EddieC

More like confusing reality. Everything you read that you based this thread on is misinformation and pointless. The ONLY answer is to buy something reputable and don't look back. All "scientific" reasons you are using to make yourself feel better are wrong. Stop reading wherever you are getting that garbage information and think instead about what matters.I ran across a thread with clamped numbers for several of the amps I was looking at. Seeing the numbers on what I had originally planned on fall short of others, I began thinking maybe I should be looking for a higher priced used amp to get the most power for my money. That's all this was originally about. Everything in this thread has gone over my head and beyond what I expected. I know I've heard people say plenty of times that clamp tests are meaningless, and should not be a concern. But last weekend I went to a local shop to check out some Hertz and Focal speakers for the front and the owner did nothing but rag on Soundqubed. So I was questioning my decision. I've run across some pretty good deals locally on some amps that should be better than the SQ for less $ (IA20.1, etc) and was just wondering what to look for when buying a used amp as I know plenty of people have been burned in the process.

The one thing that stands out on its specs is the 190 max current draw. I have a 220 amp HO alt with Yellow Top under hood and Die Hard Platinum Group 31M in the rear. With the mids and highs amp having a 120 amp rating I have to watch the current draw to ensure I'm not pulling too much. I'll definitely check these out.

Sounds reasonable to me. So do you think the Soundqubed 2200 would be a good amp for the Ethos? They seem to have a good track record with a ton of good reviews, which was why I was considering it first. Plus having that warranty is worth a little extra to me.I honestly dont know how else to answer your question, its been asnwered plenty of times by now. If the amp meets your budget, power requirements, space requirements, proven company then i dont see why not. You're right. I'm overthinking all this. Sounds like that's the one that fits the best for my situation. Just didn't want to wind up compromising with something if there were better options that could be had by buying used.

Sounds reasonable to me. So do you think the Soundqubed 2200 would be a good amp for the Ethos? They seem to have a good track record with a ton of good reviews, which was why I was considering it first. Plus having that warranty is worth a little extra to me.

With the voltage dropping to 12.75 I'm guessing that they were on stock electrical. I have a constant 14+ with my upgrades with no drop at the battery at all full tilt on around 700 RMS, so I should see more than than they got I would think. So my initial thoughts of a new Q2200.1D may be good after all I guess. Plus I like the idea of buying new just in case there are any issues. Are there any better choices for the $ new?

You're right... I don't understand. This is the first time I've ever ran this much power, and I'm trying to learn as much as possible since I'm doing it all myself. I have to admit that reading that thread concerned me after seeing 1500 watts when I'm looking for 2200. The others didn't have nearly that amount of drop. I did run across an IA 20.1 (older style) for 350 obo. But that's where I began questioning what do I look for to make sure the amp is in good working condition. Only thing I know to do is have my connections ready to test it when I meet the person. Anything else to visually look for, other than smelling for a burnt smell?

I won't share the link (unless asked) as the thread is on another site that will more than likely be ***d. But from all the amps listed there the higher $ amps seem to hold their rated power better. The DD M3B looks like it would be perfect for a reliable continuous output. Am I looking at this the wrong way? The Soundqubed seemed to have the most drop of all, and there are a lot of amps on that list. That is what I'm concerned about. With it being the cheapest, I'm thinking that buying a better amp used would be my best bet. I just want to get a continuous 2200 watts from whatever I get, not this: AudioQue 2200.1 -1 ohm nominal. Rise to 3.1. -Drop to 12.7v -1,582w

I had originally planned on buying a Q2200.1D to power my Ethos. After reading a thread of clamp test numbers and seeing it puts out less that 1.6k after box rise and voltage drop I'm not so sure any more. I've been looking through ads on a local audio FB page and found a SKAR 2500 for less than I'd pay new for the SQ. I know SKAR isn't well liked because of the owner, but I'm not putting money in his pocket. Just looking for the best bang for the buck. Whatever amp I decide on, what should I look for/check? I've always been leery of buying used, but I could stand to save half the cost of a good amp.

Where would they be able to test it? Should I just get an ecu from a junk yard and try it out? Here in NC Autozone will hook it up and check it for free. Pretty sure most auto parts stores are doing that nowadays in the hopes that you'll go right back in the store and buy whatever it turns out to be. Call a parts store local to you and ask if they run a free diagnostic check.

Just asking in case you want to sell them. Gotcha. I doubt I'd ever let these go to be honest. [ That is a sweet gift! Thanks Neil. I know I'd be happy if I were him!

