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Alpine Amp Not Outputting Enough Power?

noosaj

By noosaj
in Audio, Electronics & Software

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noosaj Enthusiast

noosaj

Posted
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Hello Folks,

 

I finally got my system hooked up together. Ran into a problem. I have a Pioneer DEH-P6000UB head unit along with an Alpine MRP-M500 mono block, and two Polk subs. Wired everything together, double-checked, and all good. The Alpine amp has a blue square light on the top (it's a V-Power series). When turning on my stereo system in my truck, the blue light lights up brightly and then fades. There is very minimal output to my subs. What's the problem? Does this mean the amp isn't drawing enough power or is that a weak ground? Checked all fuses, and they look good. I double-checked connections and all are good.

 

My Silverado has a Bose system, so I had to get one of those factory adapter harnesses - would this be the problem? Sound is the same; everything sounds good, all speakers work fine, even the Bose amp. All components (head unit, amp, subs) are brand new. Followed instructions/wire gauges/etc. to the letter and made sure I did everything right. I'm thinking this may be a weak ground or minimal power issue.

 

Please help. Thanks.

Z71kris Senior Enthusiast

Z71kris

Posted
Posted

just being on does it drain down, meaning being on and not playing music...it is still putting out some power right, if it goes completely away it could be the remote..or it could just be a bad amp or adapter...

noosaj Enthusiast

noosaj

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just being on does it drain down, meaning being on and not playing music...it is still putting out some power right, if it goes completely away it could be the remote..or it could just be a bad amp or adapter...

 

It doesn't even output as expected. It *does* play music and it does output to the two subs, but not in its full capacity. I'm thinking it's a grounding issue, making the amp go into "protected" mode... I tried taking the remote wire off, then putting it back on and it turns on when my head unit turns on. It's not outputting big power as one would expect.

Z71kris Senior Enthusiast

Z71kris

Posted
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do you have it wired right to the speakers..either bridged or not bridged, or even as dumb as it sounds have the polarity crossed some where, if it would go into protect mode, it should not produce any power non of mine ever did...a bad ground is a possibility, did you scrape the paint off where you grounded....sorry for the randomness of my thoughts, a few jack and cokes will do that to you...is the box the right size..is the gain adjusted....

noosaj Enthusiast

noosaj

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do you have it wired right to the speakers..either bridged or not bridged, or even as dumb as it sounds have the polarity crossed some where, if it would go into protect mode, it should not produce any power non of mine ever did...a bad ground is a possibility, did you scrape the paint off where you grounded....sorry for the randomness of my thoughts, a few jack and cokes will do that to you...is the box the right size..is the gain adjusted....

 

All wires were double-checked and connections are good. I guess my amp didn't go into protect mode, it just produced at a very, very, very low volume. I'm thinking grounding. I just drilled a hole in the truck body (leaving paint there) and just screwed in a bolt and hooked my ground wire with ring crimped onto it. What do you think? Box is exactly the right size and gain hasn't been really adjusted due to very minimal volume.

noosaj Enthusiast

noosaj

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If this helps, all my other speakers power just fine. The Bose factory amp/speakers work just fine in my truck. It's just the new Alpine amp and the subs. I noticed that when I turn on my head unit, the new Alpine amp turns on immediately, even IF I have the subwoofer output "off" in my Pioneer head unit. Two remote wires are wired together to the head unit, one goes to the Bose amp, one to the Alpine...

noosaj Enthusiast

noosaj

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Also, by checking Alpine's website's specs on my specific amp, the blue square light on the top of the amp is actually a power indicator light. So when it fades/dims (it doesn't go out completely when it's on), it's either because I have grounding issues OR not enough power. I use 8GA wire for power and ground.

08_Denali_22 Enthusiast

08_Denali_22

Posted
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8GA should be fine for that amp. 4GA would be overkill but I like overkill. :D I would check your grounding location. The amp will turn on regardless if your deck has the subwoofer turned off. Post up some pics of the install. It might help us diagnos (sp) the issue a little easier. What type of subs are they and how are they wired? 4 ohm, 2ohm, or 1ohm? Just throwing out ideas.

noosaj Enthusiast

noosaj

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8GA should be fine for that amp. 4GA would be overkill but I like overkill. :D I would check your grounding location. The amp will turn on regardless if your deck has the subwoofer turned off. Post up some pics of the install. It might help us diagnos (sp) the issue a little easier. What type of subs are they and how are they wired? 4 ohm, 2ohm, or 1ohm? Just throwing out ideas.

 

I believe it's a grounding issue. Is it possible for the amp to put out minimal sound or even operate with a weak ground? I bought a digital multimeter _and_ a 6-12 volt tester as well. How do I check grounding?

 

Subs are 10" Polk/MOMO 4ohm 300W RMS. I've got two and they are installed in a custom truck box designed specifically for my truck. The amp is an Alpine MRP-M500 mono block - they are wired parallel presenting a 2-ohm load. Power line and ground line are both 8GA, as followed, for the amp I'm using. When turned on and listening/feeling closely to the subs, they do put out sound (it's clear and crisp, but at a very very very low volume), but with two 10s, you should expect some pounding, if you know what I mean.

 

Another question - should I connect the power wire (the end has a ring terminal) directly to the battery post and screw it in? I have it connected to a battery "block" that's not connected to the battery, but it's a red box where you can connect wires to it should you need a power source. I'm thinking maybe this isn't feeding enough power to the amp? Geez, I just want this figured out and get the sound I want from it! :cheers:

 

Thanks for all the help.

thecraft Senior Enthusiast

thecraft

Posted
Posted
Another question - should I connect the power wire (the end has a ring terminal) directly to the battery post and screw it in?
YES! Always connect your amps directly to the battery. However, this is likely not whats causing your problems, nor is the ground. If it was either of these, your amp would more than likely go into protect mode than do anything.

 

Lets get the obvious things out of the way. Is your gain set correctly? How do you have the amp connected to the headunit? Are you sure the sub is turned on and up on the headunit?

noosaj Enthusiast

noosaj

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Okay, folks. I've finally got it figured out and working. Everything is set to the way it should be (gain, head unit, etc.). Turns out that the fuse block on the power wire located close to the battery was the issue. After doing some electrical testing for power and ground, everything came out the way it should... so I took a closer look at the power wire connected to the battery. Turns out that the fuse was not *fully* inserted... I had checked it before but not close enough. A simple, measly little mistake... the fuse was inserted just enough to feed _some_ power to the amp, but I'm surprised it even fed power at all. Taking the fuse out and inserting it fully in, and double-checking my ground worked. Now the amp/subs perform as expected.

 

Thanks to everyone who chipped in their advice and questions. It is greatly appreciated.

 

All the best to everyone! I'll definitely keep coming back here.

Z71kris Senior Enthusiast

Z71kris

Posted
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Its always the little things that get you, glad you got it working!!! When we were doing my first install with this truck with 10 s before I went to the 15s, we had the first knu konceptz gm kit, the kit had to long of a battery bolt, the truck had no power at all, we tried everything, even called onstar because wed had disconnected the system, and wanted to make sure they did not disable the truck or somehting, then we checked the bolt and figured it was to long and had to add spacer rings and shit, wow that was a sucky night!

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