Amplifier Recommendation

[mch]

Hello,

Just looking for some advice on Amp selection. I just ordered the Fox Acoustics Box (Sealed with 2, 10” Subs), and planning on buying 2 JL Audio 10W1v3’s 2 ohm Subwoofers. Would either of these 2 have enough power to adequately push these speakers in a sealed box?

Alpine MRV-M500 Mono V-Power Digital Amplifier - 500 Watts RMS X 1 at 2 Ohms
Jl Audio Jx500/1d Mono Subwoofer Amplifier - 500 Watts RMS X 1 at 2 Ohms

I was also leaning on this one:
Alpine R-A75M R-Series Mono Digital Amplifier - 750 Watts x 1 at 2-Ohms

Right now, the plan is to just run the 1 Amp, with the possibility to install another amp down the road. I’m going to run 4 gauge wire (already bought it), and 6 channels worth of RCA (3 Pairs).

 

[boom3198]

So if you wire 2 - 2 Ohm subs together, you will get 1 ohm in parallel and 4 ohm in series. The Alpine M500 is good for about 250-275 peak at 4 ohm, which gives you about 125 peak/65 RMS per sub. I would suggest buying 2 of the 10W1V3-4 's, which are the 4 ohm variants of the same sub and wire them down to 2 ohm, which gets you 250w a piece peak, 125 RMS, which the subs are rated up to 300 peak.. I ran an M500 with one Alpine Type S 10 and it sounded wayyyy better than the factory Alpine sub in my 13 1500 I just traded in. I would say that if your running 2-10s on the M500, 8Ga power and ground would suffice. Go with 4Ga if you plan on adding additional amps, which makes it easier in the long run only running cable once. Just fyi, running 2 fully powered 10's on the factory setup, your going to end up turning your amp gain way down in order to level out the volume. Let me know if you have any other questions.

 

[mch]

So if you wire 2 - 2 Ohm subs together, you will get 1 ohm in parallel and 4 ohm in series. The Alpine M500 is good for about 250-275 peak at 4 ohm, which gives you about 125 peak/65 RMS per sub. I would suggest buying 2 of the 10W1V3-4 's, which are the 4 ohm variants of the same sub and wire them down to 2 ohm, which gets you 250w a piece peak, 125 RMS, which the subs are rated up to 300 peak.. I ran an M500 with one Alpine Type S 10 and it sounded wayyyy better than the factory Alpine sub in my 13 1500 I just traded in. I would say that if your running 2-10s on the M500, 8Ga power and ground would suffice. Go with 4Ga if you plan on adding additional amps, which makes it easier in the long run only running cable once. Just fyi, running 2 fully powered 10's on the factory setup, your going to end up turning your amp gain way down in order to level out the volume. Let me know if you have any other questions.

Doh, for some reason I thought the speakers were dual voice coil. I would then make the 2 ohm speakers to 4 ohm via wire connections, then drop down at the Amp. I think you said what I needed to hear. I don't totally blast the music anyway and figure at the moment the stock amp is driving the other speakers fine. Just want a cleaner base, with a little more hit. I'll get a remote bass knob to fine tune. So, you think you think the M500 should suffice? What about that compared to the JL Audio amp? I was going to run the 4 gauge to a junction block and go to gauge from there if I ever decide to upgrade. I'd rather just run the wiring once, to include the extra RCAs.

 

[boom3198]

Doh, for some reason I thought the speakers were dual voice coil. I would then make the 2 ohm speakers to 4 ohm via wire connections, then drop down at the Amp.

I hear you. I have done that in the past when buying off of auction sites, thinking I am buying one config and end up with something different.

I think you said what I needed to hear. I don't totally blast the music anyway and figure at the moment the stock amp is driving the other speakers fine. Just want a cleaner base, with a little more hit. I'll get a remote bass knob to fine tune.

It really all depends on how much thump you want. I had a competition car for a couple years and tbh, the factory alpine setup with the M500 and the single Type S 10 sounded awesome and even (level) compared to the mids and highs, adding the much needed low end missing from the factory setup.

So, you think you think the M500 should suffice? What about that compared to the JL Audio amp? I was going to run the 4 gauge to a junction block and go to gauge from there if I ever decide to upgrade. I'd rather just run the wiring once, to include the extra RCAs.

