Rubicon 1.2500 issue

[Bostonjlguy 10+ year member]

I have a Soundstream Rubicon 1.2500 that started to hum! Not the sub but the actual amp. I took the RCA's out but it still hums. The car on or off doesnt make any difference. Doesn't change with Idle. Any ideas? I added a xs power batt at the same time I added the amp. I have a feeling it could be a bad transformer.

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[Kangaroux 5,000+ posts]

My rubi used to do the same thing but it was the fan making that sound.

 

[Bostonjlguy 10+ year member]

My rubi used to do the same thing but it was the fan making that sound.

It could be. Was it kind of loud like a humming or buzzing? How did you figure out it was the fan?

 

[Kangaroux 5,000+ posts]

It could be. Was it kind of loud like a humming or buzzing? How did you figure out it was the fan?

Hard to say I haven't had that amp for quite a few months now. It sounded like humming though. Figured out it was the fan cause the sound went away after a couple minutes and figured the only thing that could make that sort of sound was the fan.

 

[bgowdy 5,000+ posts]

yea....sounds like the fan

 

[Bostonjlguy 10+ year member]

Hard to say I haven't had that amp for quite a few months now. It sounded like humming though. Figured out it was the fan cause the sound went away after a couple minutes and figured the only thing that could make that sort of sound was the fan.

The sound doesn't go away; however, it doesn't seem as lound after a few minutes! The sound will pulsate at times and I can feel the vibrations pulsate if I put my hand on the amp! I want to buy a sub on here, but I have to wait to see if I have to stick money into that amp!

 

[Kangaroux 5,000+ posts]

The sound doesn't go away; however, it doesn't seem as lound after a few minutes! The sound will pulsate at times and I can feel the vibrations pulsate if I put my hand on the amp! I want to buy a sub on here, but I have to wait to see if I have to stick money into that amp!

I would pop open the back plate (you have to take off one of the side pieces, I suggest taking off the one with the power inputs) and then listen to it with the back open. Should be able to trace the sound from there. I'm betting that it's the fan that's giving you problems. Do you notice the sound gets louder/quieter when you put your finger on the amp? That might sound crazy but it did for me lol.

 

[Bostonjlguy 10+ year member]

I would pop open the back plate (you have to take off one of the side pieces, I suggest taking off the one with the power inputs) and then listen to it with the back open. Should be able to trace the sound from there. I'm betting that it's the fan that's giving you problems. Do you notice the sound gets louder/quieter when you put your finger on the amp? That might sound crazy but it did for me lol.

I don't think its the fan because I don't think the fan comes on right away, and I thought I heard the fan kick it a minute later. Its on the rca input side of the amp! I can feel it with my hand when I put it on that side of the amp.

 

[Bostonjlguy 10+ year member]

I would pop open the back plate (you have to take off one of the side pieces, I suggest taking off the one with the power inputs) and then listen to it with the back open. Should be able to trace the sound from there. I'm betting that it's the fan that's giving you problems. Do you notice the sound gets louder/quieter when you put your finger on the amp? That might sound crazy but it did for me lol.

The sound is coming from the audio input side of the amp!

 

[Kangaroux 5,000+ posts]

The sound is coming from the audio input side of the amp!

Did you use cheap RCA's or some nice shielded ones? How loose do the rca's seem? Does the sound persist if you play with any of the settings?

 

[Bostonjlguy 10+ year member]

Did you use cheap RCA's or some nice shielded ones? How loose do the rca's seem? Does the sound persist if you play with any of the settings?

I unplugged the RCA's and the sound stays the same. I can rule out the RCA's and the deck. I by passed my xs batt and still the same, so I eliminated the batt. I could try the ground, but I have used this ground for other amps with no issues. I used a wire brush attachment for my drill to remove paint and primer and used a self-tapper to ground the amp to the trunk of my car. I have used this ground for a rubi 1.1600 with no issue. I have not yet tried to mess with the settings on the amp!

 

[Kangaroux 5,000+ posts]

I unplugged the RCA's and the sound stays the same. I can rule out the RCA's and the deck. I by passed my xs batt and still the same, so I eliminated the batt. I could try the ground, but I have used this ground for other amps with no issues. I used a wire brush attachment for my drill to remove paint and primer and used a self-tapper to ground the amp to the trunk of my car. I have used this ground for a rubi 1.1600 with no issue. I have not yet tried to mess with the settings on the amp!

If playing around with the settings doesn't change anything it could just be that the amp has a noise to it. As long as it doesn't start acting up I wouldn't really worry about it.

 

[Bostonjlguy 10+ year member]

Soundstream said they will fix the amp for $100

 

[Bostonjlguy 10+ year member]

If playing around with the settings doesn't change anything it could just be that the amp has a noise to it. As long as it doesn't start acting up I wouldn't really worry about it.

Sometimes I wonder about the output! Sometimes it doesn't seem as loud as it should be, but I cant be positive because I switched from a dd3515 to a aq hdc3 15. I would prob have to clamp it to see what kind of power it is putting out. When I set the gain with a multi meter, it reaches my target voltages with out being maxed out!