Looking for amp to power 10" L7 2 ohm DVC

[Spy60]

I'm looking to upgrade the stereo in our 02 Mobius LSV. I picked up a used Kicker 10" L7 but it is 2 Ohm DVC and now I'm looking for an amp to power it. Would I be better off bridging a 2 channel amp and run it at 4 Ohms? OR get a momo amp that is stable at 1 Ohms? I believe the L7 is looking for 600 watts RMS.

Also, I'd like to stay at or below $200. Any thoughts?

[mmandley]

I'm looking to upgrade the stereo in our 02 Mobius LSV. I picked up a used Kicker 10" L7 but it is 2 Ohm DVC and now I'm looking for an amp to power it. Would I be better off bridging a 2 channel amp and run it at 4 Ohms? OR get a momo amp that is stable at 1 Ohms? I believe the L7 is looking for 600 watts RMS.

Also, I'd like to stay at or below $200. Any thoughts?

If the Sub is a 2ohm Duel Voice coil then in order to use it correctly it will be hooked up as 1ohm.

Duel 4ohm DVC gets connected as a 2ohm load.

The amp you select will have to be stable at 1ohm in your description.

[MLA]

Wiring the two 2 ohm coils in series for a 4 ohm load is also correct. This would allow one to wire the sub on a 2chnl amp, providing it did low-pass. If doing a ported enclosure, make sure the amp has an adjustable subsonic. If not, then find out what its internal fixed subsonic is and tune accordingly. If sealed, then is really wont matter, unless its set way below what that 10" want to play, which is 24Hz for the L710. I would rather see mono amp run at 4 ohm as opposed to 1 ohm, to achieve the desired watts rms. Added head-room and a bit more efficient since it wouldn't be running peddle to the metal.

A 4 ohm DVC can be a 2 or 8 ohm load at the amp.

I think your $200 budget is going to make it real tough to find a quality amp, even used, thats going to give you 600W or more x 1 @ 4 ohm

[EarmarkMarine]

Spy60,
You have several choices, two of which you already stated.
1) A 1-ohm stable monoblock amplifier to drive dual 2-ohm voice coils in parallel for a net 1-ohm load.
2) A stereo amplifier in the bridged mode to drive dual 2-ohm voice coils in series for a net 4-ohm load.
As long as you arrive at the power you require there is no difference between the perfomance of the two above choices.
3) You can also go with a strictly regulated monoblock amplifier that delivers the identical power into a wide load impedance range.
4) Or you can go with a larger monoblock amplifier, that is rated at 1000 watts into a 2-ohm load, that will produce 600 watts into a 4-ohm load.
It's great to have the type of headroom and reserves that you would get by running an amplifier in a more conservative mode, with scenario 3) or 4).
The Kicker L7 is a heavy mass speaker and it really likes power. My fear is that within your budget you will find a liberally rated amplifier that is not up to the task. In a brand new amplifier, I feel you will have to invest a little more for the Kicker sub to reach it's max potential.
Btw, MLA, a Moomba member, has a great deal of experience with Kicker subs so he might have something additional to add.

David

[EarmarkMarine]

As I was saying.....

[Spy60]

Thanks for all the great info. It looks like you both would lean towards a larger monoblock amp that will run the L7 at 4-ohms.

I was looking at the Percision Power Black Ice or higher end Soundstream class D amps in the 1200-1800@1-ohm range, but I'm not sure of there quality.

If I go up on my budget to closer to $300 would that be enough to get into the quality of amp you're talking about? I think I could get something from JL, Rockford, Kicker, or Alpine. Any other suggestions would be great.

[KG's Supra24]

I believe I have one of option number 3 above, the strictly regulated monoblock. It's an Alpine and I haven't had any issues with it. It's what I used to drive my sub.

[Spy60]

Would the JL Audio 500/1v2 work? I should be able to find one for between $200-$250.

[MLA]

That JL 500/1 will deliver 500W rms @ 4, so it will work with your L710 wired in series. So yes, it will work.

[EarmarkMarine]

That's a very nice amplifier. Class D. Strictly regulated so that will do it's rated power even with an 11 volt supply. Plus, the power is the same with any load from 1.5 to 4-ohms. Most flexible feature set you will find on an amplifier.

David

[Spy60]

Thanks for all the info.

[Spy60]

I was going to build a sealed box, but now I'm not sure. Would you suggest building a seal or ported box for it? Is one better than the other for a boat environment?

[EarmarkMarine]

Spy60,
That particular Kicker woofer is heavy mass and intended to go very low in a very small sealed box. It is going to like sealed. It's not a particularly articulate woofer with great pitch (tonal accuracy) but it has the ability to free up some cavities.
This is just a general 'air suspension' (sealed) to 'bass-reflex' (ported) comparison.
Sealed rolls off earlier but more gradual and ultimately extends deeper. Transient response and attack is good. It is very difficult to mess up sealed.
Ported, in the most conservative sound quality alignment, produces an extra 3 dB of output (equivalent to double the amplifier power) in the meaty part of the bass over sealed. Ported provides an extra one/third octave of deep bass extension before reaching its half power point. Ported rolls off lower but at twice the rate. Ported has extremely low distortion around the tuning frequency. Ported can require a 40 to 60 percent increase in total external enclosure displacement. Ported can be a bit trickier to get right.
Again, MLA has great experience with Kicker subs. Take his recommendation and run with it.

David

[MLA]

I agree with David. The L7 will perform great in a sealed enclosure. Although a ported can be done successfully, a sealed offers a greater margin of error. This goes along way in a boat where you have a fixed space in which to construct an adequate enclosure. Like David mentioned, baby got back! The L7 has a big heavy motor and its displacement, as well as the port volume, all have to be excluded from the enclosures net volume. Those factors can make for a large enclosure in limited space. I would go sealed, this combo will perform nicely.

[Spy60]

Is there much difference between the original 500/1 and the 500/1v2 ?