New to car audio. Need help finding an amp.

[ajnolte18 10+ year member]

I purchased a 10" pioneer shallow mount TS-SW1001S4 the other day for my 98 s10 extended cab and i need help finding an amp. I am not looking for anything too expensive as i am on a tight budget. I would like to find an amp that can run my sub and front speakers. I am still undecided on my front speakers as i would like to find amp first and then buy speakers based on the amps rms ratings. Thank you for helping.

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[n2audio 5,000+ posts]

you just need a good 4 ch. Preferably pretty good sized. 75-100w x 4 would be great. That would give you plenty of power for a good pair of front speakers and around 300w to drive your sub on the two rear channels (bridged). Keep in mind your power numbers don't have to match perfectly. Running a pair of 50-60w speakers with an amp that's 75-100w per channel isn't a problem.

here's a winner:

http://www.techronics.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=8663

 

[ajnolte18 10+ year member]

you just need a good 4 ch. Preferably pretty good sized. 75-100w x 4 would be great. That would give you plenty of power for a good pair of front speakers and around 300w to drive your sub on the two rear channels (bridged). Keep in mind your power numbers don't have to match perfectly. Running a pair of 50-60w speakers with an amp that's 75-100w per channel isn't a problem.
here's a winner:

http://www.techronics.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=product.display&Product_ID=8663

Ok thank you. I am still confused and overwhelmed at all these numbers. I understand what rms means. I am just confused on how to figure it. On the subwoofer you suggested it says "RMS power @ 4 Ohms bridged: 320W x 2" so does that mean it bridged into a 2 channel amp and 320W rms are going into each channel?

 

[ajnolte18 10+ year member]

Or would it be better for me to get a lower powered 2 channel amp to power my front speakers and a higher powered mono amp to power my sub? I am going to self install and how hard is it to run power wires to 2 amps? and would i need to upgrade anything in my electrical system to do this?

 

[jdawg 5,000+ posts]

get a 4 channel, channel 1 & 2 run the door speakers, channel 3 & 4 bridge together to a single channel for the sub

 

[ajnolte18 10+ year member]

Ok i need help finding rms. On the amp he suggested the specs are:

RMS power @ 4 Ohms: 80W x 4

RMS power @ 2 Ohms: 160W x 4

RMS power @ 4 Ohms bridged: 320W x 2

So does this mean I will have 320W RMS going to my sub bridged on channels 3 and 4, and i will 160W on channel 1 and 160W on channel 2 at at 4 ohms?

 

[jdawg 5,000+ posts]

no 320 to the bridged channel, and 80 on each of the other 2 channels

 

[ajnolte18 10+ year member]

Ok thank you very much for clearing that up

 

[ajnolte18 10+ year member]

Would this amp be a good choice? I am on a very tight budget and this seems to give the power i need. Ultra Linear 4 Channel

 

[n2audio 5,000+ posts]

Would this amp be a good choice? I am on a very tight budget and this seems to give the power i need. Ultra Linear 4 Channel

Would it work, yes. However, Ultra Linear is one of the horse shit brands that advertizes WAY more power than the amp could ever have a chance of actually producing. Plus, IMO its reliability will be questionable.

Supposedly the UL amp can produce MORE power than the MB, but the MB uses two 40A fuses (maybe 2x30A - there's conflicting info) and the UL uses two 20's.

40A worth of fusing on a class a/b amp tells you it's going to produce somewhere around 500w rms, possibly less -- 250x2 bridged and probably 60 or 70 x 4.

The MB, having 2x40A should, obviously, be capable of a lot more power (and appears it MIGHT be under-rated).

I guess the question is -- is saving $50 for a less powerful, less quality amp a good option for you.

Here's another option for $130 -- I hear they'll take as little as $100 if you use the "make an offer" option. Slightly over-rated, but very popular with few reports of problems: http://cgi.ebay.com/CADENCE-TXA-3004-STEREO-AMPLIFIER-BRAND-NEW_W0QQitemZ310087234032QQcmdZViewItemQQptZCar_Amplifiers?hash=item4832a3b1f0&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1234%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1309%7C301%3A1%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A50

Here's the MBquart for $126: http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-MB-QUART-DSC480-4-Ch-640w-Car-Amp-Amplifier-DSC-480_W0QQitemZ350182718798QQcmdZViewItemQQptZCar_Amplifiers?hash=item5188843d4e&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1234%7C66%3A2%7C65%3A12%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318%7C301%3A0%7C293%3A1%7C294%3A50#ebayphotohosting

There's also a dsc4125 for $150

If you're willing to spend $100 on a UL I would personally save up a few more $$ for the MB, or make a $100 offer on the Cadence.

 

[ajnolte18 10+ year member]

Ok thank you i believe i am going to go with the MB Quart and on the head unit i only need 2 sets of pre amp outs correct? and the front pre amp out will power my front speakers and the rear pre amp out will be used for my sub channels. Or do i need to get a head unit with 3 pre amp outs one for front, rear, and sub. If that is the case i was looking at this head unit Clarion DXZ385USB as it comes with free installation gear

 

[n2audio 5,000+ posts]

and the front pre amp out will power my front speakers and the rear pre amp out will be used for my sub channels.

That will work fine.

Or do i need to get a head unit with 3 pre amp outs one for front, rear, and sub. If that is the case i was looking at this head unit Clarion DXZ385USB as it comes with free installation gear

That's a decent HU, but don't make the change just for a sub out.

 

[ajnolte18 10+ year member]

Ok i am going to go ahead and order that HU and amp once i get the money. I was thinking about these for my front speakers then i will have everything. SONY XS-GTX1620S. Also will i need a capacitor or need to do the big 3 upgrade or should i be fine with the stock wiring on my 98 Chevy S10 extended cab?

 

[n2audio 5,000+ posts]

I was thinking about these for my front speakers then i will have everything. SONY XS-GTX1620S. Also will i need a capacitor or need to do the big 3 upgrade or should i be fine with the stock wiring on my 98 Chevy S10 extended cab?

NOBODY would suggest sony speakers, but the only pair I've ever heard (driven with a good amp and well installed) sounded fine. At that price I don't think you'd find another option that's much better.

An amp that size should run fine on most any stock charging system. If it doesn't, a cap probably wouldn't solve any issues anyway.

 

[ajnolte18 10+ year member]

Would it be worth the extra $20 and go with Phoenix Gold RSD Components?