Car Stereos: Choosing the right amp, monoblock amp, sony xplod

Question
QUESTION: I'm am currently looking at 2 10" punch p3 2-ohm DVC subwoofers the specs are


Impedance 2-Ohm x 2
Power Handling 400 Watts RMS
800 Watts Max

Was wondering what a good amp would be to get the full punch out of them

ANSWER: Hi Patrick,

What brand of amplifier you buy is entirely subjective, and so telling you what brand to buy would be silly of me.  As a general rule, stick with the known brands and you (mostly) get what you pay for, so don't cheap out.  Don't go overboard, either.

If you're getting 2 subwoofers with 2 voice coils at 2 ohms each (enough 2s for ya?), I would suggest a class d mono block amplifier that is stable to 2 ohm, then run the two voice coils in the subwoofers in parallel, and each subwoofer in series into the mono block single channel, which would yield 2ohms of impedance.  Make sure the amp can hit 5-800 watts @ 2 ohm mono, and you'll do fine.  Also, with that much power being drawn, you're probably going to want to invest in a second battery or a stiffening cap.

Justin

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks for the help also what are the specifics i should be looking for at the amps kind of new to all of this stuff

Answer
Hi Patrick,

There isn't much more specific to go beyond my original post.  Ideally you'll get a 2ohm stable class d monoblock amp supporting 5-800 watts of RMS power.  Stay away from the cheap stuff.  Good brands include: Phoenix Gold, Alpine, Clarion, etc.  I personally avoid Sony Xplod and Pioneer, but that's all personal opinion, and you could find plenty of people who say I'm a raging moron for those opinions.

Justin