Ok, I have to jensen 12" subs, what size amp do I need to run them?

 

may need more info than that for a reply

rms and peak power
single voice coil dual voice coil what ohm?

 

525 watts peak, 175 watt rms, I assume 4 ohms, not sure on the voice coil

 

adding another questions too, do I need a 2 channel amp, or can I get a single channel ?

 

Well you definetly need to find out about the voice coils and what ohm they are. As far as the amp I would go with a single channel but a 2 channel will work also.

Are they model # (XS1212)?

Assuming you bridge the 2 channel amp

If they are SVC 4 ohm look for a amp that can run 350 X 1 at 2 ohms



If they are DVC 4 ohm look for a amp that can run 350 x 1 at 1ohm wireing each sub to 2 ohm then wiring them together for 1 ohm.

Or 350 X 1 at 4 ohm Wire each sub to 8 ohm then wire them together to get a 4 ohm load.

you can always go a little bit higher on the amps also depending on what brand you decide on.

 

yes they are the xs1212, what would I have to do for those ?

 

I dont know I cant find decent spec on those. Look on the back of the speakers how many connectors do you have. you can always use a multimeter to figure ohms on the speaker.

 

If they are Single Voice Coil 4 ohm Wire them like this




then find an amp single or two channel that capable of producing somewhere around 350 to 400 watt x 1 at 2 ohms.



Or if they are 4 ohm dual VC then wire them like this



then find an amp again single or mono that is capable of 350 to 400 watt X 1 at 4 ohms.

 

One thing I want to mention is that if you use a DMM to check your impedance you need to realize that it will give you a DC resistance and not the actual impedance of the speaker. if it is 4 ohm as I suspect it probably is you should get in the neighborhood of a 3.6 ohm reading using your DMM.

 

Ok, thank you for all of your help so far. I am assuming my speakers are 4 ohm. but I know for sure that they are single voice coil.

If I hook them up like in the picture below, according to my amp, they should be at bridged 100W X 2 (RMS) , but when I hook it up like that, the amps protect feature kicks in when it gets too loud, and I don't know why.

But if I hook them up in stereo, the amp is using 75W X 2 (RMS) and the protect feature never turns on and I can turn it up as much as I want.

My subs are, 175W (RMS) and I know I need a bigger amp, but does anyone know why the protect feature ****s the power off to the subs when I have it set up in the first configuration?

 

dasmaz, If you are bridging a 2 channel amp, it will only work safely into a 4 ohm configuration. And if you have wired two 4 ohm subs in parallel to that amp you have a 2 ohm set-up. What is probably happening is your amp is overheating and going into protection mode. So you can continue to use your amp in 2 channel set-up with a sub on each channel or you could use 1 sub and bridge the amp. That would give your amp the 4 ohms it needs. You could even use both subs on 1 channel unbridged, if the amp is safe into 2 ohms in stereo. That would get the most power to the subs safely. There's a reason amp manufacturers say a bridged amp will only be safe into 4 ohms. It's because the amp works differently when bridged and will either go into protection or will fail if these instructions are not followed. From what you describe I'm guessing that we're not talking "high end" stuff here, so it's even more critical that it be used properly. There's no magic involved here. It's only electronic equipment and if abused it will fail eventually.