After lots of searching I am trying to find how to confirm my amplifier has failed. About two years ago I upgraded to a
Pioneer
head unit to add
Android Auto
and a back up camera leaving the rest of the stock parts. Everything was working well even though all I really use it for is directions and occasional phone calls. Driving home a couple of weeks ago I heard a few weird shrill noises and pops that only lasted a few minutes.
Next
time I received a call it was difficult to hear and when I tried music my low end was gone and the large door speakers were not operating. When I remove the fuse there is no change to the sound but the speakers do make a small pop which makes me think they are still functional. So here is the weird part the amp is receiving battery voltage but also has voltage on the speaker input and outputs. When I opened it looks perfect inside! The diode that usually fails is intact, no traces are burnt, no smells, no caps are swollen or leaking. I will freely admit to being out of my depth with electronics but before I cut up my cars harness to wire in a new amplifier is there an easy way to confirm that the amp has indeed failed? What are the your favorites for replacement in <$300 area?
The Soundigital EvoX 400.4 is
tiny,
extremely efficient, and well within that budget.
But, if you're willing to consider spending slightly more you could get a Helix M Four DSP amp that will also allow you to EQ your existing sound system.
Also, you don't have to cut your existing harness, you can instead buy harnesses for a BMW and an Audi, pull off a few tabs, and plug your new amp right in. (My
thread
on DIYMobileAudio)
@DriverDaily
I really wish I'd known that before I replaced my ASK amp
I'd found pictures of the Audi connectors during a random google search, but wasn't able to verify they didn't just
look
like the right one at the time and went ahead with operation snip-snip. At least I used quick-connects and left the harness in place so it can be re-wired without too much hassle if needed.
@NYPcar
- I used a multimeter to measure voltages to and from the amp while running - in my case the suspect diode had indeed failed, but had taken some other things out with it that I couldn't trace. I was getting basically 0v on the outputs initially, replaced the diode and got voltage but still no audio at which point I considered it above my pay grade and bought an aftermarket unit. I got a JBL GX-A602 - cheap, cheerful, and fits perfectly where the factory nav DVD drive would go (upper left access panel in the frunk). Doesn't make much power, but you don't need it just driving the two door woofers.
Of course, immediately after installation I discovered the passenger woofer was blown - this is being rectified within the next couple days once the replacement shows up.
Thanks for the input guys! I was able to confirm that I have 12v power and at the signal which further makes me think the amp is dead. Your thread about amp repair is what prompted me to check but all was perfectly clean inside. Tried to ask Technic to confirm their connector would fit but for some reason my request didn't go through. Hopefully my retry works. I have so many mods to the car not sure it matters at this point. The cheap part of me is also resistant in spending $59 for a harness as well. Now just need to decide which amp.
I found a post somewhere wherein the user removed the connector from the dead ASK amp and used it to solder up his own harness. Sounds like a PITA, but it's doable if your time is worth the project. As for just snipping it, I left the center channel lines on my harness and velcro-taped it up roughly in the factory position. Repairing the wires would add some ugliness, but it's not terminal (heh). Mine's never gonna be a collector car anyway so I'm not super worried about it.
That said, $60 isn't too bad to avoid splicing the wires
