Best amp for Wet Sounds Pro80s? 1 set and 2 sets

So I think I may be biting the bullet and getting a pair (or two?) of the Wet Sounds Pro80 speakers.

I've read on this forum and others that the MassiveAudio P800.4 (200x4) and the Arc Audio FD4150 (160x4).

Also, does it matter if the Pro80 are run at 2ohms or 4ohms?

Thanks.

David,

You have a few options. One thing most people do not understand is that running a bridged amp into 8 ohms is the same load as running a single channel into 4 ohms, in other words "design condition". That said if you are running two pairs I would bridge a four channel amp into two channels and run the two 4 ohm speakers in series yielding an 8 ohm load. I don't like running 4 pairs of wires through the tower so I always run 4 speakers in series or parallel.

If you want to run them in parallel (2 ohm load) you will need to get a two channel amp to push the load, don't run a bridged amp into a 2 ohm load or it will cook.

Brand wise you have tons of options, in Jonny's build my system for $3k there were recommendations for Elemental Design, Directed Audio, HiFonics, Orion, RF, and more. The WetSounds Pro 80s are quite efficient so you don't really need that much power. Due to the nature of the HLCD it's not that critical to spend big bucks on super clean amps like Zapco, etc.

wow, that was an awesome explanation, but honestly, I just didn't "get it." I don't understand the parallel versus series wiring, and how that changes something from 2 ohm to 8 ohm, and why that necessitates a change of amplifier, and/or a change of wiring.

hmmmm. Can you dumb that down for me a little, Mikeski?

thanks

Aren't the Wet Sounds speakers 4 ohm?

Anyone else want to mention how they are powering their Pro80 speakers?

Zapco 360.4. Bridged 2 channel=180 watts rms at 4ohms. But I think its closer to 200wts rms. You cant go wrong with Wetsounds. Great Warranty,Price,Customer Service and the Speakers are Loud and Clear. And yes, the speakers are 4 ohm.

I'm running my pair with the Infinity 7541a bridged into two channels @ 280RMS per speaker. They freakin' rock.

The Ohms explanation is complicated, but in short: you don't flip a switch to change the ohms on a speaker. The Ohm load is determined based on how the speakers are wired and, more specifically, if you run them 'in a row' (or parallel). With wetsounds, you really don't want to do that (and good luck finding an amp that will be stable @ 450watts RMS/2Ohm load), so you'll bridge your 4 channel amp and run one speaker wire to one wetsounds pro80 and another to the other. Tim @ wetsounds recommended a little overpowering of these speakers (get an amp that is above the RMS handling range) so you don't run the amp hot all the time.

Infinity AMP: http://www.crutchfield.com/S-Nhij9bCt6CA/cgi-bin/prodview.asp?I=108R7541A

I think Jerram's advice is bad. You don't need a 4 channel amp to run a pair of pro 80's. there are a number of 2 channel amps that will push them with more than enough power.

I think David's question regarding showing an amp a 2ohm load is referring to running two pair. This is fine. Some will argue that running your mid/highs @ 2ohms is not optimal to reproducing that frequency range but 99% of the population won't be able to tell.

There are a number of amps that are stable running @ 2ohms producing 450watts RMS....zapco, Precision power, arc audio, massive, elemental designs, just to name a few.

check out the ppi(precision power) 4125. i run one of these amps into an hse box @ 4 ohms and its rated at 500 rms a side. these can be had for about 300 bucks on ebay and i have no complaints. id have to check the owners manual about their stability at 2 ohms.

I had a PPI 4125 on the shelf ready to install in boay for almost a year. I just couldn't bring myself to installing such a power/space/weight hog. That said they are probably the most successful ever used for tower speaker systems so if you have the space and the power reserves go for it. The Pro 80s don't really need that kind of power, you can probably get by with a good two channel amp, just to keep things simple, no worries about series/parallel or bridging issues, just wire the left channel to one or two left speakers and the right channel to one or two right speakers.

would suggest a zapco 1000.4.... it is a little more expensive but you can add a seperate volume control and voltage gain all via symbilink..

another one would be a arc audio 2500 xkk and run in 2 ohm mode...

Mikeski is right about the PPI 4125. I can barely mount it to the amp wall in my boat because it is so long. It is a big amp. It has done very well at rocking a pair of Addictions. I run it bridged and it puts out 500 Watts at 4 Ohm. I have the gain turned down some as that even the Addictions are not that power hungry. It might be overkill for the Pro 80's unless you could run it unbridged and just get 125 watts to each unit.

(Message edited by talltigeguy on August 23, 2006)

btw, if one pair of pro 80's then a jl 300/2 does fine assuming you are throwing more than 2v input signal..

So for 2 pairs of Pro80s, the Zapco 1000.4 seems like a good bet.

Is the PPI 4125 stable at 2ohms, so I'd get 250watts per speaker for 4 speakers?

Does anyone have any input on the Massive Audio 800.4?

Thanks a lot for all the replies.