Whats the best AMP and Sub out there for the $$

Whats the best AMP and Sub out there for the $$

kicker

JL AUDIO

For the money I think that Crossfire might win hands down. I have a Crossfire 10" in my truck with a 354 Amp and it puts out good clean power. In my old boat I ran 4-5.25" coaxils and a 10" crossfire sub on a 404 Amp and it rocked. The sub is about $100-120 and the amp is in the $300-400 range. Crossfire's wattage is true not some made up BS number most use. They also offer a 3 year warranty on their stuff and it is bomb proof. I had some major water fight in side my boat and all of the speakers were getting wet (very wet) and there was never a problem with any of the speakers. They were running strong after 5 years when I sold it.

http://www.crossfirecaraudio.com/frameset.asp

(Message edited by oaf on January 19, 2007)

Did I mention it is made in the USA. Santa Fe Springs, CA to be exact (So Cal)

I strongly agree with Coach. I have crossfire stuff in my truck, sounds great, is rated in true power, has a great warranty and the products are no where near the price of JL stuff.

ALPINES V12S FOR AMPS. SUBS WOULD BE ARC AUDIO, BOSTON G2 AND JL AUDIO W6 W3.

WELL NOT THE DUB 6 BUT THE BOSTON AND ARCS ARE DOPE.

ZAPCO

Treo subs....

DLS highs, mids and AMPS...

It still amazes me how many people think the best sub/amp for the money is JL...lol. Ask anyone who really knows stereo and they will highly disagree. JL makes a great product but for the money you pay there is alot better out there. I'm going to throw out kicker, polk and memphis...all solid equipment that will last and won't break the bank.

I've run a JL 300/4 ($400) against a 2 channel 800 watt audiobahn amp ($150), yes audiobahn. It wasn't even close...I run alot of JL equipment but won't anymore after that test.

i second the KICKER.

not sure if your looking for an amp for a sub but i think one of the best amps for the money is the
ppi 4125 about 300 on ebay and kicks the shart out of alot of more pricey amps imo

Kraco works for me

Boston acoustics amp, JL Audio subs.

Subs- Kicker CVX124. They are 12 inch round solobarics.

Amps- Hifonics Zeus, Class A/B and Brutus, Class D

Nobody else have any experience with Kraco?

Zapco, PPI, and Hifonics.

I got a solo baric 12 and a kicker 1200.1 amp off of hifisoundconnection.com for really cheap. It pounds.

JL Audio

12" W7 with a 500/1 (not regular 500/1, but a SLASH series 500/1)

Kicker= Junk.....

Made in china or asia....

nuff said.. good old USA or europe!

subs.. depend if you are looking for high excursion or sound quality...

alumapro, tc sounds, image dynamics idq(sq) and id max(excursion), arc (made by image dynamics)

sub amps (class d in mobile setting)

jl 500/1 slash series (nice..very nice)
mmatts 1400 series (best bang for the buck, super duper powerful and cheap)
arc xxk series (discontinued)

class a/b
zapco z series
kicker zr1000 (discontinued but powerfull !!!!)
kicker xs100 (discontinued but powerful)
ppi art series (original water cooled series---bad azz)

PPI art series are very interesting amps, they have some BIG power though. I am not sure about the graphics on them. Old school Zapco's are really good as well, they are labeled at low power. After reading the specs closely you will find they are no joke, and actually have big power available when bridging.

I might be confused here

Do you want best money can buy or best bang for you buck?

I posted best bang for your buck

I am running Kicker ZX in my boat now and they rock with a Kicker L5 15". Many of the above mentioned are also very good. Zapco, Arc, and Boston.

Again, JL Audio

the best amp you can buy hand hands down is u.s. amps. period.no haters!last forever pure ••••• power!

the best sub......depends on what your lokking for?.......sound quality or flat out bass.....mmatts koves jl w7 all have serious bass but need a nasty amp to get the full range/power

Greg you sure about that kicker comment. I'm pretty sure they're make in Oklahoma...

Anyways I'll second Kicker and throw in Rockford Fosgate. Both are very underrated on their power. For instance I've got a Fosgate 450.4 that is rated at 60 watts rms @ 4 ohms. Bench tested at over 107 watts rms @ 4 ohms. Same with the kickers. I've got a 850.4 that bench tested at 997 watts bridged at 4 ohms. NUFF SAID good clean power output by both..

Critical Mass UL12

http://www.caraudiomag.com/0607_cae_critical_mass_test_report/

Damn, its so funny when people assume that "anything" made in China is junk.

its not that is junk... china has really kicked up its quality big time since the majority of mfg's are going over their to save cost...

the real question with china made goods is the quality control (crapshoot).. this is where the european/usa gear is a couple notch's better...anything made in house will be better..

