Amp overheating in spare tire well

[shpatb 10+ year member]

Hey guys, just finished up the build in the G8, I put the GT-28 in the truck with the rest of the equipment and it's getting really really hot even though there should be enough room for it to breath in there... what do you guys recommend ? add additional fans or mount it somewhere else? I really like it down there because I still have a huge trunk left with one sub sealed. I just don't want to fry the amp. It goes into thermal protect thats how I noticed it gets too hot in the first place.

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[xSPLoder 10+ year member]

What is it grounded to?

 

[shpatb 10+ year member]

The car's stock battery that is in the trunk.

 

---------- Post added at 10:40 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:39 AM ----------

 

It's bolted on the same location that the stock battery wire ends that is**

 

[shpatb 10+ year member]

Correction to 1st post, it's in the trunks spare tire well... covered up so you can't see any of the equipment.

 

[xSPLoder 10+ year member]

hmmm, what gauge wiring are you using and what impedance are you running from the subs to amp?

 

[xSPLoder 10+ year member]

covered up

this could have a lot to do with it too. holding in all the heat coming off the amp in a small area is like baking it in a over. they put vent holes on amps to let them breath

 

[shpatb 10+ year member]

The space that it's in is big enough to hold a 17 inch tire spare, I've seen other people doing it with out any problem... It's a 2 ohm load and using 2 runs 4 gauge wiring for 4 foot run to the battery location.

 

[quackhead 10+ year member]

Hey guys, just finished up the build in the G8, I put the GT-28 in the truck with the rest of the equipment and it's getting really really hot even though there should be enough room for it to breath in there... what do you guys recommend ? add additional fans or mount it somewhere else? I really like it down there because I still have a huge trunk left with one sub sealed. I just don't want to fry the amp. It goes into thermal protect thats how I noticed it gets too hot in the first place.

Take a minute to run through and double check all the amp/batt/ground connections. How is the amp wired? Bridged 4ohms? or worse, 2ohms mono?That amp does not have the best heatsink design (it totally ***** ***)and being in the spare tire well with no air ventilation, I can see the heat problems, no doubt. Does the engine exhaust piping run anywhere near the spare tire well underneath the vehicle? This will heat things up in there too, along with the battery and what have you.

Without a doubt, get some fresh air circulating through those tiny vents on each end of that thing, or it will suffocate and die.

 

[quackhead 10+ year member]

Vents (Side and Rear)

The cooling vents must be kept clear of obstructions once the amplifier is

installed. Failure to do this could lead to premature thermal shutdown or amplifier

failure.

- http://ap.bostonacoustics.com/assets/bostonmobile/Manuals/GT28_24Man.pdf

 

[xSPLoder 10+ year member]

cut up a peice of plexi glass to the size of the back plate of that amp and run 1 computer fan on each end. 1 end ******* in the the air and the other end blowing it out. that's the best advice I can give when running that set up in that location but its still going to be ******* in the hot air that's trapped where it is located

 

[Mitch86 5,000+ posts]

You will most likely need a fan to draw in air and exhaust out air to circulate the air through the tire well.

 

[shpatb 10+ year member]

Vents (Side and Rear)The cooling vents must be kept clear of obstructions once the amplifier is

installed. Failure to do this could lead to premature thermal shutdown or amplifier

failure.

- http://ap.bostonacoustics.com/assets/bostonmobile/Manuals/GT28_24Man.pdf

Yeah the sides are clear it has about 8 inches above it before the cover goes over it... And I like that plexiglass idea with the computer fans, I was planning on putting a relay connecting that to the remote wire so the fans turn on when the fan does.

If this doesn't work I already bought a JBL 14001 which is a class D amp so hopefully that one is more efficient at 1kw.

The amp is working at 2 ohm mono btw.

 

[xSPLoder 10+ year member]

Yeah the sides are clear it has about 8 inches above it before the cover goes over it... And I like that plexiglass idea with the computer fans, I was planning on putting a relay connecting that to the remote wire so the fans turn on when the fan does.
If this doesn't work I already bought a JBL 14001 which is a class D amp so hopefully that one is more efficient at 1kw.

The amp is working at 2 ohm mono btw.

You still might be running into the same problem with a different amp in the same location. Wouldn't hurt to take it out of there for a day and see if you have the same problem.

 

[audiobaun 5,000+ posts]

Id find a different mounting location

 

[shpatb 10+ year member]

All I know is I've had his amp for over 5 years and it's never had a single over heating issue in the other car, than again, it was not covered up and the car had an HO alternator. But from my cars battery meter I'm not seeing a voltage drop with this system in the car, I think it's just the poor location. I was really hoping this would work because I'm liking this "having a trunk" thing.. haha.