# On a budget - mono amp - single sub - recommendations



## Trill (Apr 5, 2010)

I have a standard cab ford ranger so space is limited. I am looking for sound quality over spl.

I still need to decide on my box but need some input on what components will do the best for me for my budget.

My budget for the amp and sub are $400

My plan is to run 1 10" at 500rms @ 2 ohms

Have my eye on an Alpine MRP-M500 or the rockford fosgate prime R500-1

What I'm having problem deciding on is the sub. At first I was thinking I would need shallow mounts and put them behind my seat but since my budget is soo low for right now I think 1 sub is the way to start off at least. So now I'm thinking of a custom MDF center console build.

SO I pretty much need to know which 10" sub will pound the hardest and cleanest in a sealed box @ 5-600 watts RMS @ 2 ohms.

Also, a DVC 4ohm can be wired in parallel or series (sorry not sure which is correct term) to run @ 2 ohms at the amp? Would it be better to go that route over a DVC 2 ohm?

Sorry so new to this


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## Foglght (Aug 2, 2007)

Hell you could buy one of my ED 110v.2 subs, a box and amp for under that.


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## samdoan (Mar 17, 2009)

Badabing Badaboom...

Eclipse XA1200
Eclipse XA1200 - Monoblock Car Amplifier, Power Amp - Sonic Electronix

$130 and 500w at 2ohms.


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## Trill (Apr 5, 2010)

That looks like a pretty sweet amp. I do have a bid on ebay for the Alpine amp still, if I get outbid I may go with this one.

Do you have any suggestions on a sub? From the looks of things, if I do not need to get a shallow mount the alpine type R's are decently priced and since my buddies have had them I know they pound pretty good.

I have been out of the loop for a long time.. last I remember was the rockford power 800A2 in my car was nice lol. This was back in ... umm 1999 or 2000?




Thanks


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## audioaddict (Mar 13, 2010)

_The JL audio 1000/1 v2 seem to be pretty good amps and they seem to sell real cheap. I believe there are a couple listed in the classifieds right now if you do a search.

_


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## samdoan (Mar 17, 2009)

What's your budget for a sub?


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## Trill (Apr 5, 2010)

samdoan said:


> What's your budget for a sub?



Oh. lets say between 100-200

DVC 4ohm . prefer shallow mount but not necessary yet.


BTW: What can I expect from 1 10" ? I don't need to wake up the whole neighborhood but want a nice beat. Last subs I had was 2 12's and they sounded pretty good.


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## monkeybutt (Oct 1, 2005)

Trill said:


> Oh. lets say between 100-200
> 
> DVC 4ohm . prefer shallow mount but not necessary yet.
> 
> ...


Okay, you will have about 500 watts into a 2 ohm load with the DVC4 wired in parallel. Looks like you are deciding between in back of the seat which would require shallow mount sub or a custom console in which depth is not so critical.

The rest depends on how loud you like to listen and on what types of music.
If you could also state what car it is going into and the available volume and depth of the box for each of your alternative installs, then it would be easier to help narrow down some choices for ya.


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## sqshoestring (Jun 19, 2007)

It would be better to know the cf you have for your box, and pick a sub to fit it. If you want SQ you need a sub that can get low in that size box or its not going to sound good. A 12 may get lower and have more output, but if you can't fit one you can't fit it, a 10 can be pretty good just less output....for a given power into them of course. Small cab it should seem louder though.

You need a DVC 4 ohm or single 2 ohm to run 2 ohms on the amp. Off the top of my head an idmax 10 could work well but they don't give them away. If you go cheaper sub you have to be careful and model (should model anyway) because they lie about how small the box can be. You put them in a little box and they have no bottom, and sound like crap.

Amp is up to you, RF and JL are good amps, alpine good for price. If you buy new make sure you get a warranty that is what you pay more for.

Consider getting some things used to expand your budget, you can always replace them with new later and try them out meanwhile. That is what I do. Unless you have no interest in changing it and want to get it right the first time, then do your homework.

