Getting the best sound out of my new amplifier.

[macyntyre04]

I have been using a borrowed Kicker KX400.1 amplifier on my 10" Audiobahn 1000N fully sealed subwoofer and it sounds amazing so I finally got enough to get my own amplifier and got a Boss PH1500M Phantom and it sounds like garbage comparatively. I'm not getting the same level of power or range in frequencies that I used to by a large margin.

Is the new amplifier just not as good? Or is there a break-in period for this amp? Or am I just setting the levels on it wrong? I'm relatively new to the DIY car audio field and would love some feedback. Thanks

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[quackhead 10+ year member]

I have been using a borrowed Kicker KX400.1 amplifier on my 10" Audiobahn 1000N fully sealed subwoofer and it sounds amazing so I finally got enough to get my own amplifier and got a Boss PH1500M Phantom and it sounds like garbage comparatively. I'm not getting the same level of power or range in frequencies that I used to by a large margin.
Is the new amplifier just not as good? Or is there a break-in period for this amp? Or am I just setting the levels on it wrong? I'm relatively new to the DIY car audio field and would love some feedback. Thanks

what HU are you using? is it compatable with where you have the gain switch set? Is the x-over set to LOW and turned up to @ 90hz?

 

[Dtrom 10+ year member]

I'm sure you could tune it to sound better than it currently does. But in the end the kicker amp is just a better amp. No way around it.

 

[keep_hope_alive Premium Member]

you just learned that Boss is not a good brand and Kicker is a good brand.

buying and installing is a tough way to learn that lesson. you could have just asked before hand. everyone would tell you to avoid Boss.

before you return it, tell us where you have all of the settings at (reference pic above).

 

[Flex68 10+ year member]

got a Boss PH1500M Phantom and it sounds like garbage comparatively. the new amplifier is just not good

zackly

 

[quackhead 10+ year member]

you just learned that Boss is not a good brand and Kicker is a good brand.
buying and installing is a tough way to learn that lesson. you could have just asked before hand. everyone would tell you to avoid Boss.

before you return it, tell us where you have all of the settings at (reference pic above).

that is what I was getting at, at least make sure the Boss is set right before doing a 3-pointer with it in the dumpster.

 

[wickedwitt 10+ year member]

I'm sure you could tune it to sound better than it currently does. But in the end the kicker amp is just a better amp. No way around it.

you just learned that Boss is not a good brand and Kicker is a good brand.
buying and installing is a tough way to learn that lesson. you could have just asked before hand. everyone would tell you to avoid Boss.

before you return it, tell us where you have all of the settings at (reference pic above).

These guys said it. You get what you pay for is typically a good motion to follow in the CA industry. Kicker amps (even the cheap ones) are good quality amps that put out rated or above, and do so with a great clean signal. Most cheap "MAX WATTS" output amps aren't going to put out anywhere close to what's claimed on the box or sound as good as a quality brand amp.

 

[n2audio 5,000+ posts]

If you could measure the actual power of those two amps you'd find the Boss to be about 1/2 the kicker.

More than all the other factors combined - that's what you're hearing.

A significant drop in actual power.

Pre-purchase it would have been pointed out to you that kicker makes solid amps that tend to be more powerful than specified.

Boss notoriously grossly over-rates their equipment because there's no governing body that will hold them to their claims. Regardless of its rating the 25A fuse tells you it's no better than ~250w.

 

[its_bacon12 10+ year member]

Power output is not nearly as important as 99% of the people here seem to think. Whether or not it does rated is pretty much irrelevant. Even if it's rated at 1200 and it does 1000, that 200 watts won't even improve SPL by 0.5 db. That said, the Boss amp probably outputs 200w @ 2 ohm verses the Kicker amp doing 400w (still only a 3db difference).

Regardless of power output, it sounds like you have different crossover settings that you don't like. Play around with the crossover settings before deeming everything garbage.

 

[n2audio 5,000+ posts]

Power output is not nearly as important as 99% of the people here seem to think.

In many cases that's probably true, but in this case I think it's the primary factor.

It doesn't sound terrible simply because it's a low quality amp.

The PH2500D would probably sound very similar to the kicker.

Whether or not it does rated is pretty much irrelevant.

In terms of value I agree, but when you're trying to compare one amp to another the fact that the Boss isn't even CLOSE to its ratings makes it impossible for someone who doesn't understand the reality of the situation to make a valid comparison and set a reasonable expectation.

The Boss amp probably outputs 200w @ 2 ohm verses the Kicker amp doing 400w (still only a 3db difference).

True, but the negative impact on SQ due to that power difference would be just as noticeable (or more noticeable) than a decrease in SPL.

Regardless of power output, it sounds like you have different crossover settings that you don't like. Play around with the crossover settings before deeming everything garbage.

On the contrary IMO. Play around with the settings all you want. You're simply not going to get close to the same performance at half the power.

 

[naughtyca 10+ year member]

This amp has a 30A fuse so this should produce at least 300watts or close to that

 

[its_bacon12 10+ year member]

In many cases that's probably true, but in this case I think it's the primary factor.It doesn't sound terrible simply because it's a low quality amp.

The PH2500D would probably sound very similar to the kicker.

I can't see the power output being a factor in sounding bad. It's simply less power - I'm assuming half, which translates to 3 dB in a perfect world. It's going to be less than that in reality. If power output was the primary factor, it would have sounded just as bad before when he'd turn the volume down..

In terms of value I agree, but when you're trying to compare one amp to another the fact that the Boss isn't even CLOSE to its ratings makes it impossible for someone who doesn't understand the reality of the situation to make a valid comparison and set a reasonable expectation.

Even if the Boss amp benched at half the rated power output, that doesn't make the difference you imply. Remember that volume is measured on the log scale, not linearly. Every 3 dB is double the volume. When you're listening to your sound system near full tilt, let's say you're a few notches down from max power, at -3 dB. Your 1000w rms amp that benched at 1150w rms is only using half that. Rarely do you use an amp full tilt, and even then it will not survive long if you do for extended periods.

True, but the negative impact on SQ due to that power difference would be just as noticeable (or more noticeable) than a decrease in SPL.

There's no negative impact on SQ with power output differential.. Other factors affect "SQ" - but subwoofers really don't exhibit SQ. They simply play clean and smooth or they do not. All bass detail is in frequencies multiple octaves higher; often in treble.

On the contrary IMO. Play around with the settings all you want. You're simply not going to get close to the same performance at half the power.

3 dB is pretty close. The threshold for the human ear to notice is about 1 dB with a few outlying studies confirming less. The reality of it is that while 3 dB is noticeable, it's not night and day by any means, unless you're competing.