Hmmmm...although it does suck, and Im sorry to hear that....I cant help but wonder if they sent him back his 1st amp (fixed of course).....If indeed this is #2, I will stop recommending the Van Gogh. I have never had a problem with Tarantulas though, and I deal with them all the time.

 

PJ,

The vast majority of my CD's are house/progressive (Sasha, Paul Oakenfold, BT, etc.). However, I also listen to some rap (Outkast, Eminem, Lil' Jon, etc.) and some "classic" 80's stuff like Depeche Mode, The Cure, and other alternative.

I like very clean, "tight" sounding systems. The kind of systems that reproduce every high and low. The kind of system that can play vocals or piano and have it razor sharp and accurate.

I like sharp, clear highs, thus the reason I've always had MB Quart and now want to go with the Focals (Polyglass V2, kevlar KN or K2P series).

I also like accurate bass for various music. At times, I need it to go low and more "drawn out" sounding (some dance and rap does this), and at other times, I need clear, accurate, tight-hitting bass.

So it almost seems as if I want/need a "general" system.

As for headunits, I'd probably stick with the Alpine over the Clarion, as I understand what you're saying about the built in stuff (Alpine is also cheaper).

As for subs, I'm thinking of using Eclipse, TREO or the new Kicker L5 series.

For an amp, I'm not sure what the hell to do now. I have recently heard of MMATS and have heard good things. So I was thinking of going that route. Otherwise, maybe I'll go with the JL500/5 or do two amps JL300/2 and 250/1.

Any suggestions?

 

You must pick out the exact model of the sub & fronts before an appropriate amp can be suggested. The amount of power that is neccessary hinges on the type of speakers you plan on running. Once you do that, the rest of the system essentially falls into place.

 

[QUOTE]Originally posted by NFRs2000NYC
Hmmmm...although it does suck, and Im sorry to hear that....I cant help but wonder if they sent him back his 1st amp (fixed of course).....If indeed this is #2, I will stop recommending the Van Gogh.

 

Never heard of MMATS??? Don't spend much time around competition cars eh? MMATS has probably won more stuff at the national and international level in the past 5-10 years than anyone. They also tend to underrate their amps something FIERCE. I've seen competition vehicles running 4 15" subs off ONE of their 300w amps and do very well. Not many manufacturers make subs rated to do 2200w into 4 ohms that are .5 ohm stable. Not only that, but all of their amps are 2" high and 9" wide... only the length varies. That 300w amp is only 15" long, and the 2200w job is 18" long.

They also run very cool so they can be used in unvented areas. That is why I am going to use them for my S2K install. But as I've stated, there are lots of good amps out there to use.

 

*nods* :scribbles notes:

 

linkage?

based on what you're telling me, i have some hunches already about these things... (there are design limitations to everything... ) my first guess would be that these are almost 100% D or T class amps... but, we'll see. i always try to be open to new suggestions.

but no, i've really not paid much attention to the SPL end of competition gear.... so if this is SPL gear, i'm likely to be very clueless.

and i've seen many a tiny little amp drive loads of subs... it all depends on how you wire it up and how the amp scales...

 

The jury is out. let's see some links.

 

http://www.mmatsproaudio.com/

yup -- looks like they are almost 100% SPL driven.

the good and surprising thing is that they are using class A/B amps for highs... at least they didn't go the more typical route of T-class amps.

and their sub stuff is all class D and designed around scaling to super low impedences, so they can make high power off of 'low rated' amps... their gear may be unique, but their techniques are tried and true and well established... Orion was doing this 10+ years ago w/ their cheater amp designs....

 

The SPL gear from MMATS is class D. That doesn't necessarily mean it has to be crap, as MMATS and XTANT have shown, along with USAmps. All of their gear is pretty highly regarded.

I am not going to sit here and tell you that the MMATS stuff is going to win you SQ championships. You may want to look into Audison, or Brax for that. But I have heard the MMATS stuff since my local shop carries it, and it seemed pretty nice to me. Their sub line (Juggernaut) is strictly for SPL work. Don't recommend them at all.

I've heard plenty of good stuff about Zapco, and considered their stuff for my install, except it's a bit to big for what I planned to do. As I said, my compromises may not suit your tastes, I just wanted to toss out an option you might have not been familiar with. Despite the JL bashing that happens around here, they make nice product, especially on the high end.

If I were in your shoes, and I was going to use the tool well for doing what I wanted, I'd be installing Focal or JL components (possibly CDT), looking at an Adire Brahma 10" or 12" or the new MTX 9500 sub (which blew me away when I heard it), and probably looking at Audison or JL amps for the fronts, and USAmps/MMATS/JL for the sub.

http://www.mmatsproaudio.com/
http://www.mmatsproaudio.com/amplifiers.php
http://www.carsound.com/reviews/amps/d300hc.html
http://www.carreview.com/Amplifiers/Mmats/...69_1806crx.aspx