My amp only works sometimes. It will turn on and off for no reason. Sometimes when I turn the volume up it makse them go on but then 20 minutes later they go off again. I cehcked the ground and remote wire for continuaty and they were both ok and it was getting 12 volts from the battery. Any ideas what I could do to fix it?
RCAs might be bad…
Check all connections to see if they are secure. One of them could be coming in and out of contact. Pay close attention to the ground (i.e. clean, paint free, secure, etc.)
Then I’d check the RCA’s.
One other thing to check is your battery terminals. Make sure they aren’t caked with corrosion.
Also, what exact reading do you get at both the power and remote terminals on the amp voltage wise? What about with the car on? What size power wire and ground wire are you using?
ya i would definatly check the ground…it could look like its on there good, but sometimes u need to cleen the surface of the connector…and make sure its on bare metal and tightly screwed down…if its not that it might be the amp getting to hot and its cutting out
you also may be overdriving the amp with a load it cant support. check its specs and your sub wiring and make sure its wired properly (in ohms)
Thanks for all the help guys. Im just pushing one 10in jbl sub so I hope its not overloading it. As for the ground it registered continuity but is it possible it is not grounded enough? Also the ower wire read 12 volts like it should. AS for the remote, that just read continuity also. What should I check the rca’s for? Just to make sure they’re in all the way, or should I be looking for something else also?
Originally posted by chet255
Im just pushing one 10in jbl sub so I hope its not overloading it.
It depends on what the amp can handle and how you have it wired. If it can only handle 4 ohms bridged, and you have a dual 4 ohm sub wired parallel bridged then yes you could be overloading it. Please let us know what kind of amp it is, what model sub it is, and how you have it wired.
Originally posted by chet255
As for the ground it registered continuity but is it possible it is not grounded enough?
Continuity won’t tell you anything. Your amp does turn on, so you know you have some ground. How do you have it grounded right now? The best way to ground an amplifier is to crimp (or even better solder) on a ring terminal, grind off all excess paint till you see shiny metal, and use a star washer and a self tapping screw to hold it in place. That’s how we do it at the shop I work at and we never have any grounding problems.
Originally posted by chet255
Also the ower wire read 12 volts like it should. AS for the remote, that just read continuity also.
Yet again, you don’t want to be checking for continuity. I asked you earlier for the exact voltage for both the remote turn on and power terminal at the amplifier. I also asked for the exact voltage when the vehicle is turned on. Please give this information so we can help you.
Originally posted by chet255
What should I check the rca’s for? Just to make sure they’re in all the way, or should I be looking for something else also?
Yes, make sure they are plugged in all the way. Also make sure they aren’t damaged anywhere along their length, shorting together or to ground.
Thanks man. Im at school right now but Ill check when I get home
Im an idiot. I had it grounded to a piece of metal in the corner of the back seat. I noticed that the amp would dim and get brighter as I moved around in the back seat. So I relised that the peice of meatl it was grounded to was only grounded sometimes. I moved the grond to the trunk floor and it works:)
nice work, i told u it had to be something to do with that…same thing happend for me…