RF amp overheating

[soldiermedic 10+ year member]

I have a T400-2 powering my single Infinity DVQ 10". Current RMS is 512 watts RMS at 4 ohms bridged...I have it wired for 2 ohms. Problem is that at moderate volume (being heard from about 100 feet away), I can only play it for about 1.5-2 hours before it gets hot. It's not the space, there's open air to the top and 2 sides. Any suggestions, and has anyone else had an issue like this?

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[headless 10+ year member]

Isn't the t400 a class A/B amp? I wouldn't be surprised that it gets hot.

If you'd like, you can wire up a fan to cool it. Active airflow over the amp's heatsink makes a massive difference. I did this in my car to help cool my amps; It's quite easy.

Radio shack sells 4 inch 12v cooling fans, or you can find your own fan - the main point is that you need to wire a relay to your remote wire from your deck, then wire your amp's turn-on and the 12v fan to the relay's output. This can be nice to do anyway if you are turning on many devices at once with your deck (say, 3 amps, multiple crossovers/EQ's, etc)... but it's necessary in this case because your remote wire can't provide enough power to power the fan.

When the deck turns on, it switches the relay on which connects the 12v power to your amp's turn-on and the fan itself.

Fan:

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2102823

Relay:

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062477

 

[soldiermedic 10+ year member]

You are the man. Thanks.. And the amp is an A/B.

 

[Mazdaboi318 10+ year member]

i had a t-400. it got hot really quick. but never overheated!

 

[soldiermedic 10+ year member]

Should I just sell or trade it for a class D amp? I don't know if I an find one as small as this one for where I have it.

 

[Mazdaboi318 10+ year member]

i just sold mine for 150 shipped....

 

[350zspl 10+ year member]

can you run that amp bridged at 2 ohm's ? or is it supposed to be run as a 2ch at either 4 or 2 ohm and bridged at 4 ohm ?

 

[soldiermedic 10+ year member]

I have it bridged at 2 ohms. I was thinking about bridging at 4 ohms and seeing if that makes a difference in sound. I just want to make sure I cover the RMS of the sub, which is 400 watts.

 

[350zspl 10+ year member]

i am just guessing so check your manual

but

i am fairly sure that this might be your problem

RF ab amp

2 ch

run it as a 2 ch at 2 or 4 ohm okay

bridge it at 4 ohm okay

bridge it a 2 ohm and the load is not gonna work right hence your over heating

check your manual to confirm what i am saying

 

[soldiermedic 10+ year member]

The manual says that it's 2 ohm bridged stable. However, as long as I can get 500 RMS, I'll go for changing the impedence to 4.

 

[KyleBechtold 5,000+ posts]

the T series is 1ohm stable i wanna say bridged..

 

[KyleBechtold 5,000+ posts]

check your grounds

 

[Mass Car Audio 10+ year member]

I have it bridged at 2 ohms. I was thinking about bridging at 4 ohms and seeing if that makes a difference in sound. I just want to make sure I cover the RMS of the sub, which is 400 watts.

Your amp will run cooler at 4 ohm but you will lose power output by half. The only way it will change the sound is by losing 3db. But if it's 1 ohm stable bridged then I would leave it at a 2 ohm load.

 

[soldiermedic 10+ year member]

So I've got 2 ideas that I will go with: verify the grounds, and re-wire for 4 ohms. The birth sheet gives it 512 at 4 ohms bridged. I appreciate everyone's help, you are all AWESOME!!!!

 

[soldiermedic 10+ year member]

Crap! I can't rewire the sub for 4 ohms, I can only wire it for 8 ohms because it's a dual 4. ME RETARD!!!! So, any other ideas besides buying another D 4, getting a single 4 or getting a D-class mono?? LOL!