Sub help.

[nos4blood70]

I wanna get a sub to help complete my system's sound. The only thing that's got me wondering is can my car's electrical system handle it? I already have a 400 watt speaker amplifier so I'm scared to put too much strain on the alternator/battery etc. I don't want like ghetto swag thumping and rattling, just something to nicely augment my sound, so I can take the load of bass off my 6.5's and 6X9's so I can get more clarity.

Thanks.

[blakgtp]

as long as you dont go crazy with the amp you will be fine. i think anything under 1000watts shouldn't cause issues. grounds are the most important things

[Beelzeboul]

I run a 2700 watt amplifier with LED projector lights and an obd2 bluetooth adapter on an extreme hybrid battery

have had my charging system checked repeatedly for alternator or battery issues and a year later everything is still fine(knock on wood)

they do have alot of counter measures for high drain devices a friend once charged a power cap in his house and used it to power a tv for several hours
high output alternators are a little more expensive require some tool time but come with good warranties and and pretty easily swapped if problems do arise

in price range
Power cap
Battery
High output alternator

best bet is to check your system regularly

[Eric Whitter]

you should be fine with only 400 watts I'm running 800 rms in my 95 se

[nos4blood70]

Damn you guys are fast. Thanks!

[Fatboy501]

Power cap is a complete waste of time. There are some applications where it can be useful, but not in daily systems. Honestly, a low-power setup can get quite nasty if you build for it. For example, I ran 2 12w1v2s on a Kicker KX150.2, and surprised quite a few people lol. Do you have any idea of any particular equipment that you want to run?

[blakgtp]

from his first post i'm guessing he wants sq

[Fatboy501]

AHHHH! I run from those 2 letters lol. 'Tis a very, very detailed field, and a never-ending path to achieve sonic perfection in a vehicle. That's matt and 1800's field. Nah, just off-hand though, for a nice sound, a little bass, and not much power required... JL 12w1v2. For a little more money, but awesome sonic reproduction, Obsidian Audio or an SSA Icon. The Incriminator Audio Lethal Injection is nice too. All of the subs mentioned perform very well in sealed enclosures, which will leave you plenty of trunk space, and all can get nasty off of 500 watts or so... less for the JL.

[Kolton Lock]

Polk audio has the best natural SQ I have found. They don't have the greatest spl though

[Fatboy501]

Well, SQ is entirely subjective....

[dboy187]

yes caps are a waste of time...fatboy yes,, ssa, Incriminator, yes..........wat about ascendant and american bass.....ascendant aint to bad...if scott atwell keeps doing good and dont sell like he did with re...

[tc300]

Polk audio has the best natural SQ I have found. They don't have the greatest spl though

Lol. Polk is junk... And you must not be into car audio or just been looking at best buy stuff cause theres ALOT better sq out there than polk

[jteske88]

there is some good re stuff out there but before the buy out, there dts amps will do rated power but them black ones are garbo.

[Kolton Lock]

Lol. Polk is junk... And you must not be into car audio or just been looking at best buy stuff cause theres ALOT better sq out there than polk

I got my 2 12s for 50 bucks. No arguing from me. it's good SQ for the price points you can get em at. Can get a good system for 80-150 bucks used. With the power handling of a much more expensive system.

[1LoudGrandPrix]

I run a 2700 watt amplifier with LED projector lights and an obd2 bluetooth adapter on an extreme hybrid battery

have had my charging system checked repeatedly for alternator or battery issues and a year later everything is still fine(knock on wood)

they do have alot of counter measures for high drain devices a friend once charged a power cap in his house and used it to power a tv for several hours
high output alternators are a little more expensive require some tool time but come with good warranties and and pretty easily swapped if problems do arise

in price range
Power cap
Battery
High output alternator

best bet is to check your system regularly

2700W clamped or rated?

I have 2 2500W amps strapped at 1ohm .5ohm per amp should be getting 5500-6kw on my stock alt

Caps are good for 1-2 seconds tops so..... good if your going for a burp

[blakgtp]

how do you get that much power from the stock alt. do you run a ton of 0 gauge wires?

[Fatboy501]

Read his sig. Lot of battery, close eye on voltage. I assume he uses trickle chargers on his batteries from time-to-time, or doesn't beat on it all-out all day long. Then again, it'd be better to let the man answer for himself lol.

[nos4blood70]

from his first post i'm guessing he wants sq

Ding ding ding! I'm extremely happy with my current set up. The 6X9's handle my bass pretty damn well for being 6X9's. BUT, a sub will let me reproduce my highs and mids more faithfully, and I won't have to drive my speakers as hard to get them to be louder and clearer at the same time. That's what I want the sub for. To take the load off my speakers, and maybe so I can thump once in a while. I don't care for having 2 12's in my trunk trying to rattle my center tail light and spoiler off. That ain't me.

[Fatboy501]

Plenty of suggestions so far on solid performing products at a nice price point to give ya what you're looking for. However, the enclosure and power will control how much rattling you do. 1 12 can cause some hell, although I know that's not what you're going for.

Edit: why not just run a single sa-8 or American Bass XD8? Should be enough for your goals, and the enclosure can be TINY, especially if you run it sealed. Virtually no loss of cargo space at all, depending on how you build it.

[nos4blood70]

Thanks for all the aforementioned suggestions. I have a lot to work with. I'm not too concerned with losing trunk space. I have a Bonneville after all. ;D But! I think an 8 or 10 will be appropriate for me in a tiny sealed enclosure sitting in the corner of my trunk.