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Rockford Fosgate Punch Amp


wakesetter8796

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My 08 Malibu came with three RF punch amps. One for the interior speakers, one for the sub, and one for the 4 alpha 1's, but the dealer took two alpha's off to put on a boat that had none. Anyway, would the amp be able to provide 150 watts rms to the samson smt65's that I will replace the alpha 1's with? The smt's came with an exile 400.4 amp, but that only provides 100 rms per speaker I think. Would it be possible to combine them so the speakers can have their peak power? What is the amp's power? I don't remember it saying on the amp.

Thanks

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Wakesetter - If I understand you correctly, your powering 1 set of SMt's? If that is the case, then use the 400.4 in dual bridge mode (aka 2 ch mode) and drive the SMT's and it will give you 200W for the speakers. This is ideal for 1 set and nothing additional is required. If you are going to run 2 sets (4 cans), this amplifier would not be suited well for the task. I'd look at a big 2 ch amplifier that can run a 2 ohm load and deliver a lot of power. Make sure whatever amplifier you choose, it's properly wired with 4ga cable and fused.

hope that helps.

-Brian

My 08 Malibu came with three RF punch amps. One for the interior speakers, one for the sub, and one for the 4 alpha 1's, but the dealer took two alpha's off to put on a boat that had none. Anyway, would the amp be able to provide 150 watts rms to the samson smt65's that I will replace the alpha 1's with? The smt's came with an exile 400.4 amp, but that only provides 100 rms per speaker I think. Would it be possible to combine them so the speakers can have their peak power? What is the amp's power? I don't remember it saying on the amp.

Thanks

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Thanks Brian. Yes, I am powering one pair. That is the amp I have been using. I was just wondering if it was better than the rockford amp that was powering the alphas.

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My 08 Malibu came with three RF punch amps. One for the interior speakers, one for the sub, and one for the 4 alpha 1's, but the dealer took two alpha's off to put on a boat that had none. Anyway, would the amp be able to provide 150 watts rms to the samson smt65's that I will replace the alpha 1's with? The smt's came with an exile 400.4 amp, but that only provides 100 rms per speaker I think. Would it be possible to combine them so the speakers can have their peak power? What is the amp's power? I don't remember it saying on the amp.

Thanks

What model Rockford amp is there currently powering the tower speakers? You may not even need to make a change.

If its the P500-2, then it will deliver 125 watts rms to each speaker and its rated using the CEA-2006 industry standards.

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Wakesetter - It is very similar to the RF amp that is typically factory installed. If the RF is installed, I wouldn't go to the trouble to change it. Confirm the model number and we can give more specific suggestion. In the end, either amp will do just fine for 1 pair of tower speakers, but not 2 pair. -Brian

Yeah, I don't know. It was supposed to power four alpha 1's. I can check though.

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That would be great if you could. Knowing exactly what amp you have is the best way to make a comparison, thus pointing you in the right direction as to which amp will be the best in terms pf available power.

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Couldn't check today, will ASAP though. The boat is about 100 steps away in the dock, but the cover is on tight, and it is dark in there. I will go when I can get a flashlight with me. Just for a heads up, where would the model # be? How do I know what amp powers what? There are three of them.

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Couldn't check today, will ASAP though. The boat is about 100 steps away in the dock, but the cover is on tight, and it is dark in there. I will go when I can get a flashlight with me. Just for a heads up, where would the model # be? How do I know what amp powers what? There are three of them.

The model should be printed right on the face of the amp "Punch P###-#" as an example. Malibu typically uses a 4 channel for the in-boats and a 2 chnl for the sub, but I do not recall what amp is used for the tower setup. It could be a P400-4 or the P500-2. Jot down all your amp model numbers. One easy way to see what drives what is to unplug the left and right RCA signal cables pairs from each amp one at a time to see what speakers stop playing. Just unplug them with the system off, then turn the system on and listen. Then power down again and reconnect. When the two RCA's are unplugged from the tower amp, the towers will not be playing.

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Ok, here is what I found. A 500.2 amp and a 400.2 amp. I could swear there were three amps, but there was a lot of stuff in that compartment so I might not be seeing it. If there are only two, wouldn't it be better to add the exile amp?

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Ok, here is what I found. A 500.2 amp and a 400.2 amp. I could swear there were three amps, but there was a lot of stuff in that compartment so I might not be seeing it. If there are only two, wouldn't it be better to add the exile amp?

