Subwoofer problem

[billytheman1188]

So this morning i get in my car to go to school, and i turn the music up a little, and i noticed the bass was a lot lower than usual. So when i got out of school, i popped the trunk to see if the subs were working at all, and they were. but they are lower than they used to be.

now what could be the problem????

is it cause its getting cold here???? i think it was around 20 degrees here last night.....idk what could be wrong though, any help is appreciated.

Thank you

[alero168]

cables/wires came loose?

[AftermathAlero]

ur battery could be dieing due to the cold weather. check for corrision of wires, loose wires.. etc.

[AGT]

ur battery could be dieing due to the cold weather. check for corrision of wires, loose wires.. etc.

Scotty we need more power!! I mean Billy

[alerocar01]

most amps will not put out max power if they are cold. they need time to warm up and then it should sound normal. i had the same problem with mine. i think its because of the condensation that can build up when its cold.

[billytheman1188]

alright guys, thanks for the help, if anyone else wants to throw some stuff out there go ahead.

[tseebs]

hey i dont wanna steal this thread but im also having problems with my subs.

I started my car yesterday and they didnt work. the power light on the amp isnt comin on. they were workin the night before and i dont blast them to much so i probly didnt fry the amp or blow the subs. I checked all the connections and they seemed fine.... any ideas what it could be?

o yeah my amp is a kenwood 9152D monoblock. it has a protection function where if anything is wrong it will shut off

[HazMatt24]

by connections do you mean you checked where the amp is grounded to the car?

[whiteliquid]

for tseebs....try un-hooking the power wire from the amp then reconnect it.

You could have blown a fuse or the amp just got to hot. check both fuses...on amp and the in-line one.

[tseebs]

i checked all the connections from the battery to all the way back to the ground. took them all off and reconected them. took my capacitor out of the system to see if that was it. checked the fuse by the battery and both in the amp.

it says it will activate the protection function if a speaker wire is shorted... i have only slight knowledge of electronics im still learning. how do i know if a speaker wire is shorted?

thanks for all the help so far

[alerocar01]

if the positive and negative are touching at a spot were they shouldn't. if you see sparks that might be the spot of the short.

[AGT]

i checked all the connections from the battery to all the way back to the ground. took them all off and reconected them. took my capacitor out of the system to see if that was it. checked the fuse by the battery and both in the amp.

it says it will activate the protection function if a speaker wire is shorted... i have only slight knowledge of electronics im still learning. how do i know if a speaker wire is shorted?

thanks for all the help so far

Does the protection function not just change power light color from say green to red?

[Ryan from Ohio]

"most amps will not put out max power if they are cold."

Actually thats totally wrong. Amplifiers actually run better cooler, or cold even. Also amplifiers never put out max power, unelss they are clipping or lighting strikes it...

I think what the first guy is experiencing is the winter weathers effect on his subs.

Now my question is, what do you mean the subs "are lower than they used to be" If by chance you mean the are sitting more sucked down in the basket, you may just have another issue on your hand- like bad subs.

Teebs- the power light on the amp isnt coming on for a few possible reasons.

1) Amp isnt getting power.Blown fuse, there have been many instances where a fuse appears to "look" good but in fact is blown. If you have a DMM toss that on there to see if it has any resistance...

2) Bad ground. Maybe your ground worked loose?

3) Remote wire came undone or remote wire circuitry is fried. You can run a jumper from the 12V+ to the rem to test this one.

[billytheman1188]

"most amps will not put out max power if they are cold."

Actually thats totally wrong. Amplifiers actually run better cooler, or cold even. Also amplifiers never put out max power, unelss they are clipping or lighting strikes it...

I think what the first guy is experiencing is the winter weathers effect on his subs.

Now my question is, what do you mean the subs "are lower than they used to be" If by chance you mean the are sitting more sucked down in the basket, you may just have another issue on your hand- like bad subs.

Teebs- the power light on the amp isnt coming on for a few possible reasons.

1) Amp isnt getting power.Blown fuse, there have been many instances where a fuse appears to "look" good but in fact is blown. If you have a DMM toss that on there to see if it has any resistance...

2) Bad ground. Maybe your ground worked loose?

3) Remote wire came undone or remote wire circuitry is fried. You can run a jumper from the 12V+ to the rem to test this one.

