wiserca2011

iTrader: (1)

have rockford fosgate fanatic x crossovers and rockford punch 201s amp. i have the amps and crossovers mounted in the trunk and the amp has a staticy gain **** by that i mean it is crackling and making really bad static noises when turned at a certain spot.my question is that should the crossovers light up when i turn the gain on my amp? the crossovers look like they have an interior light bulb in them,i thought it was a fuse at first until they lit up.it only lit up when the gain **** was at the bad spot on the dial.
it sucks too as where the bad spot is at is where i need the gain to be set.ive tried many suggestions on trying to make the gain **** quiet to no avail.

audio1der

No, they should'nt light up; those "light bulbs" act as fuses so the fact that they do glow tells me you're either throwing a ton of current at them, or something in your amp could use servicing.

Dukk

Yes they should light up. They are indeed light bulbs and are a passive current limiting system. They replace a polycap and protect against voltage spikes and general overpowering by burning excess power as light. If they are on all or a significant amount of the time then you are putting too much power to the crossover.

I build bulbs into most of my custom crossovers. It saves tweeters

wiserca2011

iTrader: (1)

thanks dukk. i kinda of thought that might of been what it was cause they did light up pretty good. they only light up when i get to the bad spot on the gain and only for a couple seconds .i really like the amp for my front speakers and was wondering if i could maybe replace the gain pot somehow.
it sucks cause where the bad spot is is the spot i need it to be set at for volume ,it goes crackly between 1/2 and 3/4s gain.

audio1der

Some crossovers include components that protect the tweeter. They generally do so by increasing in resistance as more current flows through the tweeter (and the device). When the resistance increases, the current flow is limited and the risk of blowing the tweeters is significantly reduced. In this crossover, 12v lamps are used. If you have a crossover with similar protection, you will see them begin to glow when you drive too much power to the tweeters. Other crossovers use either PTC thermistors or polyswitches.

Dukk

^ Correctomundo.

For the gain pot, you can buy electrical contact cleaner at The Source, Canadian Tire, etc. It's worth trying that out before dropping $$ paying a tech to replace it.

wiserca2011

iTrader: (1)

thanks for all the info,im learning something everyday. im going to try contact cleaner,i asked about it before and cant remember who it was but they said never use it.i tried compressed air so far and that didnt work but am def gonna try contact cleaner



if i had to change the pot ,would one out of a different amp work or do they have different specs do you know?
ive had to soldier some tight spaces before such as ps2 motherboards and some satelitte receivers,i might try doing it myself if all else fails

Dukk

A potentiometer is generally rated in it's range of resistance so yes you need to find the correct replacement.

wiserca2011

iTrader: (1)

ok, thanks dukk. i should be able to google some specs i would think