Extremely Frustrated

[undits 10+ year member]

//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/eyebrow.gif.fe2c18d8720fe8c7eaed347b21ea05a5.gif well i had installed a stereo in my dads van (96 GMC safari) a while bag... with two premier 12'' subs, and a pioneer GM-7100 (im pretty sure), anyways its giving each sub 160 RMS, and the amps being run at 2 ohms, the lowest it can

well i had all the power and ground hooked up with 8awg, then today i switched it all out with 4 awg because it kepet cutting out at high volume (differnt volumes for differnt songs) so i thought that i was starving the amp for power so i ran the bigger wire... well it did virtually nothing as far as performance, i get less voltage drop.. but there is still the cutting out

the gains have been set with DMM, and all the bass enhancing tools are set to 0 or off

but when the subs cutout the amp doesnt turn off:eyebrow:

is there such thing as the headunit not being able to handle after market amps?

its all oooold blaupunkt headunit with one preout

if it makes any differnce, the subs are in a sealed box, the wire goign to the sun from the amp is 8awg, power and ground are 4awg, the ground is grounded to the seat post... the remote wire i dont know how big it is... prolly 12 or 10 awg

thanks for the help

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[azbass 5,000+ posts]

you redid the wireing , id check that.

 

[wilzyx 5,000+ posts]

check your voltage at the amp and battery.

 

[undits 10+ year member]

well i know that the amp isnt the best amp out there.. but i had it hooked up before and everything was fine.. she pounded alot better then it does now

also i have checked the wiring.. the grounds strong, the powers strong... its all one wire there isnt any joins for the power, or the ground.. and the ground is only 2ft away from the amp

there no need to put down that amp, because i know its not top of line.. its not even my amp.. its my dads

any help would be greatly appreciated

 

[undits 10+ year member]

the voltage read >12.4 at all times

 

[Wonderbread 5,000+ posts]

Was it cutting out before you swapped to 4 awg?

Is it simply the subbass or is it the whole system? It's possible the HU's preouts are pooched, or you're simply losing voltage at the HU.

Always check the whole signal path.

 

[Wonderbread 5,000+ posts]

Sweet, my first double post!

 

[undits 10+ year member]

yea it was cutting out when i had the 8awg.. its been about the same

its just the subbass that cuts out

i have been trying to get my dad to try my HU in there... because i think that the one thats in there is garabage.. hes going to pick a new one up here sooner or later.. but i thought that i would give it a shot to try and give him some more thump

i think that alot of it has to do with the HU.. because i am pretty sure that a amp that only puts out 320 RMS isnt going to be ******* the alt dry

4 awg is big enough for power and ground isnt it??

 

[Prowler573 5,000+ posts]

is there such thing as the headunit not being able to handle after market amps?
its all oooold blaupunkt headunit with one preout

The only thing the HU is doing for/to the amp is providing it with a signal of very minimal amperage to tell it to turn on (or turn off when that signal is absent) and sending it a signal to be amplified via the RCA preamp outputs.

Outside of that in regards to the speakers/subs being powered it is the amp that is really doing all the work. The HU merely provides the amp with the signal to do that work on.

To me it sounds as if you're asking more of the amplifier than it give you. As you increase the demand on output it reaches its performance limit before you reach your demand for more volume.

 

[wilzyx 5,000+ posts]

4 awg is over kill for that amp, take out the head unit and check voltage at the pre outs too.

 

[undits 10+ year member]

that makes sense Prowler, thanks for that

also running the 4 awg was the only thing that i could think of... i got it for xmas last year, and the amp i am getting will need bigger then 4 so i gave it to my dad for his amp.. thinking it would solve the problem

 

[jklfd 10+ year member]

i had a simular problem. try tightening the screws on the amp that holds your power, ground, and remote wire.

 

[Dj-torn 10+ year member]

I had a similar probelm with a Limo I worked on, The HU would continously cut off, So we replaced it and Low and behold problem was solved. Also make sure that your ground is good.

 

[undits 10+ year member]

the screws on the amp are tight as they can get... i checked the ground.. its great, no paint, rust or anything

i think that i am going to wait till a new HU gets put in there and see if that solves it

the guys at the audio shop are trying to sell me caps left right and center for it saying that it will solve the problem... i just laugh at them, but i could be wrong

i dont want to use one, but would a cap help?? (please dont bash me for that)