What sort of amplifier you want depends on what sort of sound you want. There are two general schools here: Sound Quality and Sound Pressure Level. SQ people want the best possible reproduction of the sound; SPL people want the loudest possible sound. Both are valid outlooks, and I take no sides in the debate, other than to mention that SPL people are generally mouth-breathing knuckle-dragging lunatics with more money than good sense, while SQ people tend to be sensitive, intelligent, and would never cast aspersions on other people's taste in stereo equipment. But, I digress...


And then there are also those SQ people who tend to get peeved at the SPL people... So they have that little EQ setting that puts a little more emphasis on certain bands.... And THEN goes to the SPL side. Oh, how I love pulling up to a redlight with one of those turkeys booming away. And then start to up the volume till you know that they are hearing your music clearly more than they are hearing their own booming... And then just lean over with your hand by your ear, as if saying... "Can't hear you... "

Not that I would know anything about that.... No... That was only my hypothetical case... Really...

(it's even more fun when they have all of the manufacturers stickers all over their car... A shopping list for thieves really... )

Wait... no, I haven't EVER done that...

GOOD SQ setups, in my experience, tend to be ABLE to go louder, simply because you are engineering in enough power and responsiveness to handle any dynamic in the music. SPL setups tend to have huge inexpensive amps... Which loose half of their power in heat before making it to the coil. The SQ people will buy the large expensive amps simply so that they aren't running full out all the time, for better quality. YMMV, of course... Mine typically does.