Car Audio Question

[xGrafitti]

I know it's not really dsm related. But I just installed a new amp in my car (Rockford Fosgate R500-1) and I believe I have everything hooked up right, and the amp and door speakers come on but my subs don't. And it doesn't make any sense.

 

[MITSUMURDOK]

Are the wires inside the sub box connected to the subs?

 

[GSLENK]

then something must not be right. ALL major amp manufacturers require the following connections:

Power
Ground
Amp on signal (turn-on wire)

"sound signal" (RCA wires)
output to the sub

use a test light to verify connectivity to +12v.
If there is +12v, I bet your ground is poor, or you dont get signal from a test light.

Either way, a $5 test light from radio shack can diagnosis this no sweat.

 

[xGrafitti]

then something must not be right. ALL major amp manufacturers require the following connections:

Power
Ground
Amp on signal (turn-on wire)

"sound signal" (RCA wires)
output to the sub

use a test light to verify connectivity to +12v.
If there is +12v, I bet your ground is poor, or you dont get signal from a test light.

Either way, a $5 test light from radio shack can diagnosis this no sweat.

I have a compacitor and it shows 14.3v

 

[bryanwheat]

The cap is before the amp. Does the amp actually kick on when you turn on the radio? Do you have the trigger wire hooked up to the right wire on the radio?

 

[xGrafitti]

The cap is before the amp. Does the amp actually kick on when you turn on the radio? Do you have the trigger wire hooked up to the right wire on the radio?

Yes I do, the battery, rem and ground are all in the right place.

 

[92AWDHX40]

Is there a fuse to the sub, does the amp for the sub work or the sub.

 

[xGrafitti]

The amp comes on it shows the power light but sub doesn't come on. I know these subs work. I just put a different amp on them.

 

[bryanwheat]

Unhook the sub wires from the amp and tap them on the terminals of a 9v battery to see if the sub is actually working. It could just be a connection problem in the box. I would also test the rca cables out to make sure that they are working. IT could also be a setting on your stereo that turns off the rca output.

 

[92AWDHX40]

is the wiring correct to the sub? seems kinda simple,

 

[zoey]

Here are some ideas;

Do you have the manual for the amp? Does the sub have an external power, and you've checked it, and the light comes on on the amp when you turn it on? Is the driving source actually outputting to the wires you have connected to the sub?

If you take the sub out of the car, can you "make it work" by connecting it to an alternative source? Can you connect an "alternate sub" to the amp sub outputs to see if they are making noise?
/---[Speakers]
[Car Stereo]==Rem and outputs==[Amp]--[Sub]

You have about 4 things to check with your multimeter.

Is the remote supplying a signal?
Is the car stereo supplying signal (audio)
Is the amp getting power? Is it actually coming on (perhaps LED confirmation?)
Is the sub itself working.
Is there a special fuse for the sub circuit on the amp?
Is the signal actually getting from the amp to the sub (check connections from amp terminals to sub terminals with multimeter.)

You should be able to check each step of the way and eliminate what is wrong by checking each system with other known good systems or with a good multi-meter that measures connection with tone and volts.

Good luck!

-Zoey

 

[GSLENK]

Again a test light can troubleshoot all your problems. I hope ya have one

Do all these tests as close to the amp terminals themselves as possible. It eliminates wire problems. touch the amp terminal screws as opposed to the wires if possible.

turn the car on and start playing music, hopefully a song with good bass notes and you know when they are supposed to hit...

-test across 12v+, ground (-), and remote wire (+). If that checks out, is the amp on?

-test across the amp output signal (parallel, doesn't matter polarity) if your light is pulsing at all, the issue is near the sub it self.

-with the light still connected via the last test, test the RCA wires by holding the tips in your hands/fingers. dont touch them together, but hold the outside and inner pin with your fingers. you should hear a buzzing or see a faint light at the signal out.

next, use some method of testing the RCA cables themselves, like hook them up to the rear aux in, and use an adapter to connect a music player and see if they work.

