Ok, not really model specific but this has been bothering me for awhile.
I don't know a whole lot on the subject of car audio but I'm learning. Anyways, here's the deal:
1987 300D
alpine head unit
rockford wire kit
sony xplod 1400W amp (bridged)
3x10 audiobahn subs (4 ohm total)
after 20-30 minutes of driving the amp will start going in and out of protection mode at moderate to slightly loud volumes and of course the amp is hot to touch. Turning the volume down, helps for a while but then it will start doing it again.
I had this exact same everything in my 300CD and never had a problem with it, the only thing different was the wiring. I have two of the same amp's- both will cut out, leading me to believe I can rule out the amp itself.
Someone before had suggested I need a cap- yes there is a noticible dim with the dash lights at night, but I'm more worried abpout fixing the cutting out problem before causing damage to the amp.
There's no external cooling in either. both amps inside the cabin.
dunno if speakers are in series, theyre however they came from audiobahn, (sealed box).
I'm more curious if having a cap will keep it from doing that.
I agree with the wiring issue. It sounds like you may driving the amp below the recommended ohms rating. I'm guessing that Sony would have a min of 2 Ohm load.
A cap will not cause this. I've ran systems with and without a cap and I really don't notice much of a difference. The point of a cap is to take the load off of your battery. I can assure you that adding a cap will not solve this issue.
Just out of curiosity, what gauge wire are you running?
It's been so long since I wired the car's I dont remember. Is it possible if the wiring going from the amp to the speaker is to thin, that could be causing it? Remember, this only happens after 20-30 minutes of continuous use.
I currently have no cap in either if thats what you meant? the subs are at least a few years old, I've had them for 4 years and bought them off a friend before that and who knows how long he had them. Can't exaclty take them back now You're right though, I remember the amp is rated to a minimum of 2ohms. It's possible the speakers when in use for awhile drop the resistance below 2 ohms... they are 4 ohms cold.
I may scrap it all and downgrade to a single speaker, the 3 subs take up quite a bit of room in the 124's trunk that I could really use.
Unless Audiobahn used to make single voice coil subs, I'm going to assume that they're dual voice coil. I'm also assuming that Sony does not make 1 ohm stable amps. So......
If you're running 3, 4-Ohm subs wired in Parallel, you're going to be putting a 0.67 Ohm load on the amp. This would certainly be causing your problem.
However, if you're wired in Series/Parallel, you're putting 2.67 Ohm load, which shouldn't cause any issue.
Even if you're running SVC subs if it's wired in parallel, you're still running 1.34 Ohm load.
Try removing one of the subs. If it's wired parallel (which my guess is "yes"), it will bring the load to 2 Ohm. Run it for a while like that and see if the problem continues.
(BTW - although the Ohms rating will change a bit, you still base it on the spec reading)
Here's an example:
My last system was a 1000 watt amp pushing a single DVC, 2 Ohm, 12" Sub. It was running a 1 Ohm load. My new system is running the exact same amp, but now running 2 - 4 Ohm, 10" DVC Subs. It's still pushing 1 Ohm. The amp is completely stable at 1 Ohm.
__________________
“Knowing your own darkness is the best method for dealing with the darknesses of other people.”
thanks- I'm going to check a few things on it tonight. Yes they are dual voice coil too. Friend of mine here seems to think it might be one of the subs causing it as well.
You're right though, I remember the amp is rated to a minimum of 2ohms. It's possible the speakers when in use for awhile drop the resistance below 2 ohms... they are 4 ohms cold.
Linear Mode
