Sub constantly beating problem

TrailRatedRN

TrailRatedRN

New member
Started my car, stereo got power (no music yet b/c I had no plugged iPod in), and the sub began to rhythmically, consistently beat . As long as the stereo is on, the sub is hitting. Beat, beat, beat, beat...

WTF is happening?
kenwood sub, Rockford fosgate monoblock, alpine head unit.
 

Sounds to me like the amp is fried. Does it sound like a heart beat??
 
If it goes away when music is played. You are getting interference from something or a loose RCA cable. Mine does that when I'm wheeling when a cable rattles out. The amp will pick up any electrical "noise" near an RCA cable to. Heater motor. Interior lights. Signal lights. Etc.
 
does it change in frequency or anything based on idle speed. The speakers in my old car got interference from plug wires before i cleaned up the wiring under the hood and etc
 
No changes in tempo or frequency. Always consistent regardless of whether driving, idle, running on battery, and even if music playing. Not loud, makes me think of a drummer just tapping the foot pedal on the bass drum. Beat beat beat. Guess its dancing to its own music. Lol. Ive traced the wires best I can w/o taking the whole dash off. I do not feel any pinches. No loose connections behind the stereo or on the amp. I'm going crazy not having my stereo
 

My best suggestion is if you have a friend or someone to lend you their amp for 5 minutes, hook it up, see if the problem persists, how far from the batt is your fuse, and is there anything at all crossed. could even be the preamp out on your stereo itself for that matter. Chances are its something simple and overlookable, or the amp has issues.
 
on that subject of simple, you can even get odd sounds if you simply have your positive and negative incorrect on the amp, or sub box
 
If it were something like wires being crossed this would've been a problem from the beginning... Right? This problem just started out of no where after at least 40 or 50 hours of play.

My amp is pretty far under the dash. I'll have to loosen some screws and cut some zip ties just to get at it and actually see the wires' connections, rather than feel them. Clear up past the steering column. Sigh.
 

PS
I'm across the country right now, in Yuma AZ. No friends over here, wont be home for 3 months. Anyone over here want to come take a look? I don't even know where a stereo shop is. Would you trust a stereo shop hundreds of miles from home to look at it? I don't know why, but I have a mistrust for stereo shops.
 
I used to install for bestbuy and unless its a clean install or very reachable ie in the trunk, they will charge you a ton, and most likely further complicate your dash wiring to be perfectly honest. If there is a AMS anywhere near you. I did a little digging on google and seems to be a couple shops in yuma with mixed reviews. xtreme audio seems to be better reviewed, maybe see if anyone you know there has an opinion on these places. If the amp is located deep within the rats nest could be a wire touching the amp casing (quick way to fry an amp as well) the best bet is honestly to get to the amp and take a peek as much of a pain as that is. Is this an aftermarket amp or stock?
 

Oh ok, those area actually wicked little amps and RF is usually pretty good for reliability but yeah I would look the amp over and see if theres anything going on with it
 
You're RCA cables are bad. Usually you can play with them where they attach to you're amp and cause a difference in the beating its causing. Fosgate amps require a pretty high quality RCA.
 

Not fixed. No breaks in the RCA cable. No crossed wires. No loose connections. I will be back in Ohio in April to see about testing a different amp. I can't do much of anything else from across the country in Arizona. :( For now I have pulled the fuse and I am listening without a sub.
 
try changing the ground wire. make sure it is at least as big or bigger then the power wire. it should b as short as possible to.
 

I never found a problem with wiring. I replaced the amp and things now work fine. Luckily it was under warranty. :D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

GenRight Off Road
GenRight Off-Road Roll Cages and Audio Systems!
Replies
2
Views
5K
GenRight Off Road
GenRight Off Road
Back
Top