There are relatively minute differences between those two amps, besides the branding. So either one will work. Both have line level inputs on them, you would have to make sure they come with the line level harnesses. What I did was pull the factory sub, pull it out of the plastic 'box' and remove the wire harness. I cut the harness leaving about 4-5 inches of wire on the sub (for reconnecting the factory sub when i sold the truck) and took the vehicle side and wired it to the line level input for the amp. Tapped into a pink wire in the wire harness under the drivers seat (make sure with a volt meter to get the right one on/off with they key/push to start) for the remote turn on lead. This allowed me to use the factory eq to turn up or down the bass as needed and use the amp's crossover to eliminate anything above 80hz getting to the sub.

 

[mch]

I hear you. I have done that in the past when buying off of auction sites, thinking I am buying one config and end up with something different.

It really all depends on how much thump you want. I had a competition car for a couple years and tbh, the factory alpine setup with the M500 and the single Type S 10 sounded awesome and even (level) compared to the mids and highs, adding the much needed low end missing from the factory setup.

There are relatively minute differences between those two amps, besides the branding. So either one will work. Both have line level inputs on them, you would have to make sure they come with the line level harnesses. What I did was pull the factory sub, pull it out of the plastic 'box' and remove the wire harness. I cut the harness leaving about 4-5 inches of wire on the sub (for reconnecting the factory sub when i sold the truck) and took the vehicle side and wired it to the line level input for the amp. Tapped into a pink wire in the wire harness under the drivers seat (make sure with a volt meter to get the right one on/off with they key/push to start) for the remote turn on lead. This allowed me to use the factory eq to turn up or down the bass as needed and use the amp's crossover to eliminate anything above 80hz getting to the sub.

I ordered the AmpPro to avoid having to mess with any splicing. Think I'm going with the JL Audio RD500/1. I'll fuse the wire at the battery and a junction block near the amp.

 

[boom3198]

I ordered the AmpPro to avoid having to mess with any splicing. Think I'm going with the JL Audio RD500/1. I'll fuse the wire at the battery and a junction block near the amp.

I could see using the AmpPro if I was replacing the entire system with all aftermarket components and keeping the HU, but just to add a pair of subs, you'll have almost as much in the AmpPro as you will in amp and subs. But like you said earlier, if you want to go all out later, it makes sense to lay the groundwork now. Good luck on your install! Let us know how that Fox Acoustics box turns out for ya.

-Note-
Somebody has a JL RD900/5 and 2 10W1V3's for sale on ebay for $500

 

[mch]

I could see using the AmpPro if I was replacing the entire system with all aftermarket components and keeping the HU, but just to add a pair of subs, you'll have almost as much in the AmpPro as you will in amp and subs. But like you said earlier, if you want to go all out later, it makes sense to lay the groundwork now. Good luck on your install! Let us know how that Fox Acoustics box turns out for ya.

-Note-
Somebody has a JL RD900/5 and 2 10W1V3's for sale on ebay for $500

Going to be spendy. 2 subs and the box will be 650, and the AmpPro was like 230. Since I got the CDT woofer 6x9s in the doors, I was thinking of a 5 channel to take care of the doors and sub. May even replace a pair with 3 way 6x9s.

 

[Nuno]

I hear you. I have done that in the past when buying off of auction sites, thinking I am buying one config and end up with something different.

It really all depends on how much thump you want. I had a competition car for a couple years and tbh, the factory alpine setup with the M500 and the single Type S 10 sounded awesome and even (level) compared to the mids and highs, adding the much needed low end missing from the factory setup.

There are relatively minute differences between those two amps, besides the branding. So either one will work. Both have line level inputs on them, you would have to make sure they come with the line level harnesses. What I did was pull the factory sub, pull it out of the plastic 'box' and remove the wire harness. I cut the harness leaving about 4-5 inches of wire on the sub (for reconnecting the factory sub when i sold the truck) and took the vehicle side and wired it to the line level input for the amp. Tapped into a pink wire in the wire harness under the drivers seat (make sure with a volt meter to get the right one on/off with they key/push to start) for the remote turn on lead. This allowed me to use the factory eq to turn up or down the bass as needed and use the amp's crossover to eliminate anything above 80hz getting to the sub.

This is for the alpine system right? And are there two wires -,+ off the harness to the factory sub? If so, which is negative and positive. Also, did you have any issues with the anc?

