Power amp recommendation

DemonGene · #1 01-13-2013, 02:19 AM

I need a poweramp that will happily output 2000w @ 4ohms bridged. Recommendations please.

styro · #2 01-13-2013, 04:03 AM

QSC PLX2 Series e. g. PLX2502 or better/bigger.

BTW if you are willing to settle for 1800w even the PLX1802 will do.

wcriley · #3 01-13-2013, 04:35 AM

Why do you "need" 2,000 watts?

DemonGene · #4 01-13-2013, 04:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wcriley

Why do you "need" 2,000 watts?

Information obtained from a website. "Go for a amp twice the rating of your cab to give plenty of clean headroom". My cab is rated at 1000 watts hence a 2000 watt amp

bongomania · #5 01-13-2013, 04:49 AM

Ah, OK. That website was giving you bad advice. "Headroom" is the amount of dynamic range you have available, unused, before clipping. So some people think "more wattage" equals "more headroom", since there's more untapped power available. But feeding a speaker twice the power it is rated for is a recipe for blowing that speaker. Meaning whoops, you ran out of a very critical type of headroom: the ability of the speaker to function.

Some people are able to use amps rated for a lot higher wattage than their cabs, but this is because frankly they are not actually driving their amp into its full wattage capability, and they have been lucky. Maybe any big signal spikes they put out happened to be in a frequency range where the speaker had better power handling ability. Because the wattage handling of a speaker does depend partly on the frequencies you feed it. Back to the first part though, a lot of people with a "X watt amp" assume their amp is putting out "X watts" all the time. It is not. It is putting out a much smaller amount most of the time, only reaching "X" when pushed with a very strong input spike, and only staying there for more than a few milliseconds if you drive the amp steadily hard. So again, this is part of why you'll see posts from guys saying they have no problem with their 2000 w amp into a 500 w cab.

The wattage ratings on both amps and cabs are like vague serving suggestions, not to be taken too literally--so it is fine to go a little over, an amp rated a little higher than the cab. No big deal. But 1000 w higher? No.

guy n. cognito · #6 01-13-2013, 04:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DemonGene

Information obtained from a website. "Go for a amp twice the rating of your cab to give plenty of clean headroom". My cab is rated at 1000 watts hence a 2000 watt amp

Holy recone, Batman!!

DemonGene · #7 01-13-2013, 05:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by guy n. cognito

Holy recone, Batman!!

DemonGene · #8 01-13-2013, 05:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bongomania

Ah, OK. That website was giving you bad advice. "Headroom" is the amount of dynamic range you have available, unused, before clipping. So some people think "more wattage" equals "more headroom", since there's more untapped power available. But feeding a speaker twice the power it is rated for is a recipe for blowing that speaker. Meaning whoops, you ran out of a very critical type of headroom: the ability of the speaker to function.

Some people are able to use amps rated for a lot higher wattage than their cabs, but this is because frankly they are not actually driving their amp into its full wattage capability, and they have been lucky. Maybe any big signal spikes they put out happened to be in a frequency range where the speaker had better power handling ability. Because the wattage handling of a speaker does depend partly on the frequencies you feed it. Back to the first part though, a lot of people with a "X watt amp" assume their amp is putting out "X watts" all the time. It is not. It is putting out a much smaller amount most of the time, only reaching "X" when pushed with a very strong input spike, and only staying there for more than a few milliseconds if you drive the amp steadily hard. So again, this is part of why you'll see posts from guys saying they have no problem with their 2000 w amp into a 500 w cab.

The wattage ratings on both amps and cabs are like vague serving suggestions, not to be taken too literally--so it is fine to go a little over, an amp rated a little higher than the cab. No big deal. But 1000 w higher? No.

Thanks. I'm looking for recommendations for an amp around 1000/1250 watts then

bongomania · #9 01-13-2013, 05:17 AM

The big dogs are QSC, Carvin, and Crest. Can't really go wrong with any of those.

murphy · #10 01-13-2013, 05:18 AM

someone was selling a QSC PLX1602 in the classifieds

DemonGene · #11 01-13-2013, 05:29 AM

QSC1450 too much? 1450 watts @ 4 ohms bridged

murphy · #12 01-13-2013, 06:04 AM

Should be great.
You just have to be careful with your volume and EQ. Don't crank everything full blast.
use your ears to listen for signs of speaker stress.

amimbari · #13 01-13-2013, 06:39 AM

PLX series all too heavy. Find a Crown 1500/2000/2500.

vishuddha · #14 01-13-2013, 07:44 AM

Crown XLS 1500... have fun with more Class D power than you'll ever need...

odineye · #15 01-13-2013, 08:28 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DemonGene

QSC1450 too much? 1450 watts @ 4 ohms bridged

Are you talking the RMX 1450? If so, that's what I'm running right now. Rock solid amp with good control features. It turned this old die hard Crown fanatic into a convert.

DemonGene · #16 01-13-2013, 09:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by odineye

Are you talking the RMX 1450? If so, that's what I'm running right now. Rock solid amp with good control features. It turned this old die hard Crown fanatic into a convert.

Yes RMX1450. The QSC's have high damping rates, greater than 500, better for tight low end I'm led to believe

bassguppy · #17 01-13-2013, 09:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DemonGene

Yes RMX1450. The QSC's have high damping rates, greater than 500, better for tight low end I'm led to believe

I'm a former owner of the RMX1450. It's a fine amp, powerful and I've never had an issue. The fan could be a little loud between songs or silent breaks but it's not a dealbreaker. Maybe they have a newer, quieter fan now as I had mine about 6-7 years ago. Great amp on the used market for cheap.

cableguy · #18 01-13-2013, 09:56 AM

I've had good luck with Carvin. HD1500, 9lbs 1500W@4, goes for around 3 hundred new with a 3 year warranty. You can buy the older DCM series for a good price as well, just weigh a little more.

odineye · #19 01-13-2013, 10:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DemonGene

Yes RMX1450. The QSC's have high damping rates, greater than 500, better for tight low end I'm led to believe

More like 300 but, from some of the things I've read, those super high damping rates really aren't all that worth getting caught up over.

http://www.trueaudio.com/post_013.htm

odineye · #20 01-13-2013, 10:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bassguppy

I'm a former owner of the RMX1450. It's a fine amp, powerful and I've never had an issue. The fan could be a little loud between songs or silent breaks but it's not a dealbreaker. Maybe they have a newer, quieter fan now as I had mine about 6-7 years ago. Great amp on the used market for cheap.

Was the fan on your variable speed? I don't find the fan on mine to be so bad. It runs at a low, fairly quiet idle most of the time, only speeding up when necessary, which so far has been really rare.