Amps cutting out at high volume

[bwhitfield85]

The kicker amp powering my tower speakers cuts out at high volume after about 5 mins. Once it is powered down and back up it is fine for another 5-10 mins and shuts off again. I am assuming the amp is overheating but how can I fix that issue? The amps are mounted to the front wall of the compartment under the observer seat in a sunsetter so its a good size compartment. Any help is appreicated. 

 

 

[teamerickson]

I had a similar issue on my boat. I was thinking it might be overheating also. Now, I'm leaning toward amps going into protect mode. I have not been able to recreate the issue.

[bwhitfield85]

Mine will do it everytime at high volume which is starting to drive me crazy. If the amp is going into protect mode how do I stop it from doing that? 

[MLA]

What amp, what speaker, how are they wired? 

how long are they off before coming back on?

Are you seeing the amp shut down or just hearing a loss of music?

Does the normal light go out and/or protect light come on? 

[bwhitfield85]

So let me preface this convo by saying I am not a wiring or stereo expert. The amp is a 4 channel Kicker 800 watt, the tower speakers are kicker 200 watt peak power and there are 4 of them. So my amps come on when I flip the music note switch on the dash and when the tower speakers stop playing I just flip the switch off and then back on and they start playing again. As far as what lights come on I have no idea because the way the amp is mounted I can not see that side of it well enough to tell. 

Edited July 21, 2016 by bwhitfield85

[teamerickson]

4 minutes ago, bwhitfield85 said:

So let me preface this convo by saying I am not a wiring or stereo expert. The amp is a 4 channel Kicker 800 watt, the tower speakers are kicker 200 watt peak power and there are 4 of them. So my amps come on when I flip the music note switch on the dash and when the tower speakers stop playing I just flip the switch off and then back on and they start playing again. As far as what lights come on I have no idea because the way the amp is mounted I can not see that side of it well enough to tell. 

You're probably going to need to know what warning lights are coming on?

I'm no stereo expert either. Last year I was adding a sub and amp to my truck. When I turned it loud it would cut out and I noticed the protect light was coming on. I turned down the gain and tuned it. It's been fine ever since. That's what's making me think my issue is protect mode.

[bwhitfield85]

I am planning to take both amps down and remount them this weekend so im sure it will be 200 degrees up in that compartment 

[David]

Because of the description you have given, and assuming this happens while the boat is running, the first suspicion would be thermal shutdown. And there are many issues that can cause or contribute to this. Too low of an impedance load, especially if bridged and paralleled. Too low of an impedance load once a partially damaged speaker begins to heat up. Low voltage can compound the problem (bad connections/terminations)(large enough primary cables). An internal problem with the amplifier such as a scorched power supply transformer. Just plain running the amplifier into clipping, perhaps over-gained. July/Aug afternoons. Too much stress due to EQ tone settings or boost. Not using a HP filter. Physical mounting of the amplifier, such as close to and directly above another amplifier.  

Starting with the amplifier mounting. Mounted on 3/8" stand-offs. Side-by-side with other amplifiers but not directly over the top of. Depending on the particular amplifier model, the main heatsink mass at the top versus the bottom, or the primary power terminals at the top rather than the bottom, or the heatsink extrusions running up/down. If all else fails and you are sure the equipment condition is good, add a small fan and fan shroud (the shroud multiplies the fan effectiveness many times over). Add circulation to the port locker by moving air with a small fan & vent --- from exterior locker wall through locker and into bilge compartment via a vent (the bilge has its own vent to the exterior).  

 

[shawndoggy]

If they are older kicker KX or ZX series amps (the real big ones) they are prone to overheat if pushed hard. Especially in a closed compartment on a hot summer day. They were good amps for their day but you can certainly get better performers that run cooler nowadays. 

[bwhitfield85]

What I really need is a good stereo guy in the Lexington, KY area that I can hire to just fix it all and replace whatever needs to be replaced. The constant issues with the stereo in this boat are starting to drive me crazy. My solution is buy a new boat but that just isnt the best option at the moment. 

 

 

[David]

9 minutes ago, bwhitfield85 said:

What I really need is a good stereo guy in the Lexington, KY area that I can hire to just fix it all and replace whatever needs to be replaced. The constant issues with the stereo in this boat are starting to drive me crazy. My solution is buy a new boat but that just isnt the best option at the moment. 

 

 

Depending on how close he is, jonyb from Ky could be a good candidate.  

[bwhitfield85]

It appears he is in Paducah which isnt that far prolly 4 hours or so. 

[malibu2004]

2 hours ago, bwhitfield85 said:

The kicker amp powering my tower speakers cuts out at high volume after about 5 mins. Once it is powered down and back up it is fine for another 5-10 mins and shuts off again. I am assuming the amp is overheating but how can I fix that issue? The amps are mounted to the front wall of the compartment under the observer seat in a sunsetter so its a good size compartment. Any help is appreicated. 

 

 

I'm sure the people on the shore and other boats are glad when they go out. 

[MLA]

5 hours ago, bwhitfield85 said:

So let me preface this convo by saying I am not a wiring or stereo expert. The amp is a 4 channel Kicker 800 watt, the tower speakers are kicker 200 watt peak power and there are 4 of them. So my amps come on when I flip the music note switch on the dash and when the tower speakers stop playing I just flip the switch off and then back on and they start playing again. As far as what lights come on I have no idea because the way the amp is mounted I can not see that side of it well enough to tell. 

This steers me off in a different route from thermal shut down, all though lets mot rule it out yet. Usually, when an amp gets hot and shuts down, there is usually a few minutes delay before the amp cools down and returns to service. Another thing, you've got a 4 chnl amp and 4 speakers. If they are 4 ohm coaxials, then that amp should be running cool as a cucumber, even if its a pushed hard KX or ZX model. Ive abused many of those @ 2 ohm per chnl and not had thermal issues. 

[David]

MLA makes a good point. You wonder why it wouldn't thermal even faster after being reset. Or if turning it Off and On resets the protection circuit and it requires a certain duration to trip again. Does the amplifier feel especially hot when this happens, not warm, but VERY uncomfortable holding your hand on the sink for say 10 seconds? Any odor coming from the amplifier? Does the amplifier only exhibit this behavior on the warmest days or at the top of the day the same as in the afternoon? 

It really does sound like a diagnostic job for a pro. There are so many exterior factors that can influence the amplifier behavior and those must first be eliminated one at a time. That's not always straight forward. After that you have to look at the amplifier internally. It could be something as simple as leaky or swollen power supply capacitors. Oftentimes internal amplifier problems are obvious and can be spotted visually. You can always ship the amplifier back to the manufacturer or an authorized service facility for a thorough bench check.       

[Cayute]

Are your batteries fully charged and good working condition? I had weird problems like this last year and it stemmed from my batteries being junk

[Nitrousbird]

What is the battery voltage when this happens?

Are the gains adjusted correctly?  Two things to look into before paying someone to start looking at it. 

[jonyb]

Thanks for the referrals above, but I'm not allowed to say anything else.

Edited July 23, 2016 by jonyb

[Fman]

I had a fosgate amp in my first boat that went into protection mode on hot days.  It ended up being from us stuffing all our backpacks, towels, etc in observer compartment creating a hot environment with no air flow.  After I stopped packing so much stuff in the compartment and left space around the amp it stopped doing it.  Just something to consider.