5 Channel Amps???

Sorry, I am the question guy today.

So my 02 SANTE with the sub, clarion amp, and XMD1 is in need of a stereo upgrade. We are gonna do it piece by piece really starting with a CMD4 HU and I am thinking of an amp to throw in there to replace the 4 channel. To the best of my knowledge, they have the 4 main cabin speakers wired in series for two of the channels and the remaining two channels bridged for the sub. I think the bow speakers run off the HU.

So my goal is to keep the bow speakers on the HU, and use a 5 channel amp for the main cabin and bass. I am a "clean sound" listener and excessive loudness is not necessary, Eventually tower speakers and another amp will be added.

I have narrowed it down to two amps I am considering and would greatly appreciate input on these two.

Orion 7005 or
Phoenix gold Octane 9.05

Both are rated at (4x50 + 1x150) RMS.

Eventually these will be driving 4 polk MMC 650 coax and a sub installed in the kick panel, but the sub is another subject.

I think this will be plenty of power for my tastes and with the sub in the kick panel, we will get nice boom in the main cabin with 150 watts.

Any experiences with these brands in a marine application is great appreciated. Sorry for all the questions today, but I gotta get rolling, summer is coming quick.

I'm running the 7005 Orion now and love it. If it were me I would run a DVC sub to get the 300watts out of the amp for the sub. I'm considering adding another amp for my tower speakers, but currently the 7005 is pushing those loud and clear.

please don't take offense at me suggesting another brand, but i just installed a JL e6450m and it's pretty nice. it's a 6-channel that has plenty of flexability and it will give you:

45Wx6 4-ohms @ 12.5 volts
75Wx6 2-ohms @ 12.5 volts
150Wx3 4-ohms bridged @ 12.5 volts

Those are 12.5 volt ratings so at 14.4 it's even more and those are pretty conservative.

You could bridge 2-channels for your sub, get 150 watts out of it and have 4-channels for your cabins speakers.

Just a suggestion. I'm really happy with mine and the price was right. Again, sorry to suggest another brand, but I think it's a nice amp and it has lots of flexability. Just thought I'd let you know. Good luck with your upgrades.

I should tell you also that I'm not actually using this amp for my sub, but it is pushing 4 polk MMC650's and a pair of DB1000 tweets. I'm using a JL e1200 for a 10" JL 10w3v2.

Here's a review of the e6450 for what it's worth:
http://carsound.com/articles/publish/article_268.shtml

Thanks all. Bruce, I am definately open to suggestions on other brands for sure. I am not a "massive thumping bass" guy, not that there is anything wrong with that, but definately like the a bit of thump and think it wise not to try to get too much bass from 6 inch coax. All the music I like has some bass, so it helps out to have that low end shake the boat a bit, but not put spider cracks in my gelcoat.

I am trying to avoid needing more than 2 batteries for now, and the tower speakers will come sooner or later with their own amp. Probably some addictions, they are sweet.

i will check out the JL on your suggestion.

Flux:
I have 2 Alpine amps in my boat and they are plenty for us, Your description of goal is on par with mine as I certainly dont have golden ears and wanted to0 keep things fairly simple. I have one 4 channel running 4 6" tower speakers and 1 5 channel running 4 6" Infinity coaxles in the boat and JL 12w3 sub under drivers foot.
I also have for sale a apline MRV something 5 channel amp that is like new. It is 40x4 and 150 on sub I believe. Have all paper work with it also.email me if your interested in a used one I can email a pict.
Rick

no sweat flux, just thought i'd throw that out there. for what's it's worth, i was pushing a JL 10" 10W1v2 with the e6450's little brother, the e4300. it's basically the same amp, only it's 4-channel. i had 2 channels bridged to the sub pushing 150 watts at 4-ohms and it sounded good. the biggest difference between the two amps (aside from number of channels) is the 4300 isn't 2-ohm stable i don't think, the 6450 is. it really depends on your taste. i upgraded because i was having them redo my sub box, so i ended up getting a dvc sub and adding a dedicated mono amp for it. good luck and let us know what way you end up going.

That JL get's a pretty nice review. I am sure all of these amps do a nice job. Thanks all for letting me in on your setups, it confirms that I can do a nice job with 5 channels and get the bass i want.

Right now our sub is buried in the clamshell, you need to crank it to get any sound out of it. I really can't see how it can possibly be that clear, so I wanna eventually build a box into the kick panel and expose it to the free world.

right on

play around with the positioning of it. mine's under the helm up out of the way in a custom plywood box sprayed with bedliner. it actually sounds best pointed towards the bow. it's not flashy looking like a lot are on this board, but it's pretty stealth and it sounds awesome.

I need space for kids, dogs, and ballast on my ride. Although I do admire those big ass sub boxes with neon and the works. I am putting it in the helm where there is a big unused void. Probably have to reroute some wiring and such, make a new panel with the box cutout, but all worth it in the end.

Thanks for the tips and the amps suggestion. The sub project may be a ways off, but I can install the amp and the HU without too much to do.

I have a 5-channel Crunch. One channel is a d-class sub channel. I'll get the model number, if you're interested.

i'm with you swass minus the dog he's way too big for the boat.

you should do the sub sooner than later, it's not expensive and will make a world of difference in your setup. summer's just around the corner!

Flux, Check out the kicker KX700.5 I have one in my boat and I installed quite a few in other boats. I am very happy w/it as are my clients.. If you look around you can get a factory reconditioned (refurbished) for less than 300. It won't break any SPL records but IMO best bang for the buck. I have had a Referb 700.5 for 2 years and not a single problem. It has a built in fan which is nice because in boats often amps are in areas w/o much ventilation. It also has a remote mass nob. Check them out.

My .02