Which Amp works with what Sub?

[wackywally]

Hello fellow citizens of the Car Audio World!!!

Every time I'm looking in to buying new components I'm always wondering whether or not I'll be pushing enough power and I usually just have faith that the salesman is telling me the truth. My question I ask the salesman is "Can I use this amp(a) to push sub(a) or would it be better to use amp(b) to push sub(a) or should I stick with amp(a) and use it with sub(b)?" I usually get some kind of shrug and he says "I don't know, I guess it would work either way." OK!? Great Einstien!//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/mad.gif.c18f003ab0ef8a0d9c27ca78d77a6392.gif

So here is the question: When matching up the amps to the components I will be useing, whether they be subs or speakers, what am I looking at. What watt/rms/ohm amp can/will/should push what watt/rms/ohm sub/speakers? How much power is too much and how much is not enough. What numbers on the tag am I looking at other than the PRICE!?

If the response to this question is length and you don't have time to respond or don't want to because I've bored you to death so far is there anyone/magazine/webpage that I could be refered to that would explain these questions?

Thank You

Wally

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[SuckMikeHawk23 10+ year member]

its quite simple... match everything (4ohm amp, 4 ohm sub, 400watt amp, 400 watt sub). of course, you dont have to match everything exactly, but this would be better. for a beginner, i wouldnt recommend getting an amp with higher wattage than your sub, you might go bass crazy and turn ur gain all the way up, then you're gonna have to go buy a new sub. if you buy a 400 watt sub, a 350 watt amp will definetly do the work for you, the 50 watt differential is very little. 300 would be ok too actually, and if ur on a budget and want a good amp, go ahead and push 250. now ohms are trickier than watts. an 2 channel amp usually has 3 ratings on it. x2 at 4 ohms, x2 at 2ohms, and x1 bridged. figure out how you want to wire your subs if you're going to run more than 1, then find out how many TOTAL watts you need, and then match it up with an amp that will run it at it's full potential (if that's what you're looking for).

 

[n2audio 5,000+ posts]

When you're checking out the power of an amp or sub ALWAYS check the RMS values. The peak values are virtually meaningless.