bigaltexas Posted April 19, 2011 Report Share Posted April 19, 2011 (edited) alright yall.. eyes of the avatar.. ha, just playing.. but alright... im a proud owner of a smd18, and i used to run some little, very little over rated quantum 4500, and then when i got this amp i knew i had to upgrade my electrical and amplifier, so i got a 230 amp dc alternator, the big 3, zero gauge all throughout the truck, and 2 batteries.. now, for the amplifier, i got a powerbass xa4000d because i had heard it did rated and was a good amp.. after i had it for about a month, the thing went up in smoke, and i slammed on brakes and just pulled all the wires out the side of the amp so it didnt go up in flames, it kept on making a horrible plastic smell though.. i opened it up and this is what i found. and this is what happened with the first amp i had to send back. the wires melted through the plastic and shorted the amp out i assume.. and i just dont want it to happen again.. now these are pictures from the 2nd amp that i just took this is the amp these two things under the cardboard were kinda loose, but still connected where they meet the board. now these wires were what melted to the rail thing on the side that shorted the amp out last time. i looked underneath them and saw black smudgy stuff where i guess they were starting to burn.. it hasnt burned the board or anything, i assume, because i can easily remove the black "smudge" just by touching it with my finger.. so, the amp was gladly replaced with great customer service and all, free shipping and what not, and now i got another one, a brand new one, and then just today, about a month and a half since ive had it back, ill be damned if i wasnt driving through town and smelled a plastic burning smell, so i turned my cd player off, flipped the toggle on the remote wire, slammed on brakes, pulled over, and disconnected the positive wire from the battery, and let it be.. just got home, opened up the amp, and it almost looks like an exact same problem that happened last time, just last time i was too late.. this time it didnt smoke or anything, i just smelled the faint smell of it coming on for the first time and took precaution so the same thing didnt happen again.. with the first powerbass i smelled it for about 2 days before it went up in smoke.. but this is what has happened this time.. do you think im safe to still run the amp? or is there something i could ziptie the wires to so it doesnt happen again, do i need to send it back? is it my fault, or should i just get a refund since this is the seconddd time?!?! also, i have the amp mounted vertically on the front wall of my speaker box, could this have any effect? and i also do have all of my wires fused, 12 inches from the batteries, 12 inches from the amp, on each power wire.. thank yall for any help ahead of time, even just for reading this if you do not have onee clue.. thanks yall! Edited April 19, 2011 by bigaltexas Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Autruche Posted April 19, 2011 Report Share Posted April 19, 2011 You toasted your MOSFETs. You need to get it repaired or replaced, as that might not be all that is wrong with it. Most likely this happened because you drove the amp too hard a clipped the output section to death, or wired it to too low of an impedance. What impedance was the amp seeing and did you scope it? Quote Need Test Tones/Sine Waves? Click Here!My Saab 9000 build1993 Saab 9000 Aero 5spdPioneer - Zapco - Hifonics - Sundown Audio - O2 Audio - RE AudioJust Say No To Rear SpeakersJust Say No To CCA WireReal Men Drive StickHit me up on Facebook, if you want Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigaltexas Posted April 19, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 19, 2011 no i never oscoped it.. but i didnt have the gain turned over half way, and the bass boost was all the way down.. and im not trying to challenge your statement of the mosfets being toasted, im just asking, how do you know? like what did you look at to tell that it was that? because last time the wire was touching it and it melted the plastic.. i thought that this was just beginning to be the same thing.. but thank you so much.. and i had it running at 1 ohm i believe... ill double check right quick.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
walled01alero Posted April 19, 2011 Report Share Posted April 19, 2011 Did you get it from audiosavings? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwright27 Posted April 19, 2011 Report Share Posted April 19, 2011 Al these amps gains are VERYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY touchy. It goes from clean to clipped in about 1/64th of a turn on the gain knob. Quote 2006 F-150 4 DC XL M2 18's Walled Daily Driver XS Power 4 DC 3.5kw Team DC Team S.P.L. Lot of Audio Technix and 1/0 DC Audio Dealer American Bass Dealer XS Power Dealer Audio Technix Dealer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwright27 Posted April 19, 2011 Report Share Posted April 19, 2011 Also, those little silver things running down the sides of the amps are mosfets. When those burn they release a black residue beneath them. That's how he knew. Quote 2006 F-150 4 DC XL M2 18's Walled Daily Driver XS Power 4 DC 3.5kw Team DC Team S.P.L. Lot of Audio Technix and 1/0 DC Audio Dealer American Bass Dealer XS Power Dealer Audio Technix Dealer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigaltexas Posted April 19, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 19, 2011 oh damnnn ittt. and yeah mann.. this fuckinggg blowssss... hey dustin can you text me a price of a dc 5k and how fast you could get it? and yepppp. audiosavings.. it sucks it happened. but dont hesitate from buying, at least they replace them and have great customer service. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bassinblazer Posted April 19, 2011 Report Share Posted April 19, 2011 This is why I don't mess with powerbass anymore. They had great CS but I had issues with subs and amps I got from them. Just overall wasn't very satisfied with the product for what I paid for it. Get it fixed or replaced again, and buy a real amp! Get a DC or an SA...Hell if you are tight on cash, buy an AQ.... Quote BassinBlazer JL[RF][Kenwood][AQ] I need a new amp! Sell me your amp! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dwright27 Posted April 19, 2011 Report Share Posted April 19, 2011 Yea dude Quote 2006 F-150 4 DC XL M2 18's Walled Daily Driver XS Power 4 DC 3.5kw Team DC Team S.P.L. Lot of Audio Technix and 1/0 DC Audio Dealer American Bass Dealer XS Power Dealer Audio Technix Dealer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigaltexas Posted April 19, 2011 Author Report Share Posted April 19, 2011 yeahh, i was trying to get a real amp when i got this powerbass, and i thought it was until it messed up the first time.. but now for a second time? mannn... and yeah, im gonna get a dc 5k.. ive seen the aq i like them, i might just have to get 2 2200's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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