Brianinpdx

Just saw this post - I think 800.4's at this point are sold out. They flew out the door. SQ in 2 channel mode is spectacular btw at 4ohm's. That amp really is a work horse. But its been replaced by the XM15.4. It will more than power your XM7's or 's or 10's. Dynamically, the amp has a ton of headroom. Enjoy it. -Brian

SD - I dont see the point in putting a 30 band EQ in a boat. I see a lot move value in the Zone Control abilities that the three models you mentioned. Hands down thats the right way to go. Punt the 30 band. I really dont want to get into a brand fight about ws/exile/audio control. They all are great product. And my advice earlier about amplifier gains, would go for any of those products. Number 1 tech call we receive is from guys that install a ZLD and his system is to "sensitive" after the install. All these products allow you to turn your amp gains down considerably. Read -- "eliminate noise floor". -Brian

SD - congrats on your tower upgrade. If you need any help tuning or getting it dialed in (gain adj etc), make sure to hit up Rob or myself. Rob is usually on our website live... I'm usually can be found at the office. The ZLD you mentioned will dramatically change how you tune the boat from a gain adj point of view. If thats something you add at a later date, make SURE to turn all the amp gains down. -Brian

Dreamer - If your going to wire, use a 12 Gauge conductor and do it right. It's not that much more cost than a 14ga cable. Let us know it turns out. Brian

Kramer- I'd pass on the cap and opt instead for a second battery. The primary reason these devices found their way into automotive world is because of the long runs of power cables from frog to back which can result i'n up to 1.5volt drop. In a boat the batteries are usually located next to an amp rack makin the cap pointless. Additionally they can become a current drain over the winter when the boat is not i'n service. A distro block, especially a fused one is always a good idea. I'm much more i'n favor of that versus those valet breakers... If you need some help with the harpoon wiring, send me an email and I can forward you a setup and tuning tech tip that lays out clearly how to install. Good stuff to have.

Zet - There is no deal with the XM9. It's not a product yet. As David mentioned..... 2011 bring out many new products... XM9 being 1 of them. I see your in the East Bay. If you have a chance I'd go see Dennis at Liquid Trends NorthBay. He does lots of Enzo's and usually has one or two in his shop with Xm7's installed. Have a listen. Depending on what your sub setup looks like XM9 wont have a huge impact to the sound stage. XM9 aimed at consumers that are looking for just 1 pair of speakers on the tower or the guy that just wants over the top performance. From my point of view, these things are huge, and take up a ton of space on a tower when 2 pairs are installed. I prefer the smaller physical package of the XM7 combined with a beefy sub. But hey, we listen to the market....you want it... we build it. Time will tell -Brian Exile Audio

Very interesting thread you have going here. One of the real world situations boats encounter that are in the "cast tower club" is that many times the mounting position of speakers is such that they install in very low or even awkward positions and produce some not so ideal results. Translation: Pro audio based speaker designs (yes ours too) in these places typically puts passengers on the observer back into the Memorex commercial with their ears getting blown back from to much focused sound pressure. So the question becomes, "How do I turn up my system for the surfer and NOT hurt the ears of the people in the boat" and still give my rider/surfer/boarder a full force rock concert. We've come up with 2 solutions and gone at it two different approaches. The info below is presented as a what we did and why we did it. It's not an advertisement to buy our warez. Here's what we've been working on: XM7 configuration - pro audio based speakers: As mentioned above they can still sound really harsh to passengers. When used primarily as a surf setup, we suggest the installer flip an internal switch on the crossover that allows the HLCD horn to be damped down almost 5db. This gives more of a linear response where the horn and midbass combined. This modification alone offers a nice result but honestly, doesnt solve the problem completely. Combined with the Harpoon amplifier you have even more control of the sound field by using the throttle box feature. David is definitely on to something in his suggestion about phase. The Tbox applies a proprietary filter that alters the speaker phase and lets the user focus the hlcd horn in a narrow or wide pattern on the fly. This gives you a sharper or wider (warmer) sound field. The Tbox will work in the same way with any brand HLCD but will have slightly different results as we used our speaker targets to model the curves. So, where we happy with all of this fancy stuff? Simple answer = it's pretty damn good but, we've got another idea. The second configuration that launched in 2010 was the SXT design. I don't want to get into all its features as it doesn't matter in this context. What we did is design a tower speaker that can handle LOTS of power but is based on a 1" titanium dome tweeter in lieu of a horn. This tweeter is more closely matched from an efficiency and point of view. The rest of design uses much of the same parts as its big brother but not the horn. The result has been spectacular and when combined with a powerful amplifier they allow the user to turn up the volume with a VERY wide sound field and not blow away the sun deck crowd. So, here's the conclusion we've come to at Exile for the surf crowd. Use 4 or 6 pods (depending on the size of your wallet) of the SXT speaker and power them with the harpoon at either 2 ohm (or yes even at 1 ohm stereo), and let it rip. The dynamic range is fantastic and sounds great up close... even as the volume goes up up and away to infinity and beyond. The initial testing (beginning season 2010 ) with Wakeboarders back at 80 feet all say the same thing.... only a minor loss of upper freq but still very clear. The Key is give them POWER. -Brian Exile Audio

