# Protect Mode troubleshooting? (Power Acoustik amp)



## JSKennedyMD

Hi everyone,

I swear I searched the forum first and I couldn't find anything so I registered for DIYMA and here we are!

Short story: 

Disconnected subwoofer, while loose in the trunk the positive and negative subwoofer wires crossed, now (Power Acoustik) amp remains in Protect Mode, and no thump from subwoofer.

Long story: 

I went to a football game and took my subwoofer out of my trunk so that we could bring tailgate stuff (ie we couldn't fit a grill, cooler, etc in the trunk with the subwoofer there).

Afterwards, I went to hook the sub up again and noticed that the positive and negative wires to the sub had crossed (they were actually stuck together) in my trunk. I'm assuming this is not a good thing. I separated the wires and hooked up the sub but I get no thump. Looking at the amp (Power Acoustik), I see that it is in "Protect Mode" (red light) as opposed to normal Power mode (green light).

I'm sure the sub wires are no longer touching now that they're hooked up to the sub, but that doesn't seem to matter in terms of getting the amp out of Protect Mode. 

So I figured I'd ask the experts about some general troubleshooting before I get the amp looked at professionally. Should I try completely disconnecting my battery? Should I check the fuse on the amp's power cable? Should I try disconnecting EVERYTHING from the amp and then reconnecting everything again? 

I fully admit that I'm novice at this stuff, though please believe that the lesson has been learned when it comes to leaving loose wires in the trunk  Any insight you could provide would be GREATLY appreciated. I can provide further detail (like amp model number, etc as soon as I get home today).

Thanks so much in advance,
Greg K.


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## D-Bass

if the amplifier has an on-board fuse, check the fuses. My guess is that since you are getting a diagnostic light, the amplifier has probably taken internal damage and may need repaired or replaced.
Typically just turning the amp off, then back on would reset its protection circuitry, and the protection light is only coming back on to indicate failure. You could try disconnecting the main power wire fuse for a few minutes, but I doubt this will fix anything.


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## thomasluke

It's toast man. If the wires were "stuck" together that took alot of heat. Your lucky it didnt catch something fire.
What model Power Acoustic? It may be worth repair but most likely the repair will cost as much as a new one.


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## Oliver

JSKennedyMD said:


> Disconnected subwoofer, while loose in the trunk the positive and negative subwoofer wires crossed, now (Power Acoustik) amp remains in Protect Mode, and no thump from subwoofer.
> 
> Afterwards, I went to hook the sub up again and noticed that the positive and negative wires to the sub had crossed (they were actually stuck together) in my trunk.
> 
> Thanks so much in advance,
> Greg K.


It is time to buy a new amplifier


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## JSKennedyMD

D-Bass, Oliver, Thomas, thank you for such quick responses.

I was afraid it'd be toast. The model # is LT980/2 (nothing special, right??). This sucks, but it lasted me 5+ years so I don't mind putting down the $$ for a new one at this point (especially after being at fault for killing it).

If you guys happen to know off the top of your head a good model amp that's about $200 or under and comparable to the LT980/2, I'll definitely take your advice. (I'm just powering one 12" sub.)

In the meantime, I'm going to try D-Bass' diagnostic suggestions. Obviously, I'll be sure to let you know if I make any progress. (I didn't have the opportunity to work on this in the daylight yesterday, but I should get to today.)

Thanks again to everyone for helping me out!

-Greg


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## Orion525iT

Most likely the output fets are blown. It may be fixable, but might not be worth it to try. Have you opened the case to look at the board?


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## JSKennedyMD

Orion,

Thanks for responding! 

Just based on the original cost and the cost of seemingly comparable replacement amps, I don't think any kind of repair will be worth it. But I don't just wanna blow $200 if I don't have to, so I'm absolutely open to suggestions.

I've never opened the case on this thing but I'm not apprehensive to try. I'd just be looking for physical damage to the board to confirm that it's fried, right?

(Note to anyone reading: Per my earlier post, if I do have to replace the amp, any suggestions in the $200 range would be greatly appreciated.)

Thanks again

-Greg


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## Orion525iT

Well if the amp is blown and you are considering replacement, then you got nothing to lose by opening it up .

You want to look for burnt components, fried traces, missing legs on the mosfets, ect. Dont just look, smell.

