Car amp and sub setup

Hey mate,

Your amp does 900rms x 1 at 1 ohm load.  Your subwoofer is dual 2 ohm so wired to 1 ohm, I presume.  So with 900watts RMS. sure, any amp will go warm with any given power over time as that is what amps do when driven over a required time. :fro:

I had a look at your amps specs as it does not indicate a thermal shut down, but with a reputable amp like Audison, I have no doubt if it does get too hot, it may go into protection until it temperature drops to normal operating levels.  There are many medium to high end amps out there that have this feature. You should not be worried about the amp getting hot unless;

• you have poor grounding terminal either from the amp to chassis or just stock ground that has 8 gauge wire;
  
• you are running thinner power / ground wiring that is causing the amp to warm up as it requires more current draw; (Dangerous!!! check your amp manual if you are)
  
• check your 12v resistance with a multimeter to see you are getting a clean reading of the battery voltage from the amp to chassis;
  
• Upgrade to the big 3, to improve current efficiency;
  
• The subwoofer box you are using is a large port design that makes your subwoofer more efficient so it does not need that much power to operate at ear bleeding level;
  
• Or, your subwoofer box is too small so you are over-driving the subwoofer to get the required bass level;
  

I would also suggest you take the subwoofer out and run it in a 4 ohm load to see if the problem persists, this will make the amplifier work less stressfully as its not always good to run an amplifier to its minimal load, sure you can do it but you are shortening the life of the amplifier by doing so. :uhoh:

Another way of attaining the required boom is to add another subwoofer that will see the amp with 2 ohm load, that way you get 3db more and your amp runs cooler and you have just extended the life of your subwoofer amp.  :nerd:

At normal operating level,  any amp will get warm but not hot enough for you to fry an egg on top of it!!!  If your current amp and subwoofer setup does not satisfy your bass needs to it may be time to upgrade to a larger amp and dual subwoofer setup as more cone area will provide more bass.  Don't forget to upgrade your power wires if you do take this approach.  

You should not be concerned if you have the recommended power, ground wires and it does not get that hot that you only have a few seconds to put your hand on it before it gets burnt. :graduate:

DRBOOM said:

I would also suggest you take the subwoofer out and run it in a 4 ohm load to see if the problem persists, this will make the amplifier work less stressfully as its not always good to run an amplifier to its minimal load, sure you can do it but you are shortening the life of the amplifier by doing so. :uhoh:

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WTF... No.  

Popwarhomie said:

WTF... No.  

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Agree you don't have to do that, but its a true fact if you run any amp in minimal load, you do stress it out more and shorten the life of the amplifier.  I suggested this as the Lukas raised concerns but I agree that I don't understand his definition of amp getting hot.  Amplifiers do that but it could also be there is not enough ventilation around the amp that is causing this issue, so that is another factor I did not touch up during my response.

It could be a simple remedy as ensuring there is enough room around the amp so it does not warm up too much under normal use.  Just trying to help a brother out but without any pics, just providing some guidance under the circumstance.

Another issue could be that the amp is faulty so that is why I suggested to run it on 4 ohm load, just as a testing phase, not permanently.  If the amp would get hot on a 4 ohm load, it could well be that the amp is faulty so Lukas can approach the shop to get a replacement.  

Lastly, I could not gather information if this amp is a class A/B or D class as the Class D amp would run more cooler given the larger power transistors / transformers so its always a concern if amps run hot under normal conditions and adequate ventilation around it.  :suave:

I second that running the amp at minimum load can shorten the life of an amp. However this amp is 2 channel, so running one VC off each channel would be best. Also, there is a cooling kit you can get if you read the manual.

if possible, borrow an amp from a mate and run your subwoofer for a week to see how it behaves.  If that amp also gets too hot then;

• You may be using a lighter gauge wiring for the amp;
  
• suggest you upgrade to 1/0 gauge power, ground wires;
  
• if you are unsure of your amps specs / requirements, read the manual to verify its ok to run 2 gauge or you will have to upgrade.
  

The amp only gets hot under normal conditions if the power consumption is not met,  Usually, under normal circumstances, it should get warm, but not hot so you can only put your hands on it for a few seconds.  That definitely is an indication of not enough (current)  amps is drawn by the amp and continued use will definitely shorten the life of your amp.  Also allow for adequate ventilation around the amp as well. a big trunk area should be sufficient for ventilation and you will not require additional fans to keep it cool provided it is not obstructed by shopping bag, golf bag, garbage bag stash of vintage girly magazines etc..

Its very important to run the correct gauge wires as recommended by the amp manual or if you are not sure, ring up car audio shops who sell that brand to verify correct wire gauge used.  Take care of your equipment and it will serve you in years to come.  :graduate:

DRBOOM said:

Agree you don't have to do that, but its a true fact if you run any amp in minimal load, you do stress it out more and shorten the life of the amplifier.  I suggested this as the Lukas raised concerns but I agree that I don't understand his definition of amp getting hot.  Amplifiers do that but it could also be there is not enough ventilation around the amp that is causing this issue, so that is another factor I did not touch up during my response.

It could be a simple remedy as ensuring there is enough room around the amp so it does not warm up too much under normal use.  Just trying to help a brother out but without any pics, just providing some guidance under the circumstance.

Another issue could be that the amp is faulty so that is why I suggested to run it on 4 ohm load, just as a testing phase, not permanently.  If the amp would get hot on a 4 ohm load, it could well be that the amp is faulty so Lukas can approach the shop to get a replacement.  

Lastly, I could not gather information if this amp is a class A/B or D class as the Class D amp would run more cooler given the larger power transistors / transformers so its always a concern if amps run hot under normal conditions and adequate ventilation around it.  :suave:

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any amp clipped will get hot no matter 1 or 4 ohm. Considering his subs takes a lot of power to move he'll want more output than 4 ohms can give him and definitely come close to clipping the amp even more, same amount of heat. 

Lukas Juozaitis said:

Amp gets so hot that i can't hold Hand For more than 2 seconds. I have 2g wires for power and ground. I think its just hard for amp to push that sub and im actually afraid to fry the amp since it gets hot and wiring and box are okey 

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So the most likely culprit is, you arent getting loud enough and you are pushing the amp pretty hard and your electrical might also be not up to par. 

The cheapest solution is to build an efficient high performance custom ported box so you can get the output you need without stressing the amp out. 

2nd is to upgrade electricals and plop in a bigger amp so you dont have to red line the amp all the times which means cooler setup, cleaner signal.

a 3rd solution is to get a better head unit.  Sounds weird but my buddy going from a cheapo 60 dollar JVC head unit that claimed 4 volt preouts to a 150 dollar pioneer with real 4 volt preouts had a massive difference in bass performance alone.   The old head unit at a certain point it stopped getting loud and got getting stinky coils and hot amp, hot subs.  With the new pioneer it literally feels like 5 clicks louder than the max clipped output point of the cheapo JVC and the amps and subs are room temperature.