Splitting 5th channel of amp

I'm trying to help a buddy of mine build a system and am not sure about something. If he goes with a 5 channel amp to power 4 doors and 2 subs, is it possible to split the 5th channel and run to both subs? If so, do the ohms of the subs make a difference? I know nothing about ohms so not even sure if this plays a role.

The amp will be an Alpine 5 channel that pushes 300 watts RMS from the 5th channel.

 

you cannot "split" the 5th channel.


The ohm load does make a difference and how you arrive at the correct ohm load will depend on what ohm the subs are.

You'll want to keep this to a 4 ohm load...so you'll either have two 2-ohm subs wired in series or two 8-ohm subs wired in parallel to get that over all 4 ohm load.

Parallel wiring is:
+ from amp to + first sub, then CONTINUE to 2nd sub + (do the same for -)

Series wiring is:
+ from amp to + first sub, then - on first sub to + on second sub, then - from second sub to - on amp (we are talking about speaker inputs here, not the 12v +/-)

 

GoBlue is correct.

 

That makes sense. Thanks GoBlue. You've been my #1 source for all things audio

 

If it's the PDX-5, you can run it at 2 ohms as well as 4 ohms.

Post up which subs you have, and we can draw you a diagram on how to wire them (if even possible with the PDX-5)

 

Since the PDX does the same for either 2 or 4 ohm and he didn't mention what he had, I kept it simple and left it at 4 ohms. That way if he had the older 5 channel he was still gtg. But you are correct.

 

I am only an old installer just getting back into this "sport". Lots has changed since the early-mid 90's. What used to be top-shelf equipment then is now MAYBE mid-pack stuff. And there are waaaaaaaay more choices these days. Almost too many IMO.

I like to follow the KISS principle (Keep It Simple Stupid) when doing this sort of stuff. I feel for the poor souls that get "sold" on equipment and pay out the nose for it, and not realize there is just as good equipment out there for less. One brand is not better over the other. Install is the key. I only try to pass this along to others as it was to me.