Taramps smart 3 shutting off. Voltage drop?

CNB83

CarAudio.com Newbie
Hi, I recently purchased a Taramps Smart 3 and wired it to my FI SSD Neo DVC2 @ 1ohm. It shuts off giving me the <9v light on the monitor. I did a voltage test at my amp and battery (alt to hard to get to) and when the kick hits I do see the meter drop to 11ish volts before the amp shuts off. Is my 140amp alt not enough for this? Would a 250amp do? Is my 100amp fuse in the power line the issue? Should I wire it down to 4ohms? Also I noticed when it does hit, kinda sounds weak on the lows, kicks and highs hit loud. My alpine Mrx-m110 hit way louder just using 1 coil (i know I shouldn't have done that) @2ohms. Even my old 350rms amp powering a Alpine Type-R hit better lows. I've also been seeing something about Taramps not liking 5V outputs? My HU is a Alpine CDA-9886. I was a little weary on purchasing a brand I've never heard of but I did, and now I'm regretting it because my audio is terrible. Please, any help is appreciated. Thank You.
 
140a is not enough for full tilt but you should be able to get away with it if you turn your gains way down. You're only running 1 SSD, you don't need anywhere near full tilt. Lows are dependent on box. Is your box sealed or ported? What are the specs? The SSD should not have a problem hitting lows in the right box. I suspect your box is too small for that particular sub. I used to own the CDA-9886 and I remember it was a 4v but that really shouldn't matter. What matters is you match your gains with your preout voltage to get the target rms for that sub.
 
My box is a 14-1/4"L x 14-1/4"D x 14-1/4"H 1.0cuft 3/4 mdf Sealed. I did take the polyfill out (was starting to get loose) when i installed the new amp. Should I go ported? I've always had sealed boxes. I felt that they hit the lows better.
 
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My box is a 14-1/4"L x 14-1/4"D x 14-1/4"H 1.0cuft 3/4 mdf Sealed. I did take the polyfill out (was starting to get loose) when i installed the new amp. Should I go ported? I've always had sealed boxes. I felt that they hit the lows better.
Oh my... then you obviously never heard a properly tuned ported box before. 1.0 cu ft sealed is way too small for a SSD. You can literally swap it out with a Type R and you'll have more lows. Fi subs are known to have larger box requirements and they are primarily meant for ported boxes actually. They used to make the high QTS version made specifically for sealed boxes but not anymore. If you're adamant about going sealed for SQ, you should've picked another sub or at least go with a bigger sealed box that will actually have your lows. You're depriving your sub from getting any lows right now no matter how much power you pump into it. Honestly tho, you want lows... you needa switch to a custom designed ported box. That will give you best results hands down.
 
Ahh I see. I did have a FI Q with the high QTS option in the same box. Still own it. Surround is torn :(. I have no idea how to get a hold of a custom box design (though I can have it made considering I work at a woodshop that stocks up to 1" premium mdf). Do u have any recommendation on a off the shelf ported enclosure? Or where I can find the specs for a custom box?
 
Ahh I see. I did have a FI Q with the high QTS option in the same box. Still own it. Surround is torn :(. I have no idea how to get a hold of a custom box design (though I can have it made considering I work at a woodshop that stocks up to 1" premium mdf). Do u have any recommendation on a off the shelf ported enclosure? Or where I can find the specs for a custom box?

Do not buy off the shelf ported. Ported boxes are not as forgiving as sealed when it comes to alignment, which is why I would rather pick up a sealed box off the shelf than any prefab ported that's completely off base. The only time those prefab ported boxes do work are when the sub is practically made for it. If you have the means to build it at your woodshop, it's not that hard to come up with a design on your own with just a little bit of work. There are also many generic box designs all over the internet that will work but nothing beats a custom one that's made for your sub. I would start off with downloading WinISD and learn to graph your ideal alignment and Google sketchup if you don't already have it for designing the dimensions of your box. You can always pay someone to design you one if you're not good with this kind of stuff.
 
