I burnt my fingers, but saved my subwoofer!

the way I see it , maybe your speakers impedance dropped during the low passages and the amp may not be able to keep up.....

manek.

If your sub is unable to cope up with the task it is expected to do, then there is something wrong with it. Although a sub amp is expected to put out high outputs intermittently, its should have sufficient grunt at its disposal.

[quote="Neutral"] I was instantly scalded
[/quote]

ouch!!!

I am still wondering whats wrong if the heat-sink were really that hot. I have seen many amps with external heat sinks getting that hot...so whats wrong ?

They are "heat sink". They themselves get hot to keep the inside cool. Just like an AC.

Which Amp ( How many watts ) and Sub are you using ?

Incidentally, the beginning of 'Too Hot To Touch' is 65 deg C

SUNILYO schrieb:

Neutral schrieb: I was instantly scalded ouch!!!

Not really! Most of us would burn all 5 fingers to save our equipment

Manek schrieb:

the way I see it , maybe your speakers impedance dropped during the low passages and the amp may not be able to keep up..... manek.

The key word is "intermittent", not "continuous". 11 mins of low bass is excessive. A few secs here and there is fine. Brian Eno overdoes it, though this would sound simply fabulous on 12" drivers.

Amp_Nut schrieb:

Which Amp ( How many watts ) and Sub are you using ? Incidentally, the beginning of 'Too Hot To Touch' is 65 deg C

The equipment isn't too great. The HT amp puts out 44 watts (20W for sub and 24W for satellites). It's 130mm driver goes down to 55Hz (in room).

Problem is bass tones go a lot lower than 55Hz. So the amp will struggle with a load that you won't hear because the driver can't deliver it.

Abhi,
I thought that a scalding hot heatsink meant that the output transistors inside were cooking. Do correct me if I am wrong.

well the imagine if the heatsink itself is that hot then what about the core of the components may be transistors or ics inside they will be at their peak...

you can do one ting thats go to a good electronics shoppe and then buy a big heatsink and just attach it from outside may be you can drill few holes to the heatsinks and then use a small heatsink gel or heatsink paste then use it it will get cool enough to touch it continuously...

its best way to do that...

probably it would cost you arroud Rs700 or so but worth trying it...

cheers,
Sandeep

http://echapatte.fre...ing/big_heatsink.jpg

check this link the heatsink must be arround of that size... then it will be very cool...

cheers,
Sandeep

Please check for current leakages and proper earthing - not just from the component in question but also other connected components.

Excessive heat usually means high current flow.

Regards

Sanjay

SDhawan schrieb:

Please check for current leakages and proper earthing - not just from the component in question but also other connected components. Excessive heat usually means high current flow. Regards Sanjay

Will do Sanjay. The HT amp uses only a 2-pin, so is unearthed. But I will check the electric connections. I am in a new house, so better play safe.

Sonic_Master schrieb:

well the imagine if the heatsink itself is that hot then what about the core of the components may be transistors or ics inside they will be at their peak... you can do one ting thats go to a good electronics shoppe and then buy a big heatsink and just attach it from outside may be you can drill few holes to the heatsinks and then use a small heatsink gel or heatsink paste then use it it will get cool enough to touch it continuously... its best way to do that... probably it would cost you arroud Rs700 or so but worth trying it... cheers, Sandeep

Thanks Sandeep, for your advice.
I am a bit doubtful of my metal working skills
If I use a table fan to blow air past the heatsink, will that help? Could a DC offset or some fault in the electrical conditions in my new house cause the HT amp to overheat? Or could be that Chennai is inherently a much hotter place than my native Mumbai.

Neutral schrieb:

Sonic_Master schrieb: well the imagine if the heatsink itself is that hot then what about the core of the components may be transistors or ics inside they will be at their peak... you can do one ting thats go to a good electronics shoppe and then buy a big heatsink and just attach it from outside may be you can drill few holes to the heatsinks and then use a small heatsink gel or heatsink paste then use it it will get cool enough to touch it continuously... its best way to do that... probably it would cost you arroud Rs700 or so but worth trying it... cheers, Sandeep Thanks Sandeep, for your advice. I am a bit doubtful of my metal working skills If I use a table fan to blow air past the heatsink, will that help? Could a DC offset or some fault in the electrical conditions in my new house cause the HT amp to overheat? Or could be that Chennai is inherently a much hotter place than my native Mumbai.

What about the small fans used for PC's ?? this one can be helpfull to instead of using a dedicated fan for it. (this is if space is a constraint for u.

May u could make a small cluster of these fans and then attach it to the heatsink.

The equipment isn't too great. The HT amp puts out 44 watts (20W for sub and 24W for satellites). It's 130mm driver goes down to 55Hz (in room).

Hey fit a radiator to cool your stuff... Jokes apart dude! with this kind of power it hardly gets hot and I'm sure your sub will have a clas D which runs as cool as aa A/C.
I suspect something is frying inside.

Sorry Sub-boss,

No more bass for me! I'll stick to vocals like John Denver. It doesn't heat up much with that stuff. I guess low current equals low heat. Building a multi-channel amp into a sub is inherently a problem. Vibration problems and heat dissipation are inherent issues with these products.

But then you can't complain about the price.

As Sandeep says, a large heatsink will cool the amp quickly. But such things are both heavy and space-consuming, so manufacturers skimp on them.

I remember my days in a college hostel.... Had made a Single ended Transistor Class A amp running .... One Transistor + 3 resistors, 3 capacitors and a Transformer + Ofcourse a power source... ( 12 V @ 1 ampere )

Could not afford a Heatsink that cost more than the 2N3055 power transistor ( Rs 15 or was it Rs 30 ? ) so put the small heatsink in a saucerfull of water. Had to top the water frequently.

Worked well and sounded beautiful ( to our ears, then ) untill one day the water ran out and we forgot to top it up....

Incidentally, used that with a National Cassette tape recorder and a Philips speaker placed over the mouth of a Water 'Matka' ( earthern pot ).

Floyd sounded pretty good...

Dear Amp_Nut !

That must have been a nice water-cooled engine (read SET amp)

Trying hands on DIY music system & speakers on the mouth of a "Matka" seems like quite a common ailment

Reminds me of the song "those were the days my friend.."

Regards

Sanjay