S2kKaz

Hi everyone, I have a 10" where the tool tray goes and I can't resist driving with the top down and cranking the music up to just short of my units max volume. The subwoofer hits hard when it's "cold" but as soon as its been in constant use for about 15min+ it start cutting out and the bass will be more inconsistent and sounds terrible with the music. If I turn the music down it will hit a little but then I am constantly turning the volume down just so the sub can hit a little and pretty soon I get the point of sub just wont hit and the music has no bass. I was wondering it could possibly be an amp issue, possibly over heating. The amp is located where the spare tire used to be, so its a small area and I live in Arizona so I'm sure it gets plenty hot in there. Has anyone else had such a problem or any ideas what the issue could be? Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks!

IIGQ4U

Hi,

It sounds like it may be an amplifier issue. How hot is your amplifier after it has been running for such a duration? Are your gains set properly?

OVR_9000

definitely sounds like its the amp. What amp/sub are you running?

S2kKaz

Well I just got home from a drive and the sub started to fade again. I just felt my amp and its hot enough to burn your finger tips. I do not know if my gains are set properly I will have to double check that. I bought the car with the amp and sub, the subwoofer was blown so i just recently replaced that. I just left the amp alone since its been in there.

The amp is a Rockford Fosgate Punch, and the subwoofer is a Kicker Comp10

OVR_9000

Wow, I can't believe a RF Punch is getting that hot! Yeah that is definitely a bad thing! I have FRIED like 3 amps and it sounds like its your problem too! I would definitely swap that amp ASAP! I wish I had an amp to give you but the lowest I have is 250 RMS, and it looks like your sub runs at 150 RMS.

IIGQ4U

You can push a 150 watt sub with a 250 watt amp. Set the gains properly and the amp won't even break a sweat.

vividracing.com

Set your gains and make sure you've got a good ground. A bad ground can also cause major heat problems.

The fact that the amp is getting that hot and still hasn't burned up is a testament to Rockfords quality

S2kKaz

Well also everything in Arizona gets hot enough to burn anyone and anything. It's 113 today!

Would you think if the gains are set improperly would the subwoofer cut out after the amp heats up a little? I need to let it cool down before I pull the amp out and adjust everything. It's like 110 in my garage right now so its cooling down very slowly!

vividracing.com

It's not the sub that's cutting out, it's the amp. And yes, as the amp gets hot it becomes less efficient. Eventually it reaches it's peak temp and goes into thermal protection, which is when the amp shuts down entirely. You can also install some fans on/near the amp to help cool it off but I've never had to do that.

I'm in AZ as well, and I've had 2 15's running in the trunk of a Camry w/ the amp mounted pretty much underneath a false floor with no problems. Like I said above, check your ground(s), and adjust your gains.

IIGQ4U

OP,

You mentioned in your original post that you turn the volume near maximum volume. It is important that you are not clipping the amplifier signal. An amplifier that is clipping will not run efficiently and will eventually destroy your speaker.

Also make sure are using a high quality 4AWG power and ground.