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My venture into the audiophile realm has only begun but I've been in the game for over 20 years. I've never owned a vehicle that I thought was worthy of high end car audio, or at least what I consider high end. That being said, not with much merit or clout, I'd vouch for the new X series Alpine amplifiers. I've been deliriously happy with these amplifiers & the only reason why I'd change them is if I every decide to take my 3 ways active.
Price is always a factor, but for me, size was more of a consideration. Consider the application.. what would you categorize the Corvette as? To me it will be a performance car first, and even though car audio will always be my first love, adding a bunch a weight to a performance orientated car seems counter intuitive; especially with how well balanced these cars are. I may be alone on that sentiment but that influences my decisions. So, if your like minded, you may want to consider a smaller chassis amplifier.
My venture into the audiophile realm has only begun but I've been in the game for over 20 years. I've never owned a vehicle that I thought was worthy of high end car audio, or at least what I consider high end. That being said, not with much merit or clout, I'd vouch for the new X series Alpine amplifiers. I've been deliriously happy with these amplifiers & the only reason why I'd change them is if I every decide to take my 3 ways active.
Price is always a factor, but for me, size was more of a consideration. Consider the application.. what would you categorize the Corvette as? To me it will be a performance car first, and even though car audio will always be my first love, adding a bunch a weight to a performance orientated car seems counter intuitive; especially with how well balanced these cars are. I may be alone on that sentiment but that influences my decisions. So, if your like minded, you may want to consider a smaller chassis amplifier.
Also, to echo Ronin, a DSP is key.
Defiant, I like your sub box. I built myself a something similar but simpler and not as flashy. I wanted to run rear speakers so I built them with cubbies on the side that wouldn't block the rear speakers. Also, you mentioned weight, I built mine with birch plywood which is a great alternative to MDF. One of the advantages is it is much lighter than a similarly sized MDF box.
Last edited by TorchRedFred; May 24, 2020 at 01:00 AM.
Defiant, I like your sub box. I built myself a something similar but simpler and not as flashy. I wanted to run rear speakers so I built them with cubbies on the side that wouldn't block the rear speakers. Also, you mentioned weight, I built mine with birch plywood which is a great alternative to MDF. One of the advantages is it is much lighter than a similarly sized MDF box.
I appreciate that, boss. I'm always a fan of simple & functional. Is that a 10W3? How's the bass response with the sub facing up? I ask because I'm a little underwhelmed with the output of my single 10 & I'm inclined to think it's due, in part, to it's orientation.
Mosconi amps sound fantastic. I went from a JL HD 900/5 to a Mosconi AS200.4s and immediately heard a difference without any changes. I was using the Kenwood 9902s head unit dsp at the time. Also look into the Zapco AP line. I'm leaning toward Vivaldi amps in my other car. A buddy who installed (backyard installer) and tunes his own stuff went to finals last year has fallen in love with Vivaldi. Unfortunately he may not be able to see how the new amps score with this **** going on.
DSP...i agree with Ronin...its a necessity for sq. Look into Helix offering or Zapco. I had a Mosconi and, to me, its not as user friendly as the Zapco or Helix. I have an Helix Ultra waiting to go in the other car and a Zapco DSP-Z8 IV II in the vette. The Z8 IV II is a great buy for price and features you get. The Zapco HDSP dsp is sick...but $$$$.
SQ in car or home audio is a rabbit hole you don't want to go down haha. I have pics to prove it
Alpine PDX is what I run.
I've had JL (Slash) what I used to sell also.
Old school versions of:
Kenwood, Alpine, Rockford Fosgate (late 80's early 90's (Before the digital age) when I was in retail... All great amps. I actually still own a few of the Kenwood KAC 723/823/923 amps. Saving these for a fox body mustang or Iroc-Z
I've only read and seen pictures of Mosconi and Audison (high end installs) so no opinion there.
We sold Alpine and RF back in the day, too. I just don't know how they stack up today as back then they made great amps but the crowd seems to have shifted to some other brands. Were the Kenwoods of back in the day good, too? We didn't carry that brand...
Every Mosconi equipped system I've heard has sounded awesome. But they've also ALWAYS been running a DSP with them. In today's game the DSP is appearing (to me anyway) to be far more important than amplifier selection. I say it like this. Not using a DSP is like modding the old pushrod 5.0 mustangs back in the day. The PCM's had the ability to "learn" the new combination and "tune itself" to run. And they would run good, but they never ran at peak performance until you got a chip that was tuned by a competent tuner. That chip is equivalent to the DSP. Amplifiers are like the top end package. They can help you breathe better and give you more performance, but they can also cause you catastrophic damage without being told exactly how to apply their power.
Totally. My buddy has two of those monsters in his Camaro. They take up all of the room. LOL! Their cost and size is why I didn't choose them and went with VXi. You have to admit, 8 channels and a built in DSP in package that fits in a child's shoe box was a REALLY tough thing to turn down.
I appreciate that, boss. I'm always a fan of simple & functional. Is that a 10W3? How's the bass response with the sub facing up? I ask because I'm a little underwhelmed with the output of my single 10 & I'm inclined to think it's due, in part, to it's orientation.
Yeah, it's a 10w6v3. I am coming from a similar box that held a JL 10 shallow sub, so big improvement over that one, but like the discussion is going with everyone else, I do feel like there is some cancellation in regards to the C6 cockpit. I am not sure if there is an ideal position in the C6, but maybe Ronin is on to something when he talks about putting the sub in a down firing position.
Defiant, I like your sub box. I built myself a something similar but simpler and not as flashy. I wanted to run rear speakers so I built them with cubbies on the side that wouldn't block the rear speakers. Also, you mentioned weight, I built mine with birch plywood which is a great alternative to MDF. One of the advantages is it is much lighter than a similarly sized MDF box.
