Is there a certain amount of power that a 40wX4 deck can handle? It seems to me it should handle 160W but my speakers add up to more of theat. I'm just dumb lol. So how does it work?
with 2 130w max speakers, 2 80w, and 2 40w, Im going to loos ethe 40w, and add 2 more 130 W. Will my deck not be able to handle it or somehting?
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Red 83 280zx 2+2
83 280zx Coupe SOLD
1st post 11/13/04

40x4 is peak, not necessarily constant. The real power that deck will put out during normal operation is about 25 watts or so a channel, maybe more maybe less. That deck will power your normal speakers just fine. However if you want great quality radio, then the ideal setup would be a nice deck, then an amp pushing component speakers, or regular speakers if you can't afford the components, then an amp pushing the sub. But for most people, the deck pushing the regular speakers, and then an amp pushing a sub is more than enough. And by the description of your speakers, being 130 watts and 80 watts, these aren't those cheap specials you get at convention center shows are they? LIke those no-name 6x9s that are rated at 500 watts? My dad bought a set of those once, and I hooked them up to my car amp, and couldn't hear anything out of them that was worth listening to. They were crap. You get what ya pay for.

Ummm, 83Datsun,
Your stereo will output 40 watts of power to four speakers...so it's not what your stereo will handle, but what your speakers will handle...
D@mn, Matt beat me to it....
'78 280Z 2+2 R.I.P. August 29, 2005
'75 280Z Coupe 4-speed
"Never been there, didn't do that."
"The harder you try, the dumber you look."
Post Edited (Feb 19, 2:14pm)

So basically if I want my speakers to run at full power i should run through like a 100W amp to them?
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Red 83 280zx 2+2
83 280zx Coupe SOLD
1st post 11/13/04

yep, 40x4 is what your stereo puts out reguardless of what kinda speakers are hooked up to it.
---
Justin T
72 240Z L28, 5-speed
77 280Z 5-speed (t-boned 8-25-04)
80 280ZX automatic(retired)

What I would do myself, if my stereo was 50x4, I'd get speakers that handled peak input of about 60 watts, juuuust to be on the safe side so I didn't blow nothing up. By the way, the watt rating of a speaker isn't how loud it is, the decibal output is how loud it is in case you were curious.

I notice when i turn volume alll the way up with alot of base, It sounds terrible. The radio is whats making it sdound bad not the speakers? Would a small amp fix that?
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Red 83 280zx 2+2
83 280zx Coupe SOLD
1st post 11/13/04

Ok There is something people never get for some reason. Just because the max RMS or peak power of a speaker is XX watts does not mean it will out put that. It just means that it CAN.
A typical speakers sensitivity is 90db/watt/meter. So if you are 1 meter from your speaker and you turn the volume up so it is outputting one watt the sound pressure level will be 90dB. with two speakers 93dB and with four 96dB. If you never listen to your audio much louder than that you won't violate the max power ratings of your speakers or amp.
Also just so every one knows doubling the power of your amp adds 3dB to the maximum sound pressure. IMO going from a 400W to an 800W amp is pointless unless you enter SPL competitions. But I think those are pointless too.
All that said. If your an audiophile go buy a nice amp... and a different car that has a noise floor below 70dB. If you like noise go buy a sub. If you just want to hear your music with decent quality you are probably fine because your stereo volume will max before you break your speakers.
1994 300ZX N/A T-top 5-spd

"I notice when i turn volume alll the way up with alot of base, It sounds terrible. The radio is whats making it sdound bad not the speakers? Would a small amp fix that?"
This could be your amp clipping. In which case a small amp would help. Or it could be the speakers destorting the bass. In this case you need a crossover for the small speakers and an amp (with LPF) and a sub.
1994 300ZX N/A T-top 5-spd

Um, you REALLY don't know anything about stereo do ya? lol
Stock stereo+lots of bass=****. The only way you're going to get good bass you can feel, is a dedicated subwoofer for the bass frequencies. I don't know how many of my female friends, or sometimes even male friends, I've been riding around with and cranked the piss out of the bass on a rap tune (by the way I despise rap and R&B) and thought the farting and distortion of their overworked paper cone speakers sounded GOOD! That's just plain retarded!
Tell us the brands of the speakers you have and break down their wattage.
What you need is custom kickpanel enclosures or custom door mount 6.5", or maybe 5.25" with a tweeter (component setup) and at least 6.5"s in the rear or 6x9"s. Then a single 10" sub, or 8" sub if you don't have the space. You might even try one of the square Kicker subs in 8 or 10" to get more bass out of a small area. From your other posts, sounds like you have wayyyyyy to many ideas right now and you're mixing and matching suggestions from different people to create a lethal stew of crappy sound. You don't have to be an audiophile freak to get good sound out of your car. Just keep it simple and be practical.

Also don't be pulled into buying high wattage amps like Takahashi said. I had a plain ol 300watt amp in my car at one time and could barely stand to be in it because it was so loud. So just buy a quality moderate wattage amp. If you have cheap parts and crappy wiring, just throw it all away and start over. Buy quality speakers, quality amps, and do quality wiring work. It's like painting, the more prep work you do, the more pleased with the results you'll be.

And NEVER turn your volume all the way up. You'll overpower your internal amp and it'll clip like crazy and can ruin your speakers by overheating and possibly burning out the voice coil.
I've seen high quality 200watt RMS stereo's (25x4 + 100watt sub) blow the freakin' hell out of crazy 800+ watt crappy stereos.
The wattage rating on the speakers is how much they can take, not how much they 'draw'.
The wattage rating on the head unit/amp is how much they can put out, not necessarily how high they'll go and still sound good.
Most head unit/amps will sound like crap at their maximum output because of distortion in the signal at the max output level.
A good rule of thumb is half the power rating is where the 'sweet spot' will be. This is only a general rule and not absolute. The more you spend on QUALITY equipment, the closer you can get to the max output level while retaining sound quality.
And by 'Quality' I don't mean ANYTHING from Crutchfield. Not a dig, but most consumer quality stereo equipment is crap. Don't get me wrong, I have 3 Crutchfield 'discount' head units in various cars I drive and my days of multi-thousand dollar car stereo's is long over. Unfortunately, during that time, I did develop an ear for quality sound.
Unless you are trying to blow your friends out of the car with your stereo, get the best you can afford without blowing the budget and be happy with a couple/three hundred total watts RMS.
Again, don't bother turning the volume up over halfway if you want to retain what little sound quality they provide.
Car stereo's are a complex and potentially very expensive arena, especially if you're 're-buying' components trying to find the right ones.
Almost any consumer grade stereo system you get for under $2k is going to be approximately the same quality as one had for $500. To break out of that sound quality level takes a WHOLE LOT more money and that doesn't necessarily mean you'll get more watts, you'll just get better watts.
The sales people at your local Circuit City will try to sell you on more watts. The wattage wars are just a marketing gimmick to cover up the total lack of quality in the product.
Sorry this is so long, but I really get myself worked up over this topic...
72 WooHoo!! In good shape too...
72 Rolling Chassis (RB or LS1?)
80 NA SCCA ST2/CP (Car + Tree = Dead)
82 NA 3.0L the rust monster got it
82 ZXT 3.1L, 25psi! Hit in the right rear. ;(
83 parts car
92 TT Sold! ;(
02 Looking for an '03 made in '02
Post Edited (Feb 19, 4:55pm)

Just my $0.02: for "quality" sound - turn to a classilcal station and I don't mean classic rock.
Mozart, Beethoven whatever you chose. It will give you the largest variety of sounds and volume to compare your componants.
Many times, the silence is just as important to the music as the boom boom and screetch.
Ed and Jeanne's
ZXelda 1981 280 ZXT: ZXena 1990 300 ZX
1941 Buick Special Sedanette (Betty)
1956 Dodge Royal (Dorothy)
1971 Buick Riviera (Rita)
1975 Ford F-150 Stepside (Fiona)
1992 Firebird (Frieda)

I would think that if you used the amps in the head unit and you turned it all the way up they would NOT clip. It would be below retarded to allow the user to turn the gain higher then the built in amps can go. Its easy to clip a separate amp because they weren't designed with the head unit but clipping the built in amps should be very hard to do. I wouldn't worry.
1994 300ZX N/A T-top 5-spd

When was the last time you turned the volume all the way up on an Alpine head unit?
I would say the distortion is so great by the time the clipping starts you probably wouldn't notice it was clipping...

I'll try to lay it out here, both Matt and Takahashi are correct but lets break it down a little more.
1-Is there a certain amount of power that a 40wX4 deck can handle?
as previously stated, the 40wx4 is the PEAK power your deck puts out. You know that means each speaker gets 40 watts, but that is only a power level it gets for a very short period of time, literally hundredths of a second. Peak power is advertised to make you think your stereo is cool, when it actually isn't. A 40w peak power equates roughly to 26 watts RMS power, which is the number that really counts. So the number your deck should really say is 26wx4.
2-with 2 130w max speakers, 2 80w, and 2 40w, Im going to loos ethe 40w, and add 2 more 130 W. Will my deck not be able to handle it or somehting?
again, as previously stated, a 130w peak speaker is the amount of PEAK power it can handle. It is actually a, lets say approx. 65w RMS speaker, so your 26w are roughly 1/3rd of the potential for the speaker to handle. The speaker is not going to draw that power from the deck, it is only going to get the maximum watts the deck can provide. When Takahashi says "clipping" he is talking about when you exceed the amps power level. The speaker needs more power than the decks amplifier can provide, and the result is a fuzzy distorted sound which is EXTREMELY BAD for both the speaker and the amp!!! You will overheat the deck because it cannot provide the power draw the speaker needs for the volume level and you will hurt the speaker because it is basically starved for power and starts bouncing erratically, and without describing the internal workings of the speaker we will establish that this is very bad as well.
3-So basically if I want my speakers to run at full power i should run through like a 100W amp to them?
Yes! But you don't necessarily need a 100w amp. You only need a 65wx4 RMS amp. Now what external amp should I buy? Basically, expect to pay $1 per watt, so if you have a 65wx4 RMS amp, expect to pay $260 or so for an amp to fully utilize your speakers. If you find an amp that proclaims the same wattage for much cheaper, its probably gonna be junk and not actually capable of making that power. Now if you should choose to go for an amp that makes more power, your still good. Unless you like standing next to a jet engine at full military power for fun, chances are your going to have a tough time messing up your speakers before you obliterate your eardrums with a setup like that. The point is, you can never have too much amp for your speaker, as long as you excercise caution and control with your volume levels.
4-I notice when i turn volume alll the way up with alot of base, It sounds terrible. The radio is whats making it sdound bad not the speakers? Would a small amp fix that?
Now if you really want bass, just buy a 200w Peak power 2 channel amp, and a basic 10" single voice coil sub w/ a good matching box (airspace is critical to sub performance so make sure to ASK about what box you should have before you buy one, I recommend a sealed box vs ported or bandpass). Wire it up, adjust the low pass to the proper setting, 80-100hz, set the gain, lowest setting you still get enough base with, and your good to go. Please, please, please don't try to crank up the bass with your stock speakers, or any full range speaker for that matter. They aren't designed to bump, or handle any frequency lower than around 150hz or so (and thats stretching it) so don't try to make them. It puts alot of strain on the speakers and a sub is really critical to good balanced sound anyways, whether you listen to Mozart, or 50 Cent. I listen to Less Than Jake myself, but regardless, a properly set up subwoofer, with quality speakers will make your system sound great.
Hope it helps!
'73 Turbo, not much stock. Sold now... :-(

Incidentally, the main thing that damages speakers is clipping/distortion not peak power.
-MAS
1990 na 300zx

That was my idea in the first place... to go with about a 10" sub and an amp... but the 280zx has NO where to put it lol
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Red 83 280zx 2+2
83 280zx Coupe SOLD
1st post 11/13/04

For extra bass, try bass doubling. Such as facing the sub directly towards a surface in your car. Don't know how possible it is in a S130, but try facing it backwards towards your taillight panel.

