Hey guys, basically I just want to add a decent amp to my current system, any recommendations? I'm not looking to blow out windows or win any sound competitions (obviously, lol), just get a bit more out of my current speakers.

Here's my setup;

deck: pioneer DEH-2900MP
http://www.pioneer.eu/eur/prod....html

front speakers:
pioneer TS-G650M 6.5" coaxial 3-ways
180W Max.
35W nominal
4 ohm's

rear speakers:
pioneer TS-G960M 6x9 coaxial 3-ways
220W Max.
40W nominal
4ohm's

A powered sub;
JBL "BassPro" 100W like this; http://www.jbl.com/car/product...uct=Y

The speakers are running off stock wires, and are in the factory locations.
I'll need to run new wires if I get the amp, right?

The powered sub is running off an 8 gauge power line from the battery, with the remote turn on lead connected from the HU. It's grounded to a factory hole in the hatch. I have RCA cables running from the HU to the RCA inputs in the sub (although I've been getting alternator whine lately, if I disconnect the RCA's it stops...).

Should I go for a 4 channel, or stick with 2 channel? This is a pretty basic system, so I don't want to spend a crazy amount of money, but I would rather buy something better now and have room to grow.


Thanks for your help!

 

If you want more out of your speakers then yes get an amp, you only need a 2ch to drive the front speakers, you can leave the rear speakers connected to the HU.

If you want to step up a little more get a 4ch amp and use the two front channels of the amp to drive the front speakers, [on high-pass] then disable the tweeters on the 6x9s, wire them in series, [for an 8 ohm load] and connect them the the bridged rear channels of the amp, [mixed mono] drive them full range unless the amp has the ability to do low/pass at 5000Hz.

Get some Dynamat, [or the like] and cover the underside of the 6x9 speakers to isolate them from the trunk and the sub.

All the above assumes that the the front and rear speakers are installed properly. 94

 

you don't need to run new wires to speakers that have that little amount of power going to the speakers, there is no need for your purposes.

 

Thanks for the responses

Hmm.. getting the 4ch. sounds like a better option..

Ok, now what happens to my powered sub if an amp comes into the picture? My HU only has 1 pair of pre-outs, and right now they are going directly to the sub. Does that mean I won't be able to make use of it any more?

Is there a way it can be wired through the 4ch. amp maybe?

 

Just find an amp with a set of RCA outputs.

This amp would work great... http://www.pioneerelectronics....6.pdf 94

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by fcm &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Just find an amp with a set of RCA outputs.

This amp would work great... http://www.pioneerelectronics....6.pdf 94</TD></TR></TABLE>

So in this case, wiring (excluding power, remote turn on, grounds) would be something like;

At HU:
HU's 1 pre-out line to amp's RCA IN

At Amp:
Ch.1 &gt; Front, left speaker (wired parallel)
Ch.2 &gt; Front, right speaker (wired parallel)
Bridged Ch.3+Ch.4 &gt; Rears in Series (as you've described earlier).
Amp RCA out &gt; Powered sub RCA in ?

For the remote turn on, i can just use the same wire thats currently going to the sub (i believe its 16g), but just extend it so it branches off to the amp too right?

 

That is correct.

You will need to...
Input Select Switch
For two-channel input, slide this switch to the left.

Yes, the remote turn on lead can be daisy chained from one amp to the next, 94

 

Would using the speaker level input instead of the one RCA IN (from HU to amp) make any difference as far as sound quality goes?

Is there any benefit in general to using speaker level input?

 

Amplifying an amplified signal, [speaker level] should not be used if an RCA, [preamp] source is available, SQ will suffer, and you gain no advantage. 94

 

Great, thanks for all your help fcm! Much appreciated!