AMP Selection

[Shawn Henderson]

My goal is to run a pair of REV 10s. So my question is how much do I really need to spend on an amp to get the intended performance from the REV10s Ive been looking around and narrowed my search down to the following amps:

Wet Sounds SDX2 is around $1100

Exile XM 30.2 is listed for $550

Kicker 44KXMA 1200.2 is around $700

All of the listed amps advertise they are capable of running 300watts RMS X2 @ 4ohms but are all amps tested the same or does that number verify depending on what mfg is running the test?

I know you can't go wrong with the wet sounds amp but would their be a noticeable difference in performance over the kicker and exile amps?

[Kporsch]

I would stay away from the Kicker amp. I don’t know much about the Exile. The wet sounds is a good choice. I would also consider a JL Audio MHD750/1 which would be slightly less than the wet sounds amp and the right power for a single pair of rev 10s. I had that amp running a pair of rev 10s on my previous 2 G23s. Decided to go with the JL tower speakers on my latest G.

[Blamey]

I am no expert but until someone with more knowledge shows up I'll take a shot at this based on how I understand it.

Firstly you want to look at the RMS rating for watts. Some cheap amp companies will use a Max watt rating to inflate their numbers. All three of the amps you mentions report true RMS ratings. Also there is a industry rating (CES something) that means the company used specific standards for measuring the amp watts.

Now if you are looking at the wattage from a respectable company then you are getting the true capabilities of the Amp. For example when I bought my last Rockford Amp it came with a tested output of my specific amp which all exceeded what was on the box.

So in summary, some companies use bull**** numbers but the good ones won't.

There is more to an amp then just watts. Different components will affect the sound quality. A cheaper amp will use cheaper parts. These parts are more likely to introduce noise or out put sound that is less balanced. So while the power rating of the amp is kinda a measure of how loud it can go, the other components will affect the quality. Quality is harder to measure. In audio speak these are refered to as SPL(sound pressure level) and SQ(sound quality).


SPL or SQ is expensive. SPL and SQ is very expensive.


I don't have experience with any of the amps you mentioned but my understanding with Rev10s is that they focus more on SPL vs SQ. Additionally a marine environment isn't ideal for SQ and, since most people are happy listening to music on a Bluetooth speaker, anything decent amp is going to sound good to them. So unless you have an ear that is going to pickup the differences with amp quality you don't need to get the most expensive amp, getting an amp that had the appropriate wattage would be just fine.


I currently use an NVX and Hifonics Brutus amp in my boat. Both sound great. Neither are marine rated so we will see how long they last. I put my system together on a budget and plan to upgrade over time. I have Wet Sounds 6.5s that I got for $100 a pair for my in boats. I want to spend the money on tower speakers first, currently have Polks MM 6x9s for the tower and honestly they sound good to me but I want to get some JLs because I have heard they are better for SQ. After getting new tower speakers I'll upgrade to some better amps to see if the quality is better.


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[Blamey]

Also, SonicElectronix.com has that kicker amp for $500 as an open box. It is described as new with a damaged box.



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[Shawn Henderson]

Thank you for the feedback. I’m not necessarily stuck on those three amps just trying to figure out at what price you go from paying for quality to just paying more for a name.

[Shawn Henderson]

Also, SonicElectronix.com has that kicker amp for $500 as an open box. It is described as new with a damaged box.



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Have you ever ordered from them? I did a quick search the other day and they have a lot of negative reviews so I stopped looking at them as an option until I find some positive feedback.

[Blamey]

Have you ever ordered from them? I did a quick search the other day and they have a lot of negative reviews so I stopped looking at them as an option until I find some positive feedback.

I have order from them and have had a great experience until last year when I received the wrong item. Trying to get hold if their support team to resolve the issue was difficult. Took several email to get a response but once they replied I was able to get the issue resolved.


As long as I didn't need to speak to a human everything was fine but this was a weird case where I want them to know I didn't get the product and wasn't able to return what they would've been expecting.

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[Blamey]

Thank you for the feedback. I�m not necessarily stuck on those three amps just trying to figure out at what price you go from paying for quality to just paying more for a name.

Yeah, it's tough. You can trust the name brands but you are often paying a lot for that name. Additionally once you get into the realm of good with audio the difference between products can be subjective. A kicker amp may sound better to you then a product that costs 10x as much.

I have been a fan of the NVX amps but they were not marine rated. They just released a bunch of marine rated amps which would work for your application for about $200 but there are no decent reviews. Maybe you can take a flyer on these and let us know if they suck.

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[SwiftnessNautique]

Sorry to revive a 2 week old post, but look into SKAR Audio. My whole boat has their Marine products on it. I have all the 6.5's replaced with their marine speaker, marine amps, and sub. It is very very loud. The pricing is really good too. Web site addy below.

www.skaraudio.com

[MLA]

For a single pair of Rev-10, the Syn-DX4 is hard to beat. 400W rms x 2. The SDX-2 is a better choice, but at a greater cost. Same 400W rms to each pod, but with a 4 ohm load per chnl instead of 2 ohm on a bridged DX4. The SDX-2 also allows for a 2nd pair to be driven, and still be at the 300W rms to all pods.

Kicker? Been using them for 12 years now. Cant come up with one reason stay away. Im currently running the KXMA12002 on a pair of KMTC11 and its awesome! In 12 years, ive had less product failures with Kicker, then the next brand had in 2 seasons. The 1200.2 also will drive a 2nd pair and still be 300W rms to each pod

Exile. Build quality is on the low end of mid level, yet they want to compete in the premium arena. The 30.2 will deliver 300W rms to a single pair, but with the addition of a 2nd, you are down to like 210W to each. Even though the PCB is supposedly coated, the amp is fan cooled. Not all components are sealed, so that moist air forced through the amp, will eventually takes it toll. The dials and switches are open to the elements, compared to the others.

[Shawn Henderson]

Sorry to revive a 2 week old post, but look into SKAR Audio. My whole boat has their Marine products on it. I have all the 6.5's replaced with their marine speaker, marine amps, and sub. It is very very loud. The pricing is really good too. Web site addy below.

www.skaraudio.com

I've never heard of them but for at $100 a pair they are defiantly easy on the wallet. I might order a pair to test out in my jeep.

[SwiftnessNautique]

I've never heard of them but for at $100 a pair they are defiantly easy on the wallet. I might order a pair to test out in my jeep.

It's worth a try. I'm a huge review guy and usually do my due diligence on products before buying. Worst case scenario the three sets I have bought will be around 299 so not a total loss if I decide to graduate to WetSounds.

[MLA]

Class-A/B amps, that'd be like PCM going back to carburetors, Paper based speaker cones? Not in a boat. They do not list a marine woofer, but it looks like their other woofers are also paper based. Again, not in a boat IMO.