infiltrator

damn i need some help finding a 2 channel amp and a 4 channel amp. i dont wanna pay too much, but all i can find is amps for liek 600 bucks and stuff. i guess i will try craigslist.

couple questions.
is it better to buy a brand new amp. is a used one bad? i mean can you damage an amp?

does brand matter? whats the difference in qualities?

ewong

For sure you can damage an amp!
Amps can "blow" and thus are boat anchors.
They can be repaired - but usually not for less than a new amp (esp the cheap amps).

The problem with a used amp is ya dont know how well it works or doesnt work. Just because it wil drive a speaker doenst mean it isnt partially blown - or it puts out such a limited output that when you crank it it will rip the speakers with distortion...


Better amps actually put out the watts they say they do (actually really good amps tend to under rate)

Better amps can handle lower ohm ratings (aka more speakers tied to them)

Better amps will shut down instead of blow (both amp and speakers)

---

Sounds like you need a car audio 101 site...

infiltrator

yeah i do lol. so it looks like im ed with the pricing. i dont think i would be able to live with myself if i bought used ones and they were blown.

any links to some good but cheap amps. i know its probably you get what you pay for, but you never know

ewong

Lets try this again

What speakers do you have
how many

what are your goals
SPL?
sound?
THUMP?

If you are on a budget - do a gradual build up
-- GOOD head unit driving 2 or 4 speakers to start with

-- upgrade to a powered sub

THEN better speakers and an amp...

It will sound better than you think

infiltrator

well im thinking of doing the same thing that osiris did to his rig. i read up on polk audio speakers and im probably gonna fabricate 4'' in the front and then 6.5 in the rear. i picked out the stuff for those. 2 12'' MTX RT12X2A subs witha box for 130 bucks. then comes amps. i want balance in the music. that is, i want the speakers to keep up with the subwoofers.

toylocost

If you want a REALLY cheap one go to wall mart or best buy or something like that.

josephah2000

Just as an fyi, I have an alpine cd, mb quart components in the front, 1 10" aluminum eclipse sub in a .75 cu ft sealed enclosure all powered by 2 rockford fosgate 300s punch amps. This set up is very basic set up for something a little better than stock.

My point to you is that you may need to get amps that are slightly more powerful than the ones I have. (75x2) and (300x1). My setup sounds really clean but it does not play extremely loud. But you may need to get a more bigger better battery and make sure you have a good installation with adequate power wire and grounds.

frodin1

Crutchfield.com

infiltrator

amen to crutchfield

deserttoy84

I go to www.onlinecarstereo.com for everything , they have great customer service and low prices. I think the best bang for your buck is alpine stuff. Its not terribly expensive and its really good quality stuff. my friend bought a mono amp(1 channel) and it put out some serious power,

olharleyman

If your interested I have a Phoenix Gold XS6600 6 channel amp that will run everything you listed. I run one in my 4runner and it powers 1 set of 5.25 1 set of 6.25 and 2 10's and i will diffenetily rock your runner. I bought 2 of them thinking that I would use one for the left side and one for the right side. I would sell it too you for 400 bucks shipped. The one reason I really love these amps is if you should ever blow the amp you can send it back to Phoenix Gold in Portland Or. and for 135 bucks they will rebuild it to work again. If your interested let my know and I will figure out the shipping arrangments to you.

infiltrator

i would, but i kinda wanted to put 2 amps in where the cargo area is (just like osiris' rig) and not to mention i can get 1000w 4 channel amp and a 300 2 channel for a little less than 300 bucks and i consider that a steal. lol harley youve answered so many of my posts on help i think this is your 3rd. nice to know your lookin out for me haha

infiltrator

i guess that pretty much solves my problem now doesnt it?

notanymore

remember that you need to look at the RMS wattage not the peak. one of my friends got one of those cheap 1000 watt peak 4 channel amps and it ended up having less than 100 rms per channel. not to mention that cheap amps tend to overrate their wattage,

infiltrator

well, would you say a company like profile or pioneer would rate themselves better?

ewong

There are NO STANDARDS for measuring car audio amplifier wattage that have to be adhered to - NONE

There are VOLUNTARY standards
CEA-2006 Compliant

On May 28, 2003, the Consumer Electronics Association published standard CEA-2006, "Testing & Measurement Methods for Mobile Audio Amplifiers." This "voluntary" standard advocates a uniform method for determining an amplifier's RMS power and signal-to-noise ratio. Using 14.4 volts, RMS watts are measured into a 4-ohm impedance load at 1 percent Total Harmonic Distortion (THD) plus noise, at a frequency range (for general purpose amplifiers) of 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz. Signal-to-Noise ratio is measured in weighted absolute decibels (dBA) at a reference of 1 watt into 4 ohms. This applies to both external amplifiers and the amplifiers within in-dash receivers.


IMHO - 1%THD is still too high. I perfer specs at 0.1%THD

You get what you pay for

Its why I use *only* 40 watts for my home stereo amp - Crown D75A

notanymore

for cheap amps they will work but just stay away from ebay brand amps

infiltrator

does pioneer have good amps, anyone have them???

toylocost

Screw Crutchfeild, they are way overpriced you can usually get the exact same thing for at least 30% less from another site. Crutchfeild just charges alot because people go to their site and see something they like and dont price it out. They just buy it for whatever Crutchfeild wants for it. But their sales are ok sometimes.

toylocost

and yes pioneer is good bang for your buck.