I am deciding against a 7 channel amp. The reasons being that there are only about 2 out there.

Diamond Audio 65.2 (RMS @ 4 Ohm: 60 x 5 & 70 x 2)

And

Phoenix Gold Ti900.7 (50 Watt x 5 (4 Ohm Stereo) /400 Watt x 1 (2 Ohm Bridged)

Well knowing that you should match the RMS of the speakers to the Amp, those amps are not going to work.

My fronts are Diamond Audio S600s which are 175 RMS Max and my rears are M361i Diamond Audio which are 100 RMS Max.

So with those numbers, to get the BEST out of my system neither amp is going to do.

PLUS I called Phoenix Gold about their amp. It has been discontinued for almost 2 years and they said that it is a good amp BUT it SUCKS in power and gets VERY hot.....

So I have to rethink things.

Here is what I was thinking.

A JL AUDIO 450 x 4 (150 W RMS x 2 and 75 W RMS x 2 ) This should feed the fronts VERY nicely and the rears should be happy also.

Since that amp is a bit pricey, I will have to sacrifice a bit now on an amp for the sub. I have a sub that is 250 RMS and 400 MAX. It is a 10" Rockford Fosgate Phase 2. Eventually I will be getting a better quality sub...but it will take time

So for now I was thinking of getting either an:

Alpine MRPM350 which is 350 watts RMS x 1 at 2 ohms

OR

Pioneer GM-5100T which is 380W RMS x 1 @ 4 ohms

Now this leaves the issue of the center channel, what to do? From what I have been reading and asking others, I think I just may pick up a small powered basic amp for the center. Since all that is going to come through that is Navi and Phone.

I was thinking about maybe a 2 channel amp to take care of the sub and center, but the center channel MAX power handling is 105 watts. There is nothing that is a good combo for a center and sub amp. For obvious reason.

Anyway...thoughts? I would really appreciate it.

 

BTW I got a new center speaker. You can see which one here:

https://acurazine.com/forums/car-parts-sale-361/fs-new-infinity-kappa-3-1-2-speaker-used-center-05-tl-316129/

So that is why my center can handle up to 105 watts versus the stock 20 watts!

 

Why don't you get a 6 channel? I would reccomend this. http://www.audison.com/default.asp?lang=eng

 

Sounds good, the only issue I am worried about is the amount of RMS power at 4 ohms. 55-75 watts doesn't seem like enough if my speakers can handle 175 and 100 watts front and back.

 

Ok Here is what I think I have decided on:

Phoenix Gold

x200.4 : Use 2 of the 200 watt channels for the fronts, then bridge the other two for 400 watts for the sub.

x100.4: Use two of the 100 watt channels for the rear, then bridge the other two for the center channel.

This would stop me from needing the extra amp for the center and give plenty of power for everything.

Thoughts?

 

I like it. Stay with the same manufacture for both Amps. Now to find the best buy on those.....check millionbuy.com or thezeb.com for pricing.

 

Toasters,

Why would you provide 200watts to the little center channel which hardly gets used, but only 100watts to the rears which are always used and are bigger speakers (physically)?

 

I do like the two amp idea though cuz then maybe you can strap them to the back of the rear seat and not take up much trunk space and still have a usable pass-through.

 

He can adjust the gains to get the center channel to the same levels as all the others. It might be wise to invest in a Radio Shack Sound meter to get all levels even. I use mine to setup all my home theater settings, and the TL.

 

Because I like front staging, I don't like rear staging. So I want my max power up front, and 1/2 to 1/3 that power in rear for fill in.

I would prefer to have the center speaker to have a smaller amount of wattage but this is the only combination that I can come up with that will allow me to only have 2 amps....

This will give the sub PLENTY of power...400 watts at 1-4 ohms.

My rears are currently Diamond Audio M361i's which have a max RMS of 100, so I don't want to hit them with double that anyway and once again the rear is fill in sound...full range, but fill in sound.

