Re: Amplifiers… What’s in a Number?
Good Stuff!
Thanks for the replies.
If one 10” sub will do then my cost has dropped by half. (or the quality has improved by 2x.) Well done!
So phase one of the plan stands. That is to get a new head unit and properly wire the front speaker level outs to the factory amp. That will give me the functions I want, MP3 playback, iPod interface, Sat Radio, HD radio, etc as well as preserving the factory speaker setup. No volume increase, hopefully no decrease in audio quality.
Phase two will be to integrate either a bridged stereo amp or mono amp to power a single 10” enclosed sub via the preouts of the new head unit. I assume some kind of enclosed sub will work best due to the fact the rear cabin of the crossfire does not lend itself to trunk style baffling.
So the details of Phase two are going to be decided / planned in the next 6 months or so once the new HU is in and I learn more about car audio.
So lessons learned thus far are small enclosed space = lots of heat = cooking voice coils. (The first thing that comes to mind would be an enclosed sub that ports outside the cabin… allowing the sub to breath in cooler air expelling heat generated by the electrical exchange. This presents a moisture dust/dirt scenario… But that is another topic)
Also to maximize response one must take into consideration the thiel/small parameters of the specific speaker to the point of the unique specific speaker purchased (as the published parameters are often wrong or slightly off) when designing/purchasing an enclosure with proper volume.
Awesome stuff guys!
PS) Can someone add to the validity of testing the acoustics of a listening area and how you would go about it? I can generate a logarithmic tone sweep from 20Hz – 20KHz CD to play back in the system. How/What would I use to measure performance? I can stick a Mic in the cabin to record the response but wouldn’t that also depend on the quality of the Microphone used? Is there a more precise way to measure?
Thank you!