Pioneer has a pack of shallows now some new ones, but don't think anyone has run them yet. It may be harder to get low with shallows, don't think I would use one for SQ unless mounting required it. Also what EQ do you have, if the sub is not ideal you will need some EQ to straighten it out or at least a boost on the amp that functions like sub EQ.


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## UCF52 (Nov 20, 2007)

Hit the classifieds here. 

$400 bucks should be able to get you a decent woofer (I'd shoot for a 12", for cone area) and an amp with enough to spare for enclosure materials and wiring kit.


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## Trill (Apr 5, 2010)

The vehicle is a 94 ford ranger with standard cab

you are correct in your questions.. It will either be in a sealed behind the seats or a ported center console.

So far the best choices that I can find would be a type R 10 in a ported center console.

I will be building a box around the spec's required for the sub but I'm guessing I could get 2+ cubic feet with a little work.

My cd player is junk.. its a DUAL so I will be replacing with an alpine in the $200 range.. I don't need anything special but the local store pointed out this alpine for 200 that seemed perfect for me.. was in a hurry so not sure of the model. 

Will 1 type r 10" sound good in my little ranger with 500rms @ 2 ohms?


I do also plan on being able to upgrade/change in the future. 

My idea is to have the ported center console and then 1 or 2 more 10's in sealed behind the seats for best of both worlds but was also told that if I do the ported center console correctly I would not have to add more for good sound.

Thanks for all the help guys! This is going to be a fun project


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## UCF52 (Nov 20, 2007)

Trill said:


> My idea is to have the ported center console and then 1 or 2 more 10's in sealed behind the seats for best of both worlds but was also told that if I do the ported center console correctly I would not have to add more for good sound.
> 
> Thanks for all the help guys! This is going to be a fun project


You definitely don't want more than one type of sub woofer system in the vehicle. Either A or B, not both.


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## Trill (Apr 5, 2010)

UCF52 said:


> You definitely don't want more than one type of sub woofer system in the vehicle. Either A or B, not both.



ok thanks. So does a ported box sound like my best bet with a 10" type R? or are there better subs in that price range

On ebay you can get a new typeR 10" DVC 4ohm for 125ish shipped.
my local shop wants $180. Is it worth saving the few dollars online or would it be best to feed my local overpriced shop my hard earned duckets?


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## PorkCereal (Nov 24, 2009)

I ran an single alpine type r 12 off my old memphis st500d and it hit pretty hard in my standard cab f150. I ran it sealed not ported, so i couldnt really tell you how ported will work, probably louder then mine was. I sold the type R, but i might be willing to part with the memphis 500d. Nice little small mono block amp thats 500 @ 2ohms. 

PM me if you might be interested i havent considered price, but we can talk.


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## Trill (Apr 5, 2010)

I'll contact you after im done with work. bout 7 more hours 

lol

Thanks


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## Trill (Apr 5, 2010)

Alright so I was browsing craigslist and came across what seems like a pretty good deal.


craigslist ad said:


> 2 Alpine Type R 10" subs in a SubZero sealed box. Subs are powered by a Rockford Power 800.2 amp. Also comes with a full ferad capacitor. The subs are only about 2 months old and have a 4 year warranty on them. I have the receipt for the subs and the corresponding warranty that comes with them. I spent about $400 on the subs alone with the warranty. First $500 takes all of it


I sent him an email asking if he would sell me everything except the box but have not got a reply yet.

Does this seem like a decent deal?


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## samdoan (Mar 17, 2009)

I think you could do better for that money. $500 can get you quite a bit. And also being in a ford ranger, I don't think you need two 10s especially when you stated that you are only looking for a "little bump" and not trying to wake up the neighborhood.

You could probably get away with spending less than $300 and have a pretty good sounding sub setup.

Eclipse XA1200 $130 with free shipping
MB Quart RWE-304 $99.99 + shipping

That will probably come out to about $250. That will leave you good chunk of change to build an enclosure and buy a new headunit.


