Subbs

coles · 25th August 2001, 1:35 PM

Hey people

I just brought 2 8inch 200watt subbs and in my car at the moment i have the head unit and 2 100watt speakers coming off at the front of the car and 2 180 watt speakers coming out the back of the car. I want to know how do i conect the 2 8inch 200watt subbs to it ???

i have no RCA out puts at the back of the head unit.

I know i need a amp of some kind some kind of 400watt amp is that right ????

Do i just connect them off one of the speaker??

if i do that it put musik through it and i was told it should just have bass coming through it !

HHHHHHEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLPPPPPPPPPPP

Poddy · 25th August 2001, 4:22 PM

Get your hands on some crossovers and have the crossovers send the high - medium sounds to the normal drivers. And the bass to the subwoofers. You may want to buy some more wattage for them though. So grab yourself a power amp while your at it. Then take the speaker connections run em through the crossovers and onto the respective drivers.

coles · 25th August 2001, 5:38 PM

Hey whats the difference between a power amp and a normal amp??

and how much would an cross over be $$$$$$??????
and what would a good type of cross over be?

Maz · 25th August 2001, 10:02 PM

some amps come with inbuilt crossovers for subs. they are usually $100 more

Poddy · 25th August 2001, 10:43 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by coles
Hey whats the difference between a power amp and a normal amp??

When it comes to cars i dont think they make pre amps, if they do they're not very common. So you dont need to worry, but for knowledge sake. Home Stereo Amps are usually integrated. That means they have the preamp and the poweramp in them. When you start dealing with audiophile stuff its quite common to buy your power amp and preamp separately.
CrossOvers im not sure about i havent been lookin recently, just pop into your local strathfield car audio store and have a look. Some speakers come with them.

Maz · 25th August 2001, 10:57 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by Poddy
Some speakers come with them.

na i think the amp does

unless u buy a sub already in a box

Poddy · 26th August 2001, 9:07 AM

No if you rock up to a shop and buy a pair of speakers, good quality ones come with independent crossovers packaged with them. Good quality amps have them built in.

Rt! · 29th August 2001, 1:54 AM

grrr
you dont need crossovers for subs. just put it there for the splits and it'll be fine
dont buy any amps that are fan cooled. never.

8 inch subs are poor. you can probably run if off your deck. but for better performance, then yeh, get a power amplifier. but if you dont know how to put it in, its going to cost ya a fair bit. the installers like ripping people off (its not even hard).

Anyway I recommend you steer clear of sony kenwood for car audio. go for VDO/dayton (formeerly phillips) for good quality combined with good value, or alpine/clarion for something that looks a bit better. dunno about the performance tho
If you want to blow more money, go for blaupunkt. if you are crazy, you can order something by orion, out of the xtreme or hcca range

btw sony XES (no one seems to have heard of this series) is farkin good. but its bloody expensive

fist4jesus · 29th August 2001, 9:32 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by Rt!
grrr
you dont need crossovers for subs. just put it there for the splits and it'll be fine
dont buy any amps that are fan cooled. never...

Whats the deal with that, I have a peevey concert amp...it has one fan that starts when its turned on and another that is turned on by a switch...never had to use it though.

The amp is great....?

coles · 29th August 2001, 6:28 PM

So what do i buy i know if i connect them up to the head unit they play normal music through them and i only want to bass to go through them!

junglist · 29th August 2001, 6:39 PM

You will need a crossover to filter out all the high frequencies, I wouldn't reccomend running your subs of your head unit though... no way near enough power.

If you want to use your current HU you will need a high to low level convertor (to convert the speaker output to line level) or and amp that has speaker level inputs.

Rt! · 29th August 2001, 9:01 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by fist4jesus

Whats the deal with that, I have a peevey concert amp...it has one fan that starts when its turned on and another that is turned on by a switch...never had to use it though.

The amp is great....?

We're actually talking about car amps.

Amps with fans should be avoided, as it means that they use crappy parts (as with cpus heating up etc). If it heats up too much, it means that it cant handle outputting enought power at a certain impedance (eg 4 ohms standard for cars, 8 ohms for home hifis, and 16 ohms and above for professional audiophiles).
P=IV and V=IR, so when you want to run speakers at a lower impedance, more current is drawn through the amplifier, thus providing more power (hence the amplifier heats up).
But fan cooled amps usually mean that it is being pushed, which might cause distortion and undesirable effects. I dont know if the fans have any effects on the audio signal, it probably does as well, which makes it worse.

