AMP-buying advice plz

[Tigger]

As above;
What do I look out for when buying an Amp?
I don't get all the RMS and Ohms jargon :dapprove:

Looking for a 2 channel for my front comps or a 4channel (bridged)
and a mono for the sub

Interested in a few Alpine/Audison/Genesis models
but I really don't have a clue how to compare them :S


Thanks in advance
Trev

 

[Dink]

RMS is the output of the amp @ a certain ohm load(speaker)

usually something like this (2 channel amp example)

2x 50w @ 4 ohms
2x 85w @ 2 ohms
1x175w @ 4 ohms (bridged)

as long as your comps are 4 ohms you will be fine bridging them off a 4 channel

and the sub amp power output should be about 120%(would be nice) of the input power of the sub at the subs ohm rating

 

[Tigger]

Cheers Dink

What about Sound/Noise ratio - it important for the speakers?

 

[Tigger]

^ Bump ^

How do I know what ohms I would be running the system at ?
And what voltage - 12V or 14.4V ?

 

[Dink]

well the ohms will be dependant on the speakers(most comps are 4 ohms but subs can be anywhere between 1-4 ohms)

if you get an amp with a rating @ 12v it will only be better when the engine is running (usually between 13.8v-14.4v)

 

[White16valver]

whatever you do always make sure that they quote power in RMS - that is true power, not 'peak' power that can cope for 0.5 of a second before dying... lol

 

[Tigger]

The spec for the Sub I'm looking says 350W RMS & 700 max
The mono I'm looking at for running it;

1000W x 1 RMS [2 Ω @14.4V (1%THD)]
600W x 1 RMS [4 Ω @14.4V (1%THD)]
500W x 1 RMS [2 Ω @12V (1%THD)]
300W x 1 RMS [4 Ω @12V (1%THD)]

The spec for the components Im looking is 80W RMS & 120W max
Multichannel amp im looking at for running the comps;

RMS Power (at 12V,20Hz-200Hz)

• Bridged 4 ohms : 300W x 1 (Ch-3/4)
• Per channel into 2 ohms : 150W x 2 (Ch-3/4)
• Per channel into 4 ohms : 100W x 4
• RMS Power (at 14.4V,20Hz-200Hz)
• Bridged 4 ohms : 125W x 1 (Ch-3/4), 500W x 1 (Ch-3/4)
• Per channel into 2 ohms : 250W x 2 (Ch-3/4)

What voltage will mine run at or can it be adjusted?

What does the %THD mean?

 

[Dink]

the electrical system varies

it's normally 12v engine off 13.8-14.4v engine on

THD=Total Harmonic distortion, 1% is quite high but not for a class d if you know what i mean

noticed that the multi channel only goes up to 200Hz whick aint good

 

[Tigger]

noticed that the multi channel only goes up to 200Hz whick aint good

How come it's not good?

That's the spec on an Alpine V12 amp - MRV F545
Just checked their site and found frequency response

20Hz-20kHz (0, -1dB)

I'm lost with all this :S

 

[Dink]

20hz-20kHz is good as that is the human hearing range

200hz is border line sub-mid bass

 

[Tigger]

Ok Cheers Dink

Seems the Alpine's will do the trick then - me hopes!

It's a tie between the Alpine V12's and the Audison LRx range
Audison are obviously more expensive as they seem to be slightly more powerful judging from the specs. Also the Audison's have a higher S/N ratio.

But the RMS for the Audison mono are a bit lower than the Alpine mono - if you know what I mean

 

[jamesy]

audison are a far better brand than alpine regardless of the range there build quality, sound quality etc etc show there years of amp building and development well known to anyone serious about sounds your paying for more than the rms per channel

 

[Tigger]

I have heard that before I bought my SRx1
In fairness Alpine make lots of other equipment (which turn out to have good reviews) where-as Audison are focused solely on builiding amps - hence better quality.
I've also heard Audison are the same company as Focal :approve:

Audison it is then