I'm building a home theater sub and I want it to be passive. this will be an IDQ15V2 in a ported box tuned to 20hz.
In that regard, I need 400-500W RMS of power @ 4 ohms. I've been looking around, and the BASH 300S and 500S amps stood out, but so did their price points. You can get car audio for a lot cheaper than you get these amps, and I personally think they're overpriced. The current prices are $150 for the 300W and $225 for the 500W.
I would get the 300W, but it bothers me to no end that 2-3 years ago, the 300W was available for $80-$100 and the 500W was available for $140-$150. I don't feel right spending that kind of money. I also figure that the prices may be higher due to a lower sale volumes in the DIY home subwoofer market.
The other thing is, if my plate amp breaks, I'm out of luck unless an identical one is available. So my quest lead me to a few threads about non-plate amps for subs, and people using Professional DJ/Stereo rackmount amps. I discovered there was a lot of cheap power to be had with some of these despite their asininely over-inflated power ratings.
Here are the options that stand out the most:
Gemini XGA-3000 - $164 shipped
Gemini XGA-3000 (XGA3000) 3000W Pro Audio High-Power Amplifier
- I called Gemini as this option confuses me. They rate a 8 ohm bridged but not a 4 ohm bridged and I will be running at 4 ohms. This would need to be bridged in order to work. I'm still waiting on a call back.
Pyle PQA-2100 - $118 shipped
http://www.pyleaudio.com/manuals/PQA2100.pdf
Pyle Pqa2100 19-in Rack Mount 2100 Watts Professional Power Amplifier
This is an extremely attractive price point with what appears to be very high power and stability down to 2 ohms. I could almost not believe what I was seeing. Most of their amps are are severely overrated and you need to check the manual to find the actual ratings of the amp. This one isn't so. I called their tech support and they confirmed that the numbers in the manual are RMS ratings.
Pyle PQA-3100 and PQA-4100 - $128 and $165 shipped.
http://www.pyleaudio.com/manuals/PQA3100.pdf
These are also options for a very small price increase and are rated even higher. In case these are slightly overrated, one of these may be a better choice to keep the amp running a lower continuous load and perhaps a lower fan speed.
Pyle Pqa3100 19-in Rack Mount 3100 Watts Professional Power Amplifier
Pyle Pqa4100 19-in Rack Mount 4100 Watts Professional Power Amplifier W/digital Smt Technology
My receiver has a built in crossover that also acts as a low pass filter for the sub-out connections.
In that regard, I need 400-500W RMS of power @ 4 ohms. I've been looking around, and the BASH 300S and 500S amps stood out, but so did their price points. You can get car audio for a lot cheaper than you get these amps, and I personally think they're overpriced. The current prices are $150 for the 300W and $225 for the 500W.
I would get the 300W, but it bothers me to no end that 2-3 years ago, the 300W was available for $80-$100 and the 500W was available for $140-$150. I don't feel right spending that kind of money. I also figure that the prices may be higher due to a lower sale volumes in the DIY home subwoofer market.
The other thing is, if my plate amp breaks, I'm out of luck unless an identical one is available. So my quest lead me to a few threads about non-plate amps for subs, and people using Professional DJ/Stereo rackmount amps. I discovered there was a lot of cheap power to be had with some of these despite their asininely over-inflated power ratings.
Here are the options that stand out the most:
Gemini XGA-3000 - $164 shipped
Gemini XGA-3000 (XGA3000) 3000W Pro Audio High-Power Amplifier
- I called Gemini as this option confuses me. They rate a 8 ohm bridged but not a 4 ohm bridged and I will be running at 4 ohms. This would need to be bridged in order to work. I'm still waiting on a call back.
Pyle PQA-2100 - $118 shipped
http://www.pyleaudio.com/manuals/PQA2100.pdf
Pyle Pqa2100 19-in Rack Mount 2100 Watts Professional Power Amplifier
This is an extremely attractive price point with what appears to be very high power and stability down to 2 ohms. I could almost not believe what I was seeing. Most of their amps are are severely overrated and you need to check the manual to find the actual ratings of the amp. This one isn't so. I called their tech support and they confirmed that the numbers in the manual are RMS ratings.
Pyle PQA-3100 and PQA-4100 - $128 and $165 shipped.
http://www.pyleaudio.com/manuals/PQA3100.pdf
These are also options for a very small price increase and are rated even higher. In case these are slightly overrated, one of these may be a better choice to keep the amp running a lower continuous load and perhaps a lower fan speed.
Pyle Pqa3100 19-in Rack Mount 3100 Watts Professional Power Amplifier
Pyle Pqa4100 19-in Rack Mount 4100 Watts Professional Power Amplifier W/digital Smt Technology
My receiver has a built in crossover that also acts as a low pass filter for the sub-out connections.
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The sub is an Image Dynamics IDQ15V2, Dual 2 ohm wired to 4 ohms. I either need to be able to bridge both channels to make at least 400W @ 2 ohms, or have each channel capable of 400W @ 2 ohms.
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