Ive had these subs for a little over a year now, never had any problems. but what i meant by "they are lower than they used to be" is because when i turn the bass all the way down,all i can hear is the bass from the stock speakers, then i turn it all the way back up where i always have it, and i can hear SOME bass, but their definitly not as loud as they used to be......its weird.

[whiteliquid]

check your ground... If you didnt scrape of the paint where you grounded it that could be a problem. Also always remember the shorter the ground wire the better

Also Im guessing you have two subs right? If you do did u bridge them or run them left/right side like normal.

[billytheman1188]

check your ground... If you didnt scrape of the paint where you grounded it that could be a problem. Also always remember the shorter the ground wire the better

Also Im guessing you have two subs right? If you do did u bridge them or run them left/right side like normal.

if you dont scrape the paint off that could affect the ground???? i got it done at boomer mccloud, i think they grounded it behind my seats, idk, i gotta check.

yea i have 2 subs, and they arent bridged, i just run them out of each side

[whiteliquid]

Ok well try bridging them...Run both power to the left side power terminal...and both grounds to right side ground terminal.

And yes scraping the paint off makes a stronger ground....paint doesnt conduct electricity. And if your wires move around they could lose connection.

[billytheman1188]

alright well im going to sound like an idiot, but i dont do car audio shit too much, but how do i bridge them, i mean how should i connect them????

[HazMatt24]

[QUOTE=whiteliquid;251345]...Run both power to the left side power terminal...and both grounds to right side ground terminal.

QUOTE]

I believe he said it

[whiteliquid]

alright well im going to sound like an idiot, but i dont do car audio shit too much, but how do i bridge them, i mean how should i connect them????

look at above post it says...

Both power wires from subs to the LEFT side power terminal on the amp.
BOth ground wires from subs to the RIGHT side terminal on the amp.

[whiteliquid]

It helps alot ...the difference in sound really is determined by your amp

[billytheman1188]

Both power wires from subs to the LEFT side power terminal on the amp.
BOth ground wires from subs to the RIGHT side terminal on the amp.

thanks, thats what i wanted to know. first i will check the ground and fix it if it needs to be, if that doesnt work, i will work on the subs.

[antichrysler]

thanks, thats what i wanted to know. first i will check the ground and fix it if it needs to be, if that doesnt work, i will work on the subs.

Honestly, I think it's just the weather. Up here in Saskatchewan when it gets -30C it sounds like I have no sub at all. The problem is the amp, but also in the sub. When it gets cold the rubber gets stiff and the sub needs more power to move. Which is why you it seems the volume is lower. I find with my sub from about -5 and above everything is okay. Once I get below -5 I notice it's quieter.

[Ryan from Ohio]

It helps alot ...the difference in sound really is determined by your amp


You sure about this?

Sound Quality wont be affected. Built in option and quality can be, the sound however is taboo. You can shape it by eqing it- thats it. You cant make it "sound" different.

http://www.talkaudio.co.uk/vbb/showthread.php?t=18815

Antichrysler...

Its better for you amp to be cooler! Its your sub that has issue when that cold. The mechanical compliance is not as good. It also makes the sub somewhat inefficient until it warms up. I always advise warming speakers up before letting them rip. Usually until the car is warm, they are ready to go.

[antichrysler]

Ryan... I agree about the amp. But there is a such thing as too cold. -30C is definitely out of the operating range. But I operate it anyways :yahoo:

[billytheman1188]

Well the next day the bass worked again, weird, i never check anything, its been fine since.

[battistoni21]

lol yeah -30 C is really cold..... but ummmm why in the hell would you run your subs when its that cold outside anyways?

[HazMatt24]

well hmmm, the ambiant temperature inside the car on a 115 degree day can reach between 160 and 175 depending on where your car is sitting, I wonder if its bad for the subs at that temp

[antichrysler]

lol yeah -30 C is really cold..... but ummmm why in the hell would you run your subs when its that cold outside anyways?

lol because i live in saskatchewan and my stereo gets stolen long before the cold can damage my sub :scpimp:

[antichrysler]

well hmmm, the ambiant temperature inside the car on a 115 degree day can reach between 160 and 175 depending on where your car is sitting, I wonder if its bad for the subs at that temp

I don't think so. You'll probably find your amp will have less power from the heat. Also, if you run too much power into your sub you can theoretically wreck the voice coil... but you'd have to do ALOT. If you're just at listening volume it shouldn't matter.