Wetsounds 3-some amp ?'s

Is there any other amp options to power these speakers? I was looking at a zapco 1000x4, would that be sufficient? Is there a cheaper/better set up? Maybe dual amp set up? I know the syn6 is the best option out there, I'm looking for other alternatives/cheaper alternatives? Thanks

Wetsounds has their own amps. The syn4 looks to be a good choice.

http://www.wetsounds.com/pages/products/SYN4.html

Look at the Arc Audio KAR series, you'll find they're quite comparable to the SYN's

If you are looking at Zapco's I'd also watch ebay for a precision power pcx 4125. Back in the day they used to go for $750 news but you can get them in the low $300's new.

They are monsters and have interal fans. I have one running a set of Wetsounds double Up's and 4 of their coaxials.

Syn-6

Todd,

Yes the Syn-6 is the perfect amp for the 3-Some and was designed with the 3-Some in mind. Since it can convert to a 3 ch amp. It will do 200x2 and 600x1 to the 3-Some. The chs 5-6 also allow you to sum mono the input for the 485.

With the rca summing ability. You only need a single set of rca's into the amp. It is very easy to wire and hook up for the 3-Some and provides more power than any other single amp for this set up.

The next option is the SYN-4. This would be good power on the 485 with less power on the 80's. As it will do 125x2 and 400x1.

The Zapco 1004 is a great amp. But it is over $200 more money than the SYN-6 and has less power. As it would do 150x2 and 500x1.

It is also twice the price of the SYN-4 for not a ton more power.

You could look at a dual amp set up but for the price, you would be more money than the SYN-6 to get the type of power and quality. For instance, 2 SYN-2 amps would provide 200x2 and 700x1 but would run you $120 more than a SYN-6.

Corey, the SYN amps are true marine amps. Fully conformal coated pcb boards, stainless steel chassis and hardware. Also, the rail voltage on the SYN-4 has been increased for more power at 125x4 then the 300.4 as it is 90x4. And the SYN-6 is a completely unique amplifier as it allows high pass or low pass on chs 5-6. The Arc 900.6 cannot be configured to run the 3-Some.

Tim
Wet Sounds

Would a JL 500/1 for the 485 work and a JL 300/2 for the 80's work? I realize both are slightly under powered.

Tim- so you sayin a zapco would work?? Ebay $600.00 or so.

Todd,

No the JL 500/1 is a subwoofer only amp. So that would not work.

I see the Zapco on ebay. That is a good price and a great amp and would work for sure. Only thing I would warn would be that Zapco does not allow any sales off ebay.(like us) So there would be no warranty on that amp.

So you could go for the Zapco and get 150x2 and 500x1 and be around $670 for the amp with shipping and no warranty.

Or you could get the SYN-4 for $599 and have a little less power at 125x2 and 400x1 with full warranty.

Sick truck in your profile by the way!!

Tim
Wet Sounds

Tim- I see what your sayin, does the syn4 power it enough or should I just save my pennies for the syn6?

Tell you what- I'm sellin the truck right now but I'll cut you a deal, I'll trade you straight across for your tige if you still have it for sale

We have had tons of folks do the SYN-4 on the 3-Some and love it. I of course do everything big as you can see from the truck and boat!! So I always try to go for more power with the SYN-6.

But you would be set with the SYN-4. Plus anytime you want to add to it. The SYN-4 is able to run in boats, in boats and sub etc...so always a solid amp to have.

Thanks! But I dont think the wife would dig that trade.

Tim
Wet Sounds

Ok sounds good.

I hear ya about the wife, mines all over me to sell the truck.

How would I go about painting my 3-some? They are white. Any tips? Thanks.

Oh yeah- what's the warranty like for your products?

http://www.themalibucrew.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=18762

Thread on painting the speakers. Some good info there. 1 year warranty. But I am sure others can tell you how we work with everyone to make sure our customers are always happy and go above and beyond. So no worries.

Tim
Wet Sounds

^^^ Yup!!

Owner posting to WW making sure everyone is happy with his product. You have to love that service and commitment.

Thanks Tim-

By the way I wish all company's stand by their product, the way it sounds like you do. We try our best to do the same at our company also, it sure pays off even if sometimes it comes right off the top! Keeping customers Happy = stayin in business, even through the tough times. Thanks again.

