Can I use this amp to power this sub? Will the sub perform to it’s full potential or should I get an amp that pushes out more than the RMS watts of the sub?
Amp: http://www.mtxaudio.com/caraudio/archive/thunder302.cfm
You will be ok. I had two l5 under powered and they hit good. Best subs i ever had Which i only had a few…
What size L5’s did you get? I’m thinking the 8" won’t hit as hard.
I had two 12’s… i just noticed. Those are 4 ohm dual coils… So when you bridge that speaker to that amp you will be under power. I’ll try to eplaine. You can only wire a 4 ohm dual coil to 8 or 2 ohms which that amp is not two ohm stable. So than you will have to do 8 ohm load and only get half the power of that 300w bridge power. You will need to get a 2ohm dual coil and brige it to 4ohm and than it will be fine with that amp. i probably lost you. Do some homework and look up wiring up subs. You will find lots of info.
yes you can run that amp at 2ohm load.
Posjr - yeah I follow what you’re saying but was just wondering if it will sound “ok” if the subs are underpowered. So I guess I gotta find a sub that’s dual 2ohm voice coils huh. I already have the amp and heard great things about the Kicker L5 L7 series, that’s why I’m asking if it’s compatible. I really don’t want to buy another amp to run the subs… thanks for the help. 
All L5s are available in dual 2 ohm or dual 4 ohm, just get the Kicker S8L5 2 ohm, wire the VCs in series for a 4 ohm load and your good to go, although you could drive the dual 4 ohm, [@ 8 ohms] with that amp and it would work, the combination of 150W RMS driving a 300W 8" sub will limit sub bass output and you will tend to over-drive the amp into constant clipping and that will damage the subs VCs.:uhoh:94
All L5s are available in dual 2 ohm or dual 4 ohm, just get the Kicker S8L5 2 ohm, wire the VCs in series for a 4 ohm load and your good to go, although you could drive the dual 4 ohm, [@ 8 ohms] with that amp and it would work, the combination of 150W RMS driving a 300W 8" sub will limit sub bass output and you will tend to over-drive the amp into constant clipping and that will damage the subs VCs.94
Cool! More useful and important info… thanks a bunch… guess I’ll dish out the cashflow to get a better suitable amp for the L5’s. Thanks everyone! 
hybrid…get a high powered mono amp, if you want dual subwoofers…get (2) kicker L5 in dual voice 2ohm, and wire them to the amp for 2ohm load. always try to load the amp down to its lowest ohm stable rating if you want more power.
hybrid…get a high powered mono amp, if you want dual subwoofers…get (2) kicker L5 in dual voice 2ohm, and wire them to the amp for 2ohm load. always try to load the amp down to its lowest ohm stable rating if you want more power.
Ahhh I see… thanks! Now I’m trying to decide if I should go with 2 8" or 1 10"… I guess whatever fits better in the DA hatch.
if you decide to go with only 1 sub… get a 2ohm sub, that way when you power it up with the amp…it gets a 2ohm load. and dual or single voice coil is fine, but if you can it’s always better to get a dual voice so that in the future if you do decide to run more than 1 sub…you have more wiring options. 10" is fine… but you should get a 12" if your running single sub setup. anyways…have fun with the system.
“I’ll dish out the cashflow to get a better suitable amp for the L5’s”
There is nothing wrong with the amp you have, it will properly drive any 300W sub with a 4 ohm load, a SVC 4 ohm or a DVC 2 ohm.
It will properly drive two 150W subs, two SVC 2 ohm or 8 ohm or two DVC 4 ohm.
You can even run three 100W subs, but getting a final load of 4 ohms will be tricky, you could get away with a 3 ohm final load, three DVC 2 ohm.
We have gone from a single 8" 300W sub to two subs to 10" or 12" sub(s), you need to decide what it is you want.
What kind of music do you listen to?
You said you had the amp and thinking about the Kicker 8", what else does your system consist of, [HU, speakers, other amp(s)]?
Is saving space important, for that matter is SQ a factor?:hmm: 94
What kind of music do you listen to?
You said you had the amp and thinking about the Kicker 8", what else does your system consist of, [HU, speakers, other amp(s)]?
Is saving space important, for that matter is SQ a factor? 94
I have the ol school Alpine HU with a 14V output hooked up to an Alpine EQ. I’m going to run two amps… a 4 channel Rockford for the front/rear speakers and the MTX (shown above) for the bass. I really want to run a single Kicker L5 in either 8" or 10" (but leaning towards 10") cuz I want a little more bass but was worried my MTX amp doesn’t have enough juice for the L5.
