I was wondering how much are those Focal 165w's going to run you ... the Focal 165cv's where about $400 (canadian) installed. So now I'm thinking of just doing Arc Audio's high end 6.5's and their high-end amp since I can get them for cheap.

 

1000wrms into any component speaker would start a fire in short order. Peak power is one quick burst, like subfwoofer spls. You dont have to worry about that. You can use the 880.2, but you have to know what you are doing in regards to the gains.

100wrms means that you can do maybe 110 safetly. My infinitys are rated 100wrms and 400W peak, so they can take about 125. any amp thats 150x2 @4ohms will work great.

My advice, if you really want a tarantula.....

Go with the 500.4 That will give you a PERFECT 125 x 2@4ohms for the focals, and 500 or more for the sub.

Like flitcroft said, Tarantulas are EXTREMELY powerful, and put out MORE than advertised outputs, and can blow speakers with ease.

 

It was an Audison amp, forget the model, which is definitely quality sound, but they don't have much WPC. More watt consumption was the theory, but later it occurred to me that the highs didn't sound strained, and there wasn't enough bass going on to strain them (unless the woofers have a very very high s/n ratio) so I am thinking (hoping) it was just crossover settings.

-JD

 

In US$: pikkashoe found them at woofersetc.com for $604+shipping and maybe tax. I got mine used, shipped for $524. Retail is $1199.

I audition 2 other Focal models in the same display - much cheaper, but absolutely no comparison. OTOH they had lots more bass, lending credence to the crossover configuration theory.

-JD

 

Hmm, in the automotive world maybe, but in the Home theater world, 1000 watts is not uncommon.

I have been operating under the impression that distortion was a big culprit in driver failure, not necessarily signal, maybe I am wrong. Amps can produce LOTS more power than they are "rated" at, but they are throttled back because THD skyrockets up. I thought they were typically rated at a point where the shallow incline on the curve becomes a verticle line... Anyhow, if the soundstreams are not throttled correctly, they should be able to produce a lot more power but with driver shredding distortion. The combination of high excess power and driver failure minimized by reducing gains (and potential distortion) makes me think the soundstream might just not be properly regulated.

So as I understand it, if you drive a 75 watt amp to 100 watts on a 100 watt speaker, you will toast the voice coil from trying to reproduce the sound wave represented from distoration. If you drive it to 100 watts with a 200 watt amp, and have spikes up to 200 watts, the speaker will be fine. If you drive it to 200 watts all the time, I'd expect problems, so there needs to be some moderation. Hence the RMS and max power. If you power only to RMS, then those 200 watt spikes will make your high end flat, right?

Getting "headroom" by providing clean, undistorted power through transient peaks is a big reason for overamping in the HT world to get as well as keeping it from bleeding power to the high end of the signal and making the speakers sound flat.

Maybe things are different in the car sound world, I am a noob to this, I am more used to 8ohm loads than 1/2 ohm loads (although that is an amp issue not a driver issue), but these are the prejudices I am carrying over from the HT world.

-JD

 

Ok so everyone has conflicting opinions for the amp for these bad boys. I never thought selecting an amp for these speakers was going to be so hard. I like the idea of the 500.4 except for the price. Its really expensive and my problem with that amp is that in the past I have always liked to run a dedicated amp to my subs (thats even if i run a sub). So what does everyone recommend then as the optimum 2 channel amp for these speakers. I am looking at a budget of $550 max for the amp.

 

Slow down guys

Here's what I wrote in a PM:

I run the best MB Quarts. As far as I know, they sound best at the recommended power settings. What I worry about what you're saying is that maybe the people pushing 300 watts to component speakers (remember, you're talking 6.5" speakers here -- that's like hooking a nuclear reactor to a flashlight! 300 watts RMS can easily drive a 12" subwoofer in a sealed enclosure) may either A) not know what they are saying or B) are talking peak power here.

I know speakers, but I don't know this model of Focals. It could be that Focal under-rates their components by 75%, but does that really sound likely? Why would they not expect people paying Utopia money to want less power than they can push to them? It just doesn't add up.

I don't doubt that more power generally sounds better. But at the same time too much power will permanently damage parts of a speaker (driver, cone, etc). The question here is how much is too much power.

My recommendation: Call Focal's tech support and ask them what sounds best. If they say 400 watts RMS, tell them you want it in writing that your speakers will be covered by warranty if you run 4x the advertised RMS power.

I'm just trying to look out for you here. This sounds like the audio equivalent of overclocking a computer CPU which can lead to overheating, damage to hardware, and instantly void your warranty.

Good luck! Let me know how it goes.


--Josiah

 

The amp I mentioned above is one of the best amps you can buy at any price.

VGA 400.2 - $270: http://store.yahoo.com/discave/vgsost2chcar1.html

No. OF CHANNELS: 2
OUTPUT (watts):RMS @ 4 Ohms 100 x 2
RMS @ 2 Ohms 200 x 2
RMS Bridged @ 4 Ohms 400 x 1
T.H.D.: <0.02%
SIGNAL TO NOISE RATIO: >115dB
DAMPING FACTOR: >500
FREQUENCY RESPONSE: 10 - 50k
INPUT SENSITVITY (VOLTS) : 0.15 - 12.0
CROSOVER SLOPE: 12dB
CROSSOVER FREQUENCY (Hz): 30 - 4k
DIMENSIONS (INCHES): 11.2 x 2.6 x 11.8

 

Alternatively, those Zapco's that JD ordered look pretty nice. I haven't heard them myself but they're a common high-end choice and have impressive numbers. Personally, I wouldn't pay double but it's your call. I too have heard the Audisons with your speakers. It's a very nice, warm sound but those amps seem a little under powered to me.

http://www.acaraudio.com/default.php?manuf...5bf0babb35a4acd

I run a Precision Power (PPI) amp from 2003. They don't make any non-sub amps this year. For what it's worth, after hearing every possible amp last year this is what I picked, regardless of price. It puts out 125w x 2 RMS.

http://www.thezeb.com/detail.aspx?ID=3483

125 x 2 Watts @ 4 Ohms Stereo
250 x 2 Watts @ 2 Ohms Stereo
500 x 1 Watts Bridged Mono
S/N Ratio: >115dB
Crossover Slope: 12dB
Crossover Frequency: 30Hz-4kHz
Crossover Type: 2 Way
Frequency Response: 4.5-100k Hz
THD: < 0.02%
I/P Sensitivity: 0.15-12V
Input Type: 12 vDC
QBass? Plus: Up To +18dB Boost @ 30, 36, 44, or 60Hz
Dimensions (H x W x L): 2.375" x 10" x 17"

 

Warranty? I bought used

I think we are pretty much in agreement here. If you drive any speaker at nominal ratings full times (200wpc in this case) you will melt the voice coils. I would not recommend doing so, and it takes a cautious hand with the volume control.

However, with only transient spikes up to nominal ratings, the coils can cool down in between. In fact, the shorter the spike you can probably far exceed the nominal volume. I don't think any manufacturer will sign off on this though.

I would suggest in an underamped situation, one can just as easily damage the components - driving a 75 watt amp to 100 watts will introduce noise, which we can eventually hear as distortion.

I personally have a moderate hand on the volume control, and enjoy the richness of sound that comes from an amp that can handle those transient peaks.

JD