Wet Sounds definitely goes beyond normal customer support and service. You can tell that Tim is proud of his product and is right there and knows the ins and outs of every product line. As tigebell said the owner posting on the forums many times daily speaks for itself and they are a great company to do business with! You can tell that Tim and everybody there wants to make sure you are happy and without a doubt they go above and beyond.
I have called Justin a few times asking questions and I'm sure bugging him to death with questions, but I am very thankful he has helped me and was so willing to do whatever he could to make sure I was happy with everything, especially with the odd way my speakers will have to mount.

alpine pdx 4.150.. wetsounds recommended it to me 3 months before they came out with their over priced amps

Thanks Tigebell, Todd and Greg!!

As for you William.

Do some research on amplifiers.

You say ours are overpriced yet you list the Alpine PDX 4.150

Alpine PDX 4.150 $699.
SYN-4 is $599.

Little confused here with your math.

Pdx 4.150 is 150x4 and SYN-4 is 125x4. Syn-4 is full marine rated and stainless steel. A little less power but also $100 less expensive but is full marine vs car audio.

So to compare a marine amp to a marine amp.

Alpine Pdx 4.100M (marine) 100x4 $599
SYN-4 125x4 $599

Same price. Both marine but SYN amp is 25 watts more per channel.

Looks like a pretty good deal to me.

Alpine PDX 1.1000 1000x1 watt car amp $799
SYN-1 1000x1 watt marine amp $799

Looks pretty good to me or am I missing something again with your math.

Did you not even read the comparisons on this very thread?? More value than Zapco that Todd was looking at.

I would say that our amps are priced very competitively. You have to compare the amps to the higher end models.

The SYN amps use a class H power supply. Microprocessor controller, full stainless steel chassis, conformal coated boards. High end parts. There is a lot more expense in building these amps. So the price is right on. As you get a ton of performance and technology for the money. They are a marine amplifier and not a car amplifier. They are an advanced technology and not a class ab.

Also, more value than JL and many of the other high end amp lines.

JL Slash 300/4 class ab 75x4 $559
SYN-4 125x4 $599

Looks like a pretty good value to me. You get a fully marine rated amp with a switching power supply, in stainless steel and 50 watts more per channel for $40 more.

I would say that is pretty awesome.

Jl slash 1000/1 1000 x1 car amp $1,099
SYN-1 1000x1 marine amp $799

Wow, you get the marine amp with all the other features and same power for $300 CHEAPER!

I can go on all day.

JL MHD amps full range class d like the pdx.

MHD600/4 150x4 $899
SYN-4 125x4 $599
SYN-6 $999

So, for $300 LESS you can get the SYN-4 that is close to the power, a bit less by 25 per ch.

And for about the same price, $100 more. You can get the SYN-6 that has a lot more power. Compare the SYN-6 in 4 ch mode, it will do 200x2 and 155x2. So more power but also more flexibility as it can run anything you want.

I see that being an amazing value there.

JL MHD 750/1 750x1 $799
SYN-1 1000x1 $799

Wow, same price but the Syn-1 is 250 watts more power!

Again, pretty great deal there.

And trust me. I really can go on all day. It is my job to know the market and this business and the competition.

We strive to provide the best product on the market and the best value. I am big on that word Value. As in getting what you paid for. Sure you can buy a cheap amp anywhere at any flea market etc...

But when comparing high quality product to high quality product. I feel that it is pretty clear that we are an amazing value.

Tim
Wet Sounds

Tim-

A couple of questions/comments, can car amps be used in boats and whats the difference? I currently have a JL 500/1 pushin a JL12w6, and I think the reason for my original post is the amp that is designed to power the 3 some is the syn6 1k, and I am the type of guy to find a really good deal, just bought the 3 some brand new for $1100, and I bought the JL amp and sub I have for $400, And I would love to purchase the syn6, I cannot find the syn6 at a discounted price anywhere(craigslist/ebay etc.), that is the reason I posted I wanted to know if there was a product that was similar(on one of the discount sites) to the syn6 that people have used or recommended. Is there any way a getting the syn6 for discounted price or referbished price? Hopefully this makes some sort of sense.

Todd, call Wetsounds directly (1-877-938-7757). At times, they do have blemished items for a discounted price. Blemish being that it still functions properly but there might be a cosmetic defect on the casing.

