HELP amp clipping!!!

Discussion in 'Car Stereo Amplifiers' started by boostdfoci, Feb 24, 2007.

  1. boostdfoci

    boostdfoci Full Member

    When I moved from the 2-subs @ 4 ohms to 3 @ 2.5 ohms, my amp starts to clip at hgiher volumes 15+. Does this mean i need a better amp? My amp is the eclipse XA-1000 rated @ 4 ohm 1% THD 320 watts, 2 ohm 1% THD 480W, the ED 9KV@ requires 200 RMS.

    I put on ohm meter on my wiring into my amp and it reads 2.5 ohm.
     
  2. aznboi3644

    aznboi3644 Full Member

    clipping is a bad thing....your amp clipping at higher volumes is a good thing...means more clean power
     
  3. TheViking

    TheViking Well-Known Member

    I wish we could all have an Oscilliscope in our sytems....

    then it would be known when a sytem is at its limits.


    The Good ol Orion amps had clipping lights on them, and were very accurate...Is there a company out there that sells an external clipping indicator??? Or could one be made???????
    That has me thinking....... clipping is DC from the power supply of said amp. An audio ouput stage should ONLY put out AC in any situation (escept for esoteric stuff that will actually do DC) Perhaps a few diodes, some resitors, and a few LED's, and a cap or 2 would make a nice little circuit......

    Boosted, you say it clips at higher volumes.....The sytem will get a little louder with the addition of another sub, and the more power that is being put out by the amp......As for the numbers on your volume control...I am not sure. It should clip at the same point in your volume control.
     
  4. psycho_maniac

    psycho_maniac Full Member

    Last edited: Feb 24, 2007
  5. pedro quiroga

    pedro quiroga Well-Known Member

    what does an amp do when it clips?i mean physicly what happens and how do you know?
     
  6. aznboi3644

    aznboi3644 Full Member

    The signal is distorted and starts to become a square wave...not a smooth sine wave.

    like this at major clipping-amp puts out a dc signal

    http://www.bcae1.com/oscope.htm

    its just the basics but thats pretty much all I know...also if you play a tone and turn the gain up till your hear it change...thats the wave squaring off...then keep turning it up and it may put out a dc signal

    Viking will come here and put it in some highly complicated jiberish....just waiting now
     
  7. boostdfoci

    boostdfoci Full Member

    amp

    is it that my amp is not powerfull enught to get the volume I want? I just purchased a JL 500/1, will the be a better solution for me? the amp I have no is maybe 400 watts @ 2-ohms to drive the three 9KV@ woofers.
     
  8. Ranger SVO

    Ranger SVO Full Member

    You got it. For some reason you are expecting more from the amp than it is capable of. But typically I do not consider a couple of hundred watts as a big improvement (unless your starting with a 100 watts). Go to near doubleing your current output.

    Also you want a really big improvement, redesign your box. You will get 100 times better performance from a box design than you will ever get from an amp swap.

    My 10-cents worth anyway
     
  9. boostdfoci

    boostdfoci Full Member

    According to Ed the box internal volume and port are correct. The box bangs big time, but the amp can not hndle higher volumes. it is 1.7 CuFT with a 2.o" vent tuned to 32 HRZ. Alex at ED said that the design os fine for these subs.
     
  10. pedro quiroga

    pedro quiroga Well-Known Member

    instead of the 500/1 go bigger.maybe 750 or1000watts.
     
  11. aznboi3644

    aznboi3644 Full Member

    Those 500/1s im sure put out more than rated power
     
  12. boostdfoci

    boostdfoci Full Member

    I was told the 500/a has been tested at 733 watts, 600 is a normal rating as per some other tests, copared to my 400, I think that is great, no?
     
  13. boostdfoci

    boostdfoci Full Member

    Plus I am also being told this ting is increadably stable! and the SQ is 100% better.
     
  14. pedro quiroga

    pedro quiroga Well-Known Member

    then go for it.are those ratings rms or peak?
     
  15. aznboi3644

    aznboi3644 Full Member

    RMS ratings