Hey Guys,

This is the first time that I am going to be getting subs for my car and I was wondering if I am missing anything. Here is a list of things that I am going to get so far:

2 - 10inch subs 250RMS/500MAX @ 4 Ohms
10 inch box from Q-Logic, it holds both subs
Alpine head unit
4 AWG wire kit *** Do I need to have it handle 1000W or 500W?


The one thing I am not sure about is the amplifier. I was going to go with the 2-channel, but I don't know what I am looking for.

If you see anything I might be missing, let me know.

 

You will also need the wire harness for the radio to match your car, and a set or RCA cables if they do not come with the wiring kit.

You can get buy with the 8 gauge kit as long as you dont plan to expand. If you decide you want a second amp or whatever down the road you will need a second 8 gauge kit which is fine, but if you had the 4 gauge kit you can tap into whats already there.

With an amplifier you can use a bridgable 2 channel or a mono amp. But keep in mind with 4 ohms subs you need to make sure that it a 1 ohm stable amp no matter what kind you get.

Lastly you need to make sure that eather the deck or the amplifier have a crossover built into one of them so that you can cut the treble from going to the subs.

 

a 1 or 20 farad capasitor, cause im sure you dont want you headlamps dimming and killing your alternator while your drive.... if you have any other questions id be glad to help...i just finished installing my 4000$ sound system... took me a month do do it properly but man is it worth it!!!

 

So depending on how much cash you have, you don't NEED a cap, depending on how good your alternator is, how much power the amp is pushing, and whether or not you're running your 10in subs in serial, parallel, or if they are DVCs (lower the resistance, the more power flowing). That being said, BM94GT is correct in that CAPs are a nice insurance policy.

On wiring, good advice from melectrok... doesn't matter how much Wattage (although it's a factor of amperage & volts... Remember ohms law? ). What really matters is the amperage & length of the wire (resistance). 80+ amps will require 4 ga. But futureproofing isn't a bad idea either. Remember W=V*A or 80 amps * 12 volts = 960watts, so most wiring kits say "1000 watt setup" come with 4ga wire.

finally, do yourself a favor and don't skimp on the amp. I personnally prefer Zapco, but there are tons of excellent brands out there. Within reason, you get what you pay for.

And if you haven't bought the subs yet, try to get DVC subs, gives you more options in terms of wiring.

 

how much you willing to spend on this amp? im saying like he said you get for what you pay for..!

 

Thanks for all the input guys.

With this being the first time doing this and still being in college, I don't want to break the bank paying for top-end items. I have a friend who can get me a discount on a lot of these items, so I am looking into either the Rockford P550.2 or the Kenwood KAC-7202.

I am going to get a 1000W 4 AWG kit (I decided), as well as a 1F Capacitor since I have my cell phone charger and radar on constantly.

 

take the money for the cap and put it into a better battery with a higher CCA rating.

 

Do you understand what a cap actually does? Reason I ask is your comment on keeping your cell phone charger and radar on... These two draw so little power it isn't funny. I routinely run a power inverter to my laptop on the car with no problems, which is upwards of 90watts. Any recent car will handle all this with ease. What a capacitor does is store energy. Lower frequencies require more power to drive at the same volume level, so think of it this way... If you're running serious bass, and the amp is drawing too much current during a bass hit, more than your battery / alternator can deliver, then the amp will clip. You then need to upgrade your battery, upgrade your alternator or get a cap. Otherwise you're fine. Unless you're listening to bass mechanix non-stop at max gain, max volume, you probably don't need one. You can always add one later if necessary.

 

Caps are not going to do anything for long drawn out bass, so please explain where you are going?

 

Lets try it a different way, maybe simpler... A loud bass thud requires a surge of power. If your battery / alternator cannot handle what the amp needs in terms of power to deliver the thud, your electrical system will suffer (dimming lights, etc.). The amp's going to pull power from somewhere...

Figure out how much current your alternator can put out. Figure out how much you are going to draw from your amps, and figure out what the delta is. Or better yet, install the system, and see if your lights dim when the bass hits. If not, you're probably ok. But if so, you're still better off getteing a better alternator, battery or alternator wiring. The Cap is really only masking the issue.

So to Hiss04Cobra, you're exactly right. Long drawn out bass is going to deplete the cap's reserve rather quickly. Hence my point, upgrade the electrical system. Don't mask the problem.