Is it dead?

sntnsupermen131

i think my amp has bit the big one...
i checked the fuse thinking i had blown it but no
but i have a question before i declare it dead...
would any power be coming out of it to my subs?
b/c theres not
by the way its my rf bd 1000.1
and would the red l.e.d. light still be on? cuz it is
i smelled something burning...so i turned the radio down and it went away...turned it up...came back....turned it down...sniffed the amps
didnt seem to be coming from them...opened the hood expecting it to be the alternator...no smell there
then my subs quit working...smelled the amp...and thats when i knew...my amp has died
i was pushing it pretty hard
i feel so bad...poor little amp
but i think its time to put it in the old pine box...and ship it back to rockford fosgate...well cardboard box...but it couldve been pine at one time...
unless i get up tomorrow and by an act of God my amp will be resurrected and i find out that one of my wires came loose or it shut it self off...but there was still that burning smell...
goodbye amp
you served your purpose well...
-Cody

sntnsupermen131

oo and pbd....what patch cables do you run to your subs?
and what are some other good ones?
im going to rewire everything to that amp
-Cody

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patch cables -- from head unit to amps (all amps including sub amps) ----> Streetwires Zero Noise 5.0 .. the new 6.0 are the replacement but I've found 3.5's to be just as good and half the price.

speaker wire from sub amps to subs --> Either of the two are identical: Monster Cable 12 gauge silver strand braided wire with dual jackets.... or Streetwires 12 gauge silver strand braided with dual jackets --- there are two wires, with individual jackets twisted and then slipped inside a clear jacket. Crutchfield has it listed as item number 211UC12 at 80 cents a foot.

as far as the life/ death of your amp...

dead and injured are two difft things.

if your LED light is on on the amp, then you know you are 1) not have a blown fuse and are getting power to the amp 2) the remote turn on line is functioning and has turned the amp on.

so your possible list of problems is cut down to:

1- something wrong with wiring between subs and amp (but you're a competent invividual and i doubt that's the problem).

2- your RCA patch cables between head and amp became unhooked somewhere or slipped out of their terminals (either at the amp or behind the head) sometimes the least little tug on the line can do this.

3- gain is at zero??? maybe somebody dialed it when u weren't looking...?

4- something is amiss inside the amp -- this can be anything from a power supply problem, to more likely an output stage problem... nearly 75% of the amps i've fixed have had the output stage be the source problem -- it goes first -- if its cuahgt in time, then nothin else breaks, if some moron leaves it going then other stuff cooks too.

because it is a mono - 1 channel amp, if even one transistor went, then its going to kill the sound output of the whole amp -- cuz its just one channel.

hopefully that's all that's wrong with it -- in which case it should not cost you much for a repair -- if the repairman is honest -- if they're being jerks or just charging a flat rate - u may end up with a 100 - 200 dollar bill.

if the amp is out of warranty -- like more than 3 months past its warranty end date and you['re positive rockford isn't going to do the repair under warranty, then i would suggest opening it up yourself -- make sure its totally disconnected and plop it on the dining room table -- do a continuity / diode test on every transistor in the amp -- there wont be too many and they're all along the edges of the circuit board -- take u maybe an hour if its your first time and its a big amp... you'll notice a pattern -- like almost all of them will spit up a certain decimal number (give or take 1 digit... like 0.45 and 0.44 and 0.46) but one of them (or more) will give you " 0 " or " 1 " (note, sometimes "1" will come up on a meter as infinity -- it'l jsut keep going... 2..3...4...5.. u should never get whole numbers).

look for other odd things -- like blown capacitors (there are little ones that look just like the big ones only tiny inside the amp) -- a normal cap is "flat" on top... its its buldging badly or the plastic jacket is burned off on it -- then that needs to be repalced too... then of course look for the obvious -- like a loose wire leading to the speaker terminals or soemthing.

if after that u find no answers -- pack it up and send it to RF -- wont cost you any more money that it would have cost u had u send it in the first place. but that's just a suggestion if its out of warranty.