Does your boat have the sub? How many in-boats?

IF the tower speakers are wired to the 400.2, then they will be receiving 100W RMS (continuous).

If the towers are wired to the 500.2, then they will each be receiving 125W RMS. This would deliver about the same output as bridging the other 4 chnl. Staying with the 2chnl leaves the option open to add a 2nd pair of tower speakers with no amp change, simply wire the 2nd pair to the first as they would be from the factory.

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wake setter - this is beginning to get hard to follow. lets do a refresh here and ask that you list out all the gear you have in the boat stereo wise. These amps are similar to the exile amp that you have but 2 ch versions. We need to know what you have by zone

Cabin - 1 pair? 2 pair? 4 pair?

Sub - 10? 12? 15? no sub?

Tower - how many tower speakers?

with that information in play, we can give some guidance configuration wise. I think MLA is on the right track but you really need to verify the details and then its a really easy conversation.

-Brian

Exile Audio

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Ok, there are four factory Rockford Fosgate in-cabins, a 12 inch factory Rockford Fosgate sub, and two alpha 1's.

When the boat was bought, it had four alphas originally.

I want to put in two Samson smt65's in. I have an exile 400.4 amp for those.

Looking in the boat, I saw a 500.2 amp and a 400.2 amp.

I thought there was a third, but I could be wrong. There was a lot of junk in that compartment.

Should I add the exile? What should I do? Is it even possible to run the stuff on two amps, or are there three that I'm not seeing?

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Ok, there are four factory Rockford Fosgate in-cabins, a 12 inch factory Rockford Fosgate sub, and two alpha 1's.

When the boat was bought, it had four alphas originally.

I want to put in two Samson smt65's in. I have an exile 400.4 amp for those.

Looking in the boat, I saw a 500.2 amp and a 400.2 amp.

I thought there was a third, but I could be wrong. There was a lot of junk in that compartment.

Should I add the exile? What should I do? Is it even possible to run the stuff on two amps, or are there three that I'm not seeing?

Its beginning to sound like the 4 in-boats are powered off the head-unit. The sub has to be amped, and im 99% sure the towers are/where. This leaves the in-boats without an amp. If this is the case, then yes, wire up the 4 chnl and us it for the in-boats. Still, it is worth confirming which of your two amps is driving the tower.

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Yeah, can't do that now, will in march when I take it to the dealer though. How many watts is the sub? We could do a process of elimination then.

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Yeah, can't do that now, will in march when I take it to the dealer though. How many watts is the sub? We could do a process of elimination then.

The 400-2 would deliver 400W rms and the 500-2 would deliver 500W rms. In this power range to a sub, theres no real advantage, so leave that one be.

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Sub is 500x2 and the towers on mine were 400x2 and interiors were off the deck. You can move your 400x2 and load it down and have it power the 4 interiors and get a more powerful amp (150rms per channel min) to power your tower speakers.

Edited by old skool malibu
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Ok, if my new tower speakers are 125-150 watt rms, should I use the 400.2?

Also, I have 4 interior Rockfords. If I put 4 more in, would the 400.4 exile power them well?

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Ok, if my new tower speakers are 125-150 watt rms, should I use the 400.2?

Also, I have 4 interior Rockfords. If I put 4 more in, would the 400.4 exile power them well?

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Ok, if my new tower speakers are 125-150 watt rms, should I use the 400.2?

Also, I have 4 interior Rockfords. If I put 4 more in, would the 400.4 exile power them well?

To answer the first: the available 100W rms from the 400.2 could be fine, depending on how much you want out of the new speakers. At 100W, they will not be driven no where near their potential, but they will sound nice close in. Id say give it a try and see how they perform for you. if you want more, then an amp change will be in order.

Next: No, the 4 chnl you have will not do well for 8 in-boats, IMO. I would suggest stepping up to a stronger 4 chnl if that your future goal.

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Ok, would that be sufficient for 8 interior speakers?

What is the 400.4 pushing for 2 speakers each?

Yes the 400.2 can push 8 interior speakers, wiring will be a little different than with the 400.4 as you'll have to do some series/parallel runs but it's not difficult. If your goal is maximum power delivery to the gear you currently have this is the way to do it. Your towers should get about 200 watts x2 bridged. You won't be able to add a second pair of towers on that 400.4 bridged, but you could reconfigure your amps if you chose to do so, simple task.

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