Hey All, I finally got all my stuff together and wired my subs and amplifier today...but sadly all I get for my efforts is the red protection light on the amplifier. I've checked all the connections and everything seems to be okay, but nothing will make the amp come on.
Here are some specs to make things clearer: -2 4ohm Coustic CF1244 DVC subwoofers in a plexi/wood enclosure (run in parallel) -Audiobahn A8000T monoblock amplifier (stable to 2 ohms)
I really am at a loss...maybe the speakers arent wired right, but I thought when you run two 4ohm subs in parallel they become 2ohm stable...
Okay I just went and tried disconnecting the speaker wires and the rca's...nothing happend...the protection light is still on...don't know if that helps anyone.
Hey David, when you power up the amp, does it go into protected mode right away? Was the amp working to start with? It's always a good idea to test the amp before installing. I do that with my amps. Nothing more frustrating than having to find out later that the amp is dead. Also, connect the pos and neg to the amp, then connect the remote wire to pos. See what happens. If the amp still goes into protected mode without any rca wires connected to the amp, then you have an amp problem. From my experience, Audiobahn's HCT series are good.
Okay, I'll try to answer all that in order: 1)Yes, when my cd player turns on and sends a signal the red proteciton light comes on right away 2)the amp is brand new, so im not really sure how i would know if it was working to start with b/c i dont know how to check it 3)again...testing is beyond me...unless you mean connecting it to other speakers? you'd have to elaborate on how to test a brand new amp 4)havent tried connecting the pos and neg then connecting the remote wire to the pos...but i will in the morning 5)the amp was in protected mode when i pulled the rca cables out, but i did notice that the protected mode light seemed to dim a little (not sure what that means, if anything)
The first thing you have to do is find out if the amp's good. The only way to do that is by isolating it from everything else. Make sure nothing's connected to the amp. Set the gain/level to mid level. Then connect neg and pos to the amp's power terminals. Connect remote wire to pos battery. See if the amp's protection light goes off. If not, you have an amp problem. Sometimes you just get a bad amp. Nothing you can do about that except return for repair/exchange. If you can, look for HCT models. So far they're the only ones I can recommend. I am extremely satisfied with my model (I'm talking about the amp not a girl). One more question, when you say protection mode, is it really going into that mode? Some amps have red light as power while others change colours depending on the mode.
Well...i connected the amp like you said and it seems that the red protection light is not going off (oh, and there is a red protection light, and a green power light, separately...so i know its just in protection mode)
Its sorta hard to tell in daylight...but i also looked at my subs more closely and they seem to be run in series to 4 ohms and not 2 like id thought...im going to rewire them...do you think that may have had an effect?
Any other ideas? this amp was guaranteed not DOA...but i will send it back if it comes to that...thanks for all your help!
Hey David, if your 4 DVC are in series, then you're either getting 8ohms or 4 ohms. If each sub are wired in parallel to itself, then it'll give you 2 ohms. Therefore in a series circuit, it'll give you 4 ohms total. You might want to inspect that inside the case for each sub. Now for your amp, it sounds like you have a bad amp. The only thing I can suggest is for you to measure the voltage on your power wires. See if you get 12v or higher. If you do, then there's nothing more you can do with the amp but return it. You should really try the 2300HCT model. It has 1600W of rms power and I think it's 1ohm stable.
Hey Isaac...first off, thanks so much for taking the time to respond to all these posts...you're a great help...
I went and had the amp tested at best buy and they hooked it up and it worked fine...so that leads me to believe the wiring is bad somehow...
I had run the VC's and subs into parallel, which brought me to 1ohm stability, which i dont think the sub can handle so I reran them back to 4ohm stability and its still the same issue...protection light comes on right when the cd player initiates and begins playing
I re-grounded my amp wire, checked all the fuses...I dont know...what else could be causing the amp to go into protection mode like that? Something with the deck wiring? Still the subs wiring? I almost wish it was the amp so id know, but they tested it and it worked perfectly...let me know if anyone can think of anything.
Hey David, when you had the amp tested, did you watch them wire it? If it worked at Best Buy, then you should be able to duplicate the process. What doesn't make any sense is that you said you had all the wires and rca disconnected from the amp. If you did that and the amp went into protected mode, then the amp has issues. Since Best Buy found no problem, I'm guessing you didn't disconnect the rca cables from the amp's input right? You have to establish that first. Once the amp works by itself, then you can progress forward. So have all cables disconnected from the amp except the power wires. If it works then connect the speakers and test again. If that still passes, then connect the rca, one channel at a time. Sometimes, when there's a short, either on the rca cable or speaker wires, it will trigger the amp's protection circuit. Check your wires/cables carefully.
When i tested the amp by itself i ran only the ground and the power wires to the amplifier, then the remote wire to the pos terminal of the car battery...nothing else was connected; no rca's or speaker wires...
Still, right away the protection light came on...is that how you said to test it? the 4 guage wire is grounding it, another 4 guage is running from the pos battery terminal under the hood and the remote wire is run directly to that same pos terminal on the main engine battery. That is all that is hooked up to the amp and the red protection light is the only thing that comes on.
Hey David, that's a very odd situation. Try connecting the speaker wires one channel at at time but leave out the rca cables. That protection light doesn't make any sense. You need an overload or a short somewhere to cause it. With no input or speakers, it shouldn't trigger any protection. If nothing helps, go back to the store where you bought the amp ask for their help. I am sure if you explain your dilemma, they will help/give advice. Sorry guy I couldn't provide any more help.