What's enough for 485s

[Neverenough]

I have the 485s and think they are a little under powered with Arc 300.4. Any thoughts on if this will get the best out of the 485s? It bridged.

[nyryan2001]

They are rated for 300w. Call tech service and see if they are good on 400w ea. If so, look at the Arc 600.2$450, PPI900.4 $200, or NVX JAD800.4 $300.

Else, do you have an EQ or line driver like the Exile ZLD or WS 420eq?


Folks report increased SQ and more capacity as a result of the stronger 5v+ signal going into the amps using one.


FYI.. I have an Arc 300.4 on my Rev10s. I'd too only describe also as adequate... I have a 600.2 here ready to go in as soon as I get time.

[EarmarkMarine]

I have the 485s and think they are a little under powered with Arc 300.4. Any thoughts on if this will get the best out of the 485s? It bridged.

It will require a 30 percent increase in power before you will notice a difference under the more ideal scenarios. Even a 30 percent increase will be hard to discern at the end of a 70 foot rope with exhaust noise.
At that point you are exceeding the speaker's thermal capacity. Figure about 200 watts RMS thermal capacity per each 8-inch driver.
Now when running at 4-ohms bridged or 2-ohms stereo you are hitting a brick wall with your amplifier's power supply when developing full power. So at that level you are not getting much dynamic headroom. And the dynamic headroom is where you will notice a difference with more power used more conservatively. Since music is very dynamic the extra headroom will be interpreted as contrast and clarity. But with a ton of extra power you have to stay away from clipping and compression. That is where the real thermal damage potential is. That is the risk you, as the user, takes and that is where you have to manage the power. If you can't recognize distortion by ear or do not respect the volume numeric value once the day progresses and your auditory system becomes tramatized, then you can easily burn speakers with the additional power.
Another area to consider is that unregulated amplifiers will lose 25 %+ of their 14.4 volt rated power with a 12.6 volt supply. Even with your engine spinning the alternator at a good pace, you are not getting anywhere close to 14.4 volts to an amplifier under load. So extra power can offset some of this loss.
As mentioned above, having a great preamp voltage feeding the amplifier is important. Set-up and tuning is extremely important.
I could safely run two bridged Syn2s to a pair of Pro485s for years (700 watts per each). But I have zero tolerance for distortion. Someone else could smoke the speakers the first day. That's the part that is hard to guarantee.

David

[Neverenough]

David

you speak great Chinese !!! Talking way over my head! I do have a new design 420 and new alpine CDA 118. Maybe I'm asking too much of the 485s. They sound good I was just wanting more! Lol

[Nordicron]

I have 485's and a Rockford Fosgate t-600 powering each one. Also have them feed from a WS420 and can tell you they were loud at first but I too wasn't exactly impressed. That is until I added a line driver and now they freaking scream! It's all in having a nice strong signal going into your amps. And even though WS says that the 420 is also a line driver I don't believe it.

[Neverenough]

What's a line driver and how much are they?

[MLA]

David

you speak great Chinese !!! Talking way over my head! I do have a new design 420 and new alpine CDA 118. Maybe I'm asking too much of the 485s. They sound good I was just wanting more! Lol

The 350W rms output of the KS300.4 is just above the recommended 300W rms of the 485. Down side is, that output is at 14.5 volts, which is rarely seen from the alternator. This means that the actual output will be a little less. Next, when at rest with the engine off, the watts rms output will be even less due to the battery voltage being 12.5 or so.

Headroom is like having a big V8 BMW cruising on the autobahn as opposed to a little 4 cyl Opal. The V8 will maintain a steady cruising speed with pedal left in reserve, while the 4 banger Opal is matted just to keep up with traffic.

Where is your system lacking? overall volume at the end of a wake-board line, mid-bass when surfing, etc.

What's a line driver and how much are they?

Your WS-420SQ is line driver that adjustable gains on both the source inputs and the AUX. What is your main music source and where are you connecting it to? How were the gains set? Not asking where they are set, but what process was used to set them? When people are not happy with some aspect of their system, I like to revisit the setup and tuning first, before condemning any gear.

[nyryan2001]

Never-

the Exile ZLD's are in the 175$ range, and they are terrific. I know it may be subjective... But I heard a noticeable difference in the music after installation. Could be from the ZLD or perhaps the increase in voltage going into the amps. Both the ZLD and the 420 give you excellent 3 zone independent control.

like MLA said, you MIGHT be getting 350w to them at 22mph.... While you float likely in the 275-315 range.

[Neverenough]

Main source of music is via IPhone. Pandora or downloaded from the normal plug that plugs in to the USB on the radio. Heard that using the 3.5 jack direct into the WS maybe better. Tuning was done by the guys who installed it in Lewisville. Scream Marine. They are great guys and I'm sure they know what they are doing on that end. They said not mess with the adjustments on the amps and the WS shouldn't be moved much. The WS is all straight up. The exile deal would be an add or to replace the WS?

[nyryan2001]

Yep I know Tim well... And yes quality guys. He did my sub setup on my 247... His first Re XXX install, went very well.

you already have a WS420 EQ???

[Neverenough]

Yes they did the WS when they did the install.

[Paxdad]

I am getting ready to have a 600.2 Arc Audio amp installed tomorrow to run my two tower WS Pro 485 so I will let you know how it turns out.

[MLA]

The exile deal would be an add or to replace the WS?

Neither. The WS-420 is far superior on a number of fronts.

Heard that using the 3.5 jack direct into the WS maybe better

Going through the head-unit allows you to take advantage of a little signal boost. You lose that if you by-pass the head-unit.

[Neverenough]

Thank you for all the info. I have learned I little Chinese!!

[Mikeski]

I have been running my 485s on a couple different amp setups. Originally they were only getting about 300/side, then 500/side, now I have dual Syn 2's pushing 700/side. I did not notice a big difference between 500 and 700 but I would not run them with less then 500. Mine are also the second or third set of 485's to be sold and they are still running all original drivers and crossovers the arrived with in 2006 and I push them pretty hard very often! The boat has about 400 hours on it since the speakers were installed and that doesn't include the hours they run in coves and on houseboat trips when the boat is off and the tunes are on.