Help me choose an amp!!

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Ok now that I got that out of the way...

I am looking to upgrade the sound system in my 3G. I've got speakers and subs in mind, but I'm not sure how I should go about selecting an amp. Does anyone have a formula for this based on speaker wattages?

I'm planning to get the following:

- 5.25's in the doors, 150w/ea.

- 6x9 3-ways in the rear deck, 400w/ea.

- 2 10's in the trunk, 600w/ea

I haven't decided yet whether to get dual cones or component 5.25's. The component ones I think are like $15-20 more for the set, including a built-in independent crossover between the mids and the horns. Any opinions on why I should get whichever kind would be welcome, however this is irrelevant for calculating wattages because both the component set and the dual cones handle the same amount of power.

So how do I go about this? Do I just add up the peak wattages of everything and get an amp that puts out that much?

Also wtf is the deal with adjustable bridge crossover?! Is this so I can put less wattage on the pussy speakers up front and more on the beefy ones in the back?

I've seen mostly 4-channel amps but I will have six speakers, counting the subs. Should I just splice the subs into the amp outputs consumed by 6x9's? This is how I hooked up my RF 15's to the factory Bose system in the other car and it sounded fine.. but a Chevy is a different beast entirely.

And lastly are there any electrical system upgrades that need to be done to the car before it'll support all this shit?

for the electrical side, you will want to run a power cable directly from the battery and fuse it. You also want to keep the gound the same guage as the power and make the ground no longer than 16-18"
you will also need to run a remote power from the back of the deck

Well...you want to run your speakers and ytou subs off the same amp...make sure that it is a 5-channel...For Example, Memphis makes the Memphis Belle that you can get off ebay for likt $500-$600...it is a 4 channel amp along with a mono amp all together...It is equal to the ST3004 and the ST500D put together into one amp...so it will cover your 4 speakers and the mono channel for your subs

Also if you want everything run off amps MAKE SURE YOU GET A CAPACITOR...or else your alternator will crap the bed...If you dont know what a cap is...just think of a toilet...when you flush it it takes time to fill again before you can flush it again...but with a capacitor you would "be able to flush non-stop without having to wait again" It jsut stores energy so taht it doesn't suck it from your battery and kill your alternator.

Also...make sure that you dont buy crap amps like Pyramid and Legacy...cause if you want a good sound system get the good stuff...My theory is...the sound system moves from car to car...so tis not like oyu have to buy a new one everytime you get a car...

basically when it comes to choosing an amp its comes down to the amount of money you are willing to spend and what your speakers can handle...just because a door speaker is 100 watts chances are you feed 100 watts to it you will blow the voice coils out of the water because the speaker it self may only hold 45 watts of RMS(continous power handling) really if you are looking to power your componets and your subs you dont not have to have them on the same amp if you buy a distribution block, me personally i spent a little more to power my system but I am looking to redo my componets... I hooked up with WWW.CRUTCHFIELD.COM and bought a street wires distribution block and 4 guage power wire because i am running 3 massive 500/1 JL AUDIO amps all fed seperatly by compacators known as power caps and they are powering my 3 Eclipse 12" subs but with my componet system i am running a simple ALPINE V-12 amp which gives 50 watts of RMS 4 ways now with that setup my car has actually reached 153 SPL at competitions giving me a few trophies but my compnets are weak honestly for compnets i would stay close to Alpine, Rockford Fosgate or if you are gonna hook your compnets and subs to the same amp look at the WWW.JLAUDIO.COM new 5 Channel amp its sick

jbl bp1200.1 itll give you 600w to 2 speakers (assuming you wire it right) for like $265-285

go to caraudioforum.com, they'll help you alot on picking the best stuff for what you want to spend, and explain how everything works.

hey man, why don't you just get 2 amps?
Run one low power amp to your speakers. (in fact I suggest you don't even get an amp for speakers, because most decent head units put out enough power, unless you're looking for comp. setup, which doesn't seem the case. Therefore, just look for RCA outputs at the back of your headunit. RUn them into a PHAT amp, which runs your two 10" subs (stereo!) ....
That is the best way I reckon. Also, its better to have your amp outpower your subs a little. Thus, get a 2 channel 600W or greater Amp. That should be sufficient for your purposes.

Ill have a 1000watt AKAI 4channel amp running my front and rears, although i might just spend an extra $200 and get the MTX.

I'll be running 2x12's off two 2x150WRMS amps where i'll run the amps at 450x1 RMS at 4ohms

look here, nice selection cheap prices http://www.savinglots.com/home.asp

Thanks for the link. I might go ahead and get an AIWA head from them to control my changer (see my other "I am a stereo n00b" post for info about my changer problem). I've got my speaker situation figured out, getting Infinity 6x9's and 5.25's :) Probably an Infinity amp later on. Going to get the changer thing straightened out first though... more as it develops...

First of all the Memphis Belle is a st3004 and a 1000d not a 500d all in the same chassis. It doesn't matter if you run two separate amplifiers or a 5 channel. The only difference is a 5 channel is a cleaner install because of one power wire and ground. I very much dislike Aiwa head units. Very poorly made. Infinity amplifiers are also overpriced. I would go with the Memphis Belle for bang for your buck.