I'm new and looking for advice based on my budget.

[roper 10+ year member]

I would go with a JBL 2-channel over that Kicker one... Just my preferences.
http://cgi.ebay.com/JBL-GTO-752-IN-CAR-AUDIO-STEREO-AMPLIFIER-AMP-2-CHANNEL_W0QQitemZ380079368743QQcmdZViewItem

Ah sorry I may have since switched to a Kenwood amplifier, but we'll see how things go. If I don't directly switch to your choice, that doesn't mean that i'm not considering it. I've considered every link and post so far in this thread, just some more than others. Have to be patient and see how things weigh out for me //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif

 

[Plutoman 10+ year member]

Honestly, between the JBL and kicker, either one would be good and put out rated power. The kenwoods might be close, but they probably won't put out quite rated power. If you get something slightly more than you need, though, that's fine, and all of them should put out a fairly clean signal. However, the kenwood will probably not be quite as good - but it'll definitely be decent.

Crutchfield is an authorized dealer for all the brands they carry. It's why they carry much less brands than other sites, as other sites warranty them themselves, and don't always have full authorization. It's also why they run a bit higher pricewise than other sites. By all means, though, I know the situation, take a look //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[roper 10+ year member]

Like I said, my dad is going on vacation, maybe i'll head on back to Sound Trax with a friend and see some model numbers for the stuff he wrote down. Also, I might be able to talk to the guy a little bit more without my dad there. I was pretty scared to keep asking for more stuff because my dad is uneasy about me spending this much in one fell swoop, but without him there I should be able to tell the guy exactly what I want, and that I might build my own box

 

[lostsuspect21 10+ year member]

where is soundtrax?

 

[lostsuspect21 10+ year member]

nvm , centereach

 

[Horsemanwill 10+ year member]

ya crutchfield is probably one of the few where everything is authorized to sell. crutchfields' techs are also ususually mecp certified. and have had hands on training from the companies they represent.

 

[roper 10+ year member]

Yeah, it used to be in Stony Brook next to J&R's steakhouse but they moved around 10 years ago.

 

[roper 10+ year member]

Had a few Amp and Sub related questions:

I if I get two 4 ohm subs rated 50 - 300 watts, and then I get a mono sub that says "300x1 @ 4ohms", does that mean each sub will only get 150 watts?

If a sub says 50-300 watts and only gets 150, is that really bad, or will it still perform pretty well, just not the best it could?

In such a case would I be better with one sub, therefore it gets 300watts from the amp for itself, or would I be better with two subs getting 150 watts?

 

[Horsemanwill 10+ year member]

Had a few Amp and Sub related questions:
I if I get two 4 ohm subs rated 50 - 300 watts, and then I get a mono sub that says "300x1 @ 4ohms", does that mean each sub will only get 150 watts?

If a sub says 50-300 watts and only gets 150, is that really bad, or will it still perform pretty well, just not the best it could?

In such a case would I be better with one sub, therefore it gets 300watts from the amp for itself, or would I be better with two subs getting 150 watts?

yes

depends on the effiency of the sub. some will suffer some will play fine.

imo one sub with the head room is better then 2 subs starving

 

[Plutoman 10+ year member]

Ahh, not quite.

The amplifier does 300 watts RMS @ 4 ohms. The subs are each 4 ohm subs, which means you wire them in either series or parallel to a 2 or 8 ohm load. That means you'll either do ~500-600 RMS through them total, for ~250-300 apiece, or ~150 RMS through them, for about ~75 RMS apiece.

However, the amp needs to be stable at 2 ohms. If it's a two channel, it will likely only be 4 ohm stable when its bridged, so you would need dual 4 ohm, to wire each sub in parallel to 2 ohms, then in series with each other to 4 ohms, in which each would get 150 RMS.

 

[roper 10+ year member]

However, the amp needs to be stable at 2 ohms. If it's a two channel, it will likely only be 4 ohm stable when its bridged, so you would need dual 4 ohm, to wire each sub in parallel to 2 ohms, then in series with each other to 4 ohms, in which each would get 150 RMS.

That just went flying way over my head.

It's a mono amp by the way.

 

[roper 10+ year member]

Check out this wish list, notice the mono amplifier I chose... I know the guy has it in stock so that's why I picked that one. But you then explained to me that it would be starving the subs of power. :[

WISH LIST - http://www.crutchfield.com/S-fSzFUBd9ivr/cgi-bin/wishlistviewer.asp

This wishlist is NOT going to be ordered off the internet. I'm using crutchfield because they are closest to store prices, therefore it gives me an estimate of price. It also helps me pick some of the brands that the store has... though i'm not positive of which he has.