Gains are there for that purpose. You could connect a 1,000,000 watt amp up to a 100 watt speaker and as long as you set the gains correctly it wouldn't blow it. Your HU, even if it CAN output a full 4V through the pre-outs, wouldn't output that much voltage unless the volume was turned all the way up. It doesn't output 4V all the time. That's why it's suggested to set gains with the volume at about 3/4 of the way up. That way you can always turn it down for music that has a higher than normal recording level and turn it up a little more for the music that has a below average recording level. The one thing you've not mentioned that I would love to hear about is what you think of the DCON's. That's what I figured, it's just that I'm going to a level of power that I've always wanted but could never afford. I don't want to do anything to screw this up. I've done every last bit of the work myself so far with the help of people like you guys.... and I can't thank you enough. Shops charge big money for installs, money that I'd much rather put into equipment than someone else's pocket. As for the DCONs....they're 12s and I have loved every minute with them. So glad I researched long and hard before my purchase. I was about to do the old local shop Alpine subs until I read about everyone praising the DCON's SQ and how efficient they were. The one thing I hate is that I screwed up and ordered D4s instead of S4s. But in the end maybe that happened for a reason, as my alt was only 80 amps and I was forced to run at 4 ohms with the amp I had. Probably saved my electrical in the long run. The one thing I noticed once I put them in was how loud and low they got. I've always ran sealed subs in the past and was blown away by the output these had at 4 ohms vs the subs I was running sealed at 2 ohms. I can honestly say that this has been the most musical sub I've had to date, and I'll always recommend the DCONs to anyone needing a low powered sub with great SQ. What size are the dcons and are you going to sell them?12s but I think I'm going to give them to my son for his Mazda 6. He's been hinting about it ever since he found out what I'm doing. Couldn't really afford a lot for his graduation last year so hopefully those and my old Kenwood 5 channel amp will help make up for it.

Thanks man. A wreck on the highway this morning added an extra 30 minutes to my drive. An hour and a half without going into protect. Still nice and hot, but I'm pretty sure pushing that 600 watts out of the bridged channel has a lot to do with it. It's never going to see more than 100-150 per channel once it gets devoted to the front stage. I did add about an inch of lift off the floor yesterday. That should help some. Like I said, it made it an hour and a half this morning so hopefully I have a pretty decent balance on it for now. I was actually thinking about that yesterday. Is it safe to use a pc fan it? I can get all those I want from the IT dept at work from old computers. I'm actually thinking at this point maybe I should quit waiting for the Ethos to install a sub amp and go ahead with a temp install to the DCONs while I'm waiting. I'm pretty set on a Soundqubed 2200 for the amp. I know I could run the DCONs at 4 ohms and get 500 to them. OR....since it has an input sensitivity range up to 8 volts would it be safe to wire down to 1 ohm and run with the gains low? I have 4 volt preouts. Is there enough difference between 4 and 8 volts to keep the power down to 7-800 watts?

Well I just ran out of daylight and don't have a shop to work in so I'm calling it a day.Only thing I had the chance to do was check the voltage, which I had been curious about since installing the alt. Idle voltage was 14.2 with no drop whatsoever at the battery when the stereo was at full volume. At the amp I read 14.2 until the heavy bass hit. At that point voltage dropped to 13.8 and quickly recovered once the heavy bass hit finished. What if anything does this tell me? Amp still gets hot, but hasn't gone back into protect yet. Maybe it's just going to run hot as long as I'm trying to push 600 watts to these subs. It's never going to see all that once the Ethos and sub amp are installed. I did raise the amp about an inch to allow some air flow beneath. Also ran 12 gauge wire to the subs just in case (sorry jay-cee....didn't see your post until after I bought it).

Sigh.... never can be something simple. Still going to stop and grab some 12 gauge on the way home for good measure. I'm sure the subs would benefit somewhat from it.

Yes it is vented on the bottom, and that could be part of the problem. I'm going to rig up some mounts to give it about an inch of clearance beneath. I did place a small sheet of thin wood beneath it but that didn't seem to give much clearance at all.

I don't have a multimeter, but my dad has one of the old style analog ones. Maybe his 76 year old ears can stand it for a minute to help me read that thing. ;-) But as for the sub clipping, I really don't think I was pushing it that far (I could be wrong). But like I said, I even backed the gains down after it shut off.... twice. I know those front speakers are nowhere near the point of distortion now, and the sub gains were set to match the output. I will say though that I can't wait to get that Ethos now that I see what I've been missing out on sub-wise. Pretty sure the subs are right. I triple checked everything when I first installed it. I think I'm going to pull them anyways to check the coils to make sure they are still reading as they should. I've read that a speaker with a damaged vc can cause this, so I need to eliminate that as a suspect. I'll be checking everything with a meter this afternoon. I've disconnected, inspected and reconnected all the power/ground and speaker wires to the amp. I may have found a better ground location, so I'm going to try that as well. So the 14 gauge wire couldn't be the issue then? I was kind of hoping it would be as simple as that. I can see where the heat could build up if the power it's trying to deliver is being starved for current.

