Adding another pair of WS 696 to my tower

[bovhica]

I currently run a single pair of WS Pro696 on my G3 in the OEM 6x9 cans.  I'm powering the system with the stock fosgate amps.  Punch 400.2 is powering the pair on the tower now.  125 rms @ 4 ohm, which is a bit under the recommended 150 rms on the speaker specs.   I picked up another pair of Pro 696 in cans and would like to begin my install.  It's not in the budget this year to upgrade my amps but I have 2 spare amps to work with.  One is another fosgate 400.2 and the other is a Rockville RXM8BTB 8 channel. Rather than take up more space installing the 2nd fosgate to run the second pair, would it be wise to remove the current fosgate tower amp, install the 8 channel amp and bridge it to the 4 tower speakers which would give each speaker 190 rms according to the amp specs? Anything wrong with doing this?  I'm pretty much a novice and would like some input and suggestions.  Would this work? 

I will be running another set of 14awg wire for the other pair if this is the way to go. Thanks.

[jtrezon]

Looking at the specs.,either one would definitely require a 2nd pair of wires each side to ensure you have a 4-ohm load.    I can’t speak to which amp is “better”.    The factory used to parallel each pair of 6x9 so I used a 300W, 2ch @ 2-ohm.  I don’t think u can go wrong either way, but I tend to prefer the least amount of components and wire.  

[MLA]

With the existing 2 chnl amp, you can simply wire the 2nd pair to the existing pair, no additional cabling through the tower needed. There would not be audible advantage between a single 2 amps chnl driving 2 pair, or a 2nd 2 amp chnl, each driving a pair. Id retain the existing 2 chnl for now, then upgrade to a higher wattage marine grade 2 chnl later. 

While I like the sound of 190W rms v's 125W or a 100W, an 8 chnl bridged into 4 chnl mode is going to require that additional speaker wire through the tower, as well as additional RCA cables. 

[bovhica]

11 minutes ago, MLA said:

With the existing 2 chnl amp, you can simply wire the 2nd pair to the existing pair, no additional cabling through the tower needed. There would not be audible advantage between a single 2 amps chnl driving 2 pair, or a 2nd 2 amp chnl, each driving a pair. Id retain the existing 2 chnl for now, then upgrade to a higher wattage marine grade 2 chnl later. 

While I like the sound of 190W rms v's 125W or a 100W, an 8 chnl bridged into 4 chnl mode is going to require that additional speaker wire through the tower, as well as additional RCA cables. 

Thanks for the info!  So, the dual 2 ch. will basically sound the same as just the single 2 ch. Running 2 pairs? Is that because it will be 2ohm wired in parallel increasing the wattage but splitting between 2 speakers each channel?  If I'm understanding this correctly,  I may just have to break down and purchase a quality 2 channel amp to get these speakers full potential.  Any recommendations on an amp that wont break the bank?

[MLA]

Correct, a pair of 4 ohm speakers in parallel = 2 ohm. 2 ohm per chnl wattage is 200/2 speakers = 100W rms each. Two 2 chnl would be 125W to each. Not an audible difference. I would look for a 2 ohm stable 2 chnl thats at least 350W rms x 2 @ 2 ohm or better. 500-600 watt RMS x 2 @ 2 ohm is even better. 

Edited March 1, 2020 by MLA

[goodmatt78]

These speakers like power.  I went from 150 to 350W RMS and it made a hell of a difference.  I gained down my WS amp to 350 RMS using a 1K test tone.  When playing music, it is less than 350W.