Cheap Power Amp 1000W to run 2x Tuba30?

[gregc]

Hi guys, just wondering if there was a standard cheap power amp that people recommend. I see a lot on the net but i don't just want to buy a shit one. But i also don't want to overspend if there are cheaper amps that do the same job. I will be running 2x Tuba30 with one delta 12lf driver in each.

cheers

[SeisTres]

ep2500 from behringer would be a good match. Also the crow xls 802d(or the 602 if you prefer)

I have personally abused the behringer amp beyond what it should be abused and it's still going strong. However, it was replaced by the ep4000 (basically a 2500 but with bigger number on PAPER). I have not used the 4000, but the 2500 is a damn workhorse. The 402d and 1500 seem to run out of juice for subs.

Also, i you want all the dsp freatures, then the xti or you might check the new line by peavy. But they are a little bit more expensive.

[DJPhatman]

gregc, you really need to fill out your location in the user profile. Can't recommend anything unless I know what country you live in.

[Zack Brock]

+1 on the Behringer EP series recommendation. They work as advertised and are fairly inexpensive considering.

[gregc]

gregc, you really need to fill out your location in the user profile. Can't recommend anything unless I know what country you live in.

ok man i live in england, uk.

and the behringer amp is a bit pricey, would i need that much power for my set up?

cheers

[AntonZ]

The Behringer EP2000 is under EUR 300 (E279 at Thomann) and is about the most watts and reliability per £€$ you can get your hands on in Europe.

Code: Select all

			2 ohm	4 ohm	8 ohm
		prijs (€)	per watt	per watt	per watt
Behringer					
	EPX2000	329	0,16	0,25	0,46
	EPX3000	379	0,13	0,21	0,36
	EP2000	279	0,14	0,19	0,35
	EP4000	315	0,08	0,11	0,21
Crown					
	XLS202D	225	----	0,38	0,56
	XLS402D	266	----	0,30	0,44
	XLS602D	375	----	0,31	0,47
	XLS802D	422	----	0,26	0,42
	XLS1000	369	0,34	0,53	0,86
	XLS1500	449	0,29	0,43	0,75
	XLS2000	599	0,29	0,46	0,80
	XLS2500	679	0,22	0,44	0,77
	XTi1000	529	0,38	0,53	0,96
	XTi2000	748	0,37	0,47	0,79
	XTi4000	1149	0,36	0,48	0,88
	XTi6000	2090	0,35	0,50	0,87
Peavey		€	2	4	8
	IPR1600	369	0,23	0,35	0,62
QSC					
	GX3	309	----	0,36	0,52
	GX5	385	----	0,28	0,39

Admittedly, that's mostly compared to modern light weight amps, including some models that are either not available yet or put out more power than you need, but just to put the EP amps in context.

[Drey Chennells]

ep2500 from behringer would be a good match. I have personally abused the behringer amp beyond what it should be abused and it's still going strong.

SeisTres how you doin, I like the ep also Ive chosen them several times to power clubs. When you abused them what was connected (how many ohms?) and how many amps was your conditioner rated for?
Thanks.

[sine143]

Do you have external DSP? If not, you are going to have to either spend money on that, or spend money on built in processing in the amp, both of which are going to tack money onto your setup.

[gregc]

Do you have external DSP? If not, you are going to have to either spend money on that, or spend money on built in processing in the amp, both of which are going to tack money onto your setup.

hey man i saw your thread on DJTT thats what made me want to do this! not sure what DSP is im really new to this just trying to get all the info b4 i start the build. im not trying to be really tight with it just dont want to overspend. I understand that the behringer is a good price but why would i need that much juice? as its 2500K and im only running 2 speakers at 500w each. In my head i only need a 1k amp (please tell me if i have missed the point of something here) i mean do cheap amps just not cut it?

here are some i found just doing a quick google..

http://www.gear4music.com/PA-DJ-and-Lig ... -1000W/BID

http://www.soundsavers.com/shop/audio-e ... oduct+Feed

http://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=220535

cheers for help people!

[Drey Chennells]

damn those are cheap. They all scare me. Buy used pro gear instead man, don't buy any of that.