Little input.
No deck is going to put out more than 15 watts rms from the onboard amplifiers. You should never even use wattage ratings to make a descision on which head unit to buy - others features are far more important.

Another side note:
When choosing a head unit one with pre outs is a very good thing. Pre outs do not run the audio signal through the on board amp before sending it out. Ask any electrical engineer amplifying an already amplified signal is a bad thing. Every time you amplify a signal you get distortion in that signal. To get quality audio it takes a clean signal to the speakers. IT also takes a speaker that reproduces that signal cleanly. The closer you are to the maximum output of the amplifier the more distortion of the signal you get. It is better to have a larger amp and not to max it out than to max out a smaller amp. With that said, a good setup for most listners is
1. Good quality deck - produces clean signal with low distortion has pre outs for Sub and mabey even for your front speakers (not required) This alows you to power you main speakers from the deck and send un-amplified signal to the amp.
2. Good quality speakers - Strangely enough I have found that the DUAL brand speakers produce a good quality sound. Sounded better than JBL, Pioneer, and Infinity. (can't quote models) they were not expensive but provide good reproduction of sound for every day listening.
3. Seperate Amp and sub - this will round out your sound. your standard 6.5 or 6 X 9 speakers cannot produce the "LOW" sounds or frequencies. Subs require much more power to move than standard speakers. Now as I said before the more you amplify a signal the more distortion you have this is why a pre out is so important to a sub. A Good quality amp is capable of amplifying a signal with very little distortion until it is reaching its upper limits. The pre-out gives the amp the cleanest possiable signal to amplify. If you hook the amp into say you right rear speaker lead, that signal has already been amplified (with much less precision to signal quality) and now all the distortion is being amplified again.
Why does the distortion increase? because an amplifier does just that. It takes what it gets and amplifies it. Good clean signal in = good signal out (notice the difference) Good Clean in = Good out You always have distortion when amplifying audio. (or any signal for that matter) the quality of your eauipment is what determines how much it is distorted. Cheap equipment = lots of distortion when pressed hard.
amplified (I.E. distortion already presant) in = that distortion along with the sound amplified.
{DISCLAIMER}
To all those who see holes in the explination I KNOW THERE ARE, this is just a bit more detailed "Quick" break down of an audio system designed to explain why things sound good or sound bad and give BRIEF reasons behind it.
Post Edited (Feb 20, 3:23pm)

The mention about DUAL spakeers... I have all Dual, and they do sound excellent, and do have decent bass , Im just looking for a little more thump
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Red 83 280zx 2+2
83 280zx Coupe SOLD
1st post 11/13/04

Sounds like a sub is what you need, you can get 8" or 6"subs in pretty compact boxes. Powered units are very small, easy to install and sound good. They won't be up for any SPL competitions, but if you just want to add a little extra bass, they may be the way to go.
You may have seen this, but here are a bunch of different powered units with good info on each: Powered Sub Units
Also keep in mind that the frequency a sub can produce is generally directly related to the overall diameter. A 6" woofer will not generate frequencies as low as a 15" woofer, but it can play volume levels that are close. Bump is going to come from those lower frequencies, so a 6" woofer will still move air, just not as much for obvious reasons! I've found a 10" is ideal for most of the music I listen to, but a 8" will work well too. I had this unit and it was pretty sucky, really didn't help, I ended up just yanking it and leaving the subs to my Xterra.
'73 Turbo, not much stock. Sold now... :-(
Post Edited (Feb 20, 5:14pm)

Everything depends on the frequency range that you want to reproduce.
If you want to rattle your teeth out but not "hear" the low frequencys 18" work. If you want good thump and still be able to "hear" the low frequency 12" work well. 8" and 6" provide some rounding out of the sound but don't provide much thump. Combining different sizes is the best way to get the "Thump" and the rounded out sound.
For most people who want sound a good 10" or 12 " is just fine
For easy listening with good rounded out sound 8" or 6" is fine
For the ghetto thumper - Go to a pro Bend over grab your ankles and be prepared for him you yank large ammounts of cash outa your hind end.