The center would only have the extra power running through the speaker a minimal amount of time vs the rears which would have double the power for a MAXIMUM amount of time.

Plus the gain on the center channel on the amp would be as low as it can go, so it is not going to get the full 200 watts anyway.

This also gives me the ability to add better speakers in the future without having to worry about underpowering them.

 

Because I like front staging, I don't like rear staging. So I want my max power up front, and 1/2 to 1/3 that power in rear for fill in.

I would prefer to have the center speaker to have a smaller amount of wattage but this is the only combination that I can come up with that will allow me to only have 2 amps....

This will give the sub PLENTY of power...400 watts at 1-4 ohms.

My rears are currently Diamond Audio M361i's which have a max RMS of 100, so I don't want to hit them with double that anyway and once again the rear is fill in sound...full range, but fill in sound.

The center would only have the extra power running through the speaker a minimal amount of time vs the rears which would have double the power for a MAXIMUM amount of time.

Plus the gain on the center channel on the amp would be as low as it can go, so it is not going to get the full 200 watts anyway.

This also gives me the ability to add better speakers in the future without having to worry about under powering them.

 

I really like Zapco amplifiers. IMHO they are one of the best around but pricey!

 

Well I looked at them, but you are right they are pricey. Plus the higher end ones use that special connection that is not RCA. So that costs even more!

But I heard they are very nice. I am not ready to plop down 10% of my car cost on my radio system....at least my wife is not

 

Read alittle more about zapco. Yes they do not use an rca but the are supplied with the adapter for rcas.

 

Man not making front of you. But you are the typical consumer. Where watts is everything.

Most people think that more watts means more volume. An amplifier with 100 Watts per channel is twice as loud as 50 Watts per channel right?
Sound levels are measured in Decibels (db) In essence, our ears detect differences in volume level in a non-linear fashion. Our ears become less sensitive to sound as it increases. Decibels are a logarithmic scale of relative loudness. A difference of approx. 1 db is the minimum perceptible change in volume, 3 db is a moderate change in volume, and about 10 db is an approximate doubling of volume.

In addition, the quality of the amplifier is as (or more) important than just the wattage output. An amplifier that exhibits excessive noise or distortion at loud volume levels can be unlistenable. You are better off with an amplifier of about 50 WPC with a low distortion level that a much more powerful amplifier with high distortion levels.

For example, an amplifier that has a distortion rating of 10% at full power output is unlistenable (perhaps even at lower output levels as well), however, an amplifier that outputs a .01% distortion level at full power output level would be imperceptible at all listening levels. Distortion specifications are expressed by the term THD (Total Harmonic Distortion).

Also, another factor in amplifier quality is Signal-To-Noise Ratio (S/N), which is ratio of sound to background noise. The larger the ratio, the more the desirable sounds (music, voice, effects) are separated from acoustical effects and background noise. In amplifier specifications S/N ratios are expressed in decibels. A S/N ratio of 70db is much more desirable that a S/N ratio of 50db.

So, when shopping for an amplifier, be wary of wattage output specifications and also take stock of other factors such as Total Harmonic Distortion (THD), Signal-To-Noise Ratio (S/N), and Dynamic Headroom.

Don't base your buying decisions from a single specification, such as a Watts-Per-Channel rating. A single spec, taken out of context with other factors, does not give you an accurate picture of the amplifiers true capabilities. There are many other factors to take into consideration, and never buy any amplifier without giving a good listen for yourself

Just to let you know watts isn't everything. Doesn't alwasy mean louder.

 

Well Said!

I personally like JL amps, and i would probably build my system slowly and get everything i want, rather then sacrafice here n there just to get the system in.

 

Hey if I didn't want opinions...i would no have posted it!!

I completely agree with you. I was not going for wattage in the way that I think you were reading my post. I have in the past, always underpowered my speakers by purchasing amps that were 1/3 or 1/2 the power that the RMS for the speakers are rated at. Not for a particular reason...just always turned out that way.

