to sell their "own brand" of products. And guess what, you can see sony and kenwood products in there just before their are badged. I cant remember what other stuff there were as it was about 5 years ago when i saw it lol

[Evo7]

Hey guys,

just a question,

i have a a car audio system that i havent put in the rolla yet, and was wondering if i should put it in or not?

The system i have follows:

Pioneer Head Unit

Clarion 4" Speakers (I know they're small :P)

Clarion 6" Splits

Clarion 400W RMS Amp

Clarion 600W Sub.

From wat i have read as above,

it seems i used to run an amp that wasnt higher then the max of the Sub.

So my next question is,

Should i get a New more powerful Amp???