I really appreciate the input and your MUCH better explanation of what I'm hearing.
I don't pound the bass by any means and don't crank it up so that people three blocks away can hear it. I was just looking for a conbination that would make listening to music pleasant as opposed to frustrating. I went low end on the amp because the car is a lease and I probably won't pull everything out at lease end. I can justify equipment that costs $450 in terms of three years of significantly improved listening. If I intended to keep the car for a long time I would have gone for a more powerful amp and swapped out the subs. I want to thank you for your contributions to this thread. They were very helpful to me as I am obviously not very competent in this area.