I went to a local shop, someone who I know, so I do trust him....
Anyway he had a few cars in the shop that they were installing setups in.

Well he sat me in a Accord and a in a Lexus. One setup had it where the amp was giving each speaker almost exactly half of the RMS, the other one was giving almost the completed RMS power.

Well to my ears the difference was amazing! Not the LOUDNESS, but the quality of the sound was amazing. It was very smooth and didn't sound as if it was straining and pushing the sound out. It sounded more like it was 'rolling' off the speakers.

Obviously I mean the matching RMS speakers sounded better, at least to me.

So when I was getting those amps it was not for LOUDNESS power...but more MATCHING the Amp power to the RMS power of my speakers.

They actually both had JL Amps in them. Once was a 300/4 the other was the 450/4. We only played the fronts.

I hope that makes sense. I am not some POWER hungry teenager looking for the most power for my car.

Thanks for the comments!!!

 

I agree with what is said in the last couple of posts. Just an FYI, I've got the Diamond Hex's up front and the D6's in back and for the center channel I split the cost with the shop owner and bought another Diamond Hex component. Now as to going with the D6 amp to me that is a no brainer and hopefully just as obvious for you to. I know that you may not have heard this amp before however neither did I. The shop owner was able to vouch for this amp since he was at CES and a local Dallas release show for Diamond, and he heard this amp on some D9 speakers. Needless to say I agree that the sound in my TL, with this amp and my Diamond speakers, are simply put... awesome.

Actually the amount of quality you get in this amp the price is relatively cheap. Just look at the specs. But more so you've got to try it. This application is also a no brainer for our TL. Hey if you care at all about the ELS Surround blah blah blah, this amp will just enhance this feature. But of course it would since this amp was designed to do so. It comes with a dedicated center channel input as well as a sub input along with the 4 main channels.

Set your Matrix to a solid yet comfortable level and the gains and crossovers at the amp, then the rest is at the head unit just as it was designed to do! You can fade, balance left and right, adjust the bass and trebble, center channel level and sub level. The HLF, and the voice activation and guidence modes will all act normally, just as it was designed to do.

Hey I'll admit that other set ups will work, but I really like how simple and clean mine is, I mean everything just works like it is suppose to, as it was designed to do... I mean my set up is better... opps, did I just say that out loud?!!!

 

Well said as always

 

steve,

the only thing I'm "worried" about with respect to the 7-channel amp you're using is the size of it... it's HUGE. I was thinking that if you split the job into two amps, you could maybe strap them to the rear of the back seat. I just don't like the idea of sacrificing trunk space for the amps AND an aftermarket sub... But I like the sub mounted on top of the Navi unit. That's cool

 

The other thing I was worried about with a single amp for the car was if something should happen to that amp...I have nothing to run the system until things get fixed.

Not a huge concern....but somewhat of a concern.

 

deathtotoasters,
I just didn't want to see you get sucked into something you didn't hear or because of something someone said. Because good amplifiers are expensive and with it being a custom install its alot of money well spent.

 

I appriciate all the comments!!! That is why I posted what is going on. So does my explaination make the system sound a little more rounded now?

 

With all this talk about diamond audio i went to there website. Wow haven't seen them since they redesigned their amps. Much better and clean looking. I like the d6 and d9.

I also have a pair of the S600s components from 2 years ago if anyone is interested. Just got the focal Utopia BE 3 way speakers.

 

See now I understand where you are coming from...see US COUNTRY folk in UTAH cannot afford the Focal Utopia's

 

Whatever dude, My friend works at tweeter and if you knew how much i paid for them you'd shit yourself. The mark up is unbelievable.

 

Hey now..no reason to get testy

Can you hook a bratha up?

 

check your pm

Wasn't getting testy. Just that people make assumptions before they know the facts. And people around my way if you have something nice they hate you for it. Go figure.

 

Just playing with ya...