Amp for avalanche 18

labrat

I am lucky enough to be given one of the closeout avelanche 18's by my wife. The box I am planning is 8 ft3 sealed, but don't know what amp to use. Is the O Audio 500 watt a good unit? Would that be enough power or is there a better choice out there?

Thanks in advance,

Labrat

Early B.

Here's what the Ascendant Audio website says...

The result is an incredible amount of low bass output from a single driver without the need for an amplifier over 1000 watts. The Avalanche motor was specifically designed to give you Earth-shattering, audiophile quality low bass with only 500 to 800 watts. With its ability to play loud and low, you typically don't need more than 750 watts.

I'd go for a higher wattage watt amp (1,000 plus). I have a 500 watt amp on my Onix Rocket sealed sub and it has a 10 inch driver. That amount of power seems like a lot, but it appears to be straining to keep up on HT. Alternatively, I have 250 amp on my Atlas 15 DIY ported sub and it's more than enough power.

tryrrthg

Get yourself a pro amp from Crown or QSC. if you don't want to deal with the fan noise or you need crossover and phase adjustment then Parts Express sells two high powered plate amps

500W plate amp

1000W Plate Amp

EDIT: one other thing to mention. Make sure you aren't pushing your sub past its excursion limits with too much power in a sealed box.... I know the Atlas 15 could be bottomed with as little as 150 watts in a sealed alignment, but I'm sure the Avalanche is a totally different animal...

Early B.

Here's a good one...the Audire Audio ADA1200...

http://www.acoustic-visions.com/~acoustic/products/subwoofer_amplifiers/adire_ada/

A bit pricey, but it ought to be better than the Parts Express 1,000 watt amp that's $200 cheaper.

labrat

My AVR has a filtered sub out so a crossover isn't really necessary. How helpful is it to have a continuously variable phase adjustment? I think the O Audio has it but the PE ones don't. Is it worth giving up some serious (500 vs 1000 w) power? How noisy are the fans on the pro amps and do they really provide good, clean power in the range needed (18 - 100 hz)?

Thanks so much for the replies - it is great to have so many people willing to share their knowledge.

Labrat

tryrrthg

Originally posted by labrat
My AVR has a filtered sub out so a crossover isn't really necessary. How helpful is it to have a continuously variable phase adjustment? I think the O Audio has it but the PE ones don't. Is it worth giving up some serious (500 vs 1000 w) power? How noisy are the fans on the pro amps and do they really provide good, clean power in the range needed (18 - 100 hz)?

Thanks so much for the replies - it is great to have so many people willing to share their knowledge.

Labrat

phase adjustment is nice to have if you plan on running a bunch of sweeps to figure out which setting results in the flattest curve, but since the amp has some EQ built in you might be able to fix some room problems with that.

I'm not sure how loud the fans are, but most people mention them when they offer advice about pro amps. Some people even replace the fan with a quieter (is that a word) fan. some people even disconnect the fan because they aren't taxing the amp at all- no worries about it overheating.

pro amps will probably provide you with better power than plate amps, but a high quality amp isn't really as important with a subwoofer... IMO anyway...