Ok here is goes: I will be putting in 3 12" (150 RMS) subs this summer. My question is with this setup what will RMS (amp) need to run these without underpowering them. also how many channel amps? I was thinking run the outer 2 subs with one amp and then running the middle one with another amp. another thought that crossed my mind is running a seperate amp for each sub.

Help audiophiles

you can wire them in series-paralell?

there are SVC so I am assuming Parallel

Here is a psudo-audiophile opinion. First, I need to know the impedance of the subs. Without knowing that here'* what you get:

Three 4 ohm drivers in parallel= 1.333 ohm total impedance
Three 6 ohm drivers in parallel= 2 ohm total impedance
Three 8 ohm drivers in parallell=2.667 ohm total impedance.

I would use one amp, bridged perhaps, to run all subs. Bridging an amp into any of the above impedances it would need to be 1 ohm stable. I would not recommend the first example if bridging, use a mono amp. Check the RMS rating of the amp @ say 2 ohms. You'll find that it is noticable higher than at the "standard" 4 ohm load. With this info, I would get an amp that does not exceed the rating of the drivers (150w RMS).

there are 4 ohm

so i would need a 500RMS amp then?? would it be mono or multi channel?

Sorry for the delay. 56k BLOWS!

This is how I'd do it:


This is series parallel. The sub on the bottom will "see" full applied voltage and current because it is the one connected in parallel. For this reason, the max output of the amp should not exceed the max rating of the sub. You'll notice that the "total impedance" of what the amp sees is 2.667 ohms (yes, that screwed up symbol at the end is my offering of an omega). This means that the amp you choose should be a maximum of [sub'* max rating] watts @ 2.667 ohms. Don't let the math scare you.

If your sub is rated at 150w RMS, look for an amp that is rated at 150w RMS @ 2 ohms if you wire the subs this way.

There is a multitude of ways to connect the subs. If you understand the basic principles, you can create an optimized system. Feel free to ask if you need further assistance.

Whoa, don't do that! That'* not good setup at all. All SVC systems should be parallel, and mixing like this, isn't good at all.

get a 1 ohm stable mono amp........150 watt rms........what kinda subs are those.......you could probably get better results from 1 12" with a 500 watt rms.......!!!!!!!!!

even though BONNEMEMN says more power handling doesn't make a louder sub.......its just a generalization!

lets summarize:

I need a mono amp? (yes/no)

what wattage amp do i need to look for? (Max and continous)




so the negative of the subs go to the negative of the amp and the posivite of the subs og to the positive of the amps? (yes/no)

that looks parallel to me..........would drop u to a 1.33 ohm load.........so u would need a 1 ohm stable amp........not very easy to come by at a cheap price!