After an extensive search on this board and another one, I figured I would just post the question here since I have been following this board for years and every ones suggestions has been a great help to me.

With that, I have a simple question that I can not find an answer for, if there is one...

According to the Specs, the head unit I am looking at has a pre-amp max output level of 5V.

Also, the amp I am looking at has an input sensitivity of 0.2V-4V.

Would it cause problems or damage if the head unit puts out more voltage than the amp specs call for?

Thanks for your help!

 

What amp and HU are you looking at? I will find out for you.

 

HU - Pioneer DEX-P99RS
Amp - Alpine PDX-F4

 

remember pre amp voltage is variable. you will not peak at a 5v unless you're pushing out max volume on the knob.

I wouldn't worry about it- people put lines drivers boosting pre amp signals to 8 volts to normal amps.

 

The Sub amp I am looking at (PDX-M6) accepts up to 8V, so I was just wondering if it was a big deal. Thanks for your help.

 

OK. After reading up a little on HU output voltage VS. amp sensitivity this is the way I understand it. Don't get me wrong I know car audio pretty well just never ran across this question.

The max output voltage your HU will produce will be the 5 volts. Thats if you have it turned up all the way. Your amps sensitivity range is .2v-4v. That's "sensitivity not max input voltage per say. When you adjust the input sensitivity on your amp when you first hook up the system you start with the input sensitivity level at its lowest level and your HU at it's highest and work upwards from there to achieve YOUR highest level of sound output but of course not to exceed the max power handling of your speakers. You might know this already.

That being said the one volt extra which your amp might never even see would most likely never be an issue. If you were to give the amp anything over the 4volts your amp would most likely not increase it's output.

I am not too familiar on a personal level with Alpine amps so you may just try calling a local reputable audio shop that sells Alpine or even call or email Alpine directly. I may have not given you expert advise here but it's pretty sound advice. For what it's worth I have never ever blown an amp because of too many volts from the HU and I have done A LOT of car audio. Hope this helps.

 

Yes, this does help a lot. I'm returning from an overseas deployment and I am planning on a complete audio overhaul on my car.

Currently I have a pioneer AVIC-Z110BT double din nav unit with a 12" sub and amp on a box that a friend gave me a while back. My plans are to sell the AVIC and the Orbital kit, and go back to single din. So I have had nothing better to do for the past 7 months underway on this ship then to research audio equipment!

Thanks again!

 

You want a really sick amp? Check out this. Awesome for the money and so versatile.

http://www.zedaudiocorp.com/Products/leviathan.html

I will be running my separates up front and one 2 ohm sub with this. If you read the manual for this amp it will give you an idea of their approach to car audio. Pretty interesting. I know it says not to go 2 ohm drivers but I emailed Stephen Mantz(owner and creator of the amps) and he said it would be ok and two channels bridges would supply 800 watts. That leaves FOUR channels to run the rest! Which when bridged will be about 600 watts to my front stage! Just awesome. Do a search for reviews too.

Oh and by the way...Thanks for your service!

 

zed amps are awesome.

 

I spend the last 2 months set on the Alpine PDX-F4 and PDX-M6, and look at what you do...Now I am questioning that choice. Now I know the EVO is far from the best sound stage, but here is what my plan was:

HU: Pioneer DEX-P99RS (8 pre-outs, no internal amp)
AMP: Alpine PDX-F4
Sub AMP: Alpine PDX-M6
Sub: JL 12W6v2 in a perfect fit enclosure
Front: Focal 165A1 until I can afford the Focal 165KRX2
Rear: None

Now with the Zed you mentioned, I could do so much more with that Pioneer head unit. The thing is, I can get both Alpines for a little less than the Zed. I have less than a week until I get home and start selling a bunch of stuff to raise the money I need for this project, so I guess I'll ask for opinions. The only thing that is solid is the Pioneer DEX-P99RS, because I have the XM and HD unit already installed and ready to go.

 

I will mention two things:

1. This is an audiophile amp (Zed amp). If you check out the reviews you will find many who say it would take a lot more expensive amp to get the same sound quality and overall value.

2. Unless you have an upgraded high output altenator you better be prepared to have power problems with two amps. The Zed amp is class D. Its designed specifically to be very efficient. Takes a lot less power to run than class AB amps and even most other class D amps.

I was running two JL amps only 800 total watts and I barely had enough power for that. High volume made all but my headlights dim.

 

the deck you are buying is top notch with the best features. I would seriously take advantage of the 4 way crossovers on that and build an active crossover front stage. looks like you could even do sub + woofer + mids + tweets with this which if you picked the right drivers would be far superior in imaging and sq than the focals

yeah i would skip alpine and since you're buying a great deck i would suggest zed or tru or audison- something that matches the quality of the pioneer deck

 

I would like to see somebody try a three way front stage in an Evo! Custom kick panels I guess but seems overkill to me. Focal makes a great tweet and Seas is a good option for mids. I have a set of Boston spz60's which aren't too bad either. I feel like we have taken the OP's thread a little off course!

Side note: My buddy had an Audison amp that he needed to have repaired. Guess what. They don't make the parts for that amp anymore and it was only three years old. No bueno. No Audison for me.

 

True, this info is a little off of what I originally asked between the head unit and amp, but what great info you guys are giving me! Thanks a bunch!

Yes, the Pioneer deck has High, Mid, Low, and Sub pre-outs, which the Zed would be a perfect match for in the beginning. I'm thinking I have been convinced on that one.

One question though, you mentioned that it would handle 2 ohms stable bridged to a sub? I'm looking at the JL 12W6v2 which has a 4 ohm DVC, and I'm just trying to figure out the best way to wire it up.

 

Well since the OP has asked the off topic question I guess it's ok to keep going off topic.

Your 12w6 can handle quite a bit of power. Mr. Mantz of Zed Audio told me I could use the Leviathan to push the 2 ohm sub I have but they suggest a 4 ohm loads or greater for sound quality. He also said if the four other channels are driven hard at the same time you would not quite see the 800 watts you otherwise would on that 2 ohm load. Just an FYI two channels bridged on this amp will still push a 4 ohm load with 600 watts.

That being said with subwoofer frequencies distortion is not nearly as noticeable as it is in higher frequencies so I personally decided that pushing a 2 ohm load would work for me. I only have a single 2 ohm voice coil. You could achieve the same by wiring your voice coils in parallel. This would give the amp a 2 ohm load to drive.

Parallel wiring if you are not familiar with it is wiring both negatives together between voice coils and both positives together. Then running 2 channels bridged you would connect(on the Leviathan for instance channels 5+6) the negative from one of the channels to the negative of one voice coil and the positive from the other channel to the positive of the voice coil. With this amp it would dish out about 800 watts to your 12w6.

There is a lot of stuff on the net about series and parallel wiring if you want to research before you start your system.