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Car audio amp questions

ghost recon88

ghost recon88

Diamond Member
First off, the disclaimer is I'm not installing any of this stuff myself, just buying it online then taking it to a local store to have it installed.

Now, I'm planning on getting 4x ALPINE Type-R SPR-57C speakers to replace the stock speakers in my Mustang. I've been told by people that I really should get an amp to get the best sound out of them as most head units aren't capable of putting out more then 20 RMS per channel.

So my question is this. If I get an amp that I want powering all 4 speakers, do I need to get a 4 channel speaker or a 2 channel? Will it change if I run one side of the car in series with each other? The speakers are rated for 100w each and 4 ohms, but I don't think I can afford to push that much wattage through each.

Example would be lets say I want to push 75w through each. Would I get a 4 channel rated for 4 ohms at 300w (75x4)? Or a 2 channel rated for 4 ohms @ 300w?

I took an electrical class that touched on ohms, watts, and all that good stuff a couple years ago but I don't remember any of it 🙁 Any advice provided on amps would be greatly appreciated, thanks 🙂
 
How many OHM are your speaker rated to and with how much power at that ohm?

This will be the backbone to determine what amp to get.

My speakers are Infinity (90w RMS @ 2ohm (2) and 110w RMS @ 2ohm (2))
So I paired them with an amp that does 90w RMS @2ohm x4
 
Just get a good 75x4 and call it a day. I'm too lazy to look up the speakers but I'm guessing they're just coaxials?

Check out Cadence. You can easily get a 75x4 for under $200. The guy that runs Powermax Electronics used to work for them and sells mostly niche American brands that aren't mainstream in the big box stores.
 
Stick with a 4 channel. With a 2 channel amp you'll have to wire 2 speakers to each channel dropping the load resistance to 2 ohms. The amp is going to run hotter and you lose front rear balance control.

What would I do? I'll ditch the 4 coax and get a nice set of components for the front and get a 4 channel amp (75x4). Use 2 channels to power the components for now and if later on you want to add a sub just bridge the 2 remaining channels.
 
I plan on sticking with 4 channels.

I have not purchased the speakers yet, I could get component flavor instead. That would involve re-wiring the whole car though right?

I can tell you know I won't be adding a sub in the future, don't want to drop that much into this system. Plus I'm not a ghetto dog rollin' around town on my 24" with 5% tint and picking up girls at corners...

I found this amp, does 60w RMS @ 4 ohms with 4-channels, http://www.buy.com/retail/prod...197&listingid=46341392
 
That amp is fine.

No, no need to rewire the car.

Here's what I would do. Install the amp under the front seat (doesn't matter which). Run speaker wire from the amp the factory harness behind the headunit (center console makes running these wires easy). Connect from the amp to factory speaker harness, disconnecting the head unit from it in the process. Then you can run the RCA and amp turn-on lead through the center console as well.

I see no reason run new wire to the doors unless you're doing something with a lot of power or bi-amping, etc.

EDIT: For components you can install the crossovers inside the door (between the door panel and the metal frame, the dry area). Does you car have provisions for components?
 
When I suggested a sub I didn't mean some trunk filling 15's. A 8" sub in a box a little bigger than a shoe box with about 100-150w going to it will make a huge difference in how much better your music will sound.
 
Originally posted by: jtvang125
When I suggested a sub I didn't mean some trunk filling 15's. A 8" sub in a box a little bigger than a shoe box with about 100-150w going to it will make a huge difference in how much better your music will sound.
Click to expand...

I was referring to 24" wheels, not a 24" sub lol.

And yea, a sub would be nice, maybe I'll consider one in the future, however now I'm looking at keeping parts under $400 (which I'm pretty close to being able to do).
 
Originally posted by: ghost recon88
Originally posted by: jtvang125
When I suggested a sub I didn't mean some trunk filling 15's. A 8" sub in a box a little bigger than a shoe box with about 100-150w going to it will make a huge difference in how much better your music will sound.
Click to expand...

