Ok I have been looking at getting an older Eclipse hu (balanced 16V/ 8V unbal output)with built in crossovers (3 pre-outs can be configged to run high-mid-low)and I also want a 3-way front stage (6.5", 4" and 1" tweet)from CDT or a ED 6500 set and buy a 4"hd from cdt to make a 3 way. My sub will have to be a shallow mount Pioneer 12" (300W Nom dvc)in a .7cf sealed box (space is major concern). My question is I have been bidding on a refurb Xtant 403a 2x50W + 1x100W @ 4Ohm (doubles @ 2Ohm)would I be better suited running a Soundstream Van Gough and a small mono amp for sub? I orignally did not have a room for two amps but after looking for way to long it appears I may make room since the $/watt seems to get much better with two amps. I do want to try using the balanced input on which ever amp I choose. SQ in my daily driver is my goal. Also, if this is inappropriate to post here let me know... If I am lucky enough to get my Eclipse cd8061 hu with built in crossovers is using the hu to crossover the setup the way to go with a 3 way front stage or should I stick to the crossovers made by the manufactoer (CDT)? I am trying to save a buck by using the Eclipse hu's crossovers. How do you wire a 3way and retain a 4-Ohm load if the CDT hd 2-way is 4ohm (or ED 6500)and then buying a 4" CDT hd from ebay store? Thanks in advance for your advice!
Okay so I haven't used ebay much in my life and now I see how peeps get the "Ebay itch" 3-2-1 BUY! BUY! LOL So anyway I purchased Soundstream Van Gogh 300.2 (new)and an Xtant 403a (refurb) to power a 3way CDT HD component set (150rms) One or the other will stay and the other one bye bye... Anybody have a guess as to which I will keep? Do you care ;) as per the first post- I think I will skip the supplied crossovers from cdt and use the Eclipse HU internal xover I still don't understand how wiring a 3 way setup works Ohm wise. Im guessing it is a simple answer concerning each speakers Ohm rating.
the itch, the itch, the itch. it can only be cured by completing your project all together or going cold turkey. i have 2 more 8" to get, but i stay away from the site. not a good time financially. (is it ever?) as for the ohms, each driver behaves as it would if it were solo. passives are based on frequency distribution, not power distribution. so all nominal 4ohm drivers will receive a single 4ohm load from the amp (if wired as such). as far as power, each driver also receives the power sent from the amp for the same above stated reason. each driver is only receiving a particular range of frequencies as per the xo. so where one cuts off, another speaker picks up as if it were one driver. but the passives eat up a significant amount of that power. if you go active, you'll def note the difference in power and dynamics. by the way, i love my vga's. solid, clean, underrated (rms) amps.
I am aiming to complete the project soon- I was up till the wee hours clicking the buy button! Ironically I really shouldn't be buying anything my self- holidays are coming. Oh well, everyone loves home made arts and crafts at Christmas anyway~ right? I understand clearly about what you are saying concerning power dist vs frequency dist. That was simple DOH. One thing I didn't plan on was if Im setting my own xover/ slopes than I will need an amp channel for each one I set in the hu. I dont have the room to monkey with any more amps so I may just return to using a 2 way setup or just use the passive crossovers and do a 3-way.
Im glad to hear you love your vga's. What other amps have you compared them with? Have you ever ran them bridged@ 2Ohms? I heard a rumor that they were built to handle a load like that. Im sure it would get hot and probably die prematurely.
Cheers
fyi I purchased a 600.2 vga not a 300.2 as I posted earlier.
nope. no rumor. a colleague let me in on the tip after he opened up the 1600.2 and noted the large power supply. he's been running 4 of them bridged at 2ohms pushing 1800 watts each (of four) to a dedicated alpine X 12" for close to a year now. no problems (would have been more worried about the subs than the amp, lol). but anyway, i spoke with the designer of the vga's and chief engineer over at ss Karl Cummings. He explained that they are more than capable of this feat and are also stable at 1ohm as are 75% of even the new ss amps (1ohm stable, that is). he continued that the heads at ss figured it would be less hastle for aggressors who take it to the next level and push the amps crazy. so the rating was less of a headache.
Wow! I can't wait to get started installing my system... I ended up with a vga 600.2 driving a set of Elemental designs 6500 components and an Eclipse cd8443 hu, 12" shallow mount Pioneer and a yet to be decided 300W @4Ohm class D amp. I am gonna run the passive x overs for awhile and go active later on. I just don't have the time to start a new hobby however running active will be a fun learning experience in the near future.
Well mikechec9, you are right on the money concerning the SS Van Gogh amp. I have both the Xtant and the VGA with the covers off and they are so very different. Up close the Xtant appears to be just a few notches down in build quality than the VGA. For instance most of the risitors in the Xtnt have marred color banding and the tin legs are rough with occasipnal imperfections. The Xtants pcb looks thin like maybe only a 2 or 3 layer board. Well it is thinner anyway. There are a few other small differences as well and a few large ones. Mike I'm worried that I may be in for a long stretch of letdowns if all I have to compare new amps with is this VGa If the Soundstream sounds as good as it looks Im lovin it I come from a PC o/c'r background and the VGa pcb is just friggen gorgeous. Red with a beautiful layout! Is there any reasonably priced 4-channel VGa's out there? I would be very interested! I can't wait to install the new system soon. Thanks for the earlier information on those VG amps.
Here is some pics while they are open. It's just not even fair comparing build quality only bewteen the two. Plus just look how sexy the Vga is with clothes on!
i couldn't agree more chino. i recall the first time i saw the amps in a mag listed for way out of my price range. but looked beautiful. then they started popping up on ebay because of the power acoustic buy out. as much as i hate to see ss degrade, it couldn't have come at a better time, lol. great lookers that actually have equal performance. again, they just run a bit hot because of the relatively small heat sinks, but they don't shut off or distort. i just had the rear air in my truck fixed, so i'm going to be using it as a circulation system for my amps. as for the 4 channel, i believe there is a smaller model, but my 500.4 is a delicate monster. it throws 140 watts (x4) of love through my 6.3's. if you can catch one on sale, snatch it. i'm suprised you caught the 600 as it is. glad i could help. let me know if i can be of further assistance.
xtant, SS Van G etc
