speaker cuts out

[jswjr600]

Alright, their maybe a simple answer to this question, so perhaps someone can help me out. I havea 4 channel pioneer amp going to cerwin vega stealth 6x8's in the stock locations in a 98 sport. The driverside front speaker started cutting in and out. I switched the driverside back output from the amp and the driverside front speaker's output, and the driverside back started cutting out, so I am convinced the speaker is working correctly. This leaves me with the question of whether the cause of the problem is the amp, a problem at the head unit, or if perhaps the sheathing has come off of a wire somewhere and it rubbing metal and losing the signal. I got the amp put in at best buy, and have a replacement warranty on it, so i am hoping it is the amp.

Any help would be appreciated.

[Edited by jswjr600 on 10-01-2000 at 06:16 PM]

 

[ernestborgnine]

Well I'm not an audio expert but you indicated that the problem followed the speaker when you moved it so that should indicate a faulty speaker.

 

[JTang]

Good troubleshooting!

The next step is to swap RCAs - that'll help you determine if the problem is up at the head unit or not. If the problem switches again, in respect to the head unit, then you can further investigate. If it stays on that same channel of the amp, then it's the amp. Make sure you're amp isn't accidentally grounded somehow too. But if you're switching the wires the different speakers are grounding, that most likely means a prob at the amp end. If the *speaker* wire or chassis was touching and grounding out, the static would have remained at that first speaker.

Good luck,

Jon

 

[jswjr600]

sorry, left out some critical words. I switched the speaker outputs, not the speakers themselves, and the cutting out definitely was not a speaker problem. All four speakers work fine. I edited original post, and perhaps it is a bit more accurate now

I switched the driver front RCA input and the driver back RCA input, and the cutting out changed speakers according to change in inputs. I am 90% certain the problem is from the amp. The remaining 10% goes to wires between amp and heaad unit, a harness at head unit, or head unit itself.

On that note, The amp is a 350x4 pioneer, and i also have a 300x2 going to 2 fosgate 12's. Both amps run pretty hot (hot enough to give close to a second degree burn) is this a cause for concern?

 

[JTang]

Running hot shouldn't really give you the problems you are experiencing, however, amps do tend to run pretty hot. However, the cooler you can keep it the better. By keeping it cool you can prolong its life. For tons of really helpful, easy to understand info go to:

http://go.to/bcae

It should have info on how to mount fans if you want to.

So we have these facts down:

1. If you switched speakers, and the problem switched too, then the speakers are good, the problem is upstream. If the speaker itself was bad, if you switched the wires, the back rear would have played like normal (good). So if both play bad, then it's upstream.

2. Next, you checked the amp. Now here is the thing - if you change the RCA inputs, did the channel that was messed up on the amp stay messed up, or did a new channel get messed up? I'm a little confused on the word "driver" you are referring to, but it seems to be that when you're changing the RCAs, the channel that is messed up on the amp changes too. If that's true, then it isn't the amp, it's still upstream. If you switched the RCAs, but the same channel was still cutting in and out, then you'd know it was the amp.

So the last thing it could be would be the head unit or the wiring in between. I suspect grounding problems. Make sure that your wires are all connected securely behind the head unit and that the RCA connection parts are not touching other metal parts as with the rest of the wiring, like ensuring the solder, heat shrink, or electrical tape is still working. The common prob with Explorers is that it gets REALLY hot behind the radio, so sometimes the electrical tape just goes to slag. Also, follow the RCA path, just to make sure it's not rubbing against any bare metal and hasn't accidentally been cut into by foreign objects. Same for your amp power wire that might have gotten caught in the firewall or something.

Try and fix the prob within the next two weeks if you have time. Constant grounding will hurt the components if exposed for a long time.

Jon

 

[jswjr600]

Thanks for all for all the help, now i'm gonna have to make time to tear into it. I know what you mean by the heat behind the radio; sometimes I take out CD's and they are extremely hot.

 

[CBoug76]

jswjr600,
I am having the same problem with my 97 sport. I have noticed that the problem occurs when the passenger side door is open and closed. I think it has to do with the wiring in the Passenger side door. I have not looked in to it yet, but I think that new wires from the head unit to the speakers would cure this problem.

 

[jswjr600]

Yes, I looked at the wires between the amp and the speakers, and could not find any problems with the sheathings, so I am pretty sure they are ok. Next I am going to check for bad connections behind the head unit. I have the output from the head unit going to an amp in the back, and have not yet checked the wires going from the head unit to the amp. I guess that is the next thing to check. For now I just disconnected the speaker from the amp so I dont have to hear it cut in and out all the time.