I was at circuit city the other day and the salesperson said that ideally, if I wanted to run two speakers and a sub from an amp, I should buy two and have each seperate. Is this just their bullshit way of saying "spend more money"?

I'm looking at 4 channel amps, is it possible to run two speakers plus a sub off it, or do I need more channels?

initially I'd like more power for my speakers, I'm running a 40w headunit and 180w 4 way pioneers in the back, but I'm sure I'm not even getting 20w out of each speaker. I've heard about 40x4 watts actually meaning 15wx4 or something, so what would be the most cost effective way to get louder, and at higher quality - A new (higher watt) head unit, or an amp?

I'm passing on a sub for now, but back to the first question, would I need to buy a second amp when the time comes for the sub?

Suggested name brands along with info is appreciated.

 

Buy two of what? Two amps? No, this is not true. I have a pair of component speakers and a subwoofer running off of a single 4-ch amp. It is doing fine.
A 4-ch amp will power that just fine. Channels 1 and 2 for the speakers, and bridge channel 3 and 4 for the subwoofer. This is how my system is set up right now.
The power rating that the companies use to sell their headunits is crap. That amp in theheadunit that claims 40x4 is a BS. That 15x4 rating you have is more reasonable. What is a cost effective way to get louder? More wattage, meaning an EXTERNAL amp.
Will you need to buy another amp when if comes time for a subwoofer? NO.

You can ideally have your system set up this way:

1. Headunit powering the rear speakers if you choose to have speakers in the rear. I do not. I say that you should concentrate on your front stage...even meaning spending more money on them instead of buying speakers for the rear. I currently have no rear fill, and dont plan to either.

2. Get a 4-ch amp. You can use the first 2 channels to power the front speakers, and bridge the last 2 channels to power the subwoofer.

As for brand names....what does your budget look like?

(Shameless plug...I have a pair of brand-new amps for sale. Give me a PM if you could be interested.)

 

Thanks alot will, the deal is that I have nice speakers in back, and stock ones from 93 in the front. Needless to say, they're shit up big style, one competely in pieces. I'd move the back ones into the front, but they're 1/2 inch too deep. So for now I'd like to power the back speakers better, until I can save up more for some shallower front speakers and a sub in back.

On the subject of amps, I've heard that mtx is a good brand, but my budget at the moment is zero (I have a few repairs to attend to Hopefully I'll have around $200 before the summer's over to spend on as much sound as possible, an amp and some front speakers if possible, with a sub following shortly.

Also, how hard is it to do the wiring yourself? I like to think I'd be able to do it, but I don't wanna plug something in wrong and fry my head unit (a friend did that).


Also, family guy kicks ass. You, sir, have good taste.

 

What kind of car do you have? Are they too deep because of the factory basket? If so, many people get around that by cutting the back out.
MTX makes decent stuff. I wouldnt hesitate to get some of their lower line if I had to. I would avoid stuff like Rockwood or Pyramid...
Wiring is easy. You just have to have a lot of patience, be prepared and be comfortable with working on your car. If you are planning to wire the amp kit yourself, run a search on this forum for some more information. If you cant find any information, post a new thread...I am sure there are a few people here that can help.
Best show EVER.

 

I drive a 93 integra, and it is because of the factory basket. thinking back, I can't remember if it's just a plastic back, in which case I suppose I could get a knife on the go.

I could run the wires myself I suppose, but I haven't the slightest about what to run the wires to. They go from battery to the amp, I'm guessing. Does that mean drilling holes and running it under carpeting and all that? And what does wiring the amp kit mean? Isn't it just a box that has wires coming in one end and going out the other? I'm not a very motivated person, see, and I like things looking neat. Two qualities that don't really go well together.

Anyway, you're really clearing things up for me, I'm totally new at car audio, so thanks for imparting your knowlege.

 

Damn, I'd tell you all about wiring if I didn't have to go to work right this minute. I just laid down a whole bunch of wiring in my Prelude (non-ghetto style). I hope you're a quick study.

Anyway, if you're used to having your good sound quality coming from your rear fill, it may be weird switching suddenly to just front speakers. And then you'd have these rear speakers just laying around. My advice is get a 4-channel bridgeable amp (MTX, or Eclipse EA3422 for $200 like me) and hook it up to all four speakers. Score some fronts for cheap. Take the time to wire it properly. Then if you don't like the bass you get just from amp'ed speakers, you can take out the rears, bridge the rear channels on the amp and use them for a sub. Either way, the ONE 4-channel amp will always serve you well.

Dan

 

wiring is pretty easy from what i've heard. when you get the amp kit with your power wire, remote turn on wire and your RCA cables, you connect the power cable to your positive side battery, find a hole in your firewall and put it through there, from the engine back b/c of the fuse, then run the RCA and remote turn on(its blue) down under your carpet to the trunk. you have to take off one of your panels and then the carpet will peel right back. then you can just slide it up your back seat and run it into your trunk. takes about an hour or two if you can find the whole in ur firewall. if not then you have to drill one but you should be able to find one.

 

If you want to amp all four speakers and have the option of powering a sub too, Alpine makes a nice multichannel amp...here's their five-channel model:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...sPageName=WDVW

It's got 50 watts per channel and a 200 watt fifth channel for a sub, all in one.

I recommend it since I've been using the Alpine MRV-F340 4-channel amp for a year now, and it is outstanding for the price (I found it around $200 shipped on eBay last year). It is 55 watts per channel at 4 ohms (65 watts at 2 ohms)and sounds great, never distorts. You could also run two speakers with this amp and bridge the other two channels for a sub in the future...Best of luck with your project!

 

Thanks guys, almost ready to get this party started.

One more question about ohms. How do I know if I'll be running at 2 or 4? is that decided by the speaker, or is it something that's swtichable?

As I'm on a budget I'm looking at pawn shops for amps, will get either an MTX or Alpine. Unless I hear a chorus of "don't buy from pawn!"

I'm guessing the speakers are currently running right up to the head unit, meaning I have to pull it out, unplug the speakers and plug in the amp.

Woof. I hate working on stuff. My car's worth it though. :irock:


Edit: never mind about the ohms q. scrolled down It's about the cables, from what I understand.

 

You'll most likely be wiring those speakers at 4 ohms, which is just + to + and - to -.

Don't forget about wiring up your speakers to the amp. The RCAs will go from the headunit to the amp to send the signal, but you'll have to run speaker wire from the amp up to the fronts too. You can either run the speaker wire directly to the front speakers themselves or connect them to the factory wiring behind the head unit.

The rears are easy to wire up because they're right near the amp (if its in the trunk).

I apologize if I'm telling you stuff you already know but it's a pain in the ass when you're all ready to start the project and you find out you forgot one little dumb thing...believe me I know the feeling :a: