Issues with amp and audio controller.

[Ghostknight41]

Hello everyone, I have a 2019 silverado, im using the factory head unit, with a sundown audio sia3500 and lc2i, running zero gauge power and grounding.

So the system was working fine, then it just stopped, I found the the amp lights are flashing power then clipping then protect and starts over, and lc2i is in maximized mode, when I check power I'm only getting 8volts, when I remove the remote wire from the amp or the lc2i the voltage comes back to 13.8v and both are on. But as soon as I connect the remote wire it drops again. Now I found if I leave everything else out of the loop and just power the amp I get 13.8 but then I'll just jump the remote to the power wire and drops the volts, can this possibly be a bad amp? I've reached out to sun down audio.

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[Deiimos]

From 13.8v down to 8v is one hell of a drop for the system not running full tilt or powering up. A bad amp drawing a lot of current should blow fuses with that kind of drop, so not thinking it is the amp yet. My first opinion is, a bad connection somewhere. Check every connector / wire from the battery and ground, and check the fuse holder connectors / fuse. Use your volt meter to check voltage at the amp, and with the system powered up and the amp is showing 8v at the power terminals, check the voltage at both sides of the main power wire fuse holder under the hood to see if there is a drop on one side or the other, and keep testing along the power wire path, and even touch the meter ground probe on another ground source to see if that could be the issue.

What exact fuse holder and fuse are you running?

 

[audiobaun 5,000+ posts]

How old is the battery under the hood??Is it a stock LEAD battery or an AGM? Have you done the Big3 at all?

 

[audiobaun 5,000+ posts]

How old is the battery under the hood??Is it a stock LEAD battery or an AGM? Have you done the Big3 at all?

Im assuming the battery is a stock LEAD(maybe 4 years old?) and prob only like 600CA or less and maybe 800CCA max? if that. Battery may be too small as well for the supply for the demand. That 3500 needs some power

 

[Deiimos]

I’m not saying the battery is 100%, just sharing my thoughts on it likely not being the issue here if the truck is starting okay. If he doesn’t notice any issues starting the truck, nor it struggling while cranking, the audio system should power up just fine and play bass, to at least a moderate level. Add the truck idling and it shouldn’t be a problem for the amp to at least function and produce sound, even if the battery is getting older. Not arguing by any means, just sharing thoughts. The big 3 is always a good idea and should be done with that amp for sure.

 

[Ghostknight41]

I pulled a temp zero gauge power line n a new ground to a different location same issues, battery is a year old. What drives crazy is its ran fine hard hitting since February. I've been installing systems in cars since I was 13, even worked a car stereo shop till I was 19, im 40 now, n I've never had something odd like this happen.

 

[Ghostknight41]

I guess I'll pull my gf amp from her car n see if that gives me the same issue.

 

[Deiimos]

Did you measure the voltage on each side of the fuse holder (if you have one) while the amp was showing 8v? Should be easy to find where the voltage is being dropped by working your way up to the battery.

 

[audiobaun 5,000+ posts]

I pulled a temp zero gauge power line n a new ground to a different location same issues, battery is a year old. What drives crazy is its ran fine hard hitting since February. I've been installing systems in cars since I was 13, even worked a car stereo shop till I was 19, im 40 now, n I've never had something odd like this happen.

That amp needs some Power for sure. Its possible you have a week Cell in that Lead battery by now??Just seems like that amp would **** that battery dry and not enough time given to charge it back up and just running on Alternator supply to survive? It could be a falty amplifier possibly? Not ruling it out, but sure seems like not enough supply for the demand to me. I to have been in and around car audio from when some of the first amplifiers came out where RCAs didnt exist and you had to wire everything up on the High Level inputs. Ill be 54 this year. I started playing around with car audio since 85. I still enjoy it. Its been an experience for sure

 

[audiobaun 5,000+ posts]

Another possibility that came to mind as I took a smoke break and thinking. Considering you are still running a stock alternator with a pretty much stock lead battery with that amplifier.. I think those stock alternators are maybe 120 or 140 amp? Id have to look at my 14 2500HD.Running that amp on that Alt and stock battery, it could be a possibility that the regulator could be on its way out running it hard since Feb, and time for a new Alt as well?At Idle of 600 rpms you are not going to be able to keep up with that amplifier supply, and maybe not even at 1500 rpms especially with the charging wire of approx 5 ft from the Alternator on the drivers side to the passenger side cab area where that battery sits with the 4ga existing wiring.You should be running 2 agm batteries of at least 34/78s with 800CA and 950-1k CCA and 0ga Big3 and supply and ground for the demand on a 140 stock alternator minimum.IMHO and experiencing