Damn, that's a nice looking box you built there Fred, I've seen it before, but I never realized you built it. Looks to me like you have the covers on the sides hinged, do you use those for extra storage areas, or do you house components in those ?
We sold Alpine and RF back in the day, too. I just don't know how they stack up today as back then they made great amps but the crowd seems to have shifted to some other brands. Were the Kenwoods of back in the day good, too? We didn't carry that brand...
this series of Kenwood amps were great. The KAC 1023 was the beast. this is not mine, just a random pic on the web... Rated at 12V, and you could run a two channel amp for the whole system (tri-mode) bridged to the subs and stereo to the full range components. 600 watts RMS @ 4 ohm, 12V, 105 dB Signal to Noise Ratio.
Damn, that's a nice looking box you built there Fred, I've seen it before, but I never realized you built it. Looks to me like you have the covers on the sides hinged, do you use those for extra storage areas, or do you house components in those ?
Thanks Pete. It's a pretty basic design and it was also my first sub box build, but I was happy with the way it turned out. It's nothing like the complicated box you built. My skills are not up to that level. As far as the cubbies, I just use them for storage. The one on the passenger side comes in real handy because I can reach it from the passenger seat. So when I have someone in the car with me, I'm always using the storage cubbies to hold my stuff. If I had gone with a smaller amp, I could have easily installed it in the driver side cubby. That's how I had my previous Kenwood amp installed. I went with this Morel amp because I wanted to try an A/B amp but it's a little longer than most 5 channel amps.
Thanks Pete. It's a pretty basic design and it was also my first sub box build, but I was happy with the way it turned out. It's nothing like the complicated box you built. My skills are not up to that level. As far as the cubbies, I just use them for storage. The one on the passenger side comes in real handy because I can reach it from the passenger seat. So when I have someone in the car with me, I'm always using the storage cubbies to hold my stuff. If I had gone with a smaller amp, I could have easily installed it in the driver side cubby. That's how I had my previous Kenwood amp installed. I went with this Morel amp because I wanted to try an A/B amp but it's a little longer than most 5 channel amps.
Well it looks fantastic, that's also a great idea for added storage. Believe me, I wish my box wasn't so complicated, but given the space in the convertible I had to work with, and the forward firing design I wanted to achieve, it didn't leave me much choice. Was your original Kenwood a class D amp ? How are you liking the class A/B in comparison ?
Well it looks fantastic, that's also a great idea for added storage. Believe me, I wish my box wasn't so complicated, but given the space in the convertible I had to work with, and the forward firing design I wanted to achieve, it didn't leave me much choice. Was your original Kenwood a class D amp ? How are you liking the class A/B in comparison ?
Yes, the Kenwood was a class D. To be honest, when I first put in my system, I wasn't happy with the sound. Nothing I did could get it tuned correctly and it was harsh on the ears. So I started changing everything. Going from the class D to the AB wasn't a drastic difference but there was a subtle improvement. Actually each thing I changed brought a subtle improvement. I couldn't get my Pioneer tuned close to correctly until I added a DSP. But to answer your question, going to an AB amp made for a slightly warmer sound. But I bet you, most likely, most people wouldn't be able to tell the difference. My sound system was irritating my ears, so every little improvement helped and was noticed by me at least. I am not sure how the Morel stacks up against other AB amps, but I got it for a good price and I have been happy with it so far.
Yes, the Kenwood was a class D. To be honest, when I first put in my system, I wasn't happy with the sound. Nothing I did could get it tuned correctly and it was harsh on the ears. So I started changing everything. Going from the class D to the AB wasn't a drastic difference but there was a subtle improvement. Actually each thing I changed brought a subtle improvement. I couldn't get my Pioneer tuned close to correctly until I added a DSP. But to answer your question, going to an AB amp made for a slightly warmer sound. But I bet you, most likely, most people wouldn't be able to tell the difference. My sound system was irritating my ears, so every little improvement helped and was noticed by me at least. I am not sure how the Morel stacks up against other AB amps, but I got it for a good price and I have been happy with it so far.
Yes, yes which one did you pick? I can recall you doing it, but can't remember which brand. And by the way you hijackers, let's get back to talking about amplifiers for me, LOL!
Yes, yes which one did you pick? I can recall you doing it, but can't remember which brand. And by the way you hijackers, let's get back to talking about amplifiers for me, LOL!
Yes, yes which one did you pick? I can recall you doing it, but can't remember which brand. And by the way you hijackers, let's get back to talking about amplifiers for me, LOL!
I have an AudioControl DM-608. It is my first and only DSP, so I'm not sure how it stacks up against others.
Audio Control has been around a long time. I had an original EQL back in the day and my old boss had the EQX in his truck. They were fantastic pieces back in the day. My money is on that they are still pretty damn good today. Guess what resides in one of my home systems?
Audio Control has been around a long time. I had an original EQL back in the day and my old boss had the EQX in his truck. They were fantastic pieces back in the day. My money is on that they are still pretty damn good today. Guess what resides in one of my home systems?
That's good to know. One thing I didn't like about mine was that my DSP groups the channels together. So channels 1 and 2 are grouped together, and channels 3 and 4 are together. I found it surprising that I couldn't tune each channel independently. I guess for me it's not a big deal, but for some that could be a deal breaker. Other than that, no other complaints. For me, who is still running passive crossovers, ideally I would prefer that my head unit sounded good enough where I didn't need a separate DSP. But for guys running more complicated systems and going active, a DSP is a crucial must have. But I guess we should save this discussion for when you do your "Can we talk DSP's" thread.
