Amplifier Recommendation

[DanH 10+ year member]

I'm going to be buying some new component speakers (Either Alpine Type X Reference or some variety of CDT) and a Pioneer Premier 8" Shallow sub. What I'm not sure of is which amp should I buy.

Should I get:

A) Eclipse XA4000 4ch (or whatever the newest one is)

B) Alpine MRP-F550 (or F600)

C) Alpine PDX 4.100

Also, are there any others in this price range I should look at that have comparable stats?

I've looked at several of the 5 channel amps in this price range and they're all too weak to drive whichever set of components I'll get. Also, the rear speakers will be powered by the head unit, and the sub we're talking about does 120 watts RMS at 4 ohms and maxes out at 500 watts. I'm not planning on driving a massive 16" deep dish sub, just a thin crust sub about half the size.

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[Side Show 10+ year member]

prsd4100f pioneer is a very nice amp.......... think there's one for sale on here atm

 

[bottom3 10+ year member]

Kicker has a nice 3-channel amp with a dedicated sub section.

 

[LaserRed38 10+ year member]

Alpine PDX-5 would be nice. You can run the comps active, then get two of those 8s (300w to the sub channel on that amp).

 

[LaserRed38 10+ year member]

I would go with a different sub though...

 

[DanH 10+ year member]

The sub is going to stay unless there's one of similar size you can think of because I don't want to block up any of my already limited space in my 95 Civic. I also don't want to turn my car into a ghetto rocket with more than one sub. I just need a little more oomph.

I like the looks of the PDX-5, but I don't know when it will ship and it looks a little out of my price range (the 4.100 is about as high as I can get). The Kicker is also a bit too weak for the speaker channels, but looks good on the sub channel. I also want to stay new with all of these sets.

Is the Eclipse amp any good? Or is it just not as good as the Alpines?

 

[bottom3 10+ year member]

Your not going to notice big difference between 70 and 100 watts. I would get the amp that has what you want on it(and looks goodto you, if it will be seen). All those amps are fine.

 

[LaserRed38 10+ year member]

I personally would rather do a 5ch than a 4ch with the rears bridged. I originally was going to do that with my current amp but found a good deal on the US Amps 5600 in my sig. There is a used one in the Classifieds (same as one in my sig) for $220 shipped, perfect condition. FYI. Also, I suggested a better sub. The Pioneers have a decent reputation, but I just don't like the way Pioneer subs sound. Check out this sub: http://www.criticalmassaudio.com/subwoofers/MB8.html

Or you could go with the 10" and that US Amps 5600. Just some other stuff to look at.

Oh and the PDX-5 is supposed to ship in March. But, I'm sure you will be able to find it from an online dealer for almost half the retail cost, just like the other PDX amps.

 

[DanH 10+ year member]

I like the sub, but $400 is a bit out of my price range.

 

[LaserRed38 10+ year member]

These are nice too, and a lot less expensive: http://www.partsexpress.com/pe/showdetl.cfm?&Partnumber=264-862

I was also looking at these when I was looking into shallow subs: http://www.lorentz-audio.com/woofers.html

 

[DanH 10+ year member]

Anyone here have any comments on Phoenix Gold amps? I hear a lot of nice things about the RsD speakers. Are their amps up to snuff or will they just snuff out?