Newbie questions

[68bumps]

Hey guys, I've got an 68 ford pickup and I'm wanting to put a semi decent sound setup. I'm new to audio and I want to know what I need.

I've got speakers and a 10 inch sub but that's all. I want to run an amp to 4 speakers and of course to the sub. Do you guys prefer a 4 channel and a mono channel or a single 5 channel?

Also, do I need the radio to have 3 sets of RCA outlets? Are those RCA outlets called pre-amp outlets?

And lastly, do I need anything else other than the amp and the radio?

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[n3w_3ra]

The head unit I have only has 2 sets of outputs I used y splitters to make 3 sets but preferably have a headunit with 3 sets

 

[Side Show 10+ year member]

4 chan and a mono amp.... that headunit will be fine to start with, worth an upgrade later tho... you seem to have the gist of it

 

[brian84corvette 10+ year member]

please post up links to the specific 10" sub you have - along with a link to your speakers you already bought.

the specifications they require are technical and you will want to match the ratings of each to the output of an amp or amps you hook up.

we need to know ohms , rms watts , and frequency response ( example a pair of co axal 4 way speakers might be rated for FS: 60-10,000 hz

hz = hertz and is basicly a measurment of sound waves in per time.

bass is 20 hz to 100 hz and midbass picks up from around 100hz to 300 hz ish ( im shure people here will have opinions on this but its a generalization )

vocals and upper drum sounds like high hats are in the 800 to 7,000 hz range and anything above 7k in my opinion is pretty screachy like awfull siren type noises but if you have a system with out any upper hz range it does end up sounding strange a bit just food for thought.

if you get a head unit that is a baller - you can ajust the settings on each set of rca on the back to hook to each pair of chanels on the amps to ajust the frequency range you wish to power each set of speakers at = good. you dont want to be sending 4,000 hz signals to your subwoofer so a good headunit will allow you to tune that out.

if you dont have a baller headunit - there is a $65 ish crossover you can add to the system with one set of rca coming out of the headunit to it - and it has 3 sets of rca coming out - with the ability to tune the frequency range for each pair. this is what i use but i think mine was $50

Hifonics 2 or 4 Channel Electronic Crossover | eBay

 

[bbeljefe]

If you're not interested in rattling the windows in the car next to you, a 5 channel amp can be good in that it requires less wiring and has a smaller footprint than two amps. The downfall is that if you do decide you want more bass (or more mid/high), you have an amplifier channel or set of channels that's useless.

Also, the RCA outlets are called preamp outputs, not outlets, although outlets would be appropriate too, I suppose. ;-) They're also called line level or low level outs.

Have you or will you be relocating the gas tank to accommodate the subwoofer box?