 

[Apettit13]

I am not going to get into the wiring specifics of ohms and such.

what I will say is the only amp I will ever use is hifonics. A good chunk of the amps out there will say “1200 watt”, when in reality it peaks at 1200 watt, and will run at 800 consistently.

hifonics on the other hand used true wattages, if their amp says “1200 watt”, that means it runs at 1200, and will peak somewhere around 1600.
I ran a Hifonics Brutus Monoblock 1200 Watt that pushed 2 12 inch Rockford Fosgate P3 Punches beautifully, and had taken that amp with me to power several other setups as well.

hifonics is hands down the way to go in terms of amplifiers.

 

[sppb32]

I am not going to get into the wiring specifics of ohms and such.

what I will say is the only amp I will ever use is hifonics. A good chunk of the amps out there will say “1200 watt”, when in reality it peaks at 1200 watt, and will run at 800 consistently.

hifonics on the other hand used true wattages, if their amp says “1200 watt”, that means it runs at 1200, and will peak somewhere around 1600.
I ran a Hifonics Brutus Monoblock 1200 Watt that pushed 2 12 inch Rockford Fosgate P3 Punches beautifully, and had taken that amp with me to power several other setups as well.

hifonics is hands down the way to go in terms of amplifiers.

Not by a mile long, Hifonics overrates their amps
Just like JL Audio and Rockford they do not give you your bang for the buck like some of the new brands do

 

[Apettit13]

Not by a mile long, Hifonics overrates their amps
Just like JL Audio and Rockford they do not give you your bang for the buck like some of the new brands do

My man you are sorely missing out if you don’t have a hifonics amp. I see you’ve got sundown audio subs which are definitely a good choice, but hifonics is unmatched when it comes to amplifiers

 

[sppb32]

My man you are sorely missing out if you don’t have a hifonics amp. I see you’ve got sundown audio subs which are definitely a good choice, but hifonics is unmatched when it comes to amplifiers

I'll just leave this here for the price i rather use Skar audio
(1) Hifonics BRX1116.1D Amp Dyno and Unboxing - YouTube
(1) 2000 watts for $200? Skar Audio RP2000.1D Amp Dyno Test - YouTube

 

[Apettit13]

I'll just leave this here for the price i rather use Skar audio
(1) Hifonics BRX1116.1D Amp Dyno and Unboxing - YouTube
(1) 2000 watts for $200? Skar Audio RP2000.1D Amp Dyno Test - YouTube

But it’s not really fair. You use 1 guy who says it’s a bust, and then go to an entirely different channel to justify the skar? I’m not hating on skar audio, but I can also go to YouTube and find plenty of videos where people say it’s the best. My personal opinion is I would take hifonics over any other amp. I would also take Rockford Fosgate and sundown subwoofers over any others.

 

[sppb32]

But it’s not really fair. You use 1 guy who says it’s a bust, and then go to an entirely different channel to justify the skar? I’m not hating on skar audio, but I can also go to YouTube and find plenty of videos where people say it’s the best. My personal opinion is I would take hifonics over any other amp. I would also take Rockford Fosgate and sundown subwoofers over any othethey

But it’s not really fair. You use 1 guy who says it’s a bust, and then go to an entirely different channel to justify the skar? I’m not hating on skar audio, but I can also go to YouTube and find plenty of videos where people say it’s the best. My personal opinion is I would take hifonics over any other amp. I would also take Rockford Fosgate and sundown subwoofers over any others.

They use the same Dyno to test real output power of the amplifiers, results speak for themselves, Hifonics has some decent amplifiers but most of them are overrater, just like Soundstream, i always liked Soundstream since back in the 90"s but some are of their amplifiers are disappointing others are great, this days is hard to compete with the new brands like Taramps they are coming out very strong with their budget full bridge amplifiers, very powerful and small footprint makes them ideal for installation in tight spaces like our trucks.
When it comes to subwoofers well... sadly Rockford Kicker and JLaudio were left far behind in the game, Sundown has some of the best ones but they are not budget friendly for most. Bang for the buck, Skar audio, American Bass, Audiopipe are the tough to beat, i'll be running a pair of XR 10, D4 (americanbassusa.com) myself powered by a (Taramps Smart 3) in my truck.