What size amp or amps?

Question

ok heres the deal.

i have 2 12" 1000w each

and i also have 2 10" 700w each

i was wondering what size amp or amps to go with

and how to hook the amps up.

any online how to's would be awesome

and yes i already upgraded my alternator and battery

and cables.

p.s. should i get a capacitor or is it a waste of money?

and how do i wire it up if i do get one

Answer 1

No one can give you an accurate answer unless you provide more info.  1) Make sure all your numbers are based on RMS, no one cares about peak power because it has no bearing on anything and 98% of the time is horribly exaggerated, and without RMS no one can give you an accurate anwer. 2) You must provide how many Ohms each subwoofer is. 3) You must provide whether the subs are single voice coil or dual voice coil.

Answer 2

it is never a good idea to mix subs of a different brand or size. pick a pair and use them.

always upgrade your electrical system in this order:

1. the big 3

2. a good battery (optima or kinetic)

3. HO alt (if needed)

4. add more batteries (if still needed)

if you notice serious car audio competitors will never use a cap. they use racks of batteries for a reason. besides, for what you spend on a cap, you can easily spend it on upgrading properly. a cap will supply only short bursts of power to your amps. batteries and a good alt. will provide a constant supply to your entire car. also, a cap is useless unless you upgrade your big 3, a good battery and alt. anyways….adding an electrical component to an already struggling electrical system will only make matters worse. if you want to do some research, you can do a search here: http://www.caraudio.com/forum.

and...merovingain...yes you can can get 1000w rms subs for under $2000....lol...under $500 as well.....

Answer 3

Unless you paid >$2000 a piece for the subs, that is NOT constant power handling, that is transient power handling of 1000w & 700w each.  Nominal power handling is probably more along 250w-400w & 200w-350w each.

Look at a single 1000w for the 2 12s and a single 500w for the 10s. Amps with  built in low-pass will simplify things if you don't already have a crossover.

The theory behind a Capacitor(1Farad+) is that it acts similar to an extra battery next to your amp. During high intensity transients when your amp is drawing a lot of current, the capacitor will discharge and maintain the current level.  If you are using large power cables, this is a moot point as heavy gauge wire can handle the power without a voltage drop.