Installed new system

[Cory Richards]

Just wanted to say that yesterday I installed my new Pioneer DEH-P4800MP head unit and Pioneer CDX-P680 6-CD changer (sorry no pics just yet) to replace my factory set-up and WOW it's an awesome improvement over the factory set-up. I knew that my factory head unit wasn't sending a very strong signal to the aftermarket amp but I didn't expect this much improvement. I am running a Sony 500-watt amp that powers a 10" Sony Xplod sub. About 2 weeks ago I also replaced my door speakers with some Polk db570 5x7's so all around I think it sounds great.



I do have one issue with my amp. It gets very hot and cuts off after a short period of time (20-30 mins of music). I called Crutchfield and one of their sales reps told me that they've been getting a lot of calls like this due to the hot weather this time of year. He suggested that I turn the gain down on my amp and also told me it doesn't damage the amp, it just goes into a protection mode when it's running too hot. Any other suggestions or thoughts on this? Thanks.

 

[Jacob Dryer]

Did you set the gains using a multimeter?



If not you most likely had them set to high to begin with and it was causing the over heating.



I've got two amps with the gains set correctly and they have NEVER shut down and hardly heat up at all.



It's either the gains are too high, or the speakers aren't wired correcly, or the amp is bad.

 

[Casey B]

Adjusting the gain down will work, maybe half. I've had amps that shut off in order to cool down and then come back on. It's a built in circuit preventing the board from frying. Try to allow air flow around the amp, it will help but not solve your problem.

 

[Cory Richards]

I did some adjustments and it didn't get quite as hot. I'll admit, when it comes to stuff like this I don't really know exactly what I'm doing. My Sony amp has three things you can adjust:



FILTER (50, 80, 110, 170, 250, 300)

LEVEL (6, 4, 2, 1, 0.5, 0.3)

LOW BOOST (0, 10)



What is a good adjustment to get maximum bass (and obviously keep the amp as cool as possible)?



Thanks for your help.