Gain level(s)
OK. I'd like some enlightened views on this one:
I'm running a Clarion DPX 1001.2 (2002 model I believe) (which has the same internals as the 'newer' models I also believe) to a pair of 8 ohm Kicker Comps (SVC) in parallel. According to specs, the amp puts out about 900 rms at 4 ohms mono. However, the subs are rated at 150 rms. I have the gain set no more than approx. 60%. My question is: about how much are my subs being fed? Are the amp specs overrated? Are the subs'power handling underrated? Any informed thoughts? It's been running nicely for a couple of months now, rarely pushed past 20 (out of 33) volume wise (Clarion 725).
I'm running a Clarion DPX 1001.2 (2002 model I believe) (which has the same internals as the 'newer' models I also believe) to a pair of 8 ohm Kicker Comps (SVC) in parallel. According to specs, the amp puts out about 900 rms at 4 ohms mono. However, the subs are rated at 150 rms. I have the gain set no more than approx. 60%. My question is: about how much are my subs being fed? Are the amp specs overrated? Are the subs'power handling underrated? Any informed thoughts? It's been running nicely for a couple of months now, rarely pushed past 20 (out of 33) volume wise (Clarion 725).
Guest
Posts: n/a
There are too many factors to consider to really accurately say how much your amp is putting out. Contrary to popular belief an amp will put out it's maximum power at minimum gain all the way through to maximum gain. It just depends on the strength of the input.
Guest
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i agree with dwvw, this is an interesting subject that has been talked about alot, the amount of singnal required to to gain full unclipped output on an amplifier will changed depending on the input sensitivity of the amp you are using, many times, the high output voltage cd players and line drivers available today far exceed the input recommendations of the manufacuturers and are of no benefit, assuming the cd player that you are using isnt driven into clip.. anyways if it sounds good leave it alone, one thing you may consider doing is turning the sensitivity on your amp down, and using the volume control a bit more aggressively, to get a bit more singal to the amp, keep in mind this has be done within reason and not clipping the cd player
50 Watt CAFz'r
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 456
To water down a very complex subject, I would cut to the chase and suggest that you are in the 400 watt range, give or take 50 wrms. It's a decent amp, but not a thousand watts...
The guy's are of course right on the money, gain has no bearing on power output, except to match your amp to your deck.
The guy's are of course right on the money, gain has no bearing on power output, except to match your amp to your deck.
I have a DMM and a clamp. I don't have an ammeter. However, what has been said so far is what I was thinking: if it sounds good, go with it. There are so many variables involved, it is quite difficult to separate all of the mitigating factors (signal quality [deck], alternator output, amp design, enclosure design and so on...). I'm actually putting in an in-dash eq, so at that time, I'm going to 're-haul' all of my gains (3 amps) and try and smooth out the balances. I'm also waiting on a Nine.2. And I'm putting in a sub amp remote switch to enable me to turn off only the sub amp (when listening to 'CBC 1' for example). Car audio is quite a hobby...
Guest
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to simplify this for you, set your dmm to ac ohms, remove the speaker wires from your amp and measure the impedance, write the # down, now change your meter to ac volts, now get a test tone cd eg 40hz, 41hz etc. unhook all midrange speakers for fear of damaging them, turn amp gain to minimum, rehook up speaker leads to amp. dial up you favorite freqeuncy, i usually use 40 hz for this, turn your deck to 32, i believe it goes to 35, go to amp and attach dmm leads to the speaker outputs and begin to increase gain until you hit 3/4 gain, look at the meter and see how many volts its putting out, write it down, turn stereo off as you have very quickly just heated up your woofers. now take the voltage readout that you got and square it, ie 40 volts x 40 volts, this will give you a #, now take that # and divide it by the impedance and you will have how many watts your amp puts out at the frequncy you chose. thos sounds complicated but in reality it takes about a minute, good luck, oh and btw if your subs sound like they are about to launch, back the gain off and take your measurement from the point where the woofers arent screaming for bloody mercy
500 Watt CAFz'r
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 524
^^^^what if the impedance of your/my amp reads 4.4 ohms, but you are running at one ohm? with my speaker leads. i went and measured mine and got 49.4 volts. sqaured is 2430.49 divided by 4.4 is 552 watts. i got a measurement of 1.4 ohms with the speaker leads hooked up. if i divide my voltage by 1.4 i get 1736 watts, is this right, cause it seems awfully high, yet 552 watts at 4.4 ohms seems logical. btw i got these numbers at 14 volts with the truck running, with it off i got 454 watts at 4.4 ohms.
