Memphis amp cutting out @ very high volume?

[makaveddie 10+ year member]

Hi all,

I recently purchased a Memphis Belle amp on these forums and it runs very well... the only problem is that it cuts out and goes into protect literally for 1-2 seconds when I turn it up VERY loud. As soon as I turn it down a bit, it goes back to normal...For day-to-day listening, it works fine, but it's annoying when you want to display the full power of the system.

Specifics:

Deck: Pioneer DEH-P7000BT

Speakers: 2 pairs of Arc Audio ARC6000 components @ 4 OHM

Subs: 2 12" arc12's running @ 4 ohm (only 300w)

Amp: Memphis Belle 16-st1300d (75x4 @ 4 ohm, 300x1 @ 4 ohm).

Wiring: 4 AWG knukonceptz kit

The ground is good, and when testing for voltage fluctuations, we found it to be relatively constant.

Any ideas?

Edit: One more thing, this was installed by a very prestigious shop in town... No Best Buy BS.

Click to read more...

 

[Horsemanwill 10+ year member]

are you clipping the amp?

 

[njaykaplan 10+ year member]

Is there any sort of line driver or anything boosting the signal of the RCAs?

 

[KyleBechtold 5,000+ posts]

what is the impedance of the subs? if they are svc 4 ohms you are making a 2ohm load and that appears to be too low for the amp

 

[makaveddie 10+ year member]

1) Clipping the amp?

Not sure, but when the amp clips it usually doesn't go into protect, right? Usually you just get some crappy distortion. Someone correct me if i'm wrong.

2) Line driver or anything boosting the signal?

Nope, RCA's straight from the deck to the amp... could it be the deck?

3) Impedance of the subs?

They are dual 4's and they are hooked up in series for a 4 ohm load... For those who don't know, this amp is stable @ 1 ohm on the sub channel - does 1000 @ 1ohm.... just didn't want to draw that much current and my subs can only handle 350 each... might be slightly too much for them.

 

[Horsemanwill 10+ year member]

some amps will go into protect when clipped.

 

[makaveddie 10+ year member]

Horseman - I definitely didn't know that... I just turned the gains down and it doesn't do it anymore... of course, it's not as loud... but still sounds amazingly good and loud... I'm loving this setup!

Thanks to all who helped.

 

[BushJ311 5,000+ posts]

I would go back and ask the shop to check it out

 

[makaveddie 10+ year member]

Why bush, you think there's something wrong with it? My deck does have 4V outputs, so the gain should probably be close to all the way down, right?

 

[BushJ311 5,000+ posts]

no. my deck had 4 v outputs and i had no problems.

you are fine there. gain should be set too not just up and down

why settle for less? your amp should not be doing that. if they are that reputable of a shop they should look at it for nothing

 

[KyleBechtold 5,000+ posts]

some amps can detect if one of the subwoofers/speakers are going bad and will go into protect when turned up high.. also is it overheating?

 

[makaveddie 10+ year member]

I'll be taking it to the shop to check the amp and speakers... it's tough since I bought everything used...

Edit: Oh, and the amp is warm to the touch but not HOT... If it was overheating, wouldn't it stay off for more than a couple of seconds?

 

[BushJ311 5,000+ posts]

Yea it should. I doubt that is the problem

 

[KyleBechtold 5,000+ posts]

check connections.. make sure nothing is loose

 

[makaveddie 10+ year member]

Definitely nothing's loose... everything is secure!

If the memphis goes into protect when clipping (if it is indeed clipping), is there something wrong with it? From what Bush is saying, it sounds like it...