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how to keep my amp cool

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  #1  
Old 06-10-2006, 03:56 PM
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Default how to keep my amp cool

is there any way to keep my amp cool cause it gets really hot and then my sub shuts off and well thats just not cool
 
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Old 06-10-2006, 04:06 PM
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if possible.. pull your seats down... if not. Idk
 
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Old 06-10-2006, 04:25 PM
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Hook up a fan. By the way what amp you running. If your amp is getting that hot something is usually very wrong.
 
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Old 06-10-2006, 04:31 PM
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well it get hot cause down here the usual temp outside is 100 plus the hear inside the car
 
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Old 06-10-2006, 04:32 PM
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Originally Posted by 1982 mustang 5.0
is there any way to keep my amp cool cause it gets really hot and then my sub shuts off and well thats just not cool
Where is your amp located? Where are the subs located? And where do you live? We need more info before we can give you a good answer
 
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Old 06-10-2006, 04:34 PM
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Originally Posted by 1982 mustang 5.0
well it get hot cause down here the usual temp outside is 100 plus the hear inside the car
ha ha you beat me to that part. it's like 105 degrees outside where i live and my amp sits on the back of my subs. if i don't leave my backseats down it WILL overheat after about an hour. try leaving the seats down and run the ac if you can.
 
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Old 06-10-2006, 04:44 PM
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well my car is a hatchback so i keep it in the back and the sub i located right next to the amp since i dont have anywhere else to put it
 
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Old 06-10-2006, 04:50 PM
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maybe try a fan then. see if it'll move some more cool air towards the rear of the car.
 
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Old 06-10-2006, 04:52 PM
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what kind of a fan and what should i hook it up too
 
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Old 06-10-2006, 05:04 PM
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Ive been seeing those Auto Cool fans on T.V. They are suppose to keep your car around 75 degrees when its parked. $15. Just clips onto your window and is solar powered. I might have to get one. The reason im saying this is because if its cool in the car to begin with, the amp will maybe last a bit longer in playing time. Its not a complete solution but hey its worth a shot.
 
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Old 06-10-2006, 05:06 PM
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i might hive to get my self one of those
 
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Old 06-10-2006, 06:02 PM
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How do you have your amp mounted? The amps case is also a heatsink,its best to mount them with the top part facing the roof as heat rises. If you have it upside down top part facing down or sideways that may be part of the problem. Try laying it on the floor and see if problem goes away. On my old hatch I had two amps mounted sideways and never had issues. Could also be a cheap or defective amp as well as the gauge size wire pos or neg you are using may be to small. You can grab any 12v fan from a PC or PC power supply and try that.
 
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Old 06-10-2006, 07:07 PM
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you silly audio guys

you know what else heats up hardcore?! my twin screw supercharger!!....oh wait I dont have one ....carry on
 
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Old 06-10-2006, 09:09 PM
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Originally Posted by Badfish
you silly audio guys

you know what else heats up hardcore?! my twin screw supercharger!!....oh wait I dont have one ....carry on
issues...

Mine has only overheated once, and it was a 3 hour drive... Mine is also facing up right like venom was saying, so i'm thinking that's the problem.
 
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Old 06-11-2006, 09:16 AM
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Put a bag of ice on it. :banana:
 
  #16  
Old 06-11-2006, 10:01 AM
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Mount it to the floor of your trunk. That's where mine is and I have NEVER had problems. You have a cheap amp BTW.
 
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Old 06-11-2006, 10:14 AM
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Originally Posted by Mug11
issues...

Mine has only overheated once, and it was a 3 hour drive... Mine is also facing up right like venom was saying, so i'm thinking that's the problem.
Unless you have the bottom part of the amp facing upwards it should not be a problem. If you have any amp cranked all the way up to the max for 3 hours and with poor circulation of air in the trunk then I would not worry if it powered off once. Its better to have a 500 watt amp cranked half way then to have a 250 watt amp cranked all the way up just know the limitations of your system and you will not have problems,treat it like your motor. I recently added a fan inside a powered subwoofer at home, I noticed that the amp plate would get hot and now its cool to the touch. Sometimes all you need is some air blowing through the circuits if you can or 2nd best is airflowing through the heatsink which is normally the top part or the sides of the amp, just feel what area feels the hottest. At home you would use the same PC fan plus any AC to DC adpator which has 12vDC or less output. So a 9v dc adaptor would spin the fan less than a 12vDC adaptor. I have two fans on top of my reciever with a 9v since a 12v creates too much noise while watching movies. BTW you could use any power pack from old stuff like portable cd players,walkmans etc.... if you want to cool something at home.
 
  #18  
Old 06-11-2006, 12:06 PM
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What kind of Amp are you running and what kinda subs do you have? you might not have a big enough amp for the subs and they are pulling too much power causing a thermal overload, Sony amps are famous for that. I've used Audiobahn, MTX, Rockford and JL Audio and never had any problems at all of heating up, they all stay cool. Make sure your amp is stable for the OHM the sub is! If your running 2ohm subs with a 4 or 6ohm amp...it will overheat and shut down very quickly!
 
