Inconsistent Subwoofer

[Jimi77 Premium Member]

I just checked my voltage while driving around, and my voltage would be 13.9-14.0 without music at a light. When I would be playing music the voltage would drop down to 13.5-13.6. When I would be driving playing music the voltage would sometimes drop down to 13.2. I also tried playing the 40hz test tone and I noticed the subwoofer would clip at a lower volume then when I tested it when I was parked.

You're above 12v, so your voltage is fine. I assume you're measuring at the amp.

 

[Emanuel Rodriguez]

You're above 12v, so your voltage is fine. I assume you're measuring at the amp.

Yeah I’ll just mess around with the amp and with my epicenter see if I can get some improvement

 

[Jimi77 Premium Member]

Yeah I’ll just mess around with the amp and with my epicenter see if I can get some improvement

You need a plan. You have good voltage at the amp (assuming those measurements were taken at the amp). I'd remove the epicenter from the signal chain and see what happens.

 

[Emanuel Rodriguez]

You need a plan. You have good voltage at the amp (assuming those measurements were taken at the amp). I'd remove the epicenter from the signal chain and see what happens.

I just tested the sound without my epicenter and it was still the same issue. The voltage was around the same so I don’t think it’s the epicenter

 

[ThxOne Premium Member]

Something is compressing the bass. It almost sounds like more than one crossover competing with another.

 

[Emanuel Rodriguez]

Something is compressing the bass. It almost sounds like more than one crossover competing with another.

I’ll turn off the filter on my amp see if that changes anything

 

[Jimi77 Premium Member]

I just tested the sound without my epicenter and it was still the same issue. The voltage was around the same so I don’t think it’s the epicenter

I'd get a 3.5mm to RCA cable and see what happens.

 

[Emanuel Rodriguez]

I'd get a 3.5mm to RCA cable and see what happens.

I’m installing a new stereo over the weekend so If the problem still there I’ll try that

 

[Old_Slapper]

It could be a ground issue. Try checking the ground wire from the engine block to the chassis and the battery negative to the car's chassis.

 

[Emanuel Rodriguez]

It could be a ground issue. Try checking the ground wire from the engine block to the chassis and the battery negative to the car's chassis.

What mode would I put the voltmeter in to do this?

 

[ThxOne Premium Member]

What mode would I put the voltmeter in to do this?

Before you test with a voltmeter, check for loose connections, corrosion and heat. Play the system and feel both ends of the ground cables. Are they hot? If so there is resistance and the connection needs to be fixed. I am not sure what setting on the voltmeter. You can use DCV I suppose and see if it is less than the resting voltage of the battery. Meaning if the battery is sitting at 12.6v and the ground is at 6v... there is a problem in the cable or connection or both.

 

[highfigh]

Hello guys I always have had this thing with my subwoofer where it is very inconsistent in the sound. Whenever I am driving the subwoofer sounds quiet, but whenever I stop or get to a red light it suddenly gets louder. I have a sundown sml-12 and it’s being powered by a cheap Amazon recoil 600 watt amp. The subwoofer is wired down to 2 ohm. Any help and tips would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

The car';s road noise is canceling most of the bass- reverse the polarity of all speakers, including the subs. That way, the speakers will still be phase-aligned to the extent they are now, but the road noise will be less able to mask the bass. If your exhaust system is loud, you'll probably never hear the sound the way you want while driving- road noise needs to be removed because it's very difficult to remoev it through equalization.

BTW- most cheap amplifiers are worth every penny.

 

[Old_Slapper]

What mode would I put the voltmeter in to do this?

Like mentioned above, check for loose connections and corrosion. You would put the meter on DC voltage. When checking the connections, rev the engine with the radio volume up.