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## Trill (Apr 5, 2010)

Maybe I could do a 12" but in a wedge sealed box behind the passenger seat so I don't lose any leg room.

I did some more measurements and I will be lucky to get 10-11" OD on my box between my seats (center console) without modification. I am going to mock up 11" wide box and see how it fits. Fingers crossed!

Thanks for the links Sam, I will keep that in mind! Still another day on the auction block to see if I win the alpine amp.


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## Trill (Apr 5, 2010)

Ok guys, after some more thinking and considering the space in my truck I may have changed my mind.

I think a JL 8w7 would be the best choice for me. The sub is rated at 3 ohms and 500RMS so my question is...

What would be the best amp to run the thing? Since it is a 3ohm sub it got me all confused since I know very little on this stuff. Do I need an amp that has a 3ohm channel or is there a way to wire up an alpine MRP-M650 to it without problems?

Please help me find a good amp to run 1 JL 8w7.

If anyone has any insight on these subs.. good or bad please fill me in. I know the price is a little more that I had planned but I think its a bad azz sub and want one in my ranger lol.

Thanks for answering my Stooopid questions


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## samdoan (Mar 17, 2009)

8w7 and budget dont really go hand in hand.


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## Trill (Apr 5, 2010)

Yeah, I know  I keep changing my mind. I'm pretty sure I want to run a single 8" because that would work perfectly with a center console box... there is no way I can fit a 10" as easily. Then I started to research 8" subs and found that the JL 8w7 is a beast of an 8" and if I spend the few extra duckets on that I should be happy for quite a while and won't need to upgrade.

So if you could answer my question about which amp would work good that would be awesome.

I will know for sure in a couple hours if I get the alpine amp.. if someone outbids me I will be getting that eclipse amp you suggested.. if it will work with this sub.

So unless there is a cheaper 8" sub that will perform well please post some links

I know I'm going over budget but that is OK. I will just have to wait another week or 2 to save up a little more money.

Thanks for all your help so far!


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## nearwater (Sep 21, 2009)

samdoan said:


> I think you could do better for that money. $500 can get you quite a bit. And also being in a ford ranger, I don't think you need two 10s especially when you stated that you are only looking for a "little bump" and not trying to wake up the neighborhood.
> 
> You could probably get away with spending less than $300 and have a pretty good sounding sub setup.
> 
> ...


Not trying to threadjack here, but how is the MB quart reference sub you recommended?
Looks like a decent sub, but the low price makes me think twice.
Have you heard the sub in person?

Thanks,

Dan


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## samdoan (Mar 17, 2009)

I was actually debating between that sub and the JBL P1222 that I settled on. My friend ended up getting that MB Quart and I decided to be different and go with the JBL. Honestly, I'm kicking myself because that MB Quart is an amazing subwoofer for the price.

It's kind of a hidden gem. It's very highly touted on the forums and for the price is amazing. It gets very loud and low and at the same time very clean. I believe at the time Rockford either owned or owned a stake in MB Quart and because of that, that particular subwoofer has alot of rockford traits and I believe is very similar to the rockford HX2.


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## Foglght (Aug 2, 2007)

Hell for $250 shipped you could have the nice mono polk carbon series amp (500w @ 2ohm), with a nice Diamond D3 sub.


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## Trill (Apr 5, 2010)

Well I got it all together a little while ago and am somewhat pleased with the results. I came up short on cubes for my box so the sub is not optimal  So I'm going back to table saw for a bigger box!

Well I just wanted to thank you all for the help and whatnot so I made a quick video to show what I came up with.. hope you don't mind random stuff because the video also has a clip of the bugs that were attacking me during the recording haha.

anyways thanks and I'll share what I come up with next!

YouTube - Single Cab Ford Ranger - Bass and bugs!


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## samdoan (Mar 17, 2009)

That looks like plenty of bass for your truck. Well done.


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