You will also get more information from them faster than on here. Yes, Tim is quick but not as quick as the phone line is

Just my $.02

(Message edited by dabell on January 29, 2009)

William, your immaturity really shows through on that comment. I think it is fine to come in and recommend another solution but there is no need at all to slam Tim's product. Look at the comparisons that Tim just made. His amps may be expensive but when you factor in quality, features, marine use and customer service they look to be priced right where they should be.

Todd,

Many people use car audio amps and do not have any issues in fresh water. Others do. It is hard to say. Some really take care of their boats, let them dry out. Store them inside. Others leave the carpet wet and put on a cover and it stays outside in the rain. So car audio might last for the first guy but might fail in a short time for the other guy.

Many have used car audio for so long because there was not any options for high performance marine audio in the past. Now there is a lot of options so you can use the marine products to know that your system will last and perform no matter what.

Salt water, you want marine no matter what.

A marine amp will have a conformal coated board and usually stainless hardware.

Ours is conformal coated pcb board, stainless steel chassis and hardware, thicker double side pcb for vibration, and power supply designs that do not pull as much current, forced fan cooling system as well.

As the 3 biggest issues facing a marine amp is. Moisture, Current Draw and Heat.

We have a strict policy on our products. We make sure that all of our dealers advertise and sell our products at msrp. We also do not allow any dealer to sell on ebay or craigslist. If we find out. We terminate their dealership. We do not allow online sales except for the few that have to be pre approved. We also do not like dealers discounting the products at all with a walk in sale but sometimes customers get a good deal. Which it seems you have. But it is not the norm.

Tim
Wet Sounds

Tim-
Is tigebell right when he says you guys have blems at discounted prices?

Yeah, Sometimes. Show samples, rep samples, scratch and dent etc...so it is all timing if we have anything in.

Tim
Wet Sounds

What kind of car amp would the 485 need to power it? Does JL have one?

hey tim .. i paid 529 for my amp and have a bill to prove it. you looking at retail price buddy.. who pays retail ?

even on my 3 some i got it for a little over 1400..

and if you really want to go cheap you can buy pdx on ebay for way less but i wouldnt go there cause i know you dont get the warranty..

i wasnt putting you amps down just saying that it my opinion . you pay for what you get and alpine i believe is a cut above and is worth the money for the quality and efficiency..

chill buddy..

im buying 3 sets of your in boats speakers next week.. lol

If you didn't pay retail for your 3-some why pay retail for your SYN amp?

If nobody pays retail why are the SYN amps overpriced.

I am not trying to argue, just wondering what the reason is behind your comments.

brett you know nothing about me so how you can call me immature im not sure but ok buddy.. i gave my opinion. thought thats what this site was for.. ha ha .. so wipe the sand out of your vagina and stop crying.. as for tim knocking the car audio amps.. your people specifically recommended that amp over the marine grade pdx because of the power. so i guess you saying that your peoples suggestions are the wrong ones am i correct? maybe i shouldnt have trusted yall if yall were gonna steer me in the wrong direction.

in my defense i have my boat decked out with your products Tim .. 3 some. bout to be in boat speakers and maybe 2 xxx subs. still debating between them and some l7s or jl w7s.. maybe you could give me some constructive thinking on that instead of attacking me .. and weather i should go ported or sealed.. or if you want to ash a customer maybe i should maybe just go polk audio or jl.

oh ya and forgot to tell you i have a brand new ws 420 sitting on my counter also. again. wasnt trying to knock you product. just expressed my opinion on amps.

I'm still tryin to figure out if there are any other amps that will power a 485? Besides a wetsounds amp. I really want to look at all my options quality and price wise a make a decision, it is probably gonna be a wetsounds but I would like all the info mostly on other amps besides wetsounds since Tim has been so kind to supply me with tons of info via this thread?

Oh and I'm am CAPTAIN of this thread, lets all just get along.

William -I think if you would have left out 2 words(over priced) in you 1st comment we would have not have had all this bickering. Since I'm CAPTAIN there will be no more of this not nice talking.

