QuestionHi, i have two soundstream Picasso 12 inch DVC subwoofers. 4 ohm coils. 350 watts rms. I am looking for an amp that can get the most out of them. I am looking at the soundstream TRA 680.4, 4 channel amp which has 340x2 rms@ 4 ohms bridged. But i have heard that runing 2 DVC subs onto a 4 channel amp increases the amp resistance to 8 ohm. Would this amp actually put out 340rms to each sub? If so how would one wire it? thanks heaps.
AnswerRunning two DVC subs onto a 4 channel amp DOES NOT increase the amps resistance as an amp HAS NO resistance. The load or resistance put on an amp is solely the result of the subwoofer connected and the method used. Nothing else can change it.
4-channel amps are not ideal for subs. Typically a mono or two channel at most is used. A 4-channel amp is for two sets of speakers (two front, two rear).
Because 4 ohm DVC subs can be wired for 2 ohm or 8 ohm AND the amp won't tolerate loads below 4 ohm bridged, you have no choice but to wire them for 8 ohm per bridged channel. This is where you get the 8 ohm on a 4-channel amp. If you had 2 ohm DVC's, this wouldn't be a problem as they can be wired for 1 ohm or 4 ohm.
Each sub will only get 170 watts RMS because of the 8 ohm load.
Your best bet would be to sell the 4-channel and get a CEA-2006 compliant mono amp that's 700 watts RMS @ 1 ohm and wire the subs like so - http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j230/sparky3489/PARALLEL-SERIES.jpg or a bit easier to understand http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j230/sparky3489/PARALLEL-SERIES-box.jpg
-OR-
You can get a CEA-2006 compliant 2-channel amp that's 350 watts RMS X 2 @ 2 ohm and wire each sub to each channel like so - http://i81.photobucket.com/albums/j230/sparky3489/SINGLE-PARALLEL.jpg
