Alright guys, thanks to Errin, we've kickstarted the How-To section of the forum. Please note that you can not post new threads in that section, but only I can move a good thread there. However, anyone can reply to posts there, as long as it is kept on topic. I will be very strict on this in the How-To section, unlike other areas of the forum, so general off-topic chit chat will only be deleted.
Since this is a community effort, if you guys want to write up any FAQs or How-To's, please make them as detailed as possible, and I will definitely move it over there for reference. With everyone's support we should have an awesome, easily accessible cache of information.
How-To Forum
Errin mentioned in the tuning one how to set gains using the audible method. The multimeter method (which I can explain) will only allow you to figure out when you have configured your amplifier to produce "rated" power it doesn't tell you if you are wasting some headroom that you could get to before going into the high distortion numbers. The best way is with an OScope. Let me know if you are OK w/ what Errin has posted or if you want to know how to calculate the power that you're going to be putting into your speaker. Its really just P = V^2/R and a little basic knowledge about how to work a DMM.
V = Voltage (volts)
P = Power (watts)
R = Resistance (Ohms)
V = Voltage (volts)
P = Power (watts)
R = Resistance (Ohms)