I know for a fact that the store i'm going to buy the stuff at has:

JL Audio

Kenwood

Boston Acoustics

Alpine

I'm sure they have more, these were just some of the brands I saw while he was going over options with me.

Maybe someone could help me pick out a list of those brands for around $1000-$1200 tops on crutchfield? Or maybe just modify the wish list I just posted a little bit?

(by the way, the head unit is 100% now, that is the head unit I am getting.)

EDIT: Pluto, I just re-read what you said a few times and it made a little bit more sense. So, in theory, I could wire my amplifier as a 2ohm even thoough the subwoofers are 4ohm, and that would give them nearly double the power? Is that possible with the amp and subs I posted?

 

[Plutoman 10+ year member]

EDIT: Pluto, I just re-read what you said a few times and it made a little bit more sense. So, in theory, I could wire my amplifier as a 2ohm even thoough the subwoofers are 4ohm, and that would give them nearly double the power? Is that possible with the amp and subs I posted?

Yep - I'll try and explain it better when I get back in a little while //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif The electrical details of it all.

 

[brian84corvette 10+ year member]

im probly going to catch alot of flack for this,

but I realley like my kicker ds 6930 speakers.

they sound great off 75w each.

I saw a fiew pages back people recomending you $300 component speakers.

is a bit much to pay for them I think. for $120 you should be able to find some

nice sounding stuff. and still have extra left over for other parts of system.

I also use kicker 350 4 channel amp to power my highs.

pair of the kicker ds 6by9 in the rear, and a pair of 6.5 in the doors.

I realley like that amp. it does a good job running at 4 ohms. - still clean

altho I have heard that it gets muddy when you run 2 ohms to it.

and

for a bit - before I had door speakers installed - I was running one channel to the highs

at 75w each speaker, and running another channel bridged to a small sub @4 ohms = 175w of power for the sub. - and it sounded great like that also.

not a knock your socks off kinda thing - but definately good sounding music.

 

[roper 10+ year member]

Hate to rain on your parade, but I can't go with kicker, the place i'm buying from isn't an authorized Kicker retailer.

 

[roper 10+ year member]

Yep - I'll try and explain it better when I get back in a little while //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif The electrical details of it all.

Honestly, I don't need the electrical details as much as I need the application of what you said to my current situation.

I say this only because I don't want you to go wild posting a whole lesson when I know it will only confuse me and/or be irrelevant to helping me pick speakers. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/crazy.gif.c13912c32de98515d3142759a824dae7.gif

WISH LIST - http://www.crutchfield.com/S-fSzFUBd9ivr/cgi-bin/wishlistviewer.asp

Maybe you could, instead, tell me if I can apply the strategy you said to the subs and amp I posted above - the kenwood mono one and the two JL Audio ones.

EDIT: It says 500w @ 2 ohm, does that mean I can wire it down to 2ohms to get 250 w to each sub? That wouldn't be nearly as bad. If that's the case, should I go with the setup I posted in the wishlist above?

 

[roper 10+ year member]

In case the wishlist doesn't work:

_______________________________

Kenwood KAC-8104D Mono subwoofer amplifier - $199.99

500 watts RMS x 1 at 2 ohms

_______________________________

Boston Acoustics SX50 - $199.99

5-1/4" component speaker system

_______________________________

Kenwood Excelon KDC-X492 - $169.99

CD receiver

_______________________________

Kenwood KAC-6404 $149.99

4-channel car amplifier

40 watts RMS x 4

_______________________________

JL Audio 10W1v2-4 - $119.99 x 2 = $239.98

W1v2 Series 10" 4-ohm subwoofer

_______________________________

Boston Acoustics S55 - $99.99

5-1/4" 2-way car speakers

_______________________________

$1,059.93 subtotal

$350.00 installation

+$119.84 tax

$1529.77

(not 100%, I want opinions on this - If I wire the amp to 2 ohms to the subs will that make the RMS 250w to each of them?)

 

[joshualittle]

Good luck with everything roper, sounds like you've got a nice system picked out. Wish you could've gone with my buddy, it would've saved u a little bit of dough and you could've got high end brands. I'll pm you his number if you change your mind. Just another option for you to consider.

 

[roper 10+ year member]

Thanks man, i've still got a few questions, but I think i'm really starting to narrow it down.

 

[norcrawler 10+ year member]

600,000th post in general discussion..

haha