Yellj - Nice looking boat and nice looking installation. Glad to hear everything worked out well. Not sure if anyone offered any tuning advice but you might take a look at this pdf for the signal side setup. tuning info Hopefully everything turned out great and you just enjoy the tunes! -Brian Exile Audio

Yellj - SYN2 will not be enough power to properly run 2 sets of XM7. You'd need 2 of those amplifiers. That amplifier puts out only about 70% of the power of the harpoon. Throttle box is a 80.00 optional controller that lets you configure the sound of your speakers for distance or upclose listening positions by refocusing several technical aspects of the speakers. Harpoons are difficult to find right now as the entire first production was soldout to people that waited 30+ days for them. I suspect you'll have to get in line for that amplifier if you go that route. I'd check with your retailer first. People that are in the know have flocked to it. there is no amp on the market like it. Most dont understand it. -Brian Exile Audio

Interesting read guys... I'll chime in and make the suggestion that you guys loading the crap out of amplifiers take a look at your whole system approach an break things down into zones. CABIN / SUB/ TOWER and power them accordingly. Tim's advice on configuration is good. Take it to heart. People sometimes get confused by spec's and ften times what is spec'd doesnt pan out in the real world. Why does 1 amp work, and another not? it has to do with the way its built. Dirtracer - oldschool still exists today. I dont mean to shamelessly plug myself but I kinda chuckled when I read your comments about PG in the early days. I was one the 5 original guys there that designed nasty, heavy duty, beat the tar out of it amplifiers in the early 90's. I left that company in 2002 and started Exile after it was clear they didnt want to build enthusiast gear any longer. It's somewhat an insiders joke the name Exile. Meaning, "we put our selves into Exile when we left". Several of us made the leap. Tim - I didnt know you ran the 2240. What a great 24 watt amp eh? The MPS amps where my first project for PG. I still remember my counter part Larry Frederick (David probably remembers him) saying to me.... Lets rate this animal at 24Wx2 at 4 ohms and make people totally lost! I remember the tech calls well, when the un-informed would hook that 'expensive' amp up to a couple of speakers and cry "IT DONT HIT". After they loaded it down to 1 ohm, .5ohm, .25ohm, I'd get a call back and say OMG! In todays world, I run 18 drivers off the Exile version of that amp. Still has that old school triple darlington design, Sakens bipolor fets, and bussbars. OLD SCHCOOL is still alive. Tim touched on one very important topic on the original OP's question... Budget. Guys there are amps out there that do incredible things. But it comes at a cost. I've heard great things about Syn amps...and the boston amps buts at a cost. My suggestion is, take a look at how much performance you want and balance it with your wallet. Places like earmarkmarine.com offer several options for the buget minded guy all the way up to rock star status. How much silicone do you want for your speakers... muahah! peace! -Brian Exile Audio

As requested... Here's a shout out to the guys at Clemens Marine; Portland Oregon This Avalanche has 2 sets of shiny new XM7's . Photos are not the best but at least you can see what this set up looks like. XM7 requires an adaptor plate to mount on the Evo tower but still retains is full spin ability to put sound on virtually any target with the turn of a thumbscrew. Enjoy! Brian Exile Audio

Dreamer - I got your message today at the office. A local Centurion dealer is doing an installation this weekend with 2 pair of XM7's on an Evo tower. I'll snap a few picks and post up for you if I can get down there before the customer picks up the boat. You'll need the same adapter plate and the speakers mount in the stacked positions. The Harpoon amplifier will deliver 250W rms to each of the 4 pods!!!! The amp also has a very unique feature called ThrottleBox. It allows you to shape the sound output. You'll defiantly want this feature if your driving 2 pair XM7's on your tower. Only amp on the market that does this. Cheers! - Brian Exile Audio

Top - The Harpoon Retails for 700.00 and has built in sound field control so you can shape the sound of the HLCD's as listening situations change (close in party cove / Surf / wakeboard). If you want any info on it, pm me and I can send it over. I'd think Scott would give you a deal on it if you bought the speakers from him. Did you get one pair or two? This amp is overkill for a single pair. -Brian Exile Audio

I think you should run a Samson Harpoon. Ask Samson to give you a deal on it since you bought the speakers. the RF amp isnt bad by any means. looks beefy but the Harpoon has a feature that every HLCD owner will love. It gives you the ability to sound shape the horns from full projections to a SQL sound mode with a turn a remote knob. Only amp on the market that can do that. (although I should say the harpoon has yet to ship.) -- 2 weeks out and it rolls. Samson should have talked to you about it. -Brian Exile Audio

Welcome to the family so to speak. did you put those guys up on the tower yet? How much power do you have going to the speakers? - Brian Exile Audio