I'm looking at at a small amplifier to power my new front Rainbow component speakers, and the "Vibe Slick Stereo 2 (Class D)" http://www.vibesuperstore.co.uk/products/2/106/vibe_slick_stereo_2_-_2_channel_amplifier/ and the "Hertz HE 2.1 (Class A/B)" http://www.hertzaudiovideo.com/Doc/hertz_HE_2_1_tech.pdf fit my budget.

Which one will sound the best?

Are you sound deadening the doors and carriers? Uprating wiring? As this will also make a difference to speaker performance

I'm having the Skinz pack installed on the front doors (sound deadening on the doors, waveform-absorbing foam behind the woofers), and they're charging me £80 for the wiring so I assume it will be top notch.

I just wonder whether a Class D Vibe Amp is better/worse than a Class AB Hertz amp around the same price. I want a clean, open sound at the end of the day.

Personally I'm a firm believer of matching speakers and amps of the same manufacturer. Many many moons ago I had a mtx audio sub in my nova it sounded ok with the cheap amp I first picked up. But the stumbled across an unboxed mtx audio amp only a small one 150w in a local halfrds clearance cabinet. Fitted it and it completely transformed the sound it became painful to turn the volume up too much as the bass level and punchy ness was unbelievable

I had a Vibe Lite Air amp in my Evo and it was excellent , as are Vibe speakers , they are great value for money

Was this amp a Class D? I can't see it on their website http://www.vibeaudio...car/amplifiers/

Which one of these amps is similar to the one you had? I want to pick one that's best for clear full-frequency sound.

Dunno what class it was i went for it because it was light and small enough to fit under the passenger seat

Based on price it was probably the space range as it was about £200

BUT

I was going to fit some Vibe speakers in my new car but ordered the Slick ones (£50 for 6.5's) instead of the Black air (£100 for 6.5S) and the slicks are really good, ive currently fitted them in the doors but will fit some Black airs in there and use the slicks for fill in the rear

I do have a quality head unit though

So if money is tight consider the slick or black air

Go for class ab for full range door speakers. class Ds are mainly for Low level Big bass that's what iv used them for found they couldn't properly reach the high notes

Generally class AB is preferred to class D amp for mids/tweeters and class D is more efficient in general but also depends on the amp. I would have gone for a 4 channel amp for a little extra so you can easily add a sub at a later date if you need one.

Thanks for your advice guys. I think I'll go for a 4-channel amp in case I'd like a sub at a later date. My Kenwood DNX521DAB head unit has separate rear RCA outs for a sub so I guess if the fitter connects cables from these sub-outs on the head to the amp then he won't have to get out the head unit again when I finally buy a sub (although will I need a pro installer to connect the sub up to the power?). I'll budget a little bit extra and go for a Class AB amp rather than a Class D, the Hertz HE4 seems to fit the bill. Any thoughts? (with a separate amp, is it on all the time and draining the battery, or does it only power up when I switch on the head unit?).

Since your Kenwood has RCA pre-outs, it will also have a remote amp switch. Your installer will know how to connect everything, so there will be no battery drainage issues. The amp will only come on when you switch on your headunit, so no need to worry.

Thanks FAB59!

Hertz HE4 is good, there is plenty of choice around that price range. The amp will only turn on when the head unit tells it to, i.e. via a signal called 'remote' signal. If you do go for a 2 channel amp you'll need extra wiring and an extra amp for a sub if you decide to get one in the future.For the time being a 4 channel amp can be set up/bridged to run in 2 channel mode.

Thanks!

What about the JL HD range?

Does the Kenwood have digital outs?

I'll check.....thanks