What's that smell

[JonFotino]

Hello, I just recently installed a Pioneer Champion Series Pro 12" 4 ohm DVC subwoofer in my car, it's being powered by a Alpine MRX-M110 X series 1100 watt amp @ 2 ohms.

I only have the gain at just under halfway, and the bass boost is at 0db, but when I turn up the volume I can smell a certain smell... almost smells like new sub, but i just want to make sure I'm not burning the voice coils.

Thank you for any input!

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[phemps 10+ year member]

Is the cone getting warm/hot?

 

[JonFotino]

It's getting warm, but nothing excessive. I live in Arizona and it's 110 out right now so I can't really tell.. The sub is rated at 1000 watts RMS, and the gain on the 1100 watt amp is only half way... So i don't think I'm hurting the sub, I just don't like the smell!

 

[DoesDad 10+ year member]

Just because your gain is only 1/2 way up doesn't mean you're not clipping the shit out of it.

 

[JonFotino]

How can I tell if it's clipping or not? could it be clipping because I have a stock alternator with no Big 3 upgrade? might be dropping voltage?

 

[Buck 5,000+ posts]

Look at your voltage drop and your head units pre-out voltage. The higher your pre-out voltage generally the lower your gain should be.

 

[clickclickw00t 10+ year member]

I don't think you understand how gain really works. Get yourself a multimeter and use this to set it to the proper RMS:

Amp Tuning Voltage Chart - Amplifiers - SMD Forum

Halfway up does not mean 500W. It can mean 10W or 1,500W. Learn how to set your gains properly. Use proper audio sources. Don't use youtube rips or any crappy quality mp3s. good luck

 

[phemps 10+ year member]

The position of the gain knob means little in that regaurd. Its meant to match the output of your source unit its not a volume knob. How to tell if its clipping.. well the real asnwer to that would be to observe the waveform on an oscilliscope. But if you can get your hands on a decent digital multimeter you can do a much better jib of setting your amp

 

[JonFotino]

I'm sorry I'm going to sound like a complete noob. But I dont think my car has a voltage meter (or whatever it's called) in it.. and I'm not sure what the pre-out voltage is, can i find it on the box? Or online?

 

[clickclickw00t 10+ year member]

You can buy a multimeter at your local hardware store for about $25-$30. Unhook your sub from your amp. Set your headunit volume to 3/4 of max volume. Set your EQ to flat and turn your loudness settings off and bass boost off. Download a 40hz or 50hz tone and play it through a CD. Put the positive end of multimeter to positive out on the amp, and negative to negative. Adjust the gain until the crossover reads the suggested voltage for your ohm load.

 

[clickclickw00t 10+ year member]

You're probably gonna want somewhere between 33-43v for 500-1000W assuming you're running that DVC at 2ohm load.

 

[JonFotino]

Okay, I'm looking into DMM's right now. Thank you for all of your help, I'm just going to turn down the gain and everything until I get a DMM and get it tuned right.

 

---------- Post added at 12:05 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:04 PM ----------

 

Yeah it's running at 2 ohms. So I'm going to invest in a DMM and use that chart you posted! Thank you very much everyone

 

[bhsdriller 10+ year member]

Can even get a $3 dmm from Harbor Freight....will be good enough to just check the voltage

 

[Oraclem19]

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