good luck

sntnsupermen131

Thanks...but I think I can consider it dead...almost...I need some free time to go over everything...but I turned the car on this morning and i looked at the amp when the radio turned on and I could almost swear I saw smoke...then it blew my 80 amp fuse
it also made this sound...I can't really recall what it sounded like, but almost like a pop...but I took the fuse out a while ago and I'm going to disconnect the whole thing soon
I got a new crutchfield today and the new RF amps have 2 year warranties...the one I have I bought 1/29/02..so if its a 2 yr warranty Ill ship it back
the gain wont be set at 0 unless someone broke into my truck...had the right allen wrench to take the cover off(its an imbetween size rf uses that u can hardly get anywhere...i guess its an anti theft thing)and turned the gain to 0..put it back on...and locked my door and turned the alarm back on
so i think thats a no
I have not taken the cover off yet as ive been working all day today and fixing to go back and it happened last night
but like i said...i smelled burning and i though i saw smoke
then the fuse blew
and by the way...in crutchfield they recommend a 100 amp fuse
i asked about that yesterday
but im going to go to that website to pick up some 1/0 wire and wire everything again as i only have 4 awg wire now
8 awg running my mm6
i might run the 4 awg to my mm6...it wont hurt anything
and thanks for the advice on the patch cables
-Cody

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a single 0/1 line would be enough for like your sub amp and your high amp -- so u could prolly just get 2 awg if u're gonna keep the 4 awg line as well -- save some pennies...

if u can, go with that knuconceptz **** though -- what'd they wnat for 0/1 gauge like 2.00 a foot or something dirt cheap like that?

here's hopin for that 2 yr warranty -- 1.5 years of life out of an amp is a sad sight -- and i feel bad for u -- that would piss me off that i spent $$$ on an amp and had it die.

sntnsupermen131

it did make me mad
i was pretty pissed off
i took the amp out today and put it in the box
Im going to call carstereotime.com tomorrow to see what to do with it
my brothers wife works for a packaging company so maybe i can even get a discount on shipping
lol
the 1/0 wire on the website is 2.25 per foot...which is really good
but ive been thinking that i dont need that big because i dont want to run both amps off the same power reason because id have to buy more stuff to split it to go to each amp
so i think im going to go with their 2 awg which i dont know how expensive it is
but im going to wait and get xm radio first
why did u get sirius over xm?
b/c it has no commercials?
have you ever had it break up at all?
i plan on sending this amp back and by the time i get it back i should have enough money for it
maybe even before depending on how long it takes to get it back
after i get the amp and xm radio i think ill be happy with my system
until the new momo 4x6s come out and im going to get them and an amp and rewire those b/c right now its stock wiring
and after that ill be done
i think
then its time to save up for a new truck
-Cody

sntnsupermen131

ok now im really mad
i bought it from carstereotime.com thinking theyre an authorized dealer
theyre not
those stupid mother(insert bad words here)
i called them and the lady was like yeah send it back and i asked her if it was still under warranty being that i bought it on 1/29/02 she said no that its been more than a year
i didnt even tell her anything about my return...not that it was an amp or rf
and i was like well different manufacturers have different warranties not everyone is just a year
she was like no its our warranty...no rf's
and i asked if they were rf authorized dealers and she said no and i hung up
im fixing to call rf to see if they can do anything but i dont really expect them to be able to
it was a dumb mistake on my part to not check if they were authorized dealers
well ill give you an update after i call rf
-Cody

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this is why if u'r egonna buy online -- buy ebay -- if u'renot gettin a warranty u might as well get the dirt cheapest price u can find...

i'm sorry to hear u're gettin butt-f****ed by them.

if u get stuck in a jam and nobody is gonna fix that amp for you -- send it to me -- all u gotta cover is your basic ground shipping (15 bucks or whatever) and whatever it comes to for replacement parts (usually not more than 30 bucks) and if i can fix it i will free of charge and send it back... and if i cant, i cant, but i'd take a crack at it -- i'm shootin 80% success rate on fixing amps with 100% of the one's i've fixed still running today. usually if its smokes out or overheats - its an easy fix -- the hard ones are the ones that jsut stop working without anything noticeable going wrong (like that jbl i had -- just all of a sudden stopped working out of one channel... no smoke, no nothin.... had no idea what to do with it)... but that blue thunder that my buddy's boss's kid set on fire -- had that done in 2 days...lol.

