Nissan 370Z Forum - View Single Post - ? on 4-channel amp and ohms

SouthArk370Z · 10-13-2014, 10:19 PM

Thanks for the compliments. I was a big audio nut back in the '70s and '80s. Somewhere around the end of the '80s, between my ears deteriorating (age and too many rock concerts) and audio equipment getting better, I lost interest in chasing "hi-fi". In the early-'80s, digital got rid of most of the problems inherent with analog, which improved overall sound quality many times over, making it unnecessary to spend big bucks to get decent sound. Although the equipment has gotten (a lot) better over the years, it's still the same basic electronics (mainly "souped up" versions of old designs) and the physics/perception of sound hasn't changed any.

Now that you have my CV, here's my words of wisdom on car audio:
1) A car is a really crappy environment for audio reproduction. The smaller the car, the worse the situation. The noisier the car, the worse the situation. 370Zs are small and noisy - you'll never have anything approaching high fidelity in one. So go with what sounds good to your ears and don't worry about what others think.
2) Among the major names in consumer audio electronics, there's not a nickle's worth of difference in the sound you will get in a small car. The differences in specs has gotten to the can't-hear-except-under-the-best-circumstances and a car is nowhere near best of anything when it comes to audio.
3a) Transducers will make the biggest difference in sound quality. Since most of your inputs are digital, they are not going to make a lot of difference. Back in the days of tape, the transport could make a big difference; not so much with a CD or MP3 player.
3b) It's all about the speakers nowadays. Get the best speakers and enclosures that you can find/afford and EQ out the rest.
4) A surprising number of people don't realize that it takes 10X the power to get 2X the sound. A 100W amp is not that much louder than a 50W. You would need 500W, and speakers to handle it, to get twice the volume. If you want to get LOUD, you're going to need a LOT of Watts.

OK. I'll get off my soapbox now. As always, when it comes to audio, YMMV.

10-13-2014, 10:19 PM	#8 (permalink)
SouthArk370Z Premium Member Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: South Arkansas Posts: 8,435 Drives: 2014 Challenger Rep Power: 324198	Thanks for the compliments. I was a big audio nut back in the '70s and '80s. Somewhere around the end of the '80s, between my ears deteriorating (age and too many rock concerts) and audio equipment getting better, I lost interest in chasing "hi-fi". In the early-'80s, digital got rid of most of the problems inherent with analog, which improved overall sound quality many times over, making it unnecessary to spend big bucks to get decent sound. Although the equipment has gotten (a lot) better over the years, it's still the same basic electronics (mainly "souped up" versions of old designs) and the physics/perception of sound hasn't changed any. Now that you have my CV, here's my words of wisdom on car audio: 1) A car is a really crappy environment for audio reproduction. The smaller the car, the worse the situation. The noisier the car, the worse the situation. 370Zs are small and noisy - you'll never have anything approaching high fidelity in one. So go with what sounds good to your ears and don't worry about what others think. 2) Among the major names in consumer audio electronics, there's not a nickle's worth of difference in the sound you will get in a small car. The differences in specs has gotten to the can't-hear-except-under-the-best-circumstances and a car is nowhere near best of anything when it comes to audio. 3a) Transducers will make the biggest difference in sound quality. Since most of your inputs are digital, they are not going to make a lot of difference. Back in the days of tape, the transport could make a big difference; not so much with a CD or MP3 player. 3b) It's all about the speakers nowadays. Get the best speakers and enclosures that you can find/afford and EQ out the rest. 4) A surprising number of people don't realize that it takes 10X the power to get 2X the sound. A 100W amp is not that much louder than a 50W. You would need 500W, and speakers to handle it, to get twice the volume. If you want to get LOUD, you're going to need a LOT of Watts. OK. I'll get off my soapbox now. As always, when it comes to audio, YMMV. __________________ Steering Lock Links - Search The370Z Bookmarklet - FSM @ NICOclub Mankind has progressed past the need for war but we haven't evolved that far. - NachoMahma Last edited by SouthArk370Z; 10-13-2014 at 10:23 PM.