Adding more Wetsounds?

Hi,

I got a sweet deal on two pro60's and one pro80 to put on my tower. I've tried them and they are loud, but not as much as I wanted. I want max volume when riding, as for sound quality it's second.

Should I add another pair of pro80's, or one pro485 to achieve that?

I'm not interested to buy the new rev series, as I'm looking at used speakers.

Thanks

'A pair of pro 80's would be plenty as along as they are properly powered which is the main thing. I speaker is only as good as what powers them. If you have the pro 80's or 60's add them with a 485 and run a wetsounds syn6 amp and your set.

Like Brendon said power is key. Adding a 485 is probably a good move. We ran a 485 with rev 8s this year and it was plenty loud. If you do decide to go with a syn 6 I have one for sale in the classifieds (end shameless plug)

Hold off a month and you will see alot of 485 go on the market.

I have a set of Pro80's and they are plenty loud when boarding. I have all wetsounds gear powering my speakers.

I guess i should have asked if one 485 is louder than 2 pro80's, giving they are both properly powered.

Originally Posted by espritv8

Hi,

I got a sweet deal on two pro60's and one pro80 to put on my tower. I've tried them and they are loud, but not as much as I wanted. I want max volume when riding, as for sound quality it's second.

Should I add another pair of pro80's, or one pro485 to achieve that?

I'm not interested to buy the new rev series, as I'm looking at used speakers.

Thanks

So you have one PAIR of Pro60's and a single Pro80, or two pair of 60's and a pair of 80's? Clarify what you have and how is it powered!

JB,
A single Pro485 has two 8-inch midbass and one larger horn with a larger diaphragm.
A pair of Pro80s have two 8-inch midbass and two smaller horns.
So there isn't a great difference in the averaged output other than the Pro80s are a bit more peaky. The Pro485 is smoother in its response in a way that you might appreciate for near field listening. I'm not sure you will detect alot of volume or quality difference at the end of a long rope.

David
Earmark Marine

Right now I have a PAIR of pro60's and a SINGLE pro80. I've tried them on a Hifonics ZEUS (both pro 60's on a 150W channel and the pro80 bridged at 300W). It's loud, but i doubt I will get the wanted volume at the end of a rope.

Right now i'm looking at the best deal to add some more Wetsounds on my tower. I'm even looking at pro60's. I don't have a musical ear, but I really want the system to be loud when wakeboarding.

I'm going to change the amp (my actual hifonics amp will go for the In-boat speakers) and i'm looking at either:

- 2X Kicker zx550.2
- 2X Boston acoustics gt-2200
- 2X Hifonics zeus zxi200.2

I'm leaning towards the Hifonics. Can't beat the $/watts ratio!

What do you think?

I'd look at 1x arc audio ks 600.2. Will do 600w x 2 @ 2 ohms and is much nicer than the three you listed. Should be able to find one for $500 or less if you sniff around a bit.

If I were in your shoes and having owned the Pro 60's, the Pro 80's, MB-8's and now a set of Rev 10's.....

I would sell the pro 60's, I personally do not prefer the mid-bass lacking 6.5 HLCD. I would start with a set of Pro 80's and power them very generously. Take a look at an Arc Audio KS 300.4. You can find these new for around $250 on some of the car audio websites. This is amp will easily put 350 watts to each pro 80 and they will hammer. So two Pro 80's with an Arc Audio KS 300.4

I would think that you could obtain this equipment used for around 800 used all together.

Now if that is not loud enough, you could throw in another amp and either another set of Pro 80's or a 485.

I have a feeling that you will be fine with one set of Pro 80's that are getting 350 watts a piece.

Originally Posted by espritv8

Right now I have a PAIR of pro60's and a SINGLE pro80. I've tried them on a Hifonics ZEUS (both pro 60's on a 150W channel and the pro80 bridged at 300W). It's loud, but i doubt I will get the wanted volume at the end of a rope.

Right now i'm looking at the best deal to add some more Wetsounds on my tower. I'm even looking at pro60's. I don't have a musical ear, but I really want the system to be loud when wakeboarding.

I'm going to change the amp (my actual hifonics amp will go for the In-boat speakers) and i'm looking at either:

- 2X Kicker zx550.2
- 2X Boston acoustics gt-2200
- 2X Hifonics zeus zxi200.2

I'm leaning towards the Hifonics. Can't beat the $/watts ratio!

What do you think?

First, id recommend finding that 2nd Pro80.....you really need a pair.

Second, are the Pro60's each receiving 150 watts or are they on the same channel sharing 150? If Sharing, then they are WAAAAAYYY under powered. What Zeus amp do you currently have powering the setup?

I never though of going way over the rated 200w rms on the Pro80's. Can you really push 350w rms on those speakers? They won't quit on me with all that power?

The pro60's run with 150 rms each. I have the zeus 150.4

Johnathon,
The Pro80s will handle much more 'peak' power than a 350 watt per channel amplifier would supply.
Continuous, compressed or clipped power is entirely another story. It all depends on how YOU use your power and equipment. Keep it clean and you are fine. You will certainly benefit from the extra dynamics. Overdrive the amplifier and you can do damage with far less.

David
Earmark Marine

David, thanks for the advice. I've looked at your website and sent an email to your sales department.

Thanks

David,

What are your thought on powering 4 Wetsounds Pro80 with either a Syn 2 or Arc Audio KS600.2 amp?

