n3ok318 I dunno if you're in the Bay Area, but I recommend All Pro Audio. They're right across Steven's Creek Honda. They gave me a great deal on my HU and practically free labor.

HU= $326 (with tax). He charged me $340 for the whole thing, including an extra aux cable.

Call Jim (408)244-5577. He'll give you a great deal. Let him know Desmond sent you, he might even lower the price.

 

SEA2SJK,

there are no "right" answers, just different options based on your priorities/preferences. the two major questions are how much do you want to spend on amplification, and how much space are you willing to give up?

in the simplest system, you could power the components with the head unit and add a mono sub amp. however, the components will sound better with an amp.

assuming you add amplification for both, all else being equal, which it's not, a 2-channel amp for the components and a separate mono amp for the sub would be better than an "all-in-one" amp. but the cost will likely be higher, and you have to find space for the second amp. the most stealth install with a single amp is to replace your spare tire with the amp board sold by PAS2KNut.

IMO, the improvement you'll get going from HU power to amp power for your components will be much greater than the difference between going from a single amp to separate main and sub amps. especially with the type-r sub you mentioned, which has dual 2ohm voice coils. this can be run as a 4ohm load, an easy task for most 4-channel amps when you bridge the rear channels. if you like alpine, consider the MRP-F600, or look for a used MRV-F545.

 

Thanks for the great write up.
Is 5 channel amp (70 watts x 4 chan 2 ohms: 420 watts x 1 chan) be good enough for component speakers (110w rms) and Sub (500w rms)?
If I'm correct this amp should outpower component speakers and little underpower the sub...

 

which amp is this? you won't be running the front components at 2ohms, but would probably be bridging the 4 channels into 2. i think 420 is enough to the sub, but i'm still curious as to the make and specs of this amp.

 

I was looking at Kicker ZX700.5.
It's 4 ohms (bridged): 130 watts x 2 chan. + 420 watts x 1 chan. (2 ohms sub channel).

 

you're going to be running a 4ohm load to the sub, so that kicker amp is only giving 210 watts on the mono channel.

at around the $300 price point (internet, non-authorized), consider these two amps:

- JBL PX300.4, which gives 123 watts to each of the fronts and 358 to the sub. this may have been recently discontinued (availability seems limited), so check around. i think this would be very good for the money.

- Pioneer Premier PRS-D4200F, which uses the same ICE technology (full range Class-D) as the Alpine PDX amps. this one gives 75 watts to each of the front components and 300 to the sub.

 

I'm getting 4ohm component speakers and 2ohm sub.
I thought I was getting 4 ohms (bridged): 130 watts x 2 chan. + 420 watts x 1 chan. 2 ohms sub channel.
I think JBL Px300 would be good choice too.
Should I get the 2ohm or 4ohm sub for JBL Px300?

I got lots to learn...

 

I got one more question.
If component speakers has 100 watts, is that mean 100 watts/channel or 50watts/ channel?

 

 

I would scrap those to be honest with you. If you're gonna upgrade your audio, do it right. I'd recommend Infinity Kappa Perfects or Alpine Type R components.