problem with amp!

[DJ FADE 10+ year member]

background:

i drive a dodge truck and have had my system successfully installed for about 2 years. i have cdt audio components in the doors, jl subs under the back seat, a pioneer headunit, and a memphis audio amp to power the components and subs.

this weekend, i was driving and put in a new cd. it started to play. i noticed that my headlights and my gauge lights in the truck would have a little spike and get a little brighter every once in a while, which was a little weird, but i thought nothing of it (don't know if that's related or not). a couple songs in, i heard some static, a quiet pop, and then the music stopped. the headunit was still on and functioning/playing the cd. i took a look at the amp to see if a wire had come unplugged. they were all in there, but the amp was hotter than heck. i turned off the truck and checked the amp/battery fuse under the hood. it was still good. i then took a look at the fuses on the amp - there are 2 25a fuses. they were both blown. i stopped at a local shop and picked up 2 new 25a fuses and replaced them. turned on the headunit, no sound. looked at the new fuses, both blown.

so now i'm confused. i checked the ground wire for the amp, its good. the power wire is good, as far as i can tell. it's so weird because nothing had changed on my configuration. i have been running this setup for 2 years with no problems, and then all of a sudden just driving down the road it stops working.

is there any possible explanations for why the amp got so hot, and why its blowing fuses now? i'm worried that the amp is fried, and i really don't want to buy a new one!

any suggestions or comments are greatly appreciated. thanks in advance for your help.

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[snoopdan 5,000+ posts]

yeah, whats happening is the power supply section of the amplifier is pulling way more current than it should, ... which blows the fuses instantly. One of the sides of the power supply is probably fubar (like it has a shorted FET on one side) which happens sometimes.....even if you didnt "do" anything per-se. Depending on the "worth" of the amp....get it fixed. or just shop for a new one.

 

[DJ FADE 10+ year member]

thanks for the reply. any idea how much something like this would cost to get fixed? and where should i get it fixed, if i take that route?