My first 2008 STi :)
08-28-2008, 10:54 AM
#16
VIP Member
iTrader: (25)
Join Date: Aug 2004
Location: Spokane, WA
Posts: 7,925
Car Info: '04 WRX Wagon
I have a question:
I used to be more of a fan of soudn systems before my Suby and that was a few years ago...say the late 90's and early 2000's.
Back then, I remember my amps shutting off once in a blue moon due to thermal protection. I then realized that in order to lessen this amps need to have enough airspace/flow to stay cool.
Nowadays especially on the Suby sites I tend to see a lot of jobs like yours where you mount the amps in their own enclosures and cover them with covers.
Has technology taken us to the point where amps don't need very much airflow/room to keep themselves cool? Or do you guys have some kind of crazy air pumping/air duct catacombs built into your enclosures? I just don't get how amps can now be put into an enclosure and more or less fully covered and still be able to radiate off the heat.
I used to be more of a fan of soudn systems before my Suby and that was a few years ago...say the late 90's and early 2000's.
Back then, I remember my amps shutting off once in a blue moon due to thermal protection. I then realized that in order to lessen this amps need to have enough airspace/flow to stay cool.
Nowadays especially on the Suby sites I tend to see a lot of jobs like yours where you mount the amps in their own enclosures and cover them with covers.
Has technology taken us to the point where amps don't need very much airflow/room to keep themselves cool? Or do you guys have some kind of crazy air pumping/air duct catacombs built into your enclosures? I just don't get how amps can now be put into an enclosure and more or less fully covered and still be able to radiate off the heat.
09-06-2008, 02:10 AM
#17
Registered User
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 57
Car Info: 05 LGT Stage 2.5
well, that is simple really...in this case, the Zapco DC reference amps has an internal built fan and pulls air in one side and out hte other.
and remember, the amp rack fake floor, is not an "enclosure" as you say, its not airtight by anymeans, there are so many nooks crannies leaks (hell how do you think wire gets run into the back area from the front of the back is all seprated hehe)...as long as air gets moving around and cycled, its fine.
is having a completely exposed amp better for cooling? sure...but the general rule is, as long as it doesnt go into thermal protect its fine...
in this case, the only way i can think of, to make this go into protect is to sit under the sun with the car on in an extremely hot day, not turn the AC on so the interior builts an insane amount of heat, and then sit there and blast heavy bass music for a while...but thats a little like trying to do it on purpose
another thing that relates to amp shutting down, often missed by people, is improper gain setting, when you set hte gains to high and clip the amp, it general heat MUCH faster.
b
and remember, the amp rack fake floor, is not an "enclosure" as you say, its not airtight by anymeans, there are so many nooks crannies leaks (hell how do you think wire gets run into the back area from the front of the back is all seprated hehe)...as long as air gets moving around and cycled, its fine.
is having a completely exposed amp better for cooling? sure...but the general rule is, as long as it doesnt go into thermal protect its fine...
in this case, the only way i can think of, to make this go into protect is to sit under the sun with the car on in an extremely hot day, not turn the AC on so the interior builts an insane amount of heat, and then sit there and blast heavy bass music for a while...but thats a little like trying to do it on purpose
another thing that relates to amp shutting down, often missed by people, is improper gain setting, when you set hte gains to high and clip the amp, it general heat MUCH faster.
b
12-19-2008, 04:49 PM
#25
Registered User
Thread Starter
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: San Jose, CA
Posts: 57
Car Info: 05 LGT Stage 2.5
no caps, i dont ever really use caps in my installs unless specifically demanded by the customer. to me, caps are strictly a band-aid solution, in minor situations where it can be of help, its perfectly fine to run, it drastic current supply issues, it wont do much good but just make things worse...for those guys, a built alternator is the right mod to do
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