12V and 14.4V... WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?!?!?!

[Epitaph to War 10+ year member]

I'm still new to car stereo so forgive my ignorance...

I was planning on getting one of the Eclipse 12" Alum Subs rated at

500W RMS... I've been looking for a decent amp to power it and I came

across the Kenwood Excelon amps. The one I was looking at is the

KAC-X810D which has a Power Output at 4 Ohms, at 12V

(20Hz-20kHz, 0.05% THD): 300 Watts x 1

OR

Power Output at 4 Ohms, at 14.4V

(20Hz-20kHz, 0.05% THD): 400 Watts x 1 12V 14.4V OR

What does the 12V and 14.4V mean?!?!?!

How much wattage would I really need to make the Eclipse sound good?

Would 300 suffice or should I go with the 400 if I can?

ThanX in advance!!!

One more thing... sorta off the topic but I figured I'd ask while I'm here...

If a pair of 6x8 speakers has a peak of 300W, does that refer to the pair

or each individual speaker? In other words, would one speaker of that pair

have an RMS of 150W or 75W?

THX AGAIN!!!

Click to read more...

 

[Mark_ab 5,000+ posts]

12V is just the battery. 14.4V is the theoretical voltage when your car is running. It is more like 13.5-13.8.

 

[stangsounds 10+ year member]

my crossover reads 14.4 when the car is running but no volume.

 

[thumpinblazr 10+ year member]

most cars run about 13.5- 13.8 volts while the engine is running. The battery itself puts out 12 volts while the car is not running. Now if the amp is rated at 12 volts, then it will put out more power than it is rated at when your car is producing about 13.5 volts. If the amp is rated at 14.4 volts, it will put out less power if you are producing 13.5 volts.

hope thats what u wanted,

Dustin

 

[Epitaph to War 10+ year member]

I appreciate it guys...

ThanX for clearing that up!!!

 

[bronco2323 10+ year member]

i think it refers to each 6x8 as 300w peak