What is the DC voltage on the input RCA shields of the amplifier?
Place the black meter probe on the amplifier's ground terminal. Place the red meter probe on the point where you need to measure the voltage.
I don't have a meter on me It works fine when I plug my iPod in directly, so I'm assuming the amp is fine...
I'll take a stab at what Perry is getting at. Your iPod may be working -ok- with the amp because the amp is not seeing reference to ground on the RCA shields; since the iPod is a free-standing portable device. If this amp was installed in a car with audio source from a head-unit which has a connection or point to ground on the RCA shields and the problem still happens, then there is something wrong with the amp or the audio source.
I suggest you DO NOT plug your iPod into any charger while testing this amp - it might hurt your iPod! I actually fried the left channel in my laptop's soundcard by playing with this kind of fire.
What kind of amp is this? Is your input source running off the same ground as the amp? IE; headunit and amp connected to the same power supply or battery?
I suggest you DO NOT plug your iPod into any charger while testing this amp - it might hurt your iPod! I actually fried the left channel in my laptop's soundcard by playing with this kind of fire.
What kind of amp is this? Is your input source running off the same ground as the amp? IE; headunit and amp connected to the same power supply or battery?
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What kind of amp is this? Is your input source running off the same ground as the amp? IE; headunit and amp connected to the same power supply or battery?
It is a Boss amp, and to test it out, I hooked both the stereo and the amp up to a 13 volt power supply I have and the same thing happened... The speaker just pushes out really hard then goes in slowly when I unplug the rca from the amp.
Does it matter that I have the REM on the amp hooked up to a straight 12 volts (so it is just on)?
What is the amprage of your 13v power supply? I'm thinking of a procedure you can try if the amprage/protection of that power supply =< 5A.
It's 5 amp constant 7 amp surge.
If the amp was in good working order, connecting the negative terminal from the power supply to the RCA shields would probably cause no harm. If there is something badly wrong with the amp, I'd expect some kick, draw, heat, or even worse - a degraded amp falling to its death.
I make no claims of warrantee coverage or acuracy of this procedure. In other words, dont try this at home. If you dont really care much about that boss amp then proceed. I'd like you to try tapping a ground connection to the RCA shields while the amp is powered to see what happens. You really need to use a volt meter first to see what the voltage is offset at before proceeding but if you dont have one and dont care all that much about damaging the amp further you can test. Watch closely and quickly for high curent draw or other signs of the amp squirming. If the amp is stable with ground to rca shields then you can try the amp again with your stereo to see how it works. This is not yet a solution just a troubleshooting step.
I make no claims of warrantee coverage or acuracy of this procedure. In other words, dont try this at home. If you dont really care much about that boss amp then proceed. I'd like you to try tapping a ground connection to the RCA shields while the amp is powered to see what happens. You really need to use a volt meter first to see what the voltage is offset at before proceeding but if you dont have one and dont care all that much about damaging the amp further you can test. Watch closely and quickly for high curent draw or other signs of the amp squirming. If the amp is stable with ground to rca shields then you can try the amp again with your stereo to see how it works. This is not yet a solution just a troubleshooting step.
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Are you connecting the amp to the speaker output of the stereo? There's often DC voltage in the speaker outputs.I can hook an ipod directly up to the amp and the subs play.
When I hook up to any of my stereo's outputs to the amp, however, it runs DC current through the sub.
Anyway, the way to fix it is to connect the amp via a capacitor. What kind of amp/sub is it? Are there 2 inputs for stereo?
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- My sub doesn't play when connected to the stereo.