Powering MXS1004

Is there a $200 or less amp that can power two MXS1004's? I don't have as many resources to look for this kind of information as you guys do. But I know you won't stear me wrong. =)

Ok, this is what I've come up with.

2xMXS1004 200-400 RMS w/ enclosure
MTX Thunder564 280 RMS x 2 Channels

Look good?

Grand Total $380

You need an amp that puts out about 800w RMS into a single channel. Those subs are rated for 400w RMS each so they should receive 400w RMS.

I would recommend the MTX Thunder 942 from CarDomain at $284 but a pair of MXS1004's would give you a 2ohm or 8ohm load which isn't suitable for a 2-channel amp.
http://www.cardomain.com/item/MTX942
That's about the best deal you can get and its still over your budget...but again, it won't work with those subs.

What you really need is this:
http://www.cardomain.com/item/MTXTA7801

Otherwise, I'd look into a different subwoofer. As I have stated before, pick the amp before the sub if you are worried about your wallet. You're not going to find a $200 amp that puts out 800w RMS.

What are your plans for your system? How much total do you want to spend? and what type of music do you listen to? 800w of bass is overkill if you don't plan on amplifying the rest of your speakers.

Well not really. What I need is an amp that can put out at least 200 RMS in order to power the subwoofers and idealy 350-400 to get the most out of it. The MTX Thunder564 is a 4-channel amp, not 2. So you bridge two channels to get 280 RMS at 4 ohms to each sub. So what I wanted to know is if the MTX Thunder564 can power the subs enough to get some quality sound out of them, and overall being a really good bargain. Or if someone else could find a better amp for $200 that can power the subwoofers.

Back to the facts.

1) It's a 4-channel that you will bridge to 2-channels. Most people run subs off a single channel. You don't need stereo sub playback and you'll actually get more out of your subs if you send them a mono (left+right) signal.

2) Its rated for 280w RMS x 2 at 14.4v. However, it is only rated 180w RMS x 2 at 12.5v. That means at 13.8v (where your car usually levels out at) it will only be putting out a max of 225-250w RMS. It has an unregulated power supply so as the music gets louder and your car's voltage drops...the amp will put out inconsistant bass.

3) The subs you picked are rated for 400w RMS. Sure MTX says they will run on 200-400w but from my experiences, if you don't match or exceed the RMS rating of the subwoofer, you won't get the sound you are looking for.


So yes the amp is a good bargain. But the three points above mean you will be severely underpowering those subs and they will sound muffled and loose instead of tight and punchy. I still suggest a) budgeting more money for an amplifier or b) picking a different subwoofer.

new subwoofer? no way, 400 RMS sub by a trustworthy brand for only $90 each? find me a better sub under $100. It's regular price is $225 and the reviews I've read are nothing but positive.

but the first amp you picked din't look too good for the money.

The whole point of this topic, to find an awesome bargain amp that can power these babies, not a reality check.

It's not really off topic. 400rms means NOTHING if you can't feed them a good clean 400rms ATLEAST. Shopping by numbers is not always the best practice. What good are $225 subs if they're being feed budget power? For that matter, retail price doesn't really mean tons anyway. I PROMISE you that if you've only got $200 for an amp and $180 for subs, there's many better choices out there that'll give you bang for the buck. I'm not familiar with mtx's numbers, but I'd assume 1004 means you're looking at a pair of 10's? Just go for a single 12, and get prettymuch the same amount of bass out of less space or hell a single 15 if space doens't matter. PLUS you'll be able to do it with less power meaning cheaper amp to boot.

Chuyler's giving you sound advice. In the end it's your money and do what you wish with it, but you came looking for advice, and you're getting some. Just because it's not what you want to hear doesn't mean it's not good. if you want those subs, you're going to have to budget a bit more for powering them.

Let me put this another way....Goldielox and the 3 subwoofers.

Goldielox has a 200w amplifier and she goes out to buy a subwoofer for it. The first subwoofer she finds is rated for 100w. She hooks it up and it sounds great at moderate volumes but when she turns it up it starts making funky noises and starts to smell pretty bad. Opps. Guess that wasn't a good choice. Next she finds a 400w subwoofer. This one plays much louder than the 100w subwoofer but it just doesn't sound as tight at moderate levels and she quickly drives the amplifier into clipping trying to get more sound out of it. If she keeps up with this sub she could risk blowing her amp. She might be happy with it but Goldielox is pretty picky when it comes to subwoofers. Finally she finds a 200w subwoofer. This sub doesn't make funky noises like the 100w sub and it sounds much cleaner at moderate and even loud levels than the 400w sub. The sound is tight and crisp and makes the most out of her 200w amplifier. Goldielox picks up the 200w sub which matches her amplifier perfectly.

