Head Unit: Jensen Phase Linear UV9 7" Touch Screen 160w
Amplifier: Sony Xplod 1200w
Subwoofer: one American Bass XD-12
Amp Kit: 1500w
Issue: The amp gets hot and shuts down much faster - like after only 15-20 minutes of bumping - compared to my last vehicle that had a 200w Pioneer head unit and TWO of these 12" American Bass subs. Also, I blew the fuse by the battery twice, though I just bought a 100w fuse last week and it hasn't blown yet...but I'm concerned about too much power ruining something. Never blew that fuse in my other systems...but I've always had issues with my amp shutting down after getting too hot. My buddy, who knows much more than me about car audio and has installed every system I've had except one, (best buy didn't do any better job of installing btw) suggested I get a capacitor to resolve these issues...or at least the amp issue. Any experiences with this and/or suggestions? Greatly appreciate any help...
well the first thing i would say is don't get use a fuse near the battery unless it is of the recommended amperage, that fuse could save you from a firey end one day. Also, capacitors are next to useless unless your running HUGE systems and even then, i don't see the point in them.
Now the issue with the amp, the first cause for concern is the fact that its a Sony Xplod, this alone could be the cause of the problem, they, and kenwood, are known for over heating.
to solve this you could try to install a few fans to cool it, and by fan i mean the one's that are used to cool CPU's in computers, not one of those industrial ones. Give that a go and maybe turn down the gain.
Update: I exchanged the Jensen head unit for another of the same...I had a bad one b/c the motor was always humming...not sure if that contributed to the fuses blowing.
What I did is un-bridged the amp and turned up the gain, it sounds just as good and hasn't over-heated or shut-down yet.
I have 4 gauge power wire....I put in the 100w fuse by the battery b/c the others would blow. This may result in fire?! I'm just not understanding b/c I never had an issue with this fuse when I had more watts and speakers in the past.
I'm well aware that buying a Sony Xplod amp was a bad choice...it's about 4 years old now...over-heating has always been an issue...but it seems to be doing best now with the one 12inch sub.
Yes, bad choice in the amp...but I'm going to keep pushing it till it quits rather than spend more dough that I don't have. Besides, I'm already losing some hearing in my right ear...it's time to tune it down a bit and just have good quality sound with a little bass support...and that's what I have...with a crappy amp. Plus, while the Jensen is the most expensive head unit I've purchased (b/c DVD player), it's the weakest. I was spoiled with the Pioneers.
just kiddin