High current / low impedence stable amplifiers which are of good quality stay cool without fans.

If you are going to bridge your output channels, an amp that remains cool is almost essential. As it will halve the impedence each channel "sees".

Rt! · 29th August 2001, 9:08 PM

Quote:

Originally posted by junglist
You will need a crossover to filter out all the high frequencies, I wouldn't reccomend running your subs of your head unit though... no way near enough power.

If you want to use your current HU you will need a high to low level convertor (to convert the speaker output to line level) or and amp that has speaker level inputs.

You dont really need crossovers for subs.
1. The higher frequency wouldnt really play very loud
2. The sub is most likely in your boot - ie you wont hear it anyway

Higher frequencies dont damage your subs, whereas lower frequencies can damage tweeters

Samson · 2nd September 2001, 2:34 AM

Hmm... seems like you haven't gotten a clear answer here Coles so i'll throw in my 2¢

You'll definately need an AMP especially if you already have 4 speakers running off your head-unit.

Firstly all you'll need is a 2 channell AMP at least 2x 100W AMP i'd recommend the JayCar RESPONSE Series very cost effective and will do the job perfectly for you.

Actually you might think about getting the RESPONSE 4x 50W... basically you can bridge the 4 channels into 2 channels (might sound difficult but it basically a matter of putting your wires where it says BRIDGED) bridging 4 into 2 will ensure you'll get mono output from your 2 subs so they are in sync.

Anyways the RESPONSE AMPS will set you back about $220-240.

The main reason i'm recommending those if cause i have the 2x100 AMP and it's serving me just fine.

I also know they you don't have to use RCA inputs... you can use HIGH LEVEL inputs (aka inputs from your headunit which normally power speakers).

The AMP will just filter it down just to get the signal so you may be able to leech off the lines which go to your 180W speakers in the back presumably 6x9's without losing power to them.

The AMP also has built in cross-overs so alls you gots to do is select LPF (low pass filter) and turn the knob to your desired setting (~80Hz is a good setting).

After that you should be ready to rumble in a literal sense

You can also get an AMP/SPEAKER wiring kit from Jaycar... costs abotu $50.

So all in all you'll have those subs pumping for ~$270-280 (as long as you have them already boxed.

Hope to of been some help, Samson

DannyG · 6th September 2001, 11:45 PM

Buy a new head deck... For the price of good quality splits you would be better off selling your head deck and getting a $300 sony that has a 52w output - run splits etc and 2 or more rca outputs: front/rear for all your amp needs.

As for cross overs etc, crossovers are very expensive. I am assuming that your 8" subs are actually quiet cheap so I sugguest you buy a cheap pair of splits and use the doggy crossovers supplied. Hook the 8" up as the driver (low pass) and run the high pass output to the 6x9.

25th August 2001, 1:35 PM	#1
coles Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Melbourne Posts: 27	Subbs Hey people I just brought 2 8inch 200watt subbs and in my car at the moment i have the head unit and 2 100watt speakers coming off at the front of the car and 2 180 watt speakers coming out the back of the car. I want to know how do i conect the 2 8inch 200watt subbs to it ??? i have no RCA out puts at the back of the head unit. I know i need a amp of some kind some kind of 400watt amp is that right ???? Do i just connect them off one of the speaker?? if i do that it put musik through it and i was told it should just have bass coming through it ! HHHHHHEEEEEEEEEEEELLLLLLLLPPPPPPPPPPP

25th August 2001, 4:22 PM	#2
Poddy Rainman Studios Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: In The Mix, Sydney Posts: 2,187	Get your hands on some crossovers and have the crossovers send the high - medium sounds to the normal drivers. And the bass to the subwoofers. You may want to buy some more wattage for them though. So grab yourself a power amp while your at it. Then take the speaker connections run em through the crossovers and onto the respective drivers. __________________ www.myspace.com/midsummerlights

25th August 2001, 10:02 PM	#4
Maz Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Melbourne Posts: 4,674	some amps come with inbuilt crossovers for subs. they are usually $100 more __________________ BMJET - BMW convertible with supercar acceleration - 430 rwhp with a manual gearbox and LSD - Six 12's with 3way sound quaility front stage - Driven 350+ days a year - DRIVEN NOT HIDDEN!! .