Over the last month I've been prepping my car to power the Ethos I have on order. So far I've replaced the front battery with an Optima Yellow Top Group 34/78, done the Big 3 in 1/0 ofc, installed a 220 amp HO alt and made a positive and negative run of 1/0 to the rear (positive fused within 18 inches of post with 250 amp anl fuses). For now the rear battery is not installed. I have the negative taped off and the positive run stops at the rear fuse holder. Over the weekend I decided to hook up the amp that I plan on using for the front stage to power my entire system I'm currently running. It's a Hifonics (I know some of you are cringing right now) X14 Brutus X1200.4. Power is supposedly 150x4@4, 300x4@2 and 600x2@4 ohms bridged. I contacted the company to make sure that it could be run in 3 channel mode, to which I was told yes... to use Channels 1 and 2 for the fronts and bridge the rears on 3 and 4. Hooked everything up, powered on and was pleasantly surprised at the power it was pushing to the subs (SSA DCON D4s wired to a 4 ohm final load). I did not set the gains with any type of meter, just the normal up 3/4 on the volume and increase to distortion then back off until there was none. Sounded beautiful for the first 30 to 45 minutes and then it quit and went into protect mode. The amp was VERY hot to the touch so I let it cool for a few and even backed the gains down some. Restarted the car after approximately 15 minutes and played for a while before going into protect again. Backed the gains off even more and so far (knock on wood) it hasn't cut off, but the longest I've been in the vehicle was this morning for an hour drive to work. And when I arrived it was pretty darned hot again. My first thought was bad ground, and it may still be.... but I'm not so sure. The amp is sitting under the passenger seat. Maybe the fact that it's laying down and is an A/B doesn't help. I used a point where the seat attaches to the body as my ground. Sanded the paint to bare metal, used a copper terminal ring and even dremeled the threads with a wire brush and used dielectric grease. I also replaced the 80 amp in line fuse with a 120 amp anl. The one thing I haven't done yet is replace the speaker wires. I currently have 14 gauge speaker wire on everything. My previous amp was only pushing 300 to the subs so could it be the wire being too small for the power being delivered causing this? Thanks in advance guys.

220 amp HO alt from Js Ultimate Alts with new belt. Misc electrical. Fuse holders, fuses, terminals, volt meter. New Optima Yellow Top Group 34/78 for under the hood.

Thanks man! Now time to pick out a nice set of 16s. Love the look of the 18s but tired of not getting more than 10,000 miles out of a set of tires. smh

New Halo headlights. I'm digging it!

It's not exactly pretty, but I made it work. May end up changing things out some. I'll get some pics up tonight. I know I'll get some flack, but I'm prepared. This is my first attempt at doing this myself, so compromises were made here and there. Nothing that can't be cleaned up later. As long as it gets the job done I'm happy.

I have some, but at work they block social media sites including Photobucket. I'll try and get some up tonight. Best looking upgrade so far has been the Halo headlights. Loving the look! Maybe I'll start a build log.....but thanks!

You are correct sir! lol It's amazing hearing the difference between tapping on the rear doors vs the fronts now. Guess it's time to pull the rear panels and do those too, even though there are no speakers in those doors. The handles are vibrating like crazy.....hopefully that will help to solve the issue. What I hate is all the plastic panels that rattle. Agreed. The one that's giving me the most problem is that plastic frame over the license plate that holds the latch release and license plate lights. I did some deadening in the hatch as well and it seemed to help quite a bit, but there's still a little noise (much easier to live with now though). The problem I found was when I went for spl it caused a lot of problems. Like shaking everything lose. That's why I go for sq now not spl. I'm not really going for SPL. Just want to have enough power on tap to thump a little harder. Shouldn't have a problem with an Ethos on 2200 RMS. I'm sure it'll stay within the 1000-1500 range most of the time. Maybe that won't shake things apart too much. Finished my deadening this weekend (at least the inner skins...still waiting on window regulators). Man what a difference! Also got my Yellow Top installed, Big 3 done in 1/0 ofc welding cable and ran my positive and negative cables to the rear. Alt to battery cable fused with 250 amp anl as well as 250 amp anls within 18" of each of the positive posts on my battery run. HO alt should be here today. Think I'm going to go ahead and install the x1200.4, bridge the rears to run the subs at 600 watts (never seen over 300) and run that until the Ethos arrives. I'm holding off on my SQ2200 until the Ethos comes to get the most out of the warranty. Still need a box design for the Ethos. Quentin was going to get back to me after I gave him the dimensions but either he's forgot or is just really busy getting ready for the motors to arrive. Thought about giving it a shot myself but when he recommended side firing/porting for better transfer that left me clueless, as the only box building software I see places the sub and port on the front face. Oh well....still a month to get it right.

You are correct sir! lol It's amazing hearing the difference between tapping on the rear doors vs the fronts now. Guess it's time to pull the rear panels and do those too, even though there are no speakers in those doors. The handles are vibrating like crazy.....hopefully that will help to solve the issue. What I hate is all the plastic panels that rattle. Agreed. The one that's giving me the most problem is that plastic frame over the license plate that holds the latch release and license plate lights. I did some deadening in the hatch as well and it seemed to help quite a bit, but there's still a little noise (much easier to live with now though).

You are correct sir! lol It's amazing hearing the difference between tapping on the rear doors vs the fronts now. Guess it's time to pull the rear panels and do those too, even though there are no speakers in those doors. The handles are vibrating like crazy.....hopefully that will help to solve the issue.