subwoofer amp

[scherry2]

I'm happy with my moons and tunes, but..... I want to add a sub but not a 1000 watt amp with 2 12 inch subs after all I'm an older fart. I was checking out ebay and found this http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISA...=true I figure I'd hook up 1 8 or 10 inch sub, I think it would be fine any comments? or

[kostby]

Unfortunately, in car audio as in many other things, you probably get EXACTLY what you pay for, and sometimes even less. The 'auto sense' power turn-on feature sounds like a good thing, but there's no specs on the eBay listing for total harmonic distortion, or any indication of how the bridged '200 watts' is measured.It's probably not quite as big a deal in a relatively noisy car environment for our 'middle aged ears' as it is in our living room, but cheap amps often add and amplify noise and speaker-blowing distortion that wasn't there in the input signal.$60.00 (minimum bid) plus shipping for an amp that's apparently 200 watts (or less usable) bridged peak power doesn't seem like much of a deal either. I've seen similar spec off-brand products at Wal-Mart for similar prices. I figure if I get it there and it quits, I can always take it back locally.The same seller has this listing which might be a better deal because it includes enclosure, amp, and speakers, though the bidding is already at $141.00:http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISA...37386

[Jahntassa]

Actually, that MTX is worth everything you pay for it, if there's nothing wrong with it. 200 Watts, however, isn't much to play with. You'd have to get a pretty small sub, or something cheapish, like an MTX RT10 or RT12, something that could do 200 w RMS.The MTX amps have pretty good specs, so I wouldn't worry there. For that cost, it's probably not bad.You'd need to run a single 4 Ohm sub to get the most power out of it, which is where it gets it's power. Two channel amplifiers that are "bridged", which has the output of the two channels combined, is where it gets it's most power.I'd say not a bad deal.MTX is much better than anything you'll get from Wal-mart for the same price.

[cdFxer]

Or some high quality efficient subs be prepared to make up for the amp $$ savings for much higher sub $$$....Several bad things about buying that stuff from eBay. 1. You may not be dealing with people who know whats what like Jahntassa. 2. So if something goes wrong and you let the magic smoke out or its bad out of the box..... 3. A lot of equipment makers will not honor their warranty if you do not buy from their dealers, or limit their warranty. Some of them DO have legit eBay outlets though.

[scherry2]

thanksI use ebay as an illustration, I would prefer to buy from an electronic store. I am just wondering what is out there in a 100 to 200 watt range.

[lazytiger]

Man, I feel like I'm turning into an Alpine salesman... but, it's simply the brand I have the most experience with.That being said, I'll plug another Alpine product. The Alpine Type-E is specifically designed to sound good with minimal wattage. You can pick up a 10" for about $100 at Circuit City. Pair it up with an Alpine MRP-M350 (200w RMS, 700w peak) mono amp for about $200, and you'll be set. Or, you could probably get by with bridging the 2-channel MRP-T220 (140w RMS, 250w peak) for $130.Plus you'll need a box. At Circuit City they'll probably try to sell you a Q-Logic box, which are fairly expensive. Don't get me wrong, Q-Logic boxes are nice (in fact I have one), but you're mostly paying for the name. You can get generic boxes for a song. Then they'll try to sell you a Monster Cable or Tsunami amp wiring kit. Same deal - it's good stuff, but you're mostly just paying for the name. You can get stuff that's just as good (though they'll swear up and down that it isn't) for much less elsewhere.Anyway, there's certainly stuff other than Alpine out there. If I was to buy something other than Alpine, I'd probably go for Infinity. For simplicity's sake, you can't beat the Infinity BassLink. For the same price as, if not less than, separately buying a sub, an amp, and a box, you can get the BassLink, which is all-in-one. Now that I think about it, I'd probably recommend that to you above anything.

[Jahntassa]

Tsunami. CC dropped Monster Cable a year and a half ago. Stupid move in my opinion, but hey.If you do a search on ebay for member 'Jahntassa', i'm actually selling one of those wiring kits for $20.My CC store in Conyers, GA is selling the CC brand sub/amplifier in a package for about $150. Includes amplifier, sub, and box. Go in and check it out. They're 'off brand', but i've installed a few of 'em, and for the price, they're very not bad.

[drunkenmaxx]

mtx has good subs at a cheap price. i got 2 12" mtx subs (the $90 ones, which i got buy one get one free) and an mtx amp that was only $150, and my system has been thumping loud for about 4 years! (had it in the cavi)

[Mr. Poopypants]

Quote, originally posted by lazytiger »Man, I feel like I'm turning into an Alpine salesman... but, it's simply the brand I have the most experience with.I have never used Alpine, I just have not been a fan of their HU styling. As far as HUs go, I'm a big fan of the styling of JVCs and Clarion. BUT again, that is just my opinion and I have never used Alpine.

[nismo]

Okay. Question. Should the amp be stronger than the sub or the sub be stronger than the amp. I have heard different variations of this. So I want to get this done and out of the way.Inder

[lazytiger]

Quote, originally posted by TRD4reel »Should the amp be stronger than the sub or the sub be stronger than the amp.You're a lot more likely to blow a speaker due to not enough power than too much power. That being said, it's still important that you match up your speakers and amps well. As long as their power handling capabilities are similar, a little (how much is a little?) give or take either way probably doesn't make much difference.Any pros out there have another opinion?Also, as drunkenvibe mentioned, MTX does make pretty good stuff. My wife has the Thunderform sub/amp in her Beetle, and that thing kicks impressively hard. And it's only a 10" with 100 watts!

[Jahntassa]

Amp should be stronger than the sub. Having too much power will blow the sub, yes, but that's why there's a gain adjustment on it. Lazytiger is right-on though, evenly matching up the RMS value of the sub and the RMS output of the amplifier is your best bet, with the amplifier capable of putting out just a bit more than the RMS of the sub.

[nismo]

Thanks. This helps me out a lot.Inder