Here is a great site that allowed me to trouble shoot and fix my amp.
http://www.bcae1.com/defhome.html

More specifically, check this out.
Need Help With Power Acoustik LT-980/2 Amp - Page 1 - diyAudio


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## thomasluke

JSKennedyMD said:


> any suggestions in the $200 range would be greatly appreciated.)
> 
> Thanks again
> 
> -Greg


Yep, check these out

Precision Power PPI P1000.1 (p10001) Monoblock Phantom Car Amplifier
JBL GTO-751EZ Monoblock GTO Series Class D Car Amplifier
Rockford Fosgate R750-1D (R7501D) 750W Monoblock Class D Car Amplifier

I'm running the JBL 751EZ right now and it has plenty of power. Plus it comes with a gain setting CD which makes it pretty easy to set up.
The main thing though is that it just works great.


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## JSKennedyMD

What's up guys. Sorry I haven't followed up on this sooner. Shocker here: The amp is fried indeed. I'll be replacing it.

Thomasluke, thanks for your suggestions. The JBL is a liiil too pricey for me, so the Precision Power or Rockford Fosgate are more in my range. Question though -- if the RF is 750 watts and the PP is 1000 watts (and cheaper), then why isn't the Prec Power the obvious way to go? A brand thing?

Also, I noticed that all of your suggestions were at least 750 watts. I stopped by Best Buy with the woman today and they had this amp and I almost bought it because I've just been taking too long with the replacement. But I thought of your post and held off. Did I make a good call??: Kicker DX Series 500W Class D Digital Mono MOSFET Amplifier with LowPass Crossover DX5001 - Best Buy

It's 500 watts, which is less than your suggestions, but I've read good things about this Kicker model online tonight (not just on BB.com).

Let me know what you think!

-Greg


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## D-Bass

what model subs and what voicecoils do you have?


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## Oliver

JSKennedyMD said:


> Shocker here:Question though -- if the RF is 750 watts and the PP is 1000 watts (and cheaper), then why isn't the Prec Power the obvious way to go? A brand thing?
> 
> -Greg


Some Linear Power amps are rated @ 12.5 watts per channel


LINEAR POWER 2.2HV MODDED BY TIPS 600WRMS 2CH SQ AMP, ULTRA RARE, NICE!!!
Price:
*US $900.00*



> Model	RMS Power @ 4 Ohms Stereo 12.5 volts	THD 20-20KHZ	Mono Rating 4 Ohms **	Maximum /
> Peak Power	Damping Factor 4/2Ohm	Channel Separation	Slew Rate Volts/mSec	Signal To Noise Ratio	Required Fuse	2 Ohm St 4 Ohm Mono Capable	Internally Bridgeable	Frequency Response
> 
> 2.2HV	*12.5W x2 RMS* 0.004%	600 Watts	1500 Watts	300/150	>72 dB >95 dB	40 Amps	Yes	Yes	5Hz-200kHz
> ** Mono Rating @ 4 Ohms is tested with the power supply taps moved to 2 Ohms setting where applicable.


Marketeering sells !


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## JSKennedyMD

Oliver, this is the first time I've noticed your signature and I'm afraid that's how your post makes me feel.  No idea what you're saying. I can only guess that the Precision Power amp isn't really what it says it is?? But I'm sorry to be so novice at this.

D-Bass, I'm running one 12" Rockford Fosgate 1000 watt sub. The exact model # is escaping me but the sub is at least 5 years old. Kinda echoing my comments to Oliver, I have to admit that I'm not sure what a voice coil is and the wiki page explaining what a voice coil is looks like Chinese to me. I'd be happy to tell you but I'm not sure where to find it.

Thanks for the quick responses guys.


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## gabesbigcastle

All I can say is that you are a novice and have no idea why you are on here typing


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## Tonelight

If the PPI amp was from the last 10 - 12 years it is an epsilon amp. Power Acoustik is their main brand. They are notorious for over rating their amps actual output. ie 980/2 in actuality would at best fall into 250-300 W perchannel.
The power acoustik boards began populating the Soundstream amps with different ratings. When they bought PPi I assumed it would follow suit. I am retiree now but I ran Soundstream before the switch was completed. I wasn't told by the owners until a good dealer called me noticing a difference in an amp that he regularly bought and installed. I had our engineer pull a couple from inventory and thats how I found out the boards were changed. Next trip to corporate we had a very heated meeting. I resigned.
I did not include my name to avoid issues. If you know Grizz i was one of the three people to interview and hire him.


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## Mike-G

gabesbigcastle said:


> All I can say is that you are a novice and have no idea why you are on here typing


You appear to be a novice at looking at dates of posts to see that this post is over 9 years old...

What is going on lately around here with all the old posts being reanimated?


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## JimmyDee

Almost 10 year old thread... gonna shut this down to further comments.


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