5 channel amp: Max 50W X4 + 150W X 1

Printed From: the12volt.com
Forum Name: Car Audio
Forum Discription: Car Stereos, Amplifiers, Crossovers, Processors, Speakers, Subwoofers, etc.
URL: https://www.the12volt.com/installbay/forum_posts.asp?tid=31120
Printed Date: May 03, 2024 at 1:52 PM

Topic: 5 channel amp: Max 50W X4 + 150W X 1

Posted By: toyota_4runner
Subject: 5 channel amp: Max 50W X4 + 150W X 1
Date Posted: April 27, 2004 at 12:00 PM

Hello, I am planning on buying a 5 channel amp which will power the following:

FOUR speakers with 50 RMS power handling
TWO 8 inch 8 ohms subs wired into 4ohm with 150 RMS power handling.

WHich amplifier would u guys suggest? Also I am still confused if I should go for seperate amps ( one 4 channel for speakers and one for the subs) or one 5 channel. Which makes the system better? and which system is more economical? You can see that I am not goign any higher than 50rms on the speakers so I really dont need a very loud system. Thanks in advance!

Replies:

Posted By: Thedfndent
Date Posted: April 27, 2004 at 12:05 PM

I would definitely go with two different amps. This way you can take the bass out of your interior speakers, and the highs out of your subs using the crossovers that are built into most amps. The kenwood that I have is a nice quality economical amp I think (model # listed below). It puts out 35W RMS x 4 at 4-ohms. It runs around $150.

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2 12" L7's
PPI PCX-1500
4 6.5" Pioneer 4-way's
Kenwood KAC-6401
Lanzar Opti-Drive Cap
Sony CDX-F7700 Headunit

Posted By: Ravendarat
Date Posted: April 27, 2004 at 12:14 PM

This is a good amp for the money and should work fine for you

https://cgi.ebay.com/dll?ViewItem&category=39742&item=3093493422&rd=1

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double-secret reverse-osmosis speaker-cone-induced high-level interference distortion, Its a killer

Posted By: Keefer
Date Posted: April 27, 2004 at 12:16 PM

If you get the right amp, it can be fine using 5 channel, and it just so happens that I know the one you should get. It is the Hifonics ZX 8000, it will run you about $250 right now at this site.

https://www.onlinecarstereo.com/CarAudio/ProductDetail.aspx?Productid=13118

Keefe

Posted By: toyota_4runner
Date Posted: April 27, 2004 at 12:22 PM

I understand what u say Defndant, but wouldn't the 5 channel ap have inbuilt crossovers to seperate the low and high frequencies?

Posted By: Thedfndent
Date Posted: April 27, 2004 at 12:33 PM

Some do, but this is my gripe with things like that: The more components you try to fit into a limited amount of space, the less efficient they're gonna be. Like if you really wanted a competition quality sound, you wouldn't even want to use the built-in cross-over on your amp. You'd get more sound quality out of an external x-over.

With these 5-channel amps your talkin about a high pass a low pass and five channels worth of electronics shoved into less that one square foot. Obviously it's gonna be usin just the bare minimums to get the job done.

-------------
2 12" L7's
PPI PCX-1500
4 6.5" Pioneer 4-way's
Kenwood KAC-6401
Lanzar Opti-Drive Cap
Sony CDX-F7700 Headunit

Posted By: Thedfndent
Date Posted: April 27, 2004 at 12:36 PM

They are economical though, as long as you keep in mind that you're only gonna get what you pay for.

-------------
2 12" L7's
PPI PCX-1500
4 6.5" Pioneer 4-way's
Kenwood KAC-6401
Lanzar Opti-Drive Cap
Sony CDX-F7700 Headunit

Posted By: Ravendarat
Date Posted: April 27, 2004 at 1:21 PM

If you look at a decent 5 channel amp than the Chassis of the amp is increased in size to accomidate the extra components. Also one reason why I suggested the MTX amp is because the sub section is 100% independant from the 4 channel section. Also since the mono channel is using adaptive class D as opposed to a normal class D section you wont get any cross talk through the air.

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double-secret reverse-osmosis speaker-cone-induced high-level interference distortion, Its a killer

Posted By: forbidden
Date Posted: April 27, 2004 at 5:31 PM

I would head in the direction of a good 5 channel amp as well, another shameless plug for the Eclipse ea3532 (40w x 4 + 120w x 1) or the even better pa5532 (50w x4 + 200w x1). The latter is one of my favorite 5 channel amplifiers that I used to use myslelf and can vouch personally for it's capabilities and limitations. It would suit you just fine. Another good one is the Crossfire VR705D howver it is not the best match to your system (overkill on the sub channel).

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Top Secret, I can tell you but then my wife will kill me.

Posted By: toyota_4runner
Date Posted: April 27, 2004 at 7:46 PM

forbidden, my (2) subs are 150 RMS, wouldn't the PA5532 damage the subs since it is 200W X1? or I can make any adjustments so that the subs get lower power than maximum? As I said earlier, my 8 inch subs are 8 ohms and I ll be connecting them in parallel to get 4 ohms.

Posted By: toyota_4runner
Date Posted: April 27, 2004 at 8:17 PM

also, is this EA3532 not a popular or too new an amp? I tried to google search in order to compare prices and found very few results, and mostly in Japanese!! ( i saw one listed on ebay but it is sold without warranty, and some of you know my story of getting ripped off on alpine HU I dont know if I shd go for it) In any case, do you know what is the price of this amp?

Posted By: customsuburb
Date Posted: April 27, 2004 at 8:30 PM

your subs can handle 150 watts RMS each. So you could have up to a 300 watts at 4 ohms sub channel.

Posted By: forbidden
Date Posted: April 27, 2004 at 8:34 PM

i have used both version of these amps, with slightly different model #'s for years now. Eclipse is not available on line so do not look for info there. Your best bet is an authorized dealer or someone like me. posted_image

Now I'm not here to sell you something, so please do not ask. The ea3532 is the amp that I used in my MR2 up until last year. I too used it to power 2 8 ohm 8" subs and it never missed a beat. 8" subs do not require much power in order to get rolling along quite happy. This amp is only stable at 4 ohm on the sub channel which is exactly where your subs will present their load to the amp when wired in parallel. Why I used this amp was simple, it was cost effective, sounded great and easily did what I needed it to do. If the gains are set properly, you can underpower a sub all day long and IT WILL NOT DAMAGE THE SUB. If you set the gains wrong, well, sss is in your future. (smelly speaker syndrome). Just because your speedometer says say 140mph, does not mean that the minute you step on the gas you are going to do that speed, similarily, just because your subs say 150watts each does not mean that the minute you turn the stereo on they must have that much power. If you are concerned about not having enough power to get these subs rolling along, I would look at the PA5532 or a similar 5 channel amp that may have a little more balls in the sub region. (Crossfire VR705D). The other option that was suggested earlier is also a good idea, that is a 50w x 4 4 channel + a 2 channel amp that bridges to 300 w rms in mono.

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Top Secret, I can tell you but then my wife will kill me.

Posted By: charlie101_1999
Date Posted: April 29, 2004 at 9:32 PM

Ravendarat wrote:

This is a good amp for the money and should work fine for you

https://cgi.ebay.com/dll?ViewItem&category=39742&item=3093493422&rd=1

This is the amp I use for my Polk 5X7's and one JLW3v2 and I think it's great. Makes things a bit more simple.(IMO)