Well I am looking at buying 2 12" dual coil subs. I was looking at alpines 1221D (2 ohm dual coil) and 1241D (4 ohm dual coil). I was thinking of wiring them in parallel,2 2 ohms would give me 1 ohm impedance and 2 4 ohm would give me 2 ohm impedance. My question is which one is better? Should I go with dual 2 ohm subs or dual 4 ohm subs? and why? I am planning to buy the amp (I want to use two channels, bridged or unbridged as needed) after I find out which subs I should go with, so I think which amp I use is not a concern right now? Also can you recommend an amp. I am fairly new at this, any help would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Lower impedance = cheaper to power; you can wire two DVC 2 ohm coils in series and parallel to get a 2 ohm load, wire it all in parallel to get a 0.5 ohm load, or you can get an 8 ohm load by wiring then all in series. As far as an amp for the Type Rs I recommend the Alpine V12 MRD-M501; I have owned this amp for over a month now and there is nothing else like it in its class. It is just great...
Hey Damien, thanks for the quick reply. MRD-M501 is a mono amp. I was thinking of using a 2 channel amp. So if I wired the 2 coils in parallel for each sub, I will get 1 ohm(for 1221D) OR 2 ohm(for 1241D)load on each channel. So I guess what I am asking is which one would perform better?
2 ohm load on that amp will give you 600 watts at 14 volts. Really id stay with a mono amp they draw a lot less current and as I said the MRD is just damn s3xy. If you use a 2 channel you just want to bridge it and use it as a mono anyway, stereo can make things sound offset.
Yeah using it as mono makes more sense now that I see what you're saying. I was lookin at MRD's specs. and it says 2-ohm stable, what does that mean? and its 550 mono so each sub is gonna push 225w? Just to be clear, according to what you said I should get 1221Ds and wire them in series and than parallel to get 2-ohm impedence. Also I was confused about how to set gain. What would be the right gain for this system? Thanks for the help.
The reason most people use Class D amps for lots of power is because they are more efficient amps. Class A, B, and A/B amps are less efficient but are cleaner sounding amps. To answer your question, most stereo amps don't support 2 channels at 1 ohm. Usually it's 2 channels at 2 ohms, but if you look hard enough, you may find an amp that supports it (Could be expensive?) Stereo amps (A, B, A/B) tend to be more expensive than mono subwoofer amps (D). As far as I know, to any relative degree, the reason they offer the subs in different impedances is just to help people out in wiring options. Performance wise, there isn't any difference. So unless you're looking for a ton of SQ, class D amps are usually worth the savings. Of course, it's all your choice.
Yeah I was thinking of going with with a Class D anyway, I dont need all that SQ, efficency is more important to me. But I was looking at kicker KX450.2 450 Watts amp. Its 225 watts x 2 at 2 ohms(would work for 1241D coils in parallel) but I guess it would draw alot more voltage? But I think wat Damien said sounds like a much better idea. So I might just do what he has done, go with his experience Thanks!
The MRD is under-rated it puts out 600 Watts + even says that on the factory test slip that comes with it Plus the fully digital design and awesome features are just incredible; this amp runs extremely cool as well (its always cold to the touch when I feel it).
Thanks!