Questions about Dual amplifier setup

[TigerTownAlum]

Hi all,

I'm looking to upgrade my JBL 10 speaker system and was wondering if anyone had some advice, particularly with installing multiple amps.

- 2 sets of Infinity Reference 6030cs Component speakers
- 1 8" JL W3v3 - Plan to replace stock sub with this one
- Alpine MRP-M450 Mono Amp - 220 watts RMS x 1 at 4 ohms
- Autotek Mean Machine M1400.4 4 channel Amp (for 2 sets of components)
- Tsunami Power Dist. Block - FDB9002M-ANL
- Tsunami DB8012 - Ground Dist. Block
- 100 ft. of Pyle 12 gauge speaker wire

Does anyone have advice on how I should install the two amplifiers? I'm really wondering about these distribution blocks. Should I go fused or just non-fused considering the two amps. I am also concerned about the ohms of the infinities vs the power of the Autotek amp. Anyone have some insight for me?

 

[shadow247]

I always run a fuseblock just for the ease of unhooking the power to the amps if I need to remove the sub box for any reason. I usually mount the fuseblock not on the box so all I have to do is remove the fuses and unbolt the wires from my amp.

That amp may be overkill for those speakers. It is rated at 175w x 4 while your speakers are rated at 75w RMS. You can run them together, but be careful when setting your gains, as you can easily overpower those speakers with that powerful of an amp. I usually try to match the RMS rating of my amplifier to the RMS rating of my speakers. The closer you can get them to the same the less chance of having problems with the system sounding bad. I would skip the Autotek amp myself and go with something like this Alpine - http://www.amazon.com/Alpine-PDX-5-...6?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1338642723&sr=1-6 . It is a single amp that includes a 4 Channel 75wx4 amp (which is perfect to drive those infinity components) and a 300wx1 @ 4 ohm Class D amp. This would simplify your wiring and eliminate the need to a fuseblock.

 

[OHP]

Do you already have these amps or are you planning to buy them?

 

[BucknutBob]

I concur with Shadow247--you should never install an amp that puts out more power than your speakers are rated for (especially as far over as yours is). That's a disaster waiting to happen. As for the wiring, you can either go with an auxiliary fuseblock, or run a 4 ga. power lead with a high-amp fuse/circuit breaker near the battery, then split into 8 ga. leads with simple dist. blocks near the amps (and the amps own fuses on their leads). Do the same with the grounds to simplify that connection, so you end up with a single ground (not the battery--ground to chassis). For the other wiring, keep your signal cables (RCA's and speaker wire) away from power leads to avoid introducing "noise" in the signal--I've had good results running the speaker wires in the door channels, the RCA's down one side of the trans. hump, and the power cable down the other side.

 

[TigerTownAlum]

Shadow247: That's great advice on the 5 channel amp combining the 2 amps and eliminating the wiring, but I actually already have the 2 amps from previous installs so I was just going to try to use those instead of having to pay for an expensive 5channel. Trust me, I would like to do a 5channel based of the fact that it is so much easier, but I'm trying to make sure I am being efficient with the components I already own.

OHP & BlacknutBob - Yea, I actually already have both of those amps from earlier installs and was just going to use them. I always had people say that the key to using an amp that may be rated with more power than your speakers would be to make sure you adjust the gains accordingly. This was my plan but now I'm having second thoughts. Should I scrap the autotek and go with something like the Alpine MRP-F300? Not that it makes a difference, but I like the idea of having the mono and the 4channel amp coming from the same Alpine lineup. It'll make it look cleaner. The amp seems to get pretty good reviews and I found it for $100 which is a pretty good price for a good 4 channel. My only problem with going with an amp like this would be that it doesn't really give the option to upgrade to more powerful speakers that would require more wattage... like having the autotek would. Just a thought.

Thanks for the replies guys! Getting some good info here!

 

[riceandpho]

most amp do not even push close to the rated rms power, having an amp with more power than the speaker is a good thing, u dont need to turn the gain up high to compensate the signal thats coming out. more head room power is better, low power thats getting cranked up gives distortion, now having high power will give u cleaner signal and less distorted sound.
just think of it like this, i run focal 165k2p they are 100w rms and 200w max, i had a jl 300/2 powering it, it says it gives out 150w, sound was good, clear, clean. then i upgrade to rf t600-2,specs says 200w at 4 ohm, birthsheet say its at 248w @ 4ohm, sound was the same as the jl, but more live and stronger. more power gave a nice improvement to me.

 

[Bucket81]

^^ what he said.
Speakers and amps die from lack of power. Make sure your power wire is the right size.

NEVER run a power cable in your car with out a fuse! This is a car fire waiting to happen. It needs to be fused at the battery .

 

[TigerTownAlum]

Exactly what I mean! I'm getting so many mixed reviews on my choice of the 4channel and how they match up with my range speakers that I'm not sure what the heck i'm supposed to do. I am really leaning towards using the Autotek bc it has gotten good reviews, it has the headroom, and I'm intelligent enough to adjust my gains. Still... we'll see. Thanks for the replies

 

[Bucket81]

If you want longevity I would buy all JL. (yes I'm a fan boy) but the stuff really works and lasts. Buy the proper wire name brand JL, Rockford, Street wire.

This is the system I had in my 02 golf

JL XD 700/5
10w3 2 ohm
Polk momo 6.5 ( these where going to be replaced with JL C3's)

I have a few years in car audio in a high end shop ( I did a 40k Focal ford raptor once) this setup is by far the best bang for your buck. If you want big bass the go with a XD 600/1 and a XD 400/4. On 2 12w3 or 12w1.

 

[riceandpho]

Jl audio is good, i ran 2 300/2 and 500/1, but they dont have enough power to me, so i swap out a 300/2 to a rockford fosgate t600-2, man that was the best thing i did, more power, more live sound came out, i might swap my 2 500/1 for a t1000 to push the 2 15ps3 i have. Plus rf have more power and cheaper price tag.