Running all speakers on single amp

[AZMark]

I have a 212 limited with 6 Polk DB652 / 522 speakers run off the head unit. No tower speakers or soundbar. From what I've read here these are decent speakers, but I think they are obviously underpowered by the Polk headunit. I'm just looking for better sound quality on a minimal budget, not trying to blast everyone out.

I am considering buying a Polk 5000.5 5 channel amp to run the existing speakers and two new DB652 speakers I'd like to put near the helm. Down the road I would probably add an 8" sub to channel 5.

Would running the existing 6 speakers on one of these amps be a significant improvement over the current stock setup? If I ran two in parallel at 2 ohms on each channel it would be splitting 100w. This seems like it would be much better than stock, but I have no direct experience.

If I do everything I'm planning on I will be running 9 speakers on this amp - 2 speakers each, in parallel @ 2 ohms on channels 1-4 and a sub @ 4ohms on channel 5. Do those of you that have these amps (maybe @jcyamaharider ?) think this would be an ok permanent setup or would it overwork the single amp?

 

[jcyamaharider]

Technically speaking that would work just fine the only worry that I would have is what it would be doing in extreme heat conditions. I really like those polk amps and I have 2 4000.4 in my boat for the interior. The 5000.5 is a good little amp, but if you are looking for a lot of power for a sub I would get a dedicated sub amp.

 

[AZMark]

Technically speaking that would work just fine the only worry that I would have is what it would be doing in extreme heat conditions. I really like those polk amps and I have 2 4000.4 in my boat for the interior. The 5000.5 is a good little amp, but if you are looking for a lot of power for a sub I would get a dedicated sub amp.

Thank you. You're right, I regularly boat in 105+ temps so heat is a concern.

That amp is only $245 right now, which seems like a smoking deal compared to others I was looking at. The 4000.4 isn't much less at $220, but maybe that would be wiser for now and then add the dedicated sub amp when I get to that point. The 4 channel is a bit more power per channel too.

 

[jcyamaharider]

In my last boat I was running 2 4000.4 and a 1000.1 on 2 12" polk DVC subs. That boat sounded great as well. A lot more bass then my current boat, but I think it all blends out nicely so I don't miss it too much.

 

[BlkGS]

Thank you. You're right, I regularly boat in 105+ temps so heat is a concern.

That amp is only $245 right now, which seems like a smoking deal compared to others I was looking at. The 4000.4 isn't much less at $220, but maybe that would be wiser for now and then add the dedicated sub amp when I get to that point. The 4 channel is a bit more power per channel too.

This is what I would do. Remember, the closer to max power you're using, the more heat you're making. In a car, no big deal you're venting to an interior area with Ac and overall cool air. In a boat, you're using the same hot air you had to start with to cool., with no AC. You usually get enough airflow to keep stuff cool, but as other said, on a hot sunny day bumping tunes and sitting... Could overheat. More power is always better.

 

[F.M.]

Thank you. You're right, I regularly boat in 105+ temps so heat is a concern.

That amp is only $245 right now, which seems like a smoking deal compared to others I was looking at. The 4000.4 isn't much less at $220, but maybe that would be wiser for now and then add the dedicated sub amp when I get to that point. The 4 channel is a bit more power per channel too.

I agree with @jcyamaharider, the 4000.4 is a little better than the 5000.5. You'll be fine running the speakers in parallel on whatever amp as long as it's rated to run at 2 ohms.

Funny story....I actually traded @jcyamaharider my 4000.4 amp for his 5000.5 amp. (He wanted 2 4s and I wanted 2 5s) But I later wished I had gone with 2 4s and a dedicated amp for my subs too. But I think it'll work out. I have my 2 10in subs run in parallel on one amp and an open sub channel on the other. With my time off work currently, I'll hopefully finally get around to installing 2 more subs in parallel on the 2nd amp. Fingers crossed, I'm able to hide it from the wife in with some other Amazon junk.

 

[AZMark]

I agree with @jcyamaharider, the 4000.4 is a little better than the 5000.5. You'll be fine running the speakers in parallel on whatever amp as long as it's rated to run at 2 ohms.

Funny story....I actually traded @jcyamaharider my 4000.4 amp for his 5000.5 amp. (He wanted 2 4s and I wanted 2 5s) But I later wished I had gone with 2 4s and a dedicated amp for my subs too. But I think it'll work out. I have my 2 10in subs run in parallel on one amp and an open sub channel on the other. With my time off work currently, I'll hopefully finally get around to installing 2 more subs in parallel on the 2nd amp. Fingers crossed, I'm able to hide it from the wife in with some other Amazon junk.

No kidding about the wife...with this lockdown she never leaves for me to hide anything! In the last week I've ordered boat buckles, guide poles, and now I'm working on the stereo, extended sun shade, and probably a shelter to store the boat in. I got permission for the guide poles...

 

[F.M.]

I got permission for the guide poles...

Good luck with the rest of the stuff!