subwoofer

gub

gub

Forum Member
Another question. I bought an amp for my car and was looking to get a 10in sub for it too. The amp I have is an arc audio 5 channel. What would you recommend for a sub? Doesn't need to be the loudest, mainly looking for clear clean bass.

amp I have


http://www.arcaudio.com/p/xdi850-5
 
Billy aka 79cobra

Has a great deal on lightning Audio subs. Rebranded Rockford's

Has 2 different 10" models. 300w and 800w

Call him @ state of the art in Ypsilanti.

He bought a shit load of them. The price is stupid cheap
 
The sub channel output on that amp is going to limit you IMO. 225W @ 4 ohm is not a lot. I personally wouldn't run a woofer rated for 500W RMS, 1000W peak with it. I'd either upgrade the amp (or add a second sub amp that has more power), or choose a woofer that's closer to a 200W RMS @ 4 ohms rating. Given the OP's description, I'd suggest the latter.
 
gub said:
What's the difference of running 4 ohm or 2 ohms?
Click to expand...

I would love to hear a good technical explanation too (ahem Tin). My last setup I had a dual 2 ohm voice coil sub that I bridged to run at 4 ohms. Was that a mistake or didn't it matter?

-Geoff
 
WhiteHawk said:
I would love to hear a good technical explanation too (ahem Tin). My last setup I had a dual 2 ohm voice coil sub that I bridged to run at 4 ohms. Was that a mistake or didn't it matter?

-Geoff
Click to expand...

Halving the load to the amplifier theoretically doubles the power, but it's also harder on the amp and produces more heat. Low impedance was an issue in the old days when amps didn't have beefy enough power supplies to support the impedance dips. On old amps, too low a load can cause oscillation, which generally manifests itself as weak, washed out sound coming from the speakers. Newer amplifiers are built with beefier power supplies which can handle the impedance dips. On to of that, speakers never have a constant impedance, the impedance changes as the frequency played back changes. For instance, a bass driver may be 4 ohm nominal, but it it will probably play anywhere from 1 ohm to 6 ohms depending on frequency. This is why it's important to buy a larger amp over a smaller amp. Weak amps will destroy speakers and can literally weld the voice coil together. Better having too much than not enough.
 
In simpler terms, an ohm is a measure of electrical resistance. Speakers are usually rated as being 8, 4 or 2 ohm nominal. A given amp will output 2x as much power at 4 ohms vs 8 ohms, and 4x at 2 ohms vs. 8. But the amp has to be rated for 2 ohm loads since it draws that much more power when running at 4 ohm (or 2) and usually runs hotter. You should include speaker impedance (resistance/ohms) during speaker selection since it directly impacts the power output of the amp you mate it to.

Taking it one step further, woofer/subs can also come as a single or dual voice coil. The woofer moneypit linked to is a dual 2 ohm. That means you can either run a dual channel sub amp to it with each channel running at 2 ohms (rare), or you wire the voice coils in series for a single 4 ohm load (common, normal). You could also wire them in parallel, creating a single 1 ohm load, but you'll never find an amp rated to run that low. So in Gub's situation, he'd have to wire that DVC sub in series for a 4 ohm load, but his amp has a max output of 225W @ 4 ohms, and that sub is looking twice that power. And trying to push a large speaker with a small, underpowered amp is very bad idea for the reasons Tin described. Many amps also get dirty (increased THD) at max output.

Gub - you really need to decide if you want a sealed, vented or bandpass enclosure. My preference is sealed, but the case can be made for ported/vented. Then I'd try to find a prebuilt enclosure (like the one moneypit linked to) that makes you happy in terms of fit/size/cost. Then I'd download a speaker design app like WinISD and figure out which driver (woofer) would work best in that box given those constraints. Some woofers are designed for vented, others for sealed, etc.

If that sounds like too much work, I'd just look for a ready to run setup... JL makes some great stuff (if you can afford it). Their stealthbox is nice, but gonna be hard to find for '95. Any box in the trunk will work, just a matter of size vs. cost vs. output. Just make sure whatever you get is 4ohm and about 150-200W RMS.

Or just go find an LMS 5400 driver in a box! :)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CkQ5sU40mLA
 
Last edited:
So go with a more efficient sub. There is a rating for subs that says spl at 1 watt / 1 meter. It has been alot of years since I was into car audio or maybe had a car I gave a shit about. There was a category at the car audio competitions where they would have say 1 75 watt amp running the whole system. They would have some crazy setups. If you have 225W to work with get a sub that is rated close to that.
 
Thank you for all of the info. I never really understood the sub/amp specs. Now what brands would you guys recommend? I looked at some of the jl audio products. Im just gonna go with a sealed box
 
I have this in a ported box and, I can't be happier. Out of all of the setups I have run over the years, this sub a round port 1.25 cft box and a Rockford 500.1 Prime (the small one) has kept me satisfied for about 5 years now.The sub has a lot more left in it but, its accurate and clean even in the ported box.
 
StockNotch said:
I have this in a ported box and, I can't be happier. Out of all of the setups I have run over the years, this sub a round port 1.25 cft box and a Rockford 500.1 Prime (the small one) has kept me satisfied for about 5 years now.The sub has a lot more left in it but, its accurate and clean even in the ported box.
Click to expand...

What sub?
 
If interested I have a brand new never installed Sun Down Audio SA 10" dual 2ohm voice coil sub that is 600w rms. This brand hits harder and cleaner then anything I've heard before. Especially for such a 10" sub. I'm not going to end up using it, so if someone is interested PM me. If I need to delete this post please tell me.
 
I'd look into the Dayton Reference line as well, specifically the HF 10". Would work well with your power and that box moneypit recommended. I have one of these waiting to go into my Camaro in a small sealed box with roughly the same power as you. The HO is also an excellent choice and can handle more power with efficiency staying about the same but doesn't look like it'll play as low in the same size box.

http://www.parts-express.com/dayton-audio-rss265hf-4-10-reference-hf-subwoofer-4-ohm--295-460

Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk
 
Last edited:
camaromann said:
If interested I have a brand new never installed Sun Down Audio SA 10" dual 2ohm voice coil sub that is 600w rms. This brand hits harder and cleaner then anything I've heard before. Especially for such a 10" sub. I'm not going to end up using it, so if someone is interested PM me. If I need to delete this post please tell me.
Click to expand...

your pm's are full
do you have any use for a Audio Control lc7i http://www.audiocontrol.com/car-audio/factory-system-upgrade/lc7i/
as a trade/partial trade?
rob
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top