Subwoofers and Amps. What should I look for?
The first step in deciding on a subwoofer is to decide on an amplifier, not the other way around. The amplifier is the most important part of the package. The best amplifiers for subwoofers are called mono blocks. They are single channel amplifi ers designed for driving subwoofers only. They are not stereo and will only work up to about 200Hz, so you can’t run a set of speakers from them.
The theory behind these amps is that they have none of the circuitry needed to reproduce accurate vocals and fi lters to cut down on noise, as none of that matters when a subwoofer is only playing bass notes. It can all be replaced by bigger power supplies and more powerful amplifi cation. Once you have decided on an amplifier, it’s then time to choose a subwoofer. If you choose, for example a 600W RMS mono block, then you should look for a subwoofer rated at less than 600W. That’s right. The amp should produce more power than the subwoofer is rated to handle.
The reason is that it’s much easier to blow up a subwoofer by under powering it than by overpowering. A 300W amp will have to work hard to power a 600W sub, so its output will not be very clean and the sub may be damaged. A 600W amp powering a 300W subwoofer will be just idling along, so the output will be very clean and the subwoofer will last longer and sound better. Rockford Fosgate and /////Alpine have matched subwoofer and amplifi er packages that take out the guesswork for you, from around $599. You can’t go wrong with that sort of quality sub and amplifier at that price.
Call into Hobart Car Audio and talk to the car audio engineers. They will be able to give you all the expert advice you need to choose the right amp and subwoofer for your car. |