sntnsupermen131

well its my fault i shouldve checked first
i wouldve spent the extra money to go to an authorized dealer in case something like this happened
if i send it to rf they want $272 to fix it...even they dont know whats wrong with it....
hmmm
or if i blew the board....itll be more
so im going to call the local shops around here and get some estimates
i was looking on ebay yesterday and they had the rf type 6 i think
850x1 @ 2 ohms
$363
im getting my paycheck this friday...so depending on how much it is...i might get that amp
lol
but it wouldnt match the other amps
but then again no one sees the amps b/c theyre behind the seat
but the bd1000 puts out 1200 watts
this one will probably only put out 1000
but the type 6 no one has
if i get it ill get the bd fixed and sell it on ebay for $150-200
in which case if it sells for 150 ill only be out $215...$55 cheaper than rf will fix it for
so friday...depending on the pay check...ill know what im going to do
if its small ill let you know and ill ship it to you and hopefully you can fix it
thanks a million
-Cody

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people wud think u were god if u had a type RF 6 -- those things look like space ships and are clean as hell... you'd be a pimp.

sntnsupermen131

lol...the x7 was like $500 on ebay
ill depends on the size of the check...but more than likely youll be getting an amp in the mail soon
lol
-Cody

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lol ok

sntnsupermen131

hey vince...
lol
email me your address at sntnpirate1316@netscape.net
tell me how much money you think youll need and if you want it cash or money order
ill send u my return address with the box and the amp
thanks a million man...ill be forever in your debt if you can fix it...lol
-Cody

Systems

You may want to consider replacing it with the MTX 1501D, I know it's not fosgate and all but personally i feel that MTX is a better company(not the point i'm making i'm not trying to start a fosgate/mtx battle here) But with that amp you'll probably be looking somewhere around 1200w RMS @ 2ohms. HERE'S THE IMPORTATN PART: if you get it from an authorized MTX destributor it comes with a 3 YEAR warranty!!! on top of that MTX DOES NOT "fix" the amp. They pull the old amp out of the casing. they put a new amp into the casing. they then send it back to you. I've never seen anyone who comes close to there warranty. Just my 2cents take it or leave it.

Joel

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Joel...

1- RF 1000BD is more like 1350 at 13.8 V -- for 150 watts, why bother changing amps?

2- the distortion on the RF is less than 1/4 of the mtx -- the mtx is a dirty amp... a very dirty amp...

3- the slew rate on teh RF is in the mid 30's while the mtx is down at 20 v/ms

.... so basically even tho i'm kicking myself for saying it -- the RF is a much better amp. (just has more of a history of smoking out).

4- the 3 yr warranty is untrue -- it is only 1 year unless it is INSTALLED by the mtx dealer.

5- they do not just swap out the boards... i've had repair performed by mtx on a couple occasions and after having detailed discussions with the techies, they only replace the board if the problem is not one of the main paorts of the power supply or mainparts of output stage -- basically if they spend more than 2 or 3 hours chasing the problem and can't find it -- then they swap out the baord cuz its cheaper than chasing a problem for days.


....... and this comes form a guy who owns two 81000D's / a total of 8 mitek amplifers / 7 of which are mtx, one xtant.


cody -- u'll be getting email -- and u dont owe me anything right now... i'll give u a call if/when (probably when but maybe 'if') if i figure it out with an exact cost of the parts. ballpark right now... if its somethign simple -- 10 to 15 bucks // something worse .. maybe 30... parts are dirt cheap.

sntnsupermen131

the birth sheet has my amp rated at 1236w at 2 ohms
if that is at 14.4 or 13.8 i dont know...but i kinda want to know now...i think ill email rf and ask
thanks so much vince...i dont think i can tell you enough...i miss having to turn the radio down to see out the rear view mirror...lol
-Cody

