audio (amp) turning tips plz.

a.graham52 · 09-09-2011, 07:46 PM

hey guys need some tuning help.

Details:
pioneer head unit
and 760w amp
and subwoofer
(all pioneer)

background.

got an amazing deal on the 760w amp and subwoofer. (was in a trade-in at work and i bought it of our UCD for $20

stuffed it under my table and there it sat for a month. went out and bought a pioneer HU that i liked the looks of. tonight i noticed all three pieces are pioneer. i know some people would prefer mix-and-match of components.

ok. hears where i need some help. i like making the car shake. thats my favorite part. i set the radio the way i like the sound and with a song like (for example) urban assault vehicle by limp bisket (lots of consistent bass) the amp will shut down like its getting overpowered. probably trying to push too much through it far as i know. this is the biggest amp iv had (my last was a 600w sony) so im surprised iv run into this so easily.

the amp does have adjustment. there: bass boost (0-6-12), gain (6.3? ohms-normal-.2ohms), LPF (off-low).

how should i go about adjusting it so it doesnt shut down so easily?

also want to ask whats the best orientation for an sub? i noticed with it facing the trunk lid it shes the car real well. but with the sub facing the drivers side it doesnt shake so much but it sounds nice.

sorry for the outrageously long post but i wanted to give out everythign i know.

robalero · 09-09-2011, 08:26 PM

your gain is set to high for one. it should be around 1 and bass boost where you want but its not being overpowered what is happening is your amp is getting so hot its shutting down.

as for how the sub faces thats a personal preference I myself like it towards the trunk lid and lpf should be off if you got nothing to go with it ( speakers and speaker amp )

im sure some more experienced then me guys will chime in on their words of thought but its just how I run my stuff doesn't mean its what everyone does

a.graham52 · 09-09-2011, 08:28 PM

curently gain is like a 16th" past normal. is turnin that lower going the help my over heating issue? if i turn that down can i turn up bass boost would i stil get the bump i like?

Gr1m · 09-10-2011, 03:43 AM

rig up some computer fans to cool off the amps or turn down the gain. not much else you can do.

robalero · 09-10-2011, 06:49 AM

if you turn your gain down and crank the bass boost you MIGHT get still the same bass but I doubt it put it this way that 760 watt pioneer amp is not really 760 watts if I recall correctly its only like 350 rms? or less? what you really need to do is like Gr1m said install some fans but you still might get the cutting out ( I know I still was ) I bought a cheap cheap cheap lightning audio amp for dirt cheap it was 1000 watts and I honestly wasn't expecting much ( since I blew my 1000 watt kenwood ) and it actually powers better then what my old kenwood did and doesn't cut out like the kenwood did

a.graham52 · 09-10-2011, 08:42 AM

hey thanks guys. found the problem. i forgot about the little flat spot on the gain screw that you use as the indicator. the gain was cranked way up. turned it down so i now ahve the best of both worlds. thanks again.

Ryan from Ohio · 09-10-2011, 06:26 PM

Also this can happen if your wiring is not sufficient or your ground spot sucks.

a.graham52 · 09-10-2011, 09:47 PM

the wiring should be adequate, its the amp kit from walmart. i think it uses 8 gauge wire? however my ground may not be the best. i used the stud/nut for the drives rear strut as the ground point. wasnt a problem with the last alero though.

robalero · 09-11-2011, 09:20 AM

8 gauge ain't the best, I believe in miminum of 4 gauge or go home lol. I use the same ground on mine but the pass side

Ryan from Ohio · 09-11-2011, 12:22 PM

That stuff at walmart is usually some off ga size not commonly used. Ive seen 6 ga there...

I would double check you have a true 8 ga. Should be sufficient for 760 watts max amp.

Probably just a matter of how you have it tuned.

Start here:
Radio- turn off all bass bosters. Turn bass to 0,

Amp:
Set gain to 3/4 of way maximum. Set LPF to on, set for around 80 Hz if you can. Set any bass boosters to 0.

Thats where you start. Then you can turn the bass up slightly starting at the radio. Depends on how many levels you have, but no more than 1/3 of the way on the radio. I dont like to ever use the bass boosters on the amp. usually trouble/ noise/distortion is added there.