are you sure its the amp because back in the day when i had no clue about the meanings of gain control id get a horrible smell from the voice coil due to distorting so bad the subs would clip

 

It might be the sub...difficult to tell because the amp and sub are in the same location. Never heard of a sub making that electronic stink, so I assumed it was the amp...

 

what are the ratings on the amp, and subs?
how is it wired?
what gauge wire?
is it fused?
etc.

 

Bridged 2 channel amp 500 watts to 500 watt sub, amplifier fused with 1 40 amp fuse, 14 gauge wire.

Didn't have any problems for the last 2 weeks.

 

how is your charging system? as you voltages drop the AMPS go up.
at 12 volts, if you maxed the map at 500 watts, you are pulling 41.7 amps.
at 14.4 (what is normal when the car is on) you would pull 34.7 amps.
honestly though, that means your fuse is the right size (that is good news).


someone correct me if i am wrong... but 14 gauge wire is WAYY small. for 41 amps. you should be running 6 or even better 4 gauge at those amps. maybe your power (or ground) is burning.

cause 18 feet (i am guessing here at the length) of 14 gauge wire, at 41 amps, has a voltage drop of: 32 percent... that means 32 percent of the power that goes IN the wire, leaves as heat.

 

Scarr is right, wire is too small.

 

I agree with you also scarr. For the runs on these cars, and that amp, a wire gauge of at least 10, preferably 8 should be used.

Often if there is an odor like that consistently, but the amp continues to work, the issue is the coils on the sub from being driven to distortion or past it physical excursion limits and overheating it.

 

if i run my subs on full power for a few songs i sometimes get that smell, never really thought twice about it i figured it was just doing a cool down cycle or soemthing

 

The 14 gauge is from the amp to the sub box and inside the box to the sub...will upgrade. The wiring from the battery to the amp is a nice low gauge monster amp install kit. I'm going to try a different sub and see if this fixes the issue. Thanks

 

That smell is a warning that something is getting too hot. It could be a wire or a component inside your amp. Conformal coating and wire insulation each have a distinctive smell but I can't tell from here whitch it is.

 

Make sure everything that needs to be grounded is grounded well

 

my subwoofer amplifier has an electronic burning smell coming from it that fills the car. It only happens when I push the amp.

Anyone with experience on why an amp would put out that electronic burning smell? Everything still works, just smells bad. Is it a fire hazard?

I would check the ground wire had same problem today my ground came lose and was barely attached to the amp

 

Dude, this is a 10 year old thread. I think he figured it out.

 

You never said what brand amp it is (this matter for power output in total harmonic distortion and ohm rating capability) OR what ohm the sub is... is it duel or single coil? is it in a sealed enclosure or open air?
All of this makes the difference in how you wire the sub. Most cheap amps CAN NOT handle 2 ohms bridged. Just wondering exactly what you have and how it's wired.
Also, how far away from the amp is the ground and is it at least the same size as the hot? This will get you every time if you drive the amp hard. Ground should be no more than 18" from the amp and equal or bigger than the hot.

 

Yeah, noticed it after I replied...... I need to pay more attention....

 

Yeah it wasn't you as much as the other guy I was talking to. It's easy to overlook when it's in your new threads page. Jimmy5069 had to dig for this thread.