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cody -- according to thomas the grey, everything previous to this year 2003 model year stuff is @ 13.8 ((thomas says pre-2003 RF stuff is underrated bya long shot // while post-2003 stuff is actually possibly overrated and all the 2003 birthsheets are 14.4V))--- but your thd rating on the birth sheet is gonna be well under the 0.5 spec --- in which case you're gonna end up with more power as u inch closer and closer to the 0.5 thd rating. --- ie. 1260@ 0.4 thd --> 1300 @ 0.5 --> 1400@ 0.6 and then its gonna go up exponentially at some point... like say over 1375 / 1400 its gonna be like 10% @ 1420 then 20% @ 1500 but that's just the true clip point of the amp.


anywho -- the point i was trying to make is that i believe that the RF at 2 % thd will do the same power as the mtx at 2%.... because i know damned well that at 0.5% the mtx is no where near that 1500 mark (or 1250 @ 12.5 volts) ... its more like 1100@14.4 / 900 @ 12.5 with the 0.5 thd.


RF has been gearing their amps for daily drivers who want sick power --- mtx geared the 81000D for the db drag competition lanes --- as a results, the 81kd is strong as a bull but dirty as hell, the RF is just a hair less strong, but much much cleaner.

... anywho -- again, not a problem dude... i'm bored anyway-- lol-- u can always take the crossovers off yoru front speakers (so as to get bass) and run them with the volume lower ( so u dont bust them) in the mean time.

sntnsupermen131

i was thinking about taking the crossovers off but i was like nah too much work
lol
then i was thinking about taking the amp i have to run the components and bridge it to one of the subs...and have the components running off the deck...but hopefully ill get the amp back soon in working order...if you cant then when i send it to RF ill probably hook the sub up to that amp
bridged itll go like 450 watts or so
so 450 to a 500 watt sub is good
i sent it today(monday) shipping was only like 8.63 insured going UPS
i thought it would be like $20-30
if the pre outs on my head unit are 6 volt...what should i set the gain at when i get the bd back?
-Cody

sntnsupermen131

i was thinking about taking the crossovers off but i was like nah too much work
and id have to take the kick panels off(Where the crossover is mounted) and possibly break a clip cuz i think the one of the passenger side is on its last leg
lol
then i was thinking about taking the amp i have to run the components and bridge it to one of the subs...and have the components running off the deck...but hopefully ill get the amp back soon in working order...if you cant then when i send it to RF ill probably hook the sub up to that amp
bridged itll go like 450 watts or so
so 450 to a 500 watt sub is good
i sent it today(monday) shipping was only like 8.63 insured going UPS
i thought it would be like $20-30
if the pre outs on my head unit are 6 volt...what should i set the gain at when i get the bd back?
-Cody

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8 bucks -- sweetness --- they usualy dont let me get outa there for less than 20 -- lol -- but thats good.

re- crossovers: i wasn't talking about the momo xovers -- i was referring to the crossover on the deck or on your amp or whatever it is -- the one that cuts you components off at lke 80 hertz or whatever so they dont get the bassssy bass. that xover is usually on the head unit or its on the amp -- in which case it would just be flipping a switch

sntnsupermen131

ooo
i was thinking about running the 6 1/2 off the deck and not having a tweeter
lol
but first i need to know how to use my HU...i havent had time to play with it
but it sounds really cool when you put it on "Dome" mode...makes the echoes and stuff to make it seem like ur in a dome...its sweet...lol
-Cody

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is that the pio 9400 -- did it show up yet?? i've been waitin for somebody to tell me what they think of that thing... (need a new deck myself).

sntnsupermen131

yeah its the pioneer
but its not the 9400
its the 940
the 9400 is the regular pioneer
the 940 is the premier
it was $550 from www.electronicscity.com
but i had problems with them
its $600 at www.carmedia1.com i think
its amazing man
the things it can do...
i REALLY need to read the manual cover to cover
i know it has an auto equalizer or something like that where you hook a microphone(Comes with the radio) to the radio and put it in the drivers seat and it adjusts the settings and stuff
takes like 2-3 minutes
havent done it yet though
but i love it
it has 4 screen savers
all with VERY good detail
from a diver to dune buggies to a space mission to skiing
it even has weed leaves as a backround...lol
i would suggest it to anybody(who has the money)
-Cody

