Audiobahn 2002T or Infinity 311a?

[Kuya]

Which is better amp for powering a single Infinity 1230W (4ohm, 300WRMS, 1200W max) subwoofer, an Audiobahn 2002T or Infinity 311a? I'm sure Inifinity tops in quality, but I haven't had any issues with my current Audiobahn 2002T for almost a year.

A local shop fried my 2002T, so I've been given the option of swapping it for the 311a or having them send it back to the manufacturer to be replaced. Because I'm no audiophile, I have no idea of what watts, ohms, or bridged really mean, so I'm in limbo regarding how to weigh my pros and cons.

I'm sure the 2002T was configured as a single channel (bridged??), but I'm not sure if that means 1x400 Watts Max Power or 200WRMSx1. The Infinity has only 116WRMS when using a 4ohm speaker, which sounds like less power regardless. Can I configure my 4ohm speaker to be 2ohms, so that I can take advantage of the 312W Infinity has listed or will I need to purchase a 2ohm sub?


Here are the basic specs for both amps:

Audiobahn 2002T
http://www.caraudiodeals.com/product_info.php?products_id=64

2x50 Watts RMS
1x400 Watts Max Power
2 Ohm Stable Stereo

4 Ohm Stereo: 50W RMS x 2
2 Ohm Stereo: 100W RMS x 2
4 Ohm Mono: 200W RMS x 1

Infinity 311a
http://www.cardomain.com/item/INFREF311A

Amplifier Type: Mono
RMS Power: 116W x 1 @ 4 ohms
THD at 4-Ohm RMS Power: <1 %
RMS Power: 312W x 1 @ 2 ohms

 

[atomic punk]

Here's the specs on your Infinity sub:

12" 4-ohm subwoofer
polypropylene cone with rubber surround
deep-draw I-beam basket
70-ounce magnet structure
recommended power range: 50-300 watts RMS (1,200 watts peak power)
frequency response: 23-400 Hz
sensitivity: 90 dB
top mount depth: 6-1/4"
sealed box volume: 1.25 cu. ft.
ported box volume: 2.00 cu. ft.
Recommended Q-Logic Box Type: 2, 3
warranty: 1-year

That is what's called a "Single Voice Coil" subwoofer, which means that the total impedance is 4ohms - and can only be 4 ohms. Sorry dude, but it cannot be configured to be 2ohms. If it were a "Dual Voice Coil" CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO sub, it could be wired to be 2ohms.

So you can see that the Audiobahn, at 4ohms mono (bridged) does give you more power than the Infinity amp at 4ohms. For more info on the amp setup, CLICK HERE

How did the local shop "fry" you amp? Would/do they know? You may want to ask about that before getting a replacement of the SAME exact amp. Because of the specs that your sub can handle, would go with something more powerful, but in the same quality + price range - like maybe the HIFONICS 1005D , which at only about $25 more than the Infinity, but puts out 350w at 4ohms.

 

[arcas]

The 1230W is a single-voice-coil sub so you're stuck with it as a 4 ohm load. If it was a dual-voice coil sub (each coil 4 ohms) or if you had another 4 ohm single-voice-coil sub, you could wire the coils in parallel and have an effective 2 ohm load.

Whether the Infinity amp will be sufficient depends on your tastes in music and the type of enclosure you have. The 1230W is fairly efficient (90dB/Wm) so it doesn't require as much power as some other subs. My gut feeling is that 75W would be enough to rattle your neighbors' windows.

Assuming your Audiobahn amp was running bridged (which means you were using 2 channels to power one speaker), the Infinity will have less power but unless you were pushing the Audiobahn to its limits, you might not notice. Worst that could happen is you could drive the Infinity amp to clipping but since the 1230W is rated for more than 2x the Infinity's rated output, cliipping shouldn't cause any damage.

Ask your shop install the Infinity amp let you test it for a day or two to see if you can live with it.

(edit: cardomain.com listed the sub as 92db/W but I checked Infinity's product manual and Atomic Punk is indeed correct. It's 90db/W)