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Old 06-11-2006, 10:24 PM
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Originally Posted by Blk02stang
What kind of Amp are you running and what kinda subs do you have? you might not have a big enough amp for the subs and they are pulling too much power causing a thermal overload, Sony amps are famous for that. I've used Audiobahn, MTX, Rockford and JL Audio and never had any problems at all of heating up, they all stay cool. Make sure your amp is stable for the OHM the sub is! If your running 2ohm subs with a 4 or 6ohm amp...it will overheat and shut down very quickly!
Forgot about that which is very important.


What do you have in your car as far as amps and what speakers do you have connected to the amps and how?
 
  #20  
Old 06-12-2006, 02:54 PM
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i remember someone else was having this problem and they found out that their MTX sub woofer was only like 1 ohm and they needed a better amp. maybe they can chime in. I know Rockford fosgate makes some of the best (and most expensive) amps. almost all of their amps can go down to 1 ohm with no problem. Most other amps just overheat.
 
  #21  
Old 06-12-2006, 06:36 PM
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You buy rockfords name, not an amp! JL and Audiobahn are about the best amps and dont heat up at all!
 
  #22  
Old 06-12-2006, 11:35 PM
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And you don't pay for JL or audiobahns name either? Don't get me wrong all three are good brands but Rockford Fosgates amps are specifically made to be able to go all the way down to 1 ohm without burning out or even really getting hot.
 
  #23  
Old 06-13-2006, 02:52 AM
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Yea rockford might be 1ohm stable, but the others are stable to go 1/2 ohm. my buddy is sponsored by JL and i gotta give it to them, 5k watts pushing 3 jl 13 1/2" w7's is insane and the amps dont heat up one bit and are running at 1/2 ohm. When it comes to competition, hands down to audiobahn and jl.
 
  #24  
Old 06-15-2006, 12:14 AM
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Originally Posted by Blk02stang
Yea rockford might be 1ohm stable, but the others are stable to go 1/2 ohm. my buddy is sponsored by JL and i gotta give it to them, 5k watts pushing 3 jl 13 1/2" w7's is insane and the amps dont heat up one bit and are running at 1/2 ohm. When it comes to competition, hands down to audiobahn and jl.
Now i know why you give such a good endorsement, you have a biased opinion based on someone getting free stuff. All three brands are good, but you still pay extra for the brand name whether the label says Audiobahn, JL, or Rockford Fosgate. BTW Fosgate can do 1/2 ohm just as well as JL or Audiobahn. Those three brands are all top notch but really it's just a matter of preference.
 
  #25  
Old 06-15-2006, 06:42 PM
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Not a biased opinion or preference, Just that you pay on average $1 per watt. I've used all bands of amps and yea RF is good dont get me wrong but i payed $400 for a 500/1 mono amp that on a meter test it was only pushing 360watts maxed out! Where my JL i payed $390 for a 250/1 mono and it was pumping out 387watts with ease. But like you said they are all top brands and actually last and will take the abuse.

BTW I think it's Bazooka, but they make a amp set up with a cooling system that works pretty bad@**, a friend had it awhile ago and his amp stayed near ice cold.
 
  #26  
Old 06-16-2006, 08:22 AM
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Originally Posted by Codiddy
And you don't pay for JL or audiobahns name either? Don't get me wrong all three are good brands but Rockford Fosgates amps are specifically made to be able to go all the way down to 1 ohm without burning out or even really getting hot.
the only rockford amps that is 1 ohm stable are the power series amps. Do you have a Punch series or Power if its not power than the amp is not 1 ohm stable. trust me.

I have a 2 rockford p3 12" subs hooked up with the P10002 amp 4ga power wire and 1 farad cap, and mine has never shut off for heat reasons.

IMO JL isn't all that i have a few friends with all JL stuff one friend as JL W7s and my P3's on the rockford hit at a higher SPLs(we have a SPL meter) than his professionally installed and tuned JL system. F*Ck JL. WFT 800 buck for a flippin 12" sub that BS
 
  #27  
Old 06-16-2006, 08:33 AM
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its funny i have been to a dbdrag and it mainly the cheap subs that win **** their.

check this out their truck hit at 179 dB. right now its the current record

http://www.termpro.com/asp/competito...on=2006&Page=5
 
  #28  
Old 06-16-2006, 11:23 PM
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Originally Posted by red281gt
F*Ck JL. WFT 800 buck for a flippin 12" sub that BS
Thats the point i was trying to make.

Red281 have you heard of Interfire? what are your opinions about them?
 
  #29  
Old 06-19-2006, 11:36 AM
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Originally Posted by Codiddy
Thats the point i was trying to make.

Red281 have you heard of Interfire? what are your opinions about them?
I like 'em heard some one with the pro-v12 it was clear and loud. but i have not heard a interfire amp.
 
  #30  
Old 06-19-2006, 10:40 PM
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They are pretty good and hit really hard. . . I have an Interfire IB2900 attached to 2 12" interfire subs. It hit even harder after i put the Dynamat in too. Most times i leave the bass turned up only about 1/2. When I turn the bass all the way up, you can barely talk because the its so loud.

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