I have an Alpine MRV-F303 amplifier. It has been behaving weird for some time, but I thought it was a bad speaker connection. I've since traced it back to the amp.
The problem is vibration induced. I hit a bump in the car, both channels on the left side will drop out. Hit another and sometimes they will come right back. I am running this in four channel mode, so it's not like I've bridged the two left channels together -- and that's what really makes this weird, both channels do drop out in exactly the same way.
Even stranger, sometimes it's not a total loss. At times, I've been able to hear the speakers still playing at maybe 10% volume. Sometimes, it's more like 50%. Usually when this happens, the sound will be somewhat scratchy and distorted.
I'm pretty handy with a soldering gun and a multimeter, but I don't know where to start on this one as I don't know how amps are really constructed or what the potential trouble issues might be. Any guidance on how to repair would be appreciated.
The problem is vibration induced. I hit a bump in the car, both channels on the left side will drop out. Hit another and sometimes they will come right back. I am running this in four channel mode, so it's not like I've bridged the two left channels together -- and that's what really makes this weird, both channels do drop out in exactly the same way.
Even stranger, sometimes it's not a total loss. At times, I've been able to hear the speakers still playing at maybe 10% volume. Sometimes, it's more like 50%. Usually when this happens, the sound will be somewhat scratchy and distorted.
I'm pretty handy with a soldering gun and a multimeter, but I don't know where to start on this one as I don't know how amps are really constructed or what the potential trouble issues might be. Any guidance on how to repair would be appreciated.
You should first operate all switches and potentiometers through their entire range to see if you can duplicate the fault. If all are working perfectly, you'll need to tap/push on the board at various points with a non-conductive probe (wood dowel, etc) to see if you can find an area that's sensitive to the tapping. If you do, that may help narrow down the location of a bad solder connection.
I've moved all the switches and potentiometers. Didn't help. Will poke around inside with a wood stick.
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