26th August 2001, 9:07 AM	#7
Poddy Rainman Studios Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: In The Mix, Sydney Posts: 2,187	No if you rock up to a shop and buy a pair of speakers, good quality ones come with independent crossovers packaged with them. Good quality amps have them built in. __________________ www.myspace.com/midsummerlights

29th August 2001, 1:54 AM	#8
Rt! Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Nimbin Posts: 7,345	grrr you dont need crossovers for subs. just put it there for the splits and it'll be fine dont buy any amps that are fan cooled. never. 8 inch subs are poor. you can probably run if off your deck. but for better performance, then yeh, get a power amplifier. but if you dont know how to put it in, its going to cost ya a fair bit. the installers like ripping people off (its not even hard). Anyway I recommend you steer clear of sony kenwood for car audio. go for VDO/dayton (formeerly phillips) for good quality combined with good value, or alpine/clarion for something that looks a bit better. dunno about the performance tho If you want to blow more money, go for blaupunkt. if you are crazy, you can order something by orion, out of the xtreme or hcca range btw sony XES (no one seems to have heard of this series) is farkin good. but its bloody expensive __________________ dher

25th August 2001, 5:38 PM	#3
coles Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Melbourne Posts: 27	Hey whats the difference between a power amp and a normal amp?? and how much would an cross over be $$$$$$?????? and what would a good type of cross over be?

29th August 2001, 6:28 PM	#10
coles Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Melbourne Posts: 27	So what do i buy i know if i connect them up to the head unit they play normal music through them and i only want to bass to go through them!

29th August 2001, 6:39 PM	#11
junglist Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Launceston, Tasmania Posts: 835	You will need a crossover to filter out all the high frequencies, I wouldn't reccomend running your subs of your head unit though... no way near enough power. If you want to use your current HU you will need a high to low level convertor (to convert the speaker output to line level) or and amp that has speaker level inputs.

2nd September 2001, 2:34 AM	#14
Samson Member Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Adelaide Posts: 67	Hmm... seems like you haven't gotten a clear answer here Coles so i'll throw in my 2¢ You'll definately need an AMP especially if you already have 4 speakers running off your head-unit. Firstly all you'll need is a 2 channell AMP at least 2x 100W AMP i'd recommend the JayCar RESPONSE Series very cost effective and will do the job perfectly for you. Actually you might think about getting the RESPONSE 4x 50W... basically you can bridge the 4 channels into 2 channels (might sound difficult but it basically a matter of putting your wires where it says BRIDGED) bridging 4 into 2 will ensure you'll get mono output from your 2 subs so they are in sync. Anyways the RESPONSE AMPS will set you back about $220-240. The main reason i'm recommending those if cause i have the 2x100 AMP and it's serving me just fine. I also know they you don't have to use RCA inputs... you can use HIGH LEVEL inputs (aka inputs from your headunit which normally power speakers). The AMP will just filter it down just to get the signal so you may be able to leech off the lines which go to your 180W speakers in the back presumably 6x9's without losing power to them. The AMP also has built in cross-overs so alls you gots to do is select LPF (low pass filter) and turn the knob to your desired setting (~80Hz is a good setting). After that you should be ready to rumble in a literal sense You can also get an AMP/SPEAKER wiring kit from Jaycar... costs abotu $50. So all in all you'll have those subs pumping for ~$270-280 (as long as you have them already boxed. Hope to of been some help, Samson

6th September 2001, 11:45 PM	#15
DannyG Member Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Bris Vegas Posts: 781	I hate to point out the obvious but... Buy a new head deck... For the price of good quality splits you would be better off selling your head deck and getting a $300 sony that has a 52w output - run splits etc and 2 or more rca outputs: front/rear for all your amp needs. As for cross overs etc, crossovers are very expensive. I am assuming that your 8" subs are actually quiet cheap so I sugguest you buy a cheap pair of splits and use the doggy crossovers supplied. Hook the 8" up as the driver (low pass) and run the high pass output to the 6x9.