Amp help needed

**doctorKJ** · 08-19-2002 10:14 PM

I am looking at beefing up my rex's stereo pretty soon...and wanted to know exactly what type of amp I need. I am looking to get probably 2 10" subs (not sure of brand yet) to put in the trunk and would like to mount the amp to the back of the back seat. I need the amp to power the subs at least...but since I am no car audio expert, what else should I use it to power? Front speakers? Back? Will I need to go with just a 2 channel amp or multi?
BTW, I will at least for now be using the stock HU.

I am not going for competition sound by any means, but something that hits pretty well. Hoping to keep the amp and subs in the ~$300 range if possible. Also, where would you reccomend getting everything from? Caraudioexpert.com seems to have good prices...

Thanks a lot!
Karl

**niceguybille** · 08-20-2002 11:12 AM

if you are looking for a reasonably cheap way out, i would suggest spending all the money you intend on spending (for now anyway

) on the subs and sub amp. to get a good sound w/o going overboard i would suggest runnning two 4ohm tens and a two channel amp (preferably one that can handle being bridged down to a two ohm load) to get complete use out of your subs. not wanting anything to crazy your head unit and factory speaks should provide decent sound for now.

now as far as the brands, you should really go visit a few stereo shops and listen to what they have so you can factor in what sound you are trying to achieve w/the budget you have set to stay around. make sure you tell whoever showing the equip. what type of music you usually listen to, this aides in picking out a speaker box design/size as well. a few brands of subs that i have experience w/and have had good luck w/are XTANT, Concept, Image Dynamics, Digital Designs, and Kicker. sorry for ramblin on and on. hopefully this helps w/o confusing you, if you have any questions let me know.
-------bille

**doctorKJ** · 08-20-2002 12:49 PM

Thanks a lot for your reply!

Can a mono amp power two subs..or is that a dumb question? I know I had read that if you will just be using the amp to power subs, you should go with a mono... Also, something I forgot to add was that I have the upgraded speakers with sub under the seat. Will that change anything? Should I unhook the stock sub or will it still be able to be used?

Any suggestions as to a model of amp to get so that I could take a look at the price and feature range you think would be good?

Thanks-
Karl

**doctorKJ** · 08-21-2002 09:33 PM

Anyone else have some advice? I need all of the car audio knowledge I can get!

**WRXed** · 08-22-2002 08:42 AM

Originally posted by doctorKJ
Thanks a lot for your reply!

Can a mono amp power two subs..or is that a dumb question? I know I had read that if you will just be using the amp to power subs, you should go with a mono... Also, something I forgot to add was that I have the upgraded speakers with sub under the seat. Will that change anything? Should I unhook the stock sub or will it still be able to be used?

Any suggestions as to a model of amp to get so that I could take a look at the price and feature range you think would be good?

Thanks-
Karl

First off, I'd ditch the factory sub. It won't come close to matching the two new ones you get. It might not even handle the power of the new amp you end up with (of course, that would be easy to read it and check). As far as the mono amp thing.... when niceguybille mentioned bridging the amp, that is referring to running the amp mono. The idea is to take a stereo amp (in this case) and make it run like one output instead of two. This generally means you get more power as it causes the amp to run under a higher load (lower number, i.e. from 4 ohms to 2 ohms). Make sure the amp can safely run a lower load than what you plan on running it under. For instance, if you are going to run it at 2 ohms, make sure it'll safely handle 1 ohm.

It's been a long time since I've really been "into" the audio scene. I always used Rockford Fosgate, but there are plenty of great brands out there. Just do some online searching and try to get a feel for what's good and what's junk. Good luck!