Here is a great subwoofer that will sound great with 200-250w RMS:
http://www.cardomain.com/item/IDSID10V3D2 $119.95
(also available in dual 4 ohm)

If you want to stick with MTX and keep it under $100 you can always go with this:
http://www.cardomain.com/item/MTXT451004 $89.95
(also available in dual 4 ohm)

Fire-Starta said:

The whole point of this topic, to find an awesome bargain amp that can power these babies, not a reality check.

Click to expand...

If one existed that would do those subs justice I would suggest it...but the fact is, an 800w amplifier for under $200 does not exist and a 400w amplifier will not do a good job powering those subwoofers.

Of course there are always https://www.ebay.com (commissions earned) that claim they put out 800w.

chuyler1 said:

If one existed that would do those subs justice I would suggest it...but the fact is, an 800w amplifier for under $200 does not exist and a 400w amplifier will not do a good job powering those subwoofers.

Of course there are always https://www.ebay.com (commissions earned) that claim they put out 800w.

Click to expand...

Not necassarily under $200. But something that's a bargain, like this

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-AXppZhBw2uB/cgi-bin/ProdView.asp?g=120&I=037A8000T

It's Audiobahn but has got nothing but good reviews. Looks like they did something right for once.

^^^
That amp is a much better choice. I don't particularly like Audiobahn but if you purchase it from Crutchfield they will take care of you if something goes wrong. In the past their amps have put out close to their rated power. Sound Quality isn't great but that isn't important with a subwoofer amp.

Don't always trust the reviews on the site selling the product. Consumer reviews are usually overly positive or overly negative. They wouldn't have bought the product if they didn't like it and the only way they will write a bad review is if something terrible happens to it. Take this educated review for example:

"The shiney chrome polish just makes it even better."

Yup...that's going to persuade me to buy it now. Anyway, there are worse brands out there than Audiobahn and at $300 that amp looks like a pretty good deal.

here is that audiobahn for $100 cheaper

http://store.yahoo.com/discave/a8aumoinseca.html

check out prices on other brands, you could probably get a better brand for $300 from there

NoRotor said:

here is that audiobahn for $100 cheaper

http://store.yahoo.com/discave/a8aumoinseca.html

check out prices on other brands, you could probably get a better brand for $300 from there

Click to expand...

OKay, so GRANTED it IS audiobahn. Thatsaid, this is exactly the kind of web-dealer that MANY have been burned by. I've got no real reason to be up on my soapbox here aside form jsut the facts that I've been there done that, and seen it toomany times. IF the money is that important to you I suggest settling for a lesser amp from an authorised dealer. Or at least somewhere that has more than a 30day "on their honor" warranty.

There IS NO FREE LUNCH. you DO pay for what you get. In the case of online discount shops it's NOT simply compromised warranty. The warranty is weak because the product is weak. Either refurb, knock-offs, B-stock or otherwise grey-market goods. Yes it looks the same, and perhaps you'll get lucky and it'll work the same but when your amp is fried and you get the runaround after having to pay for sending your amp off, often times NOT being taken care of seeingas the company does not wish to deal with the manufacturer seeing as it's not legitimate product. All of the sudden the thought of having paid that extra couple bucks starts so beat you over the head. Even if oyu DO get takne care of its' pretty common practice for the process to take over a month and generally it's a "credit for similar product" which again, hmm.. how well's that going to holdup? Hell, it's not even much of a stretch to consider the amount of power flowing through your stereo and how easily it cna start fires. DO you want sub-par equiptment to be handling this on a daily basis?

I've done the net-deal thing, many have. That's why we speak this way. There's a laundry list of members who've discussed such situations with me in the past year. I'll not rattle it off, but it's not short.

mostly be careful, and think about what your car and your stereo is really worth to you.

I will buy from www.sounddomain.com.

I will buy from www.crutchfield.com.

I will buy from eBay under very strict rules:

1) The item is used and being sold at a used price. New items sold on ebay come from the same sources that these unauthorized internet retailers obtain goods. The prices are better but once the sale is finished you have no one to contact about issues.

2) The seller is a real person. I won't buy audio equipment from an eBay store or bulk seller. The seller needs to have a story that checks out. They could be like me, selling equipment to upgrade to something better. They could be an installer or a small shop selling equipment that was pulled out of a vehicle where it was working properly.

3) All the bidders on the item are legit, all the bidders on the sellers other items are legit, and all the winning bidders on previous items in the seller's feedback are legit. If someone with 0-2 feedback is bidding on an item...that is a red flag. The seller is shill bidding on his own auctions. There are occurances where this could happen legit but the chances of someone creating an account to bid on an obscure car audio item are pretty slim.