Question about funny sub smell.
01-31-2009, 11:02 PM
#1
0 Watt CAFz'r
Thread Starter
Join Date: Dec 2008
Posts: 14
Question about funny sub smell.
So I've had my subs for a little while, they're older Clarion Pro Audio 12"s, couple days ago i was crusin with some friends, finally play my system loud and it sounds great, no problems. Next day after work i show a guy i work with how they sound, same volume as the previous time except this time i get a funny smell. What causes this, is it that they were cold?
01-31-2009, 11:14 PM
#2
More information is needed.
Subs, amp(s), box are the main ones. Brand/model number is helpful.
No, cold will not be the ROOT cause of the problem, but if they are new, then they may have a slight break in (doubtful) or more likely you are cooking the voice coils. Sorry.
john
Subs, amp(s), box are the main ones. Brand/model number is helpful.
No, cold will not be the ROOT cause of the problem, but if they are new, then they may have a slight break in (doubtful) or more likely you are cooking the voice coils. Sorry.
john
02-01-2009, 01:18 AM
#4
ummm, i think you might be ready to join my team, Team I Smell Voice Coil hahaha. i sometimes get a funny smell but thats when i run certain songs really hard, and i equated that to the voice coil only because i once hooked up a 30 watt computer sub to 400 watts and it gave the same smell, so it might be that. i would say its nothing to worry about as long as it isn't for long periods of time, then again, i could be wrong as i'm probably considered a noob compared to a lot of members here, but thats my guess, either that or just the air from inside the box absorbed the wood smell and then got forced out and changed the aroma in the car
02-01-2009, 09:03 AM
#6
The smell that people refer to with the voice coills is the varnish on them melting as a result of them getting to hot. Once you have that "smell" (assuming we are talking about the same "burning" smell) the sub has been damaged. It may still work but is damaged none the less. Once the varnish starts to melt the resistance in the sub lowers and will continue to do so the more it heats up. The other thing is is once it starts to melt it lowers the ohm load on the amp causing your amp to put out more power and possibly causing damage even faster... Eventually your amp will just go into protect mode and your sub will be toast. Thats why maybe at first you didn't notice it but now that they are probably damaged you will notice it more. Again this is all assuming we are talking about the same smell which I am 95% sure we are. The other thing about subs being cold and warming them up? That's more related to the physical sub itself with the surround material itself being stiff and the sub itself being cold... SO a cold sub should not smell any different than one that's "warmed" up. I hate to be the one to tell you but.... You should start sub shopping now....
Last edited by whosit; 02-01-2009 at 09:11 AM.
02-01-2009, 09:16 AM
#7
Also when you say you are running at 8 ohms... I assume you mean you are running each sub at 8 ohms and wiring them in parallel to the amp give the amp a 4 ohm load? Your wiring will also play a factor. You should run at least 12 gauge for the subs.
02-01-2009, 09:58 AM
#8
i used to own a pair of 12" Fi SSD's. I swear to god they are the worst smelling woofers in the world. Like they just smell, its a world wide known fact that all Fi woofers 'smell'. sometimes its just the way the woofers are made, materials and such.
02-01-2009, 10:00 AM
#9
Yes but I don't think that's the case here as the smell is intermittent. The smell you are referring to is a constant factor.
02-01-2009, 10:29 AM
#10
ahhh gotcha. i failed to read that. but also maybe its the speaker wiring inside the enclosure. its possible the insulation is melting? had that happen on my AQ i was using 16AWG speaker wire and it definatly didnt like that amount of current flow
