help with aftermarket speakers

[Sid420]

so i assume this has been asked before but i am wanting to get new 6.5's and new 6 x 9's soon and i was wondering....

1. if you can run two different sizes of speaker on the same amp (ex. 2 6.5's and 2 6 x 9 on the same amp.)

2. how to wire up speakers to a 2 channel or 4 channel

3. should i get two 2 channel amps or 1 4 channel amp

4. should i get components, pro audio or 3-way speakers

i am planning on running a simple 2 skar audio VVXV2's 12's with a skar-1500 in the trunk of my honda accord.

i am looking for SQ mostly with a little bump in the trunk.

Thanks!

[ncc74656]

a 2 and 4 channel amp can be equal and a moot point depending on how you want to wire it and if you are buying new or used. if you buy a 4 channel, unless its a high end amp i doubt you can wire it to run at 2ohm. if you run 2 front speakers per door then you could wire them to 2 ohm and get more power out of the system (this is how my 10's and 6.5's are wired). if you are not putting 2 sets per door then the amp you choose is up to you, if you can get 2 amps for cheaper than 1 quad channel then go for it or vice versa. i would buy components. if it were me i would buy 2 amps, a 4 channel and a 2 channel and a cross over. i would run the 6.5's and 6X9's on the 4 channel amp and run the tweets on a 2 channel. then hook an active cross over for them (this is how i run my current system).

the reason i suggest this is i have had very poor results with in line passive cross overs and i like being able to fine tune.

as for running the 6.5's and 6X9's on a single amp there is no reason why you cant. the two things to consider are the power handling capacity of the speakers and then if you are going to set an upper xover point then the 2 or 3 way 6X9's would not be run to there full potential but if you are only setting a low end cut off (which is what most xovers do) then there is no difference.

for wiring the speakers you just need to hook them to the channel and your done. the only time that changes is if you want ot wire 4 ohm to 2 ohm. if the speakers you are buying have large power handling then upgrading the wire is a good idea. if your buying some 65W or 95W speakers then just running new wire from the amps to the inside of the car and tieing it into the run that goes out to the door for factory you should be fine as that short run should handle the power with out much rise. however if you are buying larger speakers then you will want to run new wire from amp directly to the speaker. such as my door speakers are a total of 500W rms so i run 14ga wire from amp to speakers.

[HunterJohnson]

I would suggest running 6.5's in all the locations.

What you can do is purchase a 6x9 to 6.5 converter, often times such as the rockford power series, the plastic 6x9 to 6.5's mounts are included.

also for SQ i'd recommend components, not coaxials

[BobbyG2]

On a two channel you can wire them in series or parellel, depending on their ohms load and your amps rating. On a four channel you could wire them each on their own channel (giving you fader control), or bridged into two channels, wired in parallel or series depending again on speaker and amp resistance ratings.

It doesn't really matter if you get two 2 channels or one 4 channel. One 4 channel will likely be cheaper.

If you're looking for SQ most people will recommend a component set. Coaxials are pretty much a no go, and most people wouldn't recommend PAs without some sort of sound processing.

If I were you I'd get a component set on a two channel passive, or a 4 channel active. I'd only get speakers in the rear if I were worried about my rear seat passengers. In which case I'd get a 4channel to retain my ability to fade front to rear.

Any more questions let us know!

[Sid420]

thanks for all the replys! helped but i do still have a question...

how do i hook up the spekers to the crossover then to the amp?

Thanks.

[Ben5]

this is a good site to start with www.bcae1.com

[Sid420]

Thank you.

[ncc74656]

RCA from head unit back to Xover and then from Xover to amp. you want to use good quality RCA's so as to not introduce excess noise and dont use crazy long cables. get the shortest you can to still reach where you need them to go.

many xovers have a switch to allow for parallel operation. if your head unit does not have a dedicated RCA out for each set of amps you want to power then make sure your xover has this switch. the only other way to work it is to use splitters on the rca's and that just looks a mess.