Cant keep my system powered. Help

[Pdee]

I have an audio system that I can keep powered up. I installed it about 2 years ago and it worked great. I have a sony xplod head end. PA BAMF 1800/2 bridged into 2 12" 4ohm blaupunkt subs in parallel. Also a Pyle 600watt marine drive a pair of 6x9s.

Last year I started having a problem that the system would start cutting out after a few hrs. The problem is getting worse. It is clearly a power problem. I can let the system cool all the way down after the problem begins and it will then cut out after a few minuets of opperation when turned back on. I replaced the very large deep cycle marine battery with the same model battery that worked before but that did not help. I am running 4 gauge wire from the battery to the amp(it is the largest wire the Amp will take). that cable is about 15 to 20 feet. I also added a starting battery next to the amp using a 1 foot piece of 4 gauge wire clamped the the main wire with split bolts. This does not seem to have helped at all.

Someone told me that the wire wears out under such a load and should be replaced. I have not tried this but I have re ended all the cables.

Any suggestions?

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[lancer 10+ year member]

what kind of car do you have? also i dont believe a starter battery will do any good beside the amp, though someone here will correct me if im wrong. it should be up front. with the deep cycle in the back next to the amp. have you done the big 3 yet? try it and try upgrading the wire from front to the rear with 0ga and then using a distro block to bring the ga down to 4g. also check how your subs are wired. might be too low of an impedence for your amp to handle being bridged. ive had a couple amps do that before.

 

[Pdee]

It is not a car. It is on my pontoon boat. I don't have it connected to the motor as there is no way I can get an alternator on my old outboard motor that would not burn up under the load. In the past I just used the system all day and recharged it at the dock at night. When I installed the system I got 8 to 10 hrs of loud play. Now I'm down to 1-2 hrs before it starts dropping out.

The subs are 4 ohm and my amp is supposed to be staple down to 2 ohm.

I put the stating battery next to the amp to shorten the cable length thinking the cable was part of the problem.

 

[schrummy 10+ year member]

/\/\ I agree on the impedance.... if your subs are single 4 ohm coils, and you have the wired in parallel. that means your bridging your amp at 2 ohm, so each channel is seeing a 1 ohm impedance. try wiring your subs up to 8 ohms then bridge it, or try one sub on each channel.... might fix your problem

 

[Pdee]

I just checked the Power Acoustik web site:

Power Acoustik - Products - Bamf Amplifiers

It shows that bridged is for 4 ohm and stereo is 2 ohm. I am surprised that it worked so well for almost 2 years.

Unfortunately that means that I'm loosing 1/2 my power.

 

[wickedwitt 10+ year member]

You have a bad connection or have completely discharged that battery. Check all connections, wire. Look for burnt spots or discoloring. Look for loose connections on power and ground throughout the system. Put a charger on the marine battery and see if it needs charging. If it does, look into the Big 3 upgrade and probably a HO alt. For a short term fix, charge that marine battery with an external charger every night to make sure it stays topped off. With close to a thousand watts RMS, you might be ok short term doing that.

 

[Phoenix Risen 10+ year member]

You have a bad connection or have completely discharged that battery. Check all connections, wire. Look for burnt spots or discoloring. Look for loose connections on power and ground throughout the system. Put a charger on the marine battery and see if it needs charging. If it does, look into the Big 3 upgrade and probably a HO alt. For a short term fix, charge that marine battery with an external charger every night to make sure it stays topped off. With close to a thousand watts RMS, you might be ok short term doing that.

you didnt read the part about it being in a boat did you

 

[sacsking916 5,000+ posts]

sounds like a dead battery

 

[mast240 10+ year member]

what do you have protecting all your parts bro? i wouldnt really trust a BAMF in a car setup... let alone a marine enviroment

 

[ColterDC 10+ year member]

I have an audio system that I can keep powered up. I installed it about 2 years ago and it worked great. I have a sony xplod head end. PA BAMF 1800/2 bridged into 2 12" 4ohm blaupunkt subs in parallel. Also a Pyle 600watt marine drive a pair of 6x9s.
Last year I started having a problem that the system would start cutting out after a few hrs. The problem is getting worse. It is clearly a power problem. I can let the system cool all the way down after the problem begins and it will then cut out after a few minuets of opperation when turned back on. I replaced the very large deep cycle marine battery with the same model battery that worked before but that did not help. I am running 4 gauge wire from the battery to the amp(it is the largest wire the Amp will take). that cable is about 15 to 20 feet. I also added a starting battery next to the amp using a 1 foot piece of 4 gauge wire clamped the the main wire with split bolts. This does not seem to have helped at all.

Someone told me that the wire wears out under such a load and should be replaced. I have not tried this but I have re ended all the cables.

Any suggestions?

Am I right in assuming your amp is overheating and it's not that your battery is discharging?

I have heard in other electronics that the heat wrap and/or gel (forget the technical name) can become brittle or wear out and overheating issues will occur and become worse.

 

[wickedwitt 10+ year member]

you didnt read the part about it being in a boat did you

Nope

 

[lancer 10+ year member]

being a marine system id check the batteries. still wouldnt have the starter batt so close to the amp. it isnt that its a problem, its just not benificial. starter batts are meant to be used for starting..deep cycles are meant for long periods of usage. the starter batt is being forced to push all those amps through tiny wire for a long distance, so any advantages for starting would be negated. might not help your audio much but its work a try to just swap them.

and the impedance is probably the cause. that would make your amp overheat, and shut off. mine done it before with the re mt wired too low. played it fine at first and couple months later slowly started slacking off. if it keeps on doing it after you change the impendance get your batts tested and check the connections again. ive had systems fail over slightly corroded terminals, or loose ones.