If all this fails, Check your headunit settings. some require you to set low pass and high pass filters. I bet one is out of whack. Sometimes you have to tell the receiver somehow that you are hooking up a sub/amp, and not a rear speaker. Or make sure you are making the right connections. make sure you didnt mute the sub.

Its a really simple system. Usually if its not working it has to be one of:

Connections, bad connection/bad wires
or
component, bad amp/speaker/receiver

And do yourself a favor. delete/sell the capacitor. Its useless.

 

[Beckholt99GSX]

What head unit are you using? Does it have settings for the sub output, the output could be turned off or turned to such a low setting it would make almost no noise

 

[tay97gst]

the only thing that wouldnt cause the sub to come on after the amp is on are these;
1.Rca cables aren't connected between head unit and amplifier (or connected in the wrong spot i suppose)
2.Speaker cables aren't connected between subwoofer and amplifier.
3.Its possible you have the subwoofer output settings on either the head unit or the amplifier turned down too low
4.Blown sub or defective amplifier


Just double check the wiring above.

 

[xGrafitti]

I deleted the capacitor and still the amp comes on but the subs do not. I'm going to go through the radio settings. But it worked before just with a different amp. It has been a while since I've had it playing so I don't think I messed anything up. I may have something wrong and I just can't see what it is.

 

[boost97gst]

Ok, i have a cheap ass amp i havent upgraded yet and its hooked up to a very nice infinity sub. Past a certain volume my amp will shut down until i turn the volume down. Its an overload protect circuit. Kind of a crowbar so you cant blow em up. Im wondering if theres an internal load like a short in it.


Also, Ring your sub by taking the ohm meter and checking from one side to the other, if its infinite, its bad. Just another thing to look for.

 

[007jimmy]

Ok, i have a cheap ass amp i havent upgraded yet and its hooked up to a very nice infinity sub. Past a certain volume my amp will shut down until i turn the volume down. Its an overload protect circuit. Kind of a crowbar so you cant blow em up. Im wondering if theres an internal load like a short in it. .

My old amp did the same thing. But i had to turn the car completely off and restart it to get the subs to come back on. It also had 2 seperate 30a fuses in it. Does your amp have fuses? If it does pull them to see if they are blown.

 

[boost97gst]

No fuses actually. And it comes on when i lower the volume a bit. Its hitting the wall as far as wattage. Its a small amp and this is a 12' infinity, not a light sub by any means. Thing prob weighs 40 lbs , im sure it draws a lot of current. Im goint to redo my wiring again and double check everything then upgrade to a larger amp. thanks for the tip though, ill keep that in mind.

 

[xGrafitti]

My old amp did the same thing. But i had to turn the car completely off and restart it to get the subs to come back on. It also had 2 seperate 30a fuses in it. Does your amp have fuses? If it does pull them to see if they are blown.

I can pull the fuses and check but I doubt that they are blown doing to it being a brand new amp. My amp also has two 30a fuzes.

 

[mchustle]

Also can you verify the light on the amp is the power light and not the protection light? Inadequate power or ground can cause an amp to turn on but pop into protection mode like stated above.

 

[xGrafitti]

Also can you verify the light on the amp is the power light and not the protection light? Inadequate power or ground can cause an amp to turn on but pop into protection mode like stated above.

No, I'm positive it is the power light. And I have had a lot of experience with the protection light, if it was that I would just check my ground and speaker wires. But that's not the case.

 

[chasedardis]

If your amp shuts off when you turn it up, its because your ohm impedence is different from dub to amp. Go to wiringwizard.com and do some reading.

 

[xGrafitti]

If your amp shuts off when you turn it up, its because your ohm impedence is different from dub to amp. Go to wiringwizard.com and do some reading.

Amp never turns off. Subs just never play. And if it cut off when i turned it up it would more then likely be a short in speaker wire or bad ground.