Ok, this is really starting to tick me off...
I love my subs, it's a great box (see sig) and it sounds great as well. However, this is the second freakin time they've blown! I'm not blairing them, or trying to vibrate my truck down the road to save gas so I don't see why this happens. I called an MTX rep and he said it is because my amp is under powered. It's an MTX RT-120 single channel amp. His reasoning was that because it's small, I have to turn the gain way up to get the power I want, thus causing distortion, thus destroying my voice coils!

First of all, can someone agree/disagree, and add comments to this please?

Also, I have been reccomened to purhase as a new amp, MTX Thunder 6500D. It's a digital amp, designed for subs. It sounds like a great amp, I couldn't really tell ya though, I don't know really what names, etc. to look for. Could anyone tell me about this amp, possibly give other Reccomendations?

Thanks very much all.

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2000 4.2 Supercab XLT
What I've done: K&N filter, Magna flow custom exaust (From where cat's join, 3"in, two 2.5" out the rear), Michelin LTX M/S 265/75/16's, MTX Thunderform custom box with two 6000 series 8" subwoofers and Mtx 120 amp.
Plans: Lund hood deflector, superchip, Poweraid, Xenon sport Flares, (custom ram-air idea?)
New: Pioneer DEH-P6300 Head unit (I definately reccomend it!)

 

Hey BJays.....

Distortion kills speakers, any speakers. There is much to know about that kinda stuff, and I don't really want to talk your ear off, BUT....

1.) You can power a speaker with a distorted signal, even if it is not at the speakers rated wattage, and burn it up. Reason for this: Speakers are designed for AC signals, and when you distort, you clip, and the signal becomes DC, and heats up your voice coils like a big power resistor until poof, open coil.

2.) Having a crystal clear amplifier with no distortion, it is possible to OVERDRIVE a subwoofer with too much wattage, and have it still work OK. Of course, you wouldn't want to take this too far, but it is actually safer to overdrive with clean power than underdrive with distortion.

The MTX rep is right though. If you have more than one sub... maybe you should get another RT-120 for the other sub. Just my $0.02


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2001 F150 SuperCab XLT
4x4 Off Road Package
5.4L V.8 3.55LS
Pioneer Premier DEH-P410
A/D/S/ 236is
Alpine SWR1040 Subwoofer
Rockford Fosgate 500.2 & 400.4 Amps

 

The rep is right.

Gain settings, loudness buttons, bass boost, any of these will in time kill your subs. The more you use, the quicker it can be.

As for amps, it all depends on what you want to spend. Top of the line, and will last a lifetime = 1. Phoenix Gold 2. Precision Power 3. McIntosh 4. Soundstream

Good quality for a decent price = 1. MTX 2. Alpine 3. Kicker

Since that enclosure nets a 4 ohm load that is rated at 300 watts total RMS, you should look for an amp that pushes around 400 - 450 watts RMS bridged. This will allow you to push around the RMS wattage at normal listening levels (well below the 400 - 450 rating).

The thunder 6500D would work decently, as it is rated at 250x1 to a 4 ohm load, and actually pushes closer to 280.

I would also look at:
Phoenix Gold ZX400Ti = 400 x 1
Phoenix Gold XS2500 = 500 x 1

That would allow you to keep the gain to a min, but still get all the sound you could ever want from those subs.

 

I have been happy with MTX's line of amps. If you are interested, I have an MTX Blue Thunder Pro3002 750W amp that should run those perfectly. I ran 2 Polk db12's with it without problem.

See https://www.f150online.com/cgi-bin/c...oto&AdNum=9031 for the ad. I upgraded my system, though, so I am selling it. It really is in mint condition.

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2001 F150 SuperCrew King Ranch Edition
Charcoal Blue/Arizona Beige
5.4L V8
3.55 LS
Power Moonroof
Class III Towing Group
King Ranch Package
-Lighted Cab Steps
-Sliding Rear Window
-Premium Sound w/ 6-disc changer
-Fog Lamps
-King Ranch Wheels 17x7.5
-King Ranch Leather Quad Captain's Chairs w/ front heated seats
2001 Lightning Taillights
Clear Corner Lenses
Leer 100R Cap
Visteon Mach MP3 w/ factory 6-disc changer
Soundstream Reference Class A 10.0 1000W amp
(4) Cerwin Vega "Vega" 124's

 

If you haven't bought already and aren't tied to MTX, another option might be a Lanzar Vibe 1200D. It's a class D sub with similar power output to the one you're looking at. I've ordered one for myself after reading a lot of positive posts about it on sounddomain.com's forum. I also found it for $220 at www.national-electronics.com. The best I've seen for the 6500D is about $330 at Zeb Audio. The Lanzar also has a 3 year warranty to boot.

Check out www.sounddomain.com at the very least for the forums. Some very knowledgeable people over there. It's helped me in choosing some of my components.

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2000 F150 XLT 4X4 Off Road 5.4L Reg. Cab 3.55

Performance Enhancemets:
K&N
WMS Velocity Tube
Gibson Sweptside

Audio Enhancements:
All of the above, plus
Sony C7000X HU
Cerwin-Vega SS2502 components(Front)
Blaupunkt PCxp573s(Rear)

Radio-delay mod

Other Enhancements:
Extang Black Max Tonneau Cover
Keyless Entry Keypad
Eurolite Xenon Fusion Bulbs - Headlights and Fogs

 

Thank you very much everyone for your replies. My problem was that the MTX rep was sayin one thing and my local shop guy, another. It's good to get an honest opinion or two. Thanks again...

Looks like I'll stick to the MTX-6500D. I'm getting it for 300, installed. Mostly, I like MTX's compression circutry, or at least the idea of it. I figure it's to protect the speakers from people like myself who think Bass drum hits should be FELT not heard!

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2000 4.2 Supercab XLT
What I've done: K&N filter, Magna flow custom exaust (From where cat's join, 3"in, two 2.5" out the rear), Michelin LTX M/S 265/75/16's, MTX Thunderform custom box with two 6000 series 8" subwoofers and Mtx 120 amp.
Plans: Lund hood deflector, superchip, Poweraid, Xenon sport Flares, (custom ram-air idea?)
New: Pioneer DEH-P6300 Head unit (I definately reccomend it!)