I was referring to 24" wheels, not a 24" sub lol.
Click to expand...

i think he was referring to your douchebag comment here

Originally posted by: ghost recon88

I can tell you know I won't be adding a sub in the future, don't want to drop that much into this system. Plus I'm not a ghetto dog rollin' around town on my 24" with 5% tint and picking up girls at corners...
Click to expand...

seeming to insult anyone that has any kind of sub in their ride. my truck will end up with a nice 200W planetaudio 4ch amp for the memphis speakers i have, a custom built single 10" sub under the back seat pushed by a 150W mono amp. hardly a ground pounder, but will sound very nice inside my truck. its very easy to create a good sound without going to the stupid extreme*.


*i dont mind the stupid extreme sound systems, some of my friends have them. both for show as well as personal enjoyment/ hobby. i just have no need for them in my truck
 
Originally posted by: hanoverphist
Originally posted by: ghost recon88
Originally posted by: jtvang125
When I suggested a sub I didn't mean some trunk filling 15's. A 8" sub in a box a little bigger than a shoe box with about 100-150w going to it will make a huge difference in how much better your music will sound.
Click to expand...

I was referring to 24" wheels, not a 24" sub lol.
Click to expand...

i think he was referring to your douchebag comment here

Originally posted by: ghost recon88

I can tell you know I won't be adding a sub in the future, don't want to drop that much into this system. Plus I'm not a ghetto dog rollin' around town on my 24" with 5% tint and picking up girls at corners...
Click to expand...

seeming to insult anyone that has any kind of sub in their ride. my truck will end up with a nice 200W planetaudio 4ch amp for the memphis speakers i have, a custom built single 10" sub under the back seat pushed by a 150W mono amp. hardly a ground pounder, but will sound very nice inside my truck. its very easy to create a good sound without going to the stupid extreme*.


*i dont mind the stupid extreme sound systems, some of my friends have them. both for show as well as personal enjoyment/ hobby. i just have no need for them in my truck
Click to expand...

It's not an insult, I'm just not the kind of person who drives around with my windows vibrating listening to rap and R&B. Smaller subs (like the 10 and 8" mentioned above) would be fine, I just not willing to spend the $ for one right now.
 
If you want to go cheap just put better speakers up front, get a 2 channel amp and run stock rear speakers off the headunit. Rear speakers are pretty useless anyway.
 
Well, I've pretty much decided on ether Alpine S series 5x7, Alpine R series 5x7 (both of which are 2-way), or I saw these Pioneer TS-A6872R 3-ways. Alpine has a 3-way S series speaker, but it's 6x9 only and would involve hacking up the rear speaker deck. Any thoughts?
 
It won't matter, 2 vs 3 way. If you want a the next "step" in SQ, move up to something like Boston Acoustics or Focal, etc. Only problem is, most of the higher end companies don't make 5x7.
 
if you're going to get 4 speakers, you get a 4 channel amplifier. however, i recommend you get a subwoofer and another amp to go along with it and if you are short on cash, scrap the rear two speakers and stick with two front speakers, a sub in the trunk and a single 4 channel amp to power it all. i recommend an alpine pdx 4.150 as a versatile 4 channel amp that can power a sub, two speakers, and has a very small footprint. also fairly priced for what it does.
 
OK, well I can go with just 2 front speakers for now. I need a new headunit for sure, then one I'm running now is a Kenwood KDC-4009...

I'd like to get the Kenwood Excelon KDC-X693. Looks to be a pretty good head unit and get's pretty solid reviews from people.

I'm not sure what speakers the previous owner put in the back, but they really need to be tightened up. Maybe after that they'll sound alright. So with that in mind, I'm still going to hold off getting an amp for now, as well as a sub. Maybe in a month or so I'll get a 4-channel amp and hook it up. As I've mentioned above, my front speaker sizes are 6x8. So, would you recommend Alpine Type R 5x7, Alpine Type S 5x7, or Pioneer 6x8s for the front? After checking out the Boston Acoustics and Focal selections, they're a little too expensive for my blood.
 
Go for the higher end Alpine...not sure which one is higher end. Also, might look in to Polk. I liked their speakers in the past.

Where are you buying from?
 
I guess my question was regarding whether or not the head unit had outputs for coaxial speakers, or just components. I thought if you had component speakers you had to have a head unit that support the component connections?
 
Nope, not at all. You could even run components on the stock headunit. There are two big differences between components and coaxials. Components have separate tweeters and mids and they also have a separate crossover. So a component set has 3 pieces to it. But there is only one connection to the headunit/amp. In a coaxial, everything is integrated into one unit; tweeter, woofer and a crossover.
 
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