phoenix gold vs alpine amps (crossover question)

mk1982 · 09-23-2005

hey i just sold a PG ZX450, it had good power 4x75 and of course was a phoenix gold (i reakon they're great). however i sold it because the highpass was adjustable to 6000hz but this was the LOWPASS as well. in other words, you could use it to run your system active but the LOW had to be set to the same setting as HIGH (there were no two individual controls). i sold that amp for a good price and am now considering a cheaper alpine MRV-Fxxx series, as far as i can tell with this series you can set the highpass (in the 1000s) and low (also in the 1000s) at different frequencies.

the older 'V12' MRV-Fxxx series seem like a bargain amp for an active set up for the money ?? eg. mrv-f405, they go for as little as $100

comments ?

Rbsarve · 09-23-2005

Alpines are usually solid performers. Generally a tad "colder" tonality then PG IMO.

mk1982 · 09-23-2005

lol, i always thought there wasn't a difference in audible between decent amps !!! if the FR is the same, what the hell does 'colder' mean ?

racerraul · 09-23-2005

Let's not get into amp sonics... if it sounds colder to him, then so be it... Let those that get all warm, fuzzy & wet from sound to continue to do so... It's just a bad thread derailment with no conclusion in sight...

But to answer your question... I use 2 MRV-F345 & they have independently adjustable xOvers for front & rear... & IIRC the xOver range is from 30-8k... Hope that helps...

Kramerica · 09-23-2005

I have a PPI amp that has seperate controls for high pass and low pass, but the cut off frequncy is diffrent depending if low pass or high pass is selected. This could leave a hole in the crossover frequencies.

Just make sure you know how the crossover settings work before you buy.

mk1982 · 09-23-2005

racerraul, whats ur system consist of for the front stage. do you have two amps so there's one amp per side ? how do you wire that up ?

racerraul · 09-23-2005

I have one F345 running my tweeters (4 LPG 25nfa) off the front channels & the rears bridged to a Peerless XLS 8" Midbass.
The 2nd F345 is running my mids (Dayton RS150) off the front channels & the rears bridged to the other Peerless XLS 8" Midbass.

mk1982 · 09-25-2005

racerraul, with your second f345 it sounds like you are bandpassing the rs150 and peerless xls. how do you do that with only two frequency controls ?

fin · 09-25-2005

If it helps, I have an Alpine MRV-F540, I posted this in another thread:

Quote:

The amp is an Alpine MRV-F540 with 50wrms x 4 (rated at 12V).
Each channel pair has a variable and switchable HP and LP filter.

the high-pass can be set to either:
- 15Hz-400Hz at 12db/octave.
- 300Hz-8kHz at 12db/octave (using a x20 frequency multiplier switch).

the low-pass can be set to either:
- 30Hz-400Hz at 12db/octave
- 600Hz-8kHz at 12db/octave (using a x20 frequency multiplier switch).

I'm not sure about the crossover's in the other amps of this range, I have the manual (paper and pdf form) that has the specs for them included so I'll try to find this later for you.

As for a different quality of sound or tone, this wouldn't surprise me. I've tried different amps in my home setup and noticed massive differences in the sound character, especially going to tube amps =)

racerraul · 09-25-2005

I have 9835 wich has a selectable 2/3way xOver. I use a combination of the 9835 & amp xOvers to create my bandpass frequencies needed for the mids & midbass...

mk1982 · 09-25-2005

i like the fact that the alpine has adjustable crossover points for both highpass and lowpass but what amps can bandpass 3+4 and highpass 1+2 ? the zx450 CAN but the highpass for 1+2 must be the same as the lowpass for 3+4

corrado · 09-25-2005

Quote:

Originally Posted by mk1982

i like the fact that the alpine has adjustable crossover points for both highpass and lowpass but what amps can bandpass 3+4 and highpass 1+2 ? the zx450 CAN but the highpass for 1+2 must be the same as the lowpass for 3+4

The Alpine mrvf540 can do it.
It can HP/LP/bandpass for ch 1+2 and 3+4.

hope this help...

racerraul · 09-25-2005

Zed Audio Draconia...
Diamond Audio D6 600.4

If you are interested in the Diamond amps let me know, I have a close friend that distributes their stuff... it would not come with a lifetime warranty though...

I'll be honest, even with the hook up he gives me the Zed Audio amps are cheaper & you probably get better support from Steven Mantz...