@@JamesTaylor-du3oo Sure, cut the clamps off one end of the jumper cables. Now you can simply pop the hood and clamp to the battery. Use a 3.5mm to RCA for an input from phone or mp3 device and a test spk. Takes about 5mins to hook up and test an amp.
If you buy online you can also request a video from the seller showing operation. Most sellers who have nothing to hide will do this for you. You always take chances buying used, but if you are careful and do your homework, you can get good deals this way. Great vid!
A good thing to take is a multimeter to check ohm, the fuses, and if the amp is getting the correct voltage; and a toggle switch to turn on the amp manually.
I just did a restoration on a guys turntable that belonged to his brother who had passed away. The guy was hard up and considering the situation i cut him a deal (cost of parts only ) . Anyway... The guy gave me 3 car amps and despite my vast knowledge of vintage audio service and repair i know essentially nothing of car audio. He didnt know if they worked and i certainly didnt want to have to hook them up to a car. Having said that, a big thanks for the video!
i have a 5 chann el cerwin vega amp, it will only play the front speakers, how can i repair this amp, or find out whats wrong with it. willard carroll, thanks
Be sure when using contact cleaner to not have power to the amp and to let it evaporate before making any connections it’s extremely flammable a small spark could be bad!
Hey great video HV, when I buy amps under the conditions that you mentioned I do everything you demonstrated except the use of contact cleaner. I always use a 10 or 15 amp fuse when I connect the positive side because if there’s an issue these are small enough to blow quickly but big enough to withstand the initial power up surge. One last thing is I always bring a DMM to check the voltage level at the speaker terminals because if the level is too high you don’t want to run the risk of frying your test speaker. I have a collection of well over 150 amps and I’ve done this procedure numerous times. Again another great video so keep them coming.
I have a Rockville 1000 watt 6 channel amp that is in protection mode, or at least the light is red not green now. Only one light. I have checked all connections and all are good. Fuses are good. What else could it be?
that speaker looks familiar 🤣 funny thing is the new 1200.1 i bought right out of the box the gain pot came unsoldered and fell off inside i sent it back and got a new one 2 days later and all is good. 👍
Hey PLEASE HELP Me where can i find the caps i have 2 blown i bought it and the lights came on but no sound i took it apart and saw 2 caps blown any websites to replace them?
I am getting blown fuses every time. I tested all my connections and all just over 12 volts. Have a good ground, remote and battery connection. Could it be the Amp? It’s pretty old.
@@HifiVega thanks for the quick reply. Yea I went threw 5 fuses. Just tried different combos. I made sure I turned all the knobs down. Off to look for a new amp. Recommend any good 2 channel amps?
I was told one time that just spraying contact cleaner onto a noisy potentiometer could cause other problems. I was told that the pot is lubricated somehow from the manufacturer and that contact cleaner removes that lubrication. Is there any truth to this?
@@HifiVega thanks for your answer...I've got the battery of my car which is 12V 65A, if I connect that battery to my amp which is a Sony 500W XR-504Z, will it blow up right? Thanks for your help!
Great video! But where did you hookup the jumper cable to activate the trigger to turn on the amp? Did you just connect it to the + terminal on the battery?
Awesome, thank you! I just found my old Phoenix Gold ZX500 v.2 in my storage locker. There was some flooding recently and I want to check if it still works. I don’t think it was damaged, but if it’s good it’s going in my car replace the terrible stock amp.
HifiVega , Yeah was probably the output section that failed. I’ve actually repaired a few that were ran at low impedance in the high current mode. Usually the Power Supply section holds up pretty well on these. Should be a quick, easy repair.
if you're in a situation like a garage sale or flea market where the deals at hand but you can't drag out a power source, speakers and all that other lame shit, how can you do a quickie preliminary test on an amp to at least make sure the amp doesn't have any direct shorts so you know there's at least a good chance the amp works???
My subs sound like they’re almost bottoming out even tho I have my amp gain low and the subsonic a lot higher than it should. Can anyone tell me if my subs are bad or if my amp is making them sound like that
Some affiliate links to a few of the tools I used in the video. 3.5mm to RCA www.amazon.com/dp/B01D5H8KO2/?tag=robertvega-20 Klein hex key tool www.amazon.com/dp/B001BQ20UA/?tag=robertvega-20 Klein 11n1 