I" I" captain.. are you gonna run the 3 some or just 1 485? ok let me rephase this.. if you are running the 3 some. "I run a alpine pdx 4.150 that wetsounds recommended to me before their amps came out". i think the amp that wetsounds has to offer in comparison to the pdx will leave you speakers under power and the 3 some needs power. ONLY MY OPINION

So how much power does the pdx give to each speaker in the 3some? The reason for the amp for the 485 is I was thinkin of runnin a JL 300/2 to the 80's and a _________ to the 485?

William,

Sorry if you thought mine was a bash. But when you come on here and make comments like that, they warrant a response. I think that the response was a very logical one and in no way derogatory to you. Pretty straight forward and just stating the facts.

MSRP is MSRP, how else are you going to compare. Sounds like you have a place that works with you on some good prices. That is good. So as Aaron put it. Why make the comment if you never pay retail any way?

It is clear that the amps are right on in terms of price against the other brands in the industry, Alpine Jl and others.

I also don't see where I ever knocked on the car audio amps at all. I made it clear that many run them with no problems since we are most in fresh water. All you need to do is take care of your boat and make sure to watch the moisture build up.

Yes, alpine does not have a marine version in the 150x4, only the 100x4. We have been working on our amps for a long time but since we did not have amps to sell, we get questions every day on what we recommend. My sales guys always suggested higher quality amps like Alpine, Arc, JL, Zapco etc...As we gave customers options for what they needed.

So now we have our own amp line. So, yes we of course recommend our own amps as they were designed to power our speakers.

I must be missing something but I still do not see anywhere that I attacked you in this thread. All I did was say do some research on the amps and the prices. And listed them for you so you didn't even have to look around for them. No attacking there.

I appreciate your support of our line. And would love to help you out in getting the best for your boat. For the XXX woofers, I recommend the ported enclosures for sure. There is a box idea in the manual for it. Feel free to email me direct and I will help lay out some ideas. I really am here to help.

Also, as for the 3-Some amp comment on power. "I run a alpine pdx 4.150 that wetsounds recommended to me before their amps came out". i think the amp that wetsounds has to offer in comparison to the pdx will leave you speakers under power and the 3 some needs power"

You can have an opinion, that’s fine. I know that is what this site is all about. I like Blue boats, I like Red ones. Whatever. Those are opinions.

But here are the simple FACTS. Again all I ever talk about it spec for spec and price for price. I do not bash another brand or ever say derogatory comments. I have friends at many of these companies as I have been in this industry for a long time. I have friends at JL, Alpine, MTX etc…

You are running the pdx 4x150. So you have 150x2 to the 80's and 300 x1 to the 485.

With the SYN-6 amp. You will have 200x2 and 600x1. 50 watts more per 80 and twice the power on the 485 than what you have. The SYN-6 is the only amp that can provide that much power to the 3-Some in a single amp solution. So tons and tons of power.

The SYN-4 would be 125x2 and 400x1. So compared to what you have now, 25 watts less on the 80's but 100 watts more on the 485. Not too far off on the 80's and more on the 485.

Again I don’t see your logic here either.

So not trying to bash here. I am just trying to follow the logic. You have our speakers. But have never heard the amps. So you do not know how they sound or the quality of them. Yet, you make the comment that they are over priced. And now comments about the power. When it is clear that we are in line with the others on the market on price and on some models have a TON more power and others are very close.

I am just not following. I also see that you are in BCS. You go to A&M? If so, I am a fellow aggie. So we should be nice to each other.

So I will leave it at that. Just saying keep an open mind to new things. You never know you might like them. And look at the facts.

Tim
Wet Sounds

ok. cool.. sorry about the comments and i see i was wrong in saying that and got embarressed and got defensive. there i said it.. ok so back to the subs. that xxx sub seems kinda power hungry would i need to upgrade my alt or should i be ok. also is the ported box gonna be ok with rock and alternative music. and the shop down the road is really trying to talk me into the w7 sealed. in YOUR HONEST opinion do you think that the xxx will out perform the w7 sealed?

i really want all wetsounds in my boat it would be clean and its a tige so gotta rock the wetsounds

Tim- How do you do all this ww stuff without gettin in trouble w/ the wife? Mine gives me a hard time in the evening when I get home and I'm on ww. I tell her me being on ww is like her being on facebook-ha.

Who do I need to talk to to see if anything is available in your scratch and dent section? Since it sounds like I'm just gonna have to buck up and get a syn4 or 6. Unless there is an option for the 485 powering that I've been asking about.

