a watt is a watt??

[noob with an RS 10+ year member]

ok im asking becuz i've got a modded MTX 1501d and an Orion 1200D as some of you may know. i've only got ONE 12" idMAX and its RMS is 1000 watts. from asking around on this board, i get the impression that Orion is the better quality amp but dont get me wrong.. mtx is still a great company and the 1501d is still a beast of an amp. right now i've got the mtx running my idMAX in 4 ohms set to deliever 800 watts at full volume with a 0db 50hz sine wave. if i were to hook up an orion and set the gain to deliever the same power, shouldn't i expect the same sound and no audible difference at all?

i ask becuz im not sure if i should take my idmax out my ported enclosure and rewire the voice coils to 1 ohm to run the orion instead.

ONE MORE QUESTION:

if the mtx1501d is rated to produce 800 watts at 4 ohms (14.4 volts) and i crank up the gain to produce 900 watts at full volume.. am i clipping any signal or risking anything?? i use to say holy crap my idMAX is loud.. as time has gone by i feel like i want it louder.. or give it more power!!!

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[JimJ 5,000+ posts]

For subwoofers, as long as you aren't sending a clipped signal, you're going to be hard pressed to determine the difference between amplifiers.

 

[squeak9798 5,000+ posts]

if i were to hook up an orion and set the gain to deliever the same power, shouldn't i expect the same sound and no audible difference at all?

Yup, assuming you are not clipping either of them.

ONE MORE QUESTION:if the mtx1501d is rated to produce 800 watts at 4 ohms (14.4 volts) and i crank up the gain to produce 900 watts at full volume.. am i clipping any signal or risking anything??

If you do that with a 0db test tone, chances are slim you'll ever clip the amp with music because most music isn't recorded at 0db, but at something around -6db. In which case, you'll never output full power anyways. If the amp is only capable of 800w RMS output, and you play a 0db tone and attempt to push more power out of the amp (900w, for example) by cranking the gain...yes, you will clip the amp.

This is all assuming it was not underrated and not capable of 900w RMS to begin with, in which case the answer would be no, you would clip it anyways since it could safely provide that power.

i use to say holy crap my idMAX is loud.. as time has gone by i feel like i want it louder.. or give it more power!!!

More power isn't always the fix in these situations //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif New box or addition of a 2nd subwoofer would be the safest best. Adding power is the least efficient and least effective way of increasing output. And those IDmax aren't power handling beasts to begin with.

 

[noob with an RS 10+ year member]

kk thanks for clearing that up guys

 

[DBfan187 5,000+ posts]

try setting your gain w/ your bass on -6 with a 0dB tone.

then when your done, bring it back upto 0.

 

[noob with an RS 10+ year member]

try setting your gain w/ your bass on -6 with a 0dB tone.
then when your done, bring it back upto 0.

uhh why would i want to do that? //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/rolleyes.gif.c1fef805e9d1464d377451cd5bc18bfb.gif besides, i have the DEFEAT setting on.. i use my audiocontrol for processing.

 

[T3mpest 10+ year member]

because most music is recorded at -6, a 0 db test tone at -6would be like music at +0, I think that's what he's going for...

 

[squeak9798 5,000+ posts]

uhh why would i want to do that? //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/rolleyes.gif.c1fef805e9d1464d377451cd5bc18bfb.gif besides, i have the DEFEAT setting on.. i use my audiocontrol for processing.

To extract more output out of your amplifier while music is playing.

Tempest pretty much it the nail on the head. Since music isn't recorded at 0db, using that as the level during gain setting will result in a decrease of amplifier output power while music is being played.

 

[noob with an RS 10+ year member]

but is there any music that is higher than -6db? if so, wont those songs introduce clipping?

 

[DBfan187 5,000+ posts]

music is dynamic, by the time you'll notice any clipping, the volume level would be so loud.

 

[saywhat? 5,000+ posts]

soare you sayin that by adjusting gains with a -6db SONG (not tone) to the level you enjoy listening, then turning it back to 0db, you wont clip?

 

[squeak9798 5,000+ posts]

Here's the skinny on what Mike is getting at:

In short; Since music is recorded at something less than 0db (generally in the vicinity of -6db), by using the standard 0db test tone to set the amplifier gains we end up using much less of the amplifier's available power for a given volume setting. So if we set everything prior to the amplifier (headunit, preamps, EQ's, external crossovers, etc) for maximum unclipped output with a 0db (simple terms; it will never clip) and then *increase* the amplifier gains to compensate for the decreased recording level we have the best mix of unclipped signals and maximum power output from the amplifier for a given volume setting. The amplifier *may* clip with this setting....but due to the short time period of the event, we will hardly ever hear it and the effects won't be damaging to the equipment (i.e. no blown speakers).

 

[Alpineinstaller 10+ year member]

i crank up the gain to produce 900 watts at full volume..

//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/rolleyes.gif.c1fef805e9d1464d377451cd5bc18bfb.gif the gain is not a volume knob

 

[tRiGgEr 5,000+ posts]

A watt is a watt, but an amp is not an amp

I can't see any reason why you should switch amps other than the extra 300 watts. Even though you wont be able to hear much of a difference. I also can't see any reason you don't just do it and see what amp you like.

 

[DBfan187 5,000+ posts]

Here's the skinny on what Mike is getting at:
In short; Since music is recorded at something less than 0db (generally in the vicinity of -6db), by using the standard 0db test tone to set the amplifier gains we end up using much less of the amplifier's available power for a given volume setting. So if we set everything prior to the amplifier (headunit, preamps, EQ's, external crossovers, etc) for maximum unclipped output with a 0db (simple terms; it will never clip) and then *increase* the amplifier gains to compensate for the decreased recording level we have the best mix of unclipped signals and maximum power output from the amplifier for a given volume setting. The amplifier *may* clip with this setting....but due to the short time period of the event, we will hardly ever hear it and the effects won't be damaging to the equipment (i.e. no blown speakers).

yup, I didn't have enough time to type it out. but you're better at that anyway:naughty: