need a little "guidance" by experts

[StevenzZ]

hey guys, by brother gave me his subs to use there 10" Pioneer TS-W253C (2 10" in a long style box) as he has brought some newer gear for his car,

anyway im after some guidance on what amp to buy to run this etc, id also like to run some splits in the front. I currently have 6x9's in the parcel shelf(unknown brand) that were there in the car when i got it and the rest are stock speakers,

i already have a JVC head unit, no idea if its any good or anything but it does the job for me so far.

also should i be looking at buying all the same branded items i.e pioneer amps,splits, etc to go with the subs or it wont make to much of a difference if i cross speaker brands?

sorry for the essay but i don't have a lot of knowledge when it comes to car audio

if you need more information ill answer it best i can, i understand it hard explaining stuff to someone who has no idea
thanks in advance!

[camstatic]

Those subs are 140wrms each at 4ohms, so if you wire the subs in parallel, you get a 2 ohm load.

A 300wrms monoblock stable at 2ohm would be ideal, but you may be able to buy a big 4 channel amplifier, bridge one half of the amp into the subs (provided it's 2ohm stable bridged), and run your new splits off of the other half of the amp. It's worth noting that finding an amp that can run in 3 channel mode (so to speak) is getting a little rare, if you want me to seek you one out just PM me.

As for the rest of your system, brand matching is only good for sponsorships, otherwise you could be missing out on a way better product from a competitor, and it could possibly sell for less!

I'd definitely check Focal out as a speaker brand, I run these myself and they're brilliant.

It's getting late so I'm going to cut my reply off here, if you want to know anything else, just ask!

[holdenboy]

OK, well youve got the idea on how to get yourself a decent sounding system....so thats good

Its going to be a little hard to find an amp that will run your two subwoofers and the front splits (like camstatic above mentioned about the amp being 2 ohm stable when bridged). So you have three options, depending on how much money your willing to spend.

1. Buy a "monoblock" amplifier (these are made to run subwoofer/s) to power your subwoofers. Ive provided some links below as examples of what you should be looking at. You dont have to go with those exact models / brands, but its just to give you an idea. Something with 300-500wrms at 2 ohm impedance will be ideal. Then youve got your front speakers (splits), in this cheaper option im suggesting to run these off the head-unit untill you can afford to buy a second amplifier to power the splits to their full potential. They will work fine off the head-unit, just wont play as loud and you wont be able to filter out the low bass frequencies that the sub plays (its called a high pass filter) unless your head-unit has a HPF. Which model is the JVC head-unit?

2. Buy a "4 channel" amplifier, power the two subwoofers off the rear two channels (if its 2 ohm stable bridged, then wire the subs together then connect them to the bridged channels, if its not 2 ohm stable when bridged, you'll need to connect each subwoofer to a channel). Then you can power the front splits off the other 2 channels of the amp. This option really dosent provide you with enough power to the subs, but it'll still work and you'll be able to get away with it, just wont sound as good as two amps (one for subs, the other for front speakers).

3. But the same monoblock ive suggested in the first option, but buy a second "2 channel" amplifier for the front speakers.

Heres some links below for amplifiers and front speakers, but i do suggest to get into a car audio store and have a listen to as many types of splits as possible, you should find a set or even two that stand out from the rest.

6-6.5" Splits:

Pioneer Entry Level:
Ryda Car Audio - Pioneer Car Audio TS-C1602 Car Speakers($130.85)

JVC Entry Level:
Ryda Car Audio - JVC Car Audio CS-FS60 Component Speakers($130.95)

Sony:
Ryda Car Audio - Sony XSGTX1620S 6" Split Speakers($137.50)

Clarion:
Ryda Car Audio - Clarion Car Audio SRP1620M 6" Split System($175.95)

Sounstream:
Ryda Car Audio -Soundstream PCC.6N Picasso - 6.5" Speaker($223.75)

Alpine Type S:
Alpine Electronics of Australia

Alpine Type R:
Alpine Electronics of Australia

There are a few higher end brands out there, but they also come with the prictag...most are over $400. Brands like Focal, MB Quart, Boston Acoustics are stand-outs.

4ch. Amplifiers (for option 2):

Jaycar Response:
Response Car Amp 4x100WRMS - Jaycar Electronics

JL Audio:
Ryda Car Audio-JL Audio G4500 G Series 4 Channel Amplifier ($454.55)

Clarion:
Ryda Car Audio - Clarion Car Audio APX490M 4 Channel Amplifier($387.95)

Theres a few other brands out there, and for amplifiers brand dosent really make a difference to sound, only looks, power output and ofcourse price are the main things to worry about. A model with 80-150wrms per channel is ideal for your situation.

"Monoblock" Amplifiers:

JBL 300wrms:
Ryda Car Audio - JBL GTO301.1 Mono Subwoofer Amplifier($242.95)

Kenwood 500wrms:
Ryda Car Audio - Kenwood Car Audio KAC-8104D Car Amplifier($192.45)

Pioneer 400wrms:
Ryda Car Audio - Pioneer Car Audio GM-D7400M Car Amplifier($279.95)

Jaycar Response 600wrms:
Response 1000WRMS Linkable Car Monoblock Amplifier - Jaycar Electronics

Once again theres a few other brands out there, but price and power output are the main differences. Basically you want one with as much power as possible for your budget, even though you might not use all the power the amp can make, it wont have to work as hard to push your subs to their full potential and if you catch the bug and decide the upgrade later down the track it always handy to have the amplifier ready for the job

You'll also need to factor in wiring / installation costs (if you dont want to do it yourself). Wiring for one amp will cost around $80.00, whereas for two, maybe $150 - $180. Installation could range from $200 to $400 depending on what components you'll need to be installed.

Sorry for the long post, but hopefully it gives you an idea on which way to go

[holdenboy]

Oh yeah, forgot 2 channel amps, lol....

Clarion 2 x 90wrms:
Ryda Car Audio - Clarion Car Audio APX2181 Car Amplifier($204.95)

Kenwood 2 x 100wrms:
Ryda Car Audio - Kenwood Car Audio KAC-6203 Car Amplifier($168.95)

Jaycar Response 2 x 80wrms:
Response Car Amp 2 x 80WRMS - Jaycar Electronics

Anything with 80-120wrms per channel is ideal for front splits.

[StevenzZ]

wow thanks heaps for that Holdenboy cleared up a lot of stuff for me understand the whole ohms etc a lot better now lol....im thinking of going with the 1 monoblock to power the subs and a second 2chan amp to power the splits, with my VT they have speakers in the rear door's correct? do you think just leaving them stock is fine? and leave the 6x9's running on the head unit?

i ask this because my friend has a similar setup with the 6x9's in the rear parcel shelf, and another mate replaced the 6x9's with i think 6"(or splits not 100% sure) and to me sounds FAR better then the 6x9's in the back? there mite be more to it but thats just what it seems like to me,

thanks anyway dude heaps of help! if i have any more trouble ill be sure to ask you =]

[holdenboy]

No problems...i was in a generous mood

The main difference between 6/6.5" and 6x9s is the extra bass output of the 6x9s, which is kinda pointless if your using a subwoofer/s.

Rear speakers shouldnt be a huge concern for most systems, the only real reason i can see behind replacing them at all is if you have rear seat passengers often...other than that keep em stock and power them off the head-unit....spend more on the other components i say

[StevenzZ]

kool thanks mate no worry's... yeah i don't carry many passengers since my car is low mainly just me and my girlfriend in the front and that's it. oh and to the question before that i forgot to answer my head unit is a JVC KD-G805 50wx4

[holdenboy]

Alrighty cool so that head-unit has front, rear and subwoofer RCA outputs....good

This will make it easier when connecting the head-unit to the amplifiers, and allow you to adjust the subwoofer level and fade to the front/rear speakers