choosing my subwoofers and amp

Systems · February 2004

hey, i am currently driving a 2000 dodge durango. i am planning on putting some subwoofers in it but im thinking of what is sounds better. im not quite knowledgable in the car audio areas for please help me. i was thinking of buying two 12" mm124's along wiht the 500 watt amp. are those good choices. if so, what kind of boxes should i get to go with those and what kind of head units are good.

Systems · February 2004

also , how many watts should i get for some good sound?

dougie07 · February 2004

The Polk Momos are great subs. I've got three 10s, and they sound awesome. The bass is nice and tight, and you can listen to pretty much any kind of music and they will sound nice. For an amp, you'll be looking for one that puts out 1x1000 watts RMS @2ohms, or 2x500 watts RMS @4ohms. As for the box issue, the Polk site shows that the 124s can be used in sealed (0.88 cu. ft.) or bandpass (2.10 cu. ft.) boxes. I think the sealed boxes provide tighter bass, while using the bandpass box will push more air. Some of the other guys on the forum will be able to tell you more about that. Polk does sell the 124s already in boxes, if you don't wanna have to worry about getting one later. They are the mm12s. I like the boxes, their very sturdy and are made for that particular sub, so... I don't know too much about head units, because I've only used Pioneer. So I can't really tell you which are better than the others. I've heard good things about Alpine, you may wanna check those out. Hope this helps.

Doug

sntnsupermen131 · February 2004

do you have an aftermarket head unit?
-Cody

MacLeod · February 2004

If youre wanting a ghetto blaster that moves more air than a wind tunnel then you need at least 500 rms per sub.

Take the 2 MM124s and stick them in a sealed box then snag you a couple Phoenix Gold Tantrum 500.2's off Sound Domain.com for a paltry $230 each and sit back and enjoy watching the neighbors 2 blocks down the road come out of their houses to see what the hell that noise is.

If youre wanting more of a "blending" of the bass in a more sound quality configuration then just use one sub in a sealed box. You should still stick with the PG amp cause it has a whole Time Life Edition of output and is as clean and pure as the wind driven snow.

Id stay away from a bandpass box. When theyre dialed in perfectly they sound pretty good but its real tricy to get them right and they sound like **** if they arent. Dont believe me? Just take a trip down to Best Buy and give a listen to whatever sub theyve happened to stick in their premade bandpass box and it will all be made perfectly clear.

PoweredByDodge · February 2004

PG makes a nice amp -- and two 500.2's would work well for your setup (if u went with two momo 12's.)

Personally... I would say "go for the gusto my son!" and suggest teh following for a durango (since its a big truck).

4 polk momo mm124's.

then beg borrow or steal two mtx 1501D's / 81000D's or rockford 1000.1bd's or a couple of USamps 1000's.

pray your alternator will take it, and sit back and enjoy the bass.

MacLeod · February 2004

....sit back and enjoy the bass until the dbs stop your heart and you die!! LOL

That is a way to go. Its way, way, WAY more than youll ever need but then again, you dont need a Ferrari to get you to work and back but it sure would be a lot of fun!

Systems · February 2004

thanks for the advice. i think im gonna go with the two 12s and 500 watts each. if u guys got anymore advice for me please tell i realt apreaiate it. plus i love reading ur replies cuz it funny a--stuff

Systems · February 2004

lol i need more grammar school

.

sntnsupermen131 · February 2004

2 momos would do ya good...
4 would be better of course...but 2 is good:D
our friend macleod has kind of a handicap...sickness actually
down syndrome...
yup...
as in "keep the volume" down

i have 1800 watts RMS in my truck and i use it everyday:D
-Cody

Systems · February 2004

is a Bazooka RS Series 1200-Watt 2-Channel High-Current Amp
good for thw two momos? the only problem i have is what amp i should get. are bazookas any good. i dont want to get too price on the amp or amps.

MacLeod · February 2004

Originally posted by sntnsupermen131

our friend macleod has kind of a handicap...sickness actually
down syndrome...
yup...
as in "keep the volume" down

i have 1800 watts RMS in my truck and i use it everyday:D
-Cody

LOL! Very funny. Actually I have a condition called brokeness. I need to keep the cost down!