[sine143]

When you are looking at amps, the numbers you want to look for are:

Wattage rating per channel at 8 ohms

Wattage rating per channel at 4 ohms

Wattage rating per channel at 2 ohms

THD % that all of those were taken at (should be no more than .5%)


Now, once you look at those numbers, you can start to decide which amp will suit your needs. The delta 12lf is an 8 ohm driver, designed to take around 500 watts. Now, You can run 1 tuba on each channel (meaning the amp will be able to suplly the 8 ohm load number), or you can run 2 tubas on 1 channel in parallel, which drops the load to 4 ohms (meaning each tuba will be getting the wattage from the 4 ohm load rating / 2).

You also are going to have to run a crossover, in order to make these work correctly. Basically what a crossover does, is take the input signal from 35hz (hipass filter) to 100 hz (lopass filter), and sends that to the subs. It then hipasses the tops (100hz) and sends that signal to the tops. This means you are only spending power where it matters, for both the subs and the tops. Your system will not work without this.

Basically, what I'm trying to say, is that while the Behringer amp might be called the "EP2500", it wont actually be putting out 2500 watts, ever, in your application, because that number (2500) is basically what the marketing firm labels it as to get more sales. at 4 ohms, which is ~ 2 tubas per channel (horn loading actually will increase it to about 5 ohms), the ep2500 can throw about 650 watts, which means 325 watts per driver, which is under the 500 mark.

If you ran 1 tuba per channel (meaning you would need another amp for tops) then you would have 450 watts per channel (real world would be less, because a T30 with an 8 ohm driver is actually around 10 ohms impedance) meaning that each driver would be getting around 450 watts at full tilt, near the rated power of 500 watts.

Now, although I built my tubas with delta 12lf, I have to say, If I was to go back, I would either spend the extra money, and build them with the 3012lf, or build it with the bp102 (which is a 10 inch, 250 watt driver). While the bp102 wouldnt be as loud, you could build them slimmer, get by with a cheaper amp, and they will still make a awesome amount of sound. Read up, ask questions, and you might find the T39, or another design, fits your needs better than the t30. Its always great to be confident in yourself before you spend money, then you can buy once, cry once. Going to dinner.

[DJPhatman]

I agree with Drey Chennells. Those look a lot like the cheap "Pyle" and "Technical Pro" crap-amps that sell cheap here in the USA. They are of severe suspect quality, and the rated specs may be BS. You are better served to buy known name-brands such as QSC, Crown, Crest, Yamaha, even the Behringer appear to be better quality than the one's you linked to. I also agree that you should consider used if money is an issue.

FWIW, I would highly recommend a Crown XTi2000. It's quite expensive compared to the amps you linked, but it contains built-in Digital Signal Processing, or DSP for short, and will take the place of outboard crossover, EQ, delay and limiters. As a bonus, it is fully controllable by computer via USB! It just doesn't get any easier!

And, yes, I recommend you use an amp capable of at least 10% more power than the driver rating.So for 2 Delta 12LF, I would want an amp capable of 1200 watts @ 4 Ohms to run them 2 on a channel, or 600 watts @ 8 Ohm.

[Drey Chennells]

crown xti's, used them, very nice!

[SeisTres]

I used to run the ep2500 with a jbl 215 and the peavy 118 paralled on each channel. And we're talking about turning it up until the amp was clipping every kick. That was before we got a crossover. After that, I would run a yamaha 115 and the jbl 215 on each channel. Like this, it did not clip as much but then we we were running a small ashly amp bridged and the 2 118's paralleled. A few times I would see the "light" in the jbl's light up, so I would turn down a smidge. Not to mention that amp never knew what a rack was, we used to throw it in with the cable

And a few times we had to run both of the 215's on a single channel and the subs on the other, not many but a few. We did nothing but kiddie stuff, it simply to keep up with the stage level, we would have to give it all it had.

[Drey Chennells]

"that amp never knew what a rack was, we used to throw it in with the cable"
exactly, thats a stout amp. Thanks for the real world example. I've got a pallet full of ep amps waiting for install and I wont need to but I'm sure the 4000(2500) can run 2 THT24/15" each channel nicely. What kind of conditioner have you used (what max amp rating?) to run that kind of setup? I've used Furmans mostly but I recently had a meeting w a very forward thinking power conditioning company called Innovolt and created an account with them. Very cool design philosophy..