bass cuts in and out at higher volumes
Printed From: the12volt.com
Forum Name: Car Audio
Forum Discription: Car Stereos, Amplifiers, Crossovers, Processors, Speakers, Subwoofers, etc.
URL: https://www.the12volt.com/installbay/forum_posts.asp?tid=120799
Printed Date: May 13, 2025 at 12:00 PM
Topic: bass cuts in and out at higher volumes
Posted By: ncreaper247
Subject: bass cuts in and out at higher volumes
Date Posted: March 18, 2010 at 11:21 PM
Hey everyone, I am having a little trouble here and hoping someone can help: I am currently running an American Bass VFL 80.1 (1000w RMS) and 2 12" American Bass XDs. I have had this setup for quite some time and never had any problems with it. Recently I decieded to upgrade my power and ground wires to 0awg wire from the 4awg wire I was previously using to make some room for some expansion so to speak. I also upgraded my in-line fuse to an ANL 150amp fuse (located about 15in. from the battery). However, after installing the 0 gauge wire, whenever I turn up the volume the bass starts to cut in and out. I still am running a stock alternator and battery. If anyone has any suggestions or tips as to how to fix the bass from cutting in and out I would be more than appreciative. Thanks.
Replies:
Posted By: i am an idiot
Date Posted: March 18, 2010 at 11:30 PM
did you solder the conectors on the new wire? If you have a volt meter, you need to use it and check the voltage at the amplifier, with the amp turned up to the point in which it is cutting off. Black lead on the ground terminal of the amp. Red lead on the power terminal of the amp. How low is the voltage dropping?
Posted By: ncreaper247
Date Posted: March 19, 2010 at 10:44 AM
Yes, I did apply solder to the connectors on the new wire. Not enought to fill up the entire connector however. (Should i add more?) As for the voltage drop i will look into it and get back to you with the results.
Posted By: i am an idiot
Date Posted: March 19, 2010 at 2:24 PM
If the voltage is dropping, I would suspect the lack of solder before I suspect the wire.
Posted By: ncreaper247
Date Posted: March 20, 2010 at 12:23 AM
Well the good news is that the bass cutting in and out has temporarily stopped. In the very near future I plan to purchase a voltage meter to mount inside the car so I can keep an eye on it. As for measuring the voltage drop, doing so requries me to take apart part of my amp rack to access the amp so I am planning on waiting untill I get the voltage meter for the car to do both. As for the voltage meter I am going to mount inside the car, would it be more effective to use it to measure the voltage at the battery, or the voltage at the amp?
Posted By: DYohn
Date Posted: March 20, 2010 at 10:29 AM
Besides low voltage the other likely causes for the symptom you describe is low speaker impedance (which includes the tinsel leads shorting to the frame or a defective voice coil) or amp gain set too high. ------------- Support the12volt.com
Posted By: ncreaper247
Date Posted: March 20, 2010 at 12:35 PM
If the problem starts occuring again I will be sure to look into those asepects. Thanks for the infromation DYohn.
Posted By: red06g35
Date Posted: March 22, 2010 at 12:36 PM
Greetings,
I am also having a somewhat similar experience as ncreaper247. I am running an Alpine CDE103-BT with the preamp outputs going into a Kenwood KAC-6104D amplifier, which is used to power a Polk db1040 DVC 10-inch subwoofer. I had installed it on Saturday and on my drive in to work, the music began to "skip" (that's how I can best describe it). It didn't matter what source was being used (Tuner, CD, iPod), it happened with all of them. I noticed it happened at the the middle range of the volume settings (Head Unit volume goes from 0-35, problem appears around the 15-24 mark). I looked at the amp while this was happening and it was not going in and out of protect mode (as observed by the power light on the amp not flickering - Not very scientific on my part, but I'm no rocket scientist!!). I also have the speaker wire (12 ga) attached to the amp using the screw with the square washer pressing down on bare wire. The amp is wired in parallel, so that I can draw a 2-Ohm load from the amp (which is stable down to 2-Ohms). The sub is rated for 50-270 watts RMS, the amp is supposed to supply 300 watts RMS with a 2-Ohm load.
The one thing that also happens is that all the speakers do the "skip" as well, not just the sub. I will be checking the voltage when I get home, but outside of that, any other ideas?
Could a problem with the amp affect the rest of the system in such a manner? Suggestions and comments would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.
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