Oh and go Huskies

interesting thread... Ive used car amps in my boat, and marine amps. Both worked great. Ive had two "off" brand amps and i guess ive just gotten lucky, because both have worked great.

I redid my jeep with all focal speakers and not the entry level ones and i needed a 4 channel amp and i had kind of run out of money. I hopped on ebay and found a 4 channel amp that was some no name brand but all the stats fit exactly what i needed for a 100 bucks new. So i took a big risk and went for it. Ive had tons of people listen to it along with a lot of car audio guys and people cant believe i get the sound and power i get out of it. If i had the money id throw down for an alpine, jl, wetsounds or whatever, but 500 to 700 dollars is outrageous for an amp. Dont chince on the speakers and from my experience really dont chince on the head unit. My jeep speakers were 450 bucks a pair and the head unit was 400 dollars. Maybe one day ill upgrade but for now my 100 dollar amp is running strong, cool, and sounding good every day for a year and a half. (i know thats a different application but its just an example that it can work, and i have a similar story for the boat)

Ok cool.

Both the XXX and W-7 are power hungry. So either option. You will be in the same situation in terms of power. Depends on how big the alternator and batteries. I run the Kinetik batteries and build a bank so I have plenty of juice.

I have 3 XS-XXX in my boat. One is slot loaded and the other 2 are reverse mounted sealed. Since it is also a show boat. I can tell you the slot loaded really hammers. I prefer a slot loaded ported box for both rock and alternative and rap etc...I prefer a sealed in my home theater. But in a boat. Most are rocking out so the ported is the ticket.

The W-7 is an amazing woofer. Would never say anything bad about it. And that both woofers are comparable in terms of output. The XXX can play in a little bit smaller sealed box and both are about the same in terms of the ported box sizes. But would recomend slot load either way you go.

Tim
Wet Sounds

Todd, funny you say that. I was at dinner with her tonight and looked at this thread on my iphone and she took my phone away!!

Tim
Wet Sounds

ok thank you tim.. one las question.. in my 22v do you think one woould do the trick. i want to make the water ripple a little. and what should the sloted poted box be tuned to. also i run just two orbital gel filled batteries .

i have a spare memphis 1000 d . that should push that xxx correct. i think that would leave the jl maybe a little under power since it wants 3 ohms. or am i wrong.

Ken from wakeoutlaws has a single XS-XXX in his boat in a slot loaded box tuned at 40 HZ. It fires side ways. That boat pounds with a single woofer.

So if you are ever around conroe, it is the wakeoutlaws centurion with the crazy wrap. Ken will give you a demo for sure.

The guys from Hydrotunes in Austin that did our last two demo boats just finished a Tige with a single XS-XXX in a slot loaded box with a SYN-1 (1000) to it. I got a chance to hear this boat and can tell you it really pounds. www.hydrotunes.com Give Trey or Justin a shout and they can help you out with the box layout.

The memphis 1000 looks to be a great fit as I think that amp does 1000x1 at 1 ohms. The JL is 3 ohms so that amp will be doing 750 or so. But that would still be fine for the JL too as you can see in their site that is in their safe power range chart.

As for batteries. I would look at adding another one. I run the Kinetik batteries. They have never let me down and they have so many amp hours that I can play the system forever and never start the boat.

Tim
Wet Sounds

William- are you happy with your pdx 4.150, Is there anything I shoud know about it? Did you have it on the 3 some or the double up?

Tim- when you did your comparison on the syn4 to the pdx 4.150 there is no tech info on difference just price. Is the pdx comparable to the syn4 in power and performance?

Tim, interesting you prefer a sealed enclosure for HT. Ported subs will go much lower which is ideal for HT.

I'm running a pair of sealed SVS subs in my HT setup. Had to go that route because I had to keep the wife happy. The ported subs are twice the size.

Sorry to get off topic. Just had to ask.

i have it on the 3 some and i have been very happy with it. its never gotten hot and its really efficient

hey tim i actually have moved from bryan to lake conroe. we bought a house on the water so i would love to get into contact with ken. thanks man and i apologize again for my comment the otherday. from now on i will watch what i say

What does the alpine have runnin? 150 to each 80 and 300 to the 485?

yes that is correct.. thats what mine is running