(Message edited by clubmyke on January 22, 2007)

Just wanted to throw the RE hat in the ring for bang for your buck subs. I have a 10" RE in my boat and love it. No chrome flame baskets or bling of any sort. Just straight ahead speaker. They are all dual voice coil and they have a bunch of power handling applications. I'm running mine off of a RF P2002 and together they put out more than enough bass. I build my own boxes so there was no cost involved with that for me. The sub was $100 and the amp was $120. I'm sure there are better set ups out there, but for $220, you would be hard pressed to find a better overall combo of power, durability, sound quality and price. I was very pleasantly surprised. I figured it would sound OK and be plenty good enough. The set up far exceeded my expectations. The sub hits hard all the way across the freq. range, which is larger than most. http://www.reaudio.com/index.html

(Message edited by nickypoo on January 22, 2007)

Depends on the kicker equitment...

Like wise with many of the household names, Pioneer, Sony, clarion, Audiobahn, bla bla bla..

There is a reason why AMP's cost more... look at the circuit boards and hardware.. Warranty behind the product. history of the company..

DO your research...

Maybe I am picky....

I've heard the difference... just listen to a set of Pioneer components to a set of Rainbows or DLS... night and day..

I am also a big fan of Image Dynamics.. they have some good stuff on the market right now.

Kenwood Excelon

i'm with greg..you get what you pay for..

image dynammics hits hard and awesome sound quality best of all - reasonably priced..

keep in mind that the installation is the most important thing, you can have the best sub in the world on paper, but if the box isn't built perfect it will sound like garbage

Good point Shane. A proper sized, well built enclosure, will make even a •••••• sub sound good.

Here's my .02 I am not real savy on subs but i bought my daughter two JL Audio 12w1 subs and a Alpine amp and box and wiring kit for 400.00 for Christmas this year. She has a convertible BMW and apparently its hard to get sound in those they say. It hits really good I was shocked with a CD on the roof it will bounce a few inches when she has it hitting. It was a low cost solution to getting her a system.

wakeboardin, you hit the nail on the head with that one. I've been preaching to people for years that you don't need the big high dollar subs to get good bass. All the high dollar subs do is allow you to get away with a smaller box and compenstae for the smaller air space with more power. More power equates to more money for a much larger amp to get the same output. For what 99% of the people out there listen to, the high dollare subs will not benifit them at all. The are a little more accurate, but most people don't even know how or what to listen for to tell that. I have built a few cars that placed in the world finals with JLw1s before.
This even holds more true in a boat, you can pay for all the high end audio equipment, but be honest with yourself, how good of sound quality do you really thing you're going to get in an open area moving at 22mph and the wing blowing in your face and 6 to 8 drunk people on the boat yelling and screaming to talk to each other?

Once again, Kicker will always get my vote.

i think shane makes a very good point - "open area moving at 22mph"...

subs in a boat is a totally different animal than car, ht, or high end 2 channel. anything in a boat will require 2x the power compared to a car imo... there is no sound reinforcement and is a very loud enviornment with crappy head units (wont get started on this one...promise)...

here are some questions that need to answered before you can move ahead ?
-how much room do you have for a enclosure ?
-sealed or ported ?
-how many drivers ?
-budget ?
-high excursion vs. normal ?
-amp load (impedence & efficency) ?

this will help determine the type of amp needed.

there are some great subs and amps out there..it will depend on your space, listening preferences, amp, box, and budget...

btw, when most people refer to "high cost subs" they are referring to "high excursion" subs vs. typical subs.. high excursion subs typically cost more, have larger magnents, require larger enclosures and amps

alot depends on application...i prefer normal subs/ high sound quality when i have room for a small-med box(2-4 drivers (10" or 12") - this will give max cone area in a small sealed box... .5 cubic ft. for 10's and .75 for 12's) when i dont have alot of room(1 driver enclosure) then a high excursion sub makes alot of sense (which requires 2x-3x more powerful amp than above) in a 1 cubic foot box. ie, i have a 12 subfire signiture sub in my home theatre system...while it doesnt have the speed or intergation of my rel, it goes very, very deep and is small (this thing is frightning).

i keep on going back to image dynamics idq's for a sound quality sub (small box, efficent, high sound quality, and cheap...ARC's (made by id) go a little deeper but loose out on the sound quality).. i havent owned alumapro's but have heard them and they are great subs imo..

Thanks for all the info! I'm really looking for the best I can get on a limited budget (like most married guys). I don't really need bass that will loosen up the screws in my boat, but something so people say DAMN!! This certainly gets me in the right direction. Thanks!!

(Message edited by jleger98 on January 23, 2007)

Kind of still on topic I happened in to a best buy and they had several brand subs hooked up in boxes where they could be demoed. I found this real helpful as you could press a button and adjust the volume levels of each sub. I just wanted to throw it out there if you have one near you it may keep your interest for a few minutes in trying different ones out. If I recall they had alpine kenwood sony kicker and several I'm forgetting.

Good luck.

good idea. maybe I'll run over there today and test drive a few.