I recently installed a home theater in my big rig truck. I have a 4000/2000 watt continuous modified sine wave inverter. I put a 26" lcd tv, pioneer 7.1 home receiver (vsx815), dish 811 receiver, samsung hd=950 dvd player, and athena 5.1 home speaker system in truck. System rocks for home theater type usage. The problem I am having is with the subwoofer. Have had two go south in past 3 months. The first sub stopped working after 2 weeks, sent speakers back and replaced with new ones. Second set worked fine for next 2 1/2 months and the same thing. Sub would not work. System was not abused, just failed to work. Have sent sub back for warranty service, have not been informed of cause of failure yet, (maybe jumping the gun here). My question is this, do you think failure is due to dirty power supply? i.e. modified sine wave inverter?, power surge, etc. Inverter states it is surge protected. Receiver does not hum or distort. Powered sub did not ever feel warm when shut down. I know I should wait and find out cause of failure from manufacturer, but am currently on the road and thought I might get some input. Thank you in advance for your help.
speakers usually fail because of improper power or a dirty signal (distortion). I'm assuming you are using a powered subwoofer so it should be matched correctly as far as power. How is the sub connected to the system (RCA)? Depending how you run your wires, you could be getting distortion from somewhere. It could also be placement but I can't see how that is possible with a home theatre sub. Check the manual and see if it needs to be placed in a certain way away from surrounding walls. I'm assuming it fires down, I wonder if its the difference of the sound reflecting off of metal?
The sub is connected to receiver using lfe coaxial patch cord and using receiver for bass management, frequency cut off at 100 hz. Sub is down firing and front ported . This system is primarily used for watching tv/movies. With these powered home subs, do you think that bouncing, vibration, might have been an issue. Before sending sub back for service, tech suggested that wiring could have come loose, but pulled unit apart and all modex connections seemed intact. Had numerous circuit boards hooked to crossovers, power supply, etc. (Did not know what was going on there) Still waiting for info from manufacturer. Was just wondering if my power supply setup was ok in this situation. Before this setup, used computer speakers, klipsche promedia 2.1(w/active sub), with 15" lcd, dvd player for almost 1 year with no problem (failure) of sub. Thanks in advance for your assistance.
I don't see why it would be a power issue. The only noise you should be getting is from engine noise but you should have enough to filter it (besides, you would hear that through your regular speakers if that was the case). I'm wondering if there is a problem with all the moving around you do and if constant vibrations cause hair line breaks in the circuit boards. The home equipment wasn't meant to be used in that kind of scenario. You'll be able to narrow things down once the tech figures out what failed (sub or circuit).
I have been considering upgrading sub and was wondering what type you might suggest for this application. DIY sub with 12v amp? Can you use an lfe connection with sub. Which is better, ported or sealed. Broken sub has bash 75watt rms amp. Was considering more power for better special effects sound on dvd's. I guess I need something a little more bulletproof. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks. On another note current up front sound system already has 12v powered sub (audiobahn tube type AT10 supposed 100 watt rms) could this be used? How do I add lfe connection so I can utilize bass management from home receiver???
Why did you invest so much into a home audio system for your rig when you could've had a deck up front that had surround sound and plays movies?
This could be used but personally I've never cared for audiobahn. As far as ported or sealed, I prefer sealed but it depends what you listen to and what kind of base you like (sealed = tight, ported = boomy). Last, you can connect the car amplifier to the home theatre, I'd have to see the connections to help with that. I can always rig something and make it work!
When I purchased truck, it came with cheap tape deck and speakers. I wanted to use existing size (6 1/2") speaker cutouts 2 up front mounted above ear level and 2 in back of sleeper. Upgraded head unit (pioneer 6700) with sirius radio all in dash. Replaced all speakers and thought system was down on bass. Decided on all in one tube sub (I know mistake), at this time based on how long I would keep truck and easily able to take out, move around. I worked on the hurricane relief for 2 months last year and decided to upgrade my tv stuff. Have about $1500 invested in hd tv, 5.1 audio, hd dvd stuff, so not that much was spent, also easily taken out. I have not altered interior of truck for resale purposes. I am over the road so it really helps having comforts of home to pass time while sitting. I tried using (up front) audio system for sound with fm modulater with tv and it sounded very poor compared to computer speakers used before current system (which is 100% better than computer speaks) probably due to speaker placement vs tv. Was thinking that bulletproofing sub would be best alternative at this point. I agree that audiobahn sub is not that great and was wondering if I changed drivers and/or amp in existing enclosure or would be better off going a different direction altogether.
Size difference between available screen sizes was also a major consideration 26" lcd hd vs. ? Also cost factor. Sleeper size is approx. 8' x 6 1/2'. 26" lcd is about the largest I could put in truck. Location is at foot of bed. Surround system is placed at both ends for best sound relative to tv location. With current home audio system, able to have dts, dd, etc. decoding available for hd broadcasts and dvd usage. Sounds pretty decent, just seem to have trouble with home type sub......