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an auto equalizer???????????? holy ****!

i never even heard of anything that cool before!

thats gotta be absolutely amazing...

sntnsupermen131

"The auto-equalizer measures the car interior acoustis characteristics, and then creates the auto-equalizer curve based on that information"-manual
i need to do it sometime...lol
-Cody

sntnsupermen131

i think God is telling me to stop buying speakers...
I've been wanting XM, the new momo 4x6s, an amp for those...get new wiring for the bd1000, new patch cables for everything
But since I've sent my amp off I've had to buy oil and an oil filter, then my tire goes flat, when i take it off i break the bolt the lug nuts screw on to, had to take the drum off the back, realized i need new brake shoes, take the tire to get fixed, valve stem was leaking, put it back on the truck, goes flat again, take it back today, theres a cut so big in the back it cant be fixed(like 1 1/4 in long)
i was like
how could you miss that the first time?
so now i have to buy a new tire...
the world is against me...lol
i need this friday to come so i can get paid!
-Cody

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jesus hates you... lolol.

i oughta put that ona bumper sticker.

oh -- update on my 'research' into class D amps -- according to a few very credible and probably overpaid sources, blowing output stages is a very common problem with class D amps (cough cough -- Crossfire VRD line -- cough cough)... but it has two basic causes...

1- the output transistors (usually a group parallelled together instead of just one pair) just died.

2- something in the board itself caused them to take a crap.


the good news is the fix is usually the same either way -- new output transistors... rough price is around 20 bones depending on make / replacement compatibility / yada yada...

if the amp runs well after that -- amen.. if it doesn't and it blows the new transistors, then 99% of the time it needs a new board, as even the manufacturer tech guys do not have the equipment necessary to diagnose most board related problems with class D circuitry... no one does... i dont think its been invented yet. well at least some way other than pulling every single part off the board and testing it individually (which is not a good idea) -- so nobody does it... and according to RF, they follow the same general procedure - replace the output trans, and if its good after an hour of testing, send it back... if its bad, replace the board (mucho dinero).

anyway - just wanted to give u a heads up on how i'll be attacking this if it gives me the same symptoms that you described.

hasn't gotten here yet tho -- knowing UPS - probably tomorrow or tuesday.

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oh and hey at least u know how to do that work yourself - i pay 25 bucks to have a new stud put in when i stipped one puttin on snow tires. (i shudda got a torque wrench -- i tend to overtighten 'em).

get this though -- this girl tells me one day - "hey my car needs brakes.. damn.. what the hell -- i need to get a new car"

i'm like "um - why, u need a 300 dollar total brake re-do job, thats common after a few years"

she's like "really?? nawww... why?"

i'm like "um.. brakes wear out."

shels like "nawwwW????????"


thats your comedy for the day.

sntnsupermen131

lol
thats when you say:
"you know what, i like you and ill give you $500 for the car, cuz with out brakes its only worth about $400...and i could use it for parts..."
-Cody

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its here ---

you've got mail @ netscape...

you'll have more mail when i get back from school.

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you've got 2 emails cody....


.. as a door nail.

just wanted to post up that RF Tech Support is about as useless as a prostitute in a monestery... you'd THINK somethign would happen, but it wont... cuz even if the monk's wanted to break their vow's, they dont have any goddamn money -- poverty baby.

I'm workin on ideas for replacement amps from retail authorized dealers with warranties of at least a yr. preferably more...

anyone got any ideas???

I came up with ....

--- HiFonics Brutus 1000 x 1 at 2 ohm (1500 x 1 at 1) for 390-ish bucks... 1 yr warraty from MFG -- at sounddomain

--- two mtx 302's at 450 x 1 rms each or two RF punch 500s's at 500 x 1 at 4 ohms each -- 200 bucks each amp w/ full 2 or 3 yr warranty depending on mfg.

--- xtant 1000.1 for just under 400 bucks i think... 90 day refurbed warranty -- sounddomain.

had a few others in my head but those are the ones that stick out.

anybody else have any ideas??