Thanks

GoldenGun

Originally Posted by david_e_m

Johnathon,
The Pro80s will handle much more 'peak' power than a 350 watt per channel amplifier would supply.
Continuous, compressed or clipped power is entirely another story. It all depends on how YOU use your power and equipment. Keep it clean and you are fine. You will certainly benefit from the extra dynamics. Overdrive the amplifier and you can do damage with far less.

David
Earmark Marine

GG,
The Wetsounds Syn2 is marinized with a moisture and corrosion resistant conformal coating and has a stainless steel shroud. The Wetsounds Syn2 will deliver 700 watts total watts into a 2-ohm stereo load (so 175 per each speaker). Driving four Pro80s with the Syn2 amplifier has been the standard for years.
The Arc Audio KS600.2 will deliver 1200 total watts into a stereo 2-ohm load (so 300 per each speaker).
So what kind of volume difference would you hear for the difference in power? About 2 dB maximum difference. To put that into perspective 1 dB is the absolute smallest difference you could discern in a perfectly quiet room. And by the time you pump 300 watts into an 8-inch driver (remember that 300 watts is alot for almost all 8-inch subwoofers) you are going to see a little dynamic compression from the speakers. I'll explain how 'dynamic compression' manifests if you are interested. The real audible difference would be in the dynamic power and not the average volume difference. The extra dynamic or peak power would be heard as more attack and contrast which you would interpret as clarity.
Keep in mind that 125 watts per speaker is gigantic in terms of volume when you go from 50 to 175 and nearly a 200 percent increase but not quite as profound when its 175 to 300 and a 72 percent increase.
Again, as stated above you would want to be a little careful that you keep the 1200 watt amplifier out of hard clipping.

David
Earmark Marine

Originally Posted by GoldenGun

David,

What are your thought on powering 4 Wetsounds Pro80 with either a Syn 2 or Arc Audio KS600.2 amp?

Thanks

GoldenGun

I ran 4 pro 80's with a Syn 2 equivalent....loved it and it was LOUD

Got a good deal on those two amps:

I bought a kicker zx550.2 it's rated 205WX2 @ 4ohms and a kicker kx850.2 rated 295WX2 @ 4 ohms.

I will probably get the pro60'S on the 550.2 (one on each channel) and planning on getting two more pro80's to get 3 in total, and get them hooked up on the 850.2

The pro 80's would be in a combination of series and in parallel to get 6 ohms, so roughly 600watts for 3 pods. Another possibility is to bridge one channel with two in parallel and one on a single channel, so 1 pods with 295 watts and the two other sharing 425 watts @2Ohms.

Which way is best?

Now i'm looking for a pair of pro80's. Want to spend around 650 shipped to Canada.

Saw a set on ebay last night with a starting price of $400 and no reserve.

here is a link

http://tinyurl.com/csxkazx

Originally Posted by espritv8

Got a good deal on those two amps:

I bought a kicker zx550.2 it's rated 205WX2 @ 4ohms and a kicker kx850.2 rated 295WX2 @ 4 ohms.

I will probably get the pro60'S on the 550.2 (one on each channel) and planning on getting two more pro80's to get 3 in total, and get them hooked up on the 850.2

The pro 80's would be in a combination of series and in parallel to get 6 ohms, so roughly 600watts for 3 pods. Another possibility is to bridge one channel with two in parallel and one on a single channel, so 1 pods with 295 watts and the two other sharing 425 watts @2Ohms.

Which way is best?

Now i'm looking for a pair of pro80's. Want to spend around 650 shipped to Canada.

Neither! You really need to abandon that single Pro80. 1st, you're not going to have success running that kx850.2 with a single 4 ohm speaker on 1 on chnl and a pair @ 2 ohm on the other. 2nd, you can bridge a single chnl. 3rd, since you are in the process of buying gear, dont set your self up to run a series/parallel system.

Go with a single pair or two pair and stay clear of 3.

Yeah, I don't know why I wrote that. I know you can't bridge one channel

The single pro 80 is bought, and selling it will be difficult. Aren't the 2 channels independent from one another as far as impedance is concerned? I think the amp has enough power for 3 pods.

I don't want to argue, really i'm looking for answers, but I don't get why the 3rd pod is such a problem?

Originally Posted by espritv8

Yeah, I don't know why I wrote that. I know you can't bridge one channel

The single pro 80 is bought, and selling it will be difficult. Aren't the 2 channels independent from one another as far as impedance is concerned? I think the amp has enough power for 3 pods.

I don't want to argue, really i'm looking for answers, but I don't get why the 3rd pod is such a problem?

Speakers wired in a series/parallel configuration to not share the power equally. Your pair of Pro80 alone on the kx850.2 will sound cleaner and perform better, and will probably be louder with each receiving the 295x2 available watts. Im pretty sure that that Kicker stereo amp will need to see the same impedance on each chnl.

Selling a single Pro80 cant be too hard......the previous owner found a buyer Sell the Pro60 and the amp to power them and toss in the pro80. Then buy two pair of pro80s and run both pair on the kx850.2. Thats 200+ watts to each!

Check around shops and such to find another 80. Justin or Tim at Wetsounds may even know of one at a dealer ect... somewhere. They are fantastic to deal with, some of the best service ect... I've experienced in the industry.

OK, well with all the advice i received and after trying many way to hook them up, i decided to part with the pro60's and the single pro80 unit.

Pro60's are almost sold and i'll be looking to sell or trade the pro80 for an pro485.

IMO you could probably run the 80's and 485

Yes, I want to get rid of the single pro80. I will keep the two others and add a pro 485.