Dont get me wrong guys, Im all for a big mega watt system but all my recommendations come from a practical standpoint where cash and space constraints are a consideration. I dont want to rip out my entire back seat for 4 15"subs because I use the back seats a lot so I opt for a single, high powered sub. I dont have room to mount nor can I afford a 1500 rms amp thats 4 feet long and costs $700 so I give the nod to a smaller 500 rms $350 amp of high quality.

Now when I win the lottery Ill have me a Ram with all the fixins, but til then Im afraid Im gonna have to make do with a more modest setup.

sntnsupermen131 · February 2004

whats ur price range?
i hate bazooka
with a passion...
macleod-win you win the lottery...remember your friends on the polk forum:D
-Cody

Systems · February 2004

well i just dont want to spend more than like 500 on an amp, but i need enough watts for two mm124s.

sntnsupermen131 · February 2004

here
-Cody

MacLeod · March 2004

While the Hifonics is certainly an awesome amp you might want to take a peek at this little beauty. Its really potent and 1 ohm stable which is pretty damn cool. The spec that draws my attention the most is the 100 db SNR. Most class D amps are in the 90s. This is on sale for like $370 or something.

sntnsupermen131 · March 2004

the JBL is def. going to be louder, but the hifonics is going to be more clear...
whether or not you can hear the difference depends on your ears, i can hear the difference
another option would be this
why i didnt mention it in the first place...i dunno
its my pick
its going to be as loud as the JBL, and almost as clear as the hifonics
for $390...still $110 under your $500 mark
-Cody

MacLeod · March 2004

OK Im witcha on this one. Ill pretty much take a RF Power amp over most anything else. Oodles of clean power and bad **** look to boot. Sure there may be better amps out there but like Polk, for the money theyre the best on the market!

Ive never heard a Hifonics or JBL amp. Neither of them will put a dealer down here in Dixie and car audio doesnt seem to be as big here as it is in Texas. Hell I have to drive over an hour to my nearest Focal dealer when there was 10 in Austin alone!!

Anyway, I was actually considering the JBL amps for my hi end project because they show some great specs and they are winning more SQ competitions than you can shake a stick at. But you say the Hifonics is a sweeter sounding amp?

sntnsupermen131 · March 2004

yea, hifonics is going to be a better sounding amp, take a look at the specs on the JBL....
0.1 THD...too high for me...
i would put hifonics under the "mid high end category"
i would put rf in the "mid category"
and jbl in the "low mid category"
im a huge fan of JBL's GTO subs...theyre the best beginner subs ive ever heard...theyre VERY cheap too
id sell you my old RF bd1000 for $125...but it dont work...lol
-Cody

Systems · March 2004

how many watts do u think each sub(mm124) need to sound good? how many to sound really good? when it say 1200-Watt 2-Channel High-Current Amp...does tha mean it will put 600 in on channel and 600 in the other? please explain. im an idiot with stereos as u can see.

sntnsupermen131 · March 2004

well theres not a lot of 2 channel 1200 watt amps out there
something as big as 1200 watts is usually going to be a mono, or one channel amp
what youre looking for is something with an rms rating of 500x2 @ 4 ohms or 1000x1@2 ohms
the "1000x1@2ohms" means each sub will get 500 watts
and no, 600 watts is not more than the momos can handle
they can handle a good 150-200 watts (per sub) more if its nice clean power
-Cody

Systems · March 2004

why do you hate bazooka?

sntnsupermen131 · March 2004

theyre not made very well by any means, i hate their "bass tubes", they sound like crap
you can do better for the money
a lot better
-Cody

Systems · March 2004

well i ran into a couple money problems and i have come up short for money for an amp. instead of a 500 budge for an amp i need to go down to as close to 350 as i can get. right now the only amp i have found in my price range is ths amp its a bazooka i tihnk it looks decent, but im not to sure of what is good. here it is http://www.circuitcity.com/detail.jsp?c=1&b=g&catoid=-8865&qp=0&oid=71519

i think it looks good, plus it comes with two free subs(they are like 250 watta subs worth about 40 each, which i will probably resell.). please help me if u find anything in my price range. Remeber i need enough for two mm124's and im try for atleast 500 watts each.
i appreciate all ur help guys.

sntnsupermen131 · March 2004

dude, that amp wont even put 500 watts on ONE momo...when you saw the 1200 watts, thats PEAK
peak is crap, never pay attention to peak
rms is what youre looking for
as far as I'm concerned, the best amps in your price range have already been listed...even though theyre 20-40 bucks over your limit...1000 watts is A LOT of power...it doesnt come cheap
-Cody

C-Man · March 2004

Dude, you want a great amp for $350 you better jump on that Hifonics amp. Hell, with that amp, you could get you a third mm12, run it at 1.3 ohms, get about 450 watts per sub and call it a day.

BUT..... for your application of two MM124's, you most likely WILL NOT find a better, cleaner, more powerful, more versatile amp than the Hifonics... period... well not with a warranty anyway.

Wanna go even cheaper? for about $275 on ebay you could get the JBL 1200.1. That will put out about 1350 watts rms at 1 or 2 ohms. And for a beginner, I'm about 99.99% sure you're not gonna notice the difference in sound.

I grade them like this... for a beginner amp the JBL would be an "A" whereas the Hifonics would be "A+ with a little extra credit."

I do wanna point out one thing... while the JBL is rated at .1%THD... it's actually <.1%. I owned the JBL amp for a short time and the birth sheet that came with the amp was rated at .024%THD at 1236 watts at 2 ohms. For that matter the MTX 500D I just bought my girlfriend on ebay was rated on the amp as <1%THD... not .1, 1%. On the birth sheet on that amp it's rated at .067% at 786 watts at 2 ohms. You know I'm not arguing with ya Cody, I'd never do anything so rediculous...lol... I'm just saying a lot of times the ratings don't do the amp justice. I ran an HCCA 15 on my JBL amp and the damn thing cooked that HCCA! That's a lot of power.

Bottom line, you'll be happy with either... if you wanna pinch some pennies, get the JBL, I don't think you'll regret it.

sntnsupermen131 · March 2004

i dont take it as arguing, just going by the specs, which yes, can be very misleading sometimes, ive never used the jbl before so its nice for someone to shed some light
good to see you around here again
and as far as arguing with me, its not ridiculous
hell...put someone that posted about ED on this forum in the delimma thread and ill argue with them to they shut up or hell freezes over
-Cody

PolkMomoRam · March 2004

If you haven't already bought your amp, you could get a Crossfire 500D for close to that price. I love this amp, it puts out about 20% more than it's rated power on a bad day, and even more on a good day. It is a competition class amp, digital design, and built like a tank. I would take a quality "50 watt rms" amp over a so called decent "1200 watt amp" I have seen this scenario a thousand times, the high quality "low wattage amp" literally kills the "high powered, uber megawatt sub amp"

sntnsupermen131 · March 2004

JBLs put out their rated power
theyre not a bad amp at all
hifonics is even better
-Cody

MacLeod · March 2004

The THD rating on a lot of amps is "THD at rated power" which means that is usually the highest THD it will reach. Take Xtant, their THD is .1% as well but they are regarded as one of the cleanest amps around. Same with SNR rating. Hifonics is rated at 95 db and Profile is at 105 db. Does that mean Profile is a better amp than Hifonics? Dont think so. If its a solid, quality name brand then I wouldnt worry too much about the specs. Virtually all name brand amps are gonna have distortion levels so low you wont be able to hear it anyway.

Also JBL amps are made in partnership with Crown (or Crown and JBL merged, something like that) who makes a pretty darn good amp. I agree with Cody that JBL used to be low level stuff but I do believe they are on their way up. They are winning more SQ competitions than you can shake a stick at lately. Must be something to em.

choosing my subwoofers and amp

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