kenwood excelon amp over heats to 203F

[mattsoft]

I've been having problems with my subs amp with over heating at high volume. I have a kenwood excelon 1600 watt mono class D. it's suposed to be 1 ohm stable, but I guess tha tis tough on any amp, but it's either 1 ohm or 4 and can't get any power out of it at 4. I have 2 12" american pro 1000 watt subs. they have an rms of 500 watts and they're generic so I thought this amp would have more then enough power then they could handle, but I guess I was wrong. I'm using 4awg power cable from walmart from the battery to the amp and 4awg from the amp to a cleaned area of the trunk floor (I think I might need some contact cleaner on that yet).

someone at a car audio store told me I'm starving the amp for power. I checked with the display in the amp, and at high volume it goes down to 11 or 12 volts sometimes. I haven't tested for it yet, but I think it could be draining the power of the whole car down a few volts. I have to back it down at night or the head lights annoy me. lol. I think a capacitor might help a little with this, but I think the amp just draws too much current for the alternator and battery to keep up with it. I was thinking of putting a truck battery in the trunk next to the amp. I think that could help keep the car's voltage levels higher until the trunk battery lowers in voltage after a while.

how do the pro's deal with this? I have a brand new alternator, but unfortunately it's 90amps max and they don't make a bigger one for my car.

[Nordic]

You do realise in a few years when you start noticing missing bits in the music, it will be because of hearing loss...

[Perry Babin]

If the amp has cooled completely (overnight) and you turn it on but don't run any audio through it, will it get hot? If it does, there is something wrong with the amp.

Have you checked the resistance of each voice coils with an ohm meter to determine if there is something wrong with your speakers? Check with each one disconnected from the other coils and amp. The resistance will likely be ~85-90% of the rated impedance. For example, a 4 ohm coil may have a DC resistance as low as 3.5 ohms (maybe a little lower).

Although 4g is a little too small for a true 1600 watt amp, it's probably not your problem.

If all else fails, install a fan to get some air moving over the amplifier. For most any class D amp, even minimal air movement will help keep the amp cool.

[bballrrt06]

if its the x811d then it already has a fan.. not to say another wouldn't help.. but is the fan on? if so, high? its 1600w max 1016 rms @ 1 ohm.. and its recommended 4g.. and an 80 amp fuse... as far as running down to 11 or 12 volts thats insane.. you need a cap.. im supprised your car still runs when you're at 11 volts.. either way... get a cap AT LEAST 1 farad.. i'd recommend bigger.. and if that doens't help you're going to need another battery.. and if that doens't help.. well you're screwed

[djQUAN]

and if that doens't help you're going to need another battery.. and if that doens't help.. well you're screwed

you could go with a dual alternator setup.