I listen to mostly alternative grunge and sometimes rap. An all out system is not my priority… just something clean with a good amount of bass is what I’m looking for and yes I’m trying to save a little space in the trunk that’s why I went with a single sub.
Guess what it comes down to is it ok to run the MTX with a 10" L5? And what style do I get? A dual voice 4 OHM or dual voice 2 OHM?
fcm - if the MTX doesn’t do the trick… what inexpensive amp do you recommend to run a 10" L5? Thanks
The amp you have will drive an 8" L5 2 ohm, [VCs wired in series for a 4 ohm load], however it is not the right amp for the 10" L5, [a 450W sub] if you want to get a 10" you should replace the MTX with a 450W - 500W amp, and if you do get a mono block, [1 channel] sub amp.
If you are looking to get an all around good sounding system, start by concentrating on the front speakers and sub, the rear speakers are the last thing to worry about, you do not even need them, and you definitely do not want tweeters in the rear, they will make it hard if not impossible to set up a good front sound stage, if anything wire the rear speakers in series for an 8 ohm load and connect them to the bridged rear channels of the 4ch amp.
As a rule of thumb for a good balance of high-pass and low-pass power use a ratio of 3:1, sub bass should be 3 times the wattage of the total high-pass wattage.
EG; if the 4ch amp is 4x25W rms into 4 ohms and you run 4 ohm speakers in the front and you bridge the rears two channels into an 8 ohm load you have a total of 75W rms for the high-pass 3x75= 225W would be the wattage you would want for the low-pass, in this case the 300W you have wold be almost perfect.
What are the model numbers of the HU, EQ and 4ch amp, and what speakers do you have?:stare: 94
fcm - don’t have the model numbers right now cuz I’m at work but I do have a question for ya.
Since you’re an audio installer (I think), have you ever heard the 8" L5’s (or any other 8" subs) in a hatch (preferrably a DA) before? I was wondering if that would be enough bass… enough to rattle the rearview mirror if turned up?
I’m just afraid going 8" won’t be enough bass if I was to listen to rap. I’ve tried going to alot of stereo shops here but none had an 8 inch on display for listening.
i have an 8" sub in my car…i like it. not too loud, but enough. If you want any subwoofer to sound great… you have to build or have someone build a custom box specifically for your sub. when you buy the sub it will come with specs then you can go from there, there are websites that have free box building dimensions…all you do is plug the numbers in and they will give you the measurements. May i suggest you go with a port box design if your only going with 8"… mine is in a ported box and sounds good, lot louder than sealed. But it depends on the sub your getting…not sure whats best for the L5. Is your mind dead set on getting the Kickers? there are alot of good subwoofers out there, so spend your money wisely so you wont regret later down the road. and yeah… get 2ohm sub.
shifterkart1 - hey thanks for your suggestions. Yeah I’m dead set on the L5’s. I’ve heard these in the stores and sounds fantastic. I’ll be getting these from ebay and also a box that’s made to spec from ebay as well. The box will be ported. I just never heard an 8" L5 before so was just wondering if I might change my mind after getting it cuz it won’t be enough bass for me.
Thanks again for your input on your 8" setup… it was very helpful.
I have done a few kicker 8" L5s in hatches, not in a G2 though, only you can say if the 8" sounds good, it’s relative to your taste in sub bass response, I can’t believe you can’t find a dealer that has an 8" on display.
In a properly constructed and tuned slot port box, the kicker L5 8" makes a lot of pretty good sub bass, I would put it up against just about any 300W 10" sub.:whisper:94
I have done a few kicker 8" L5s in hatches, not in a G2 though, only you can say if the 8" sounds good, it’s relative to your taste in sub bass response, I can’t believe you can’t find a dealer that has an 8" on display.
In a properly constructed and tuned slot port box, the kicker L5 8" makes a lot of pretty good sub bass, I would put it up against just about any 300W 10" sub.94
COOLIO! Thanks alot guys for the great info. Think I have all the info to start off my system. Hopefully I can get it started this weekend. I’ll be back if I have any other questions. Props to you audio gurus! :salute:
sorry to thread jack but, what would be a good setup for a little system i just want one 8 or 10 preferably alpine and 4 alpine 6’s in the stock speaker location, but what would be a good amp to run the single 8/10inch alpine… i know shit about systems i just want alittle bass to listen to rock and metal so i dont need masive amounts of bass but im impressed with alpines, i dont need to know how to wire them since the previous owner already had a system in my car and just took the subs and amp with him and left all the wires already hooked up