I'm gonna see what I can come up with designing a ported box. Now I turned my amp gain down to 37V (measured at speaker terminels with sub disconnected running 50hz tone) and noticed I almost get nothing out of the sub with max non distorted volume. Did I do the calculation correctly? 1500rms @ 1ohm, wouldn't it be the square root of 1500 which is 38.72V?
 
2007 VW Rabbit. Alternator was replaced last year (aftermarket) not OEM. OEM lasted 12yrs with a system in it since day 3. Granted I've only had the Alpine MRX-M110 for 3years (Lights dimmed (not much) for first time using that amp) but it never shut off at almost full gain with sub-out at 15 on HU. Think I got a lemon amp?
 
Just re-did the wiring with a KNU 4 gauge kit when I installed the amp this past Saturday. Measured ground location with meter. Got 0.00. But as I said. The voltage drop is occurring at the engine battery (only battery in car Optima D34 Yellow) and amp while the car is on. So wouldn't that mean that the problem is before the battery meaning the Alt or wiring of the Alt to the battery? I ran the Alpine amp at 1000+rms with a 12yr old 8 gauge kit with no issues. Figured the 4 gauge would be good enough for the Taramps considering I was only going push 1500 out of it.
 
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It’s a 2007, 14 year old car is bound to need electrical/ground fortification. Do a big 4 upgrade with 2/0 welding and make sure you have grounds From Both frame and body To battery. I’m not hating by the way my cars are 2000 and 2003. Also maybe @shredder2 coukd point you in the direction of a basic ported enclosure design if you a$k nice. Even with a new alternator and battery the big 3 is a must do. Do the big3 first and see if the other stuff is all good.

probably should try not to compare your new setup to your old setup. If you Had a different sub factor the sub was better optimized in the small sealed enclosure and Half bridge amps like your old alpine can keep running at lower voltage before it goes into protect...along the lines of why people say full bridge amps take more “abuse”
 
And as an FYI if you were running that alpine on 8 awg there is no way that amp was putting put anywhere near it’s rated power. I’m sure it sounded ok but any systems weak points are electrical then box. An easy and reasonably inexpensive way to have better voltage hold is always going to be a big 3 upgrade
 
Hi, I recently purchased a Taramps Smart 3 and wired it to my FI SSD Neo DVC2 @ 1ohm. It shuts off giving me the <9v light on the monitor. I did a voltage test at my amp and battery (alt to hard to get to) and when the kick hits I do see the meter drop to 11ish volts before the amp shuts off. Is my 140amp alt not enough for this? Would a 250amp do? Is my 100amp fuse in the power line the issue? Should I wire it down to 4ohms? Also I noticed when it does hit, kinda sounds weak on the lows, kicks and highs hit loud. My alpine Mrx-m110 hit way louder just using 1 coil (i know I shouldn't have done that) @2ohms. Even my old 350rms amp powering a Alpine Type-R hit better lows. I've also been seeing something about Taramps not liking 5V outputs? My HU is a Alpine CDA-9886. I was a little weary on purchasing a brand I've never heard of but I did, and now I'm regretting it because my audio is terrible. Please, any help is appreciated. Thank You.
I have a 2017 silverado 1500 crew cab with northstar 94r battery and just recently got a taramps smart 3 and 2 skar evl12d2 and have the same problem.... power... low voltage cutoff. PITA! Now I already know there at least should be another battery or aux battery but I have never had this problem in any other vehicle. I also need help designing a envlosure for these subs. I raised my rear seat 3inches and want to try to make it fit under there. I'm not opposed to going up to 4-5inches total. Front firing ported is what I'm hoping. Any advice? I am in DFW area Dallas mainly. Please help! Fairly new to car audio builds but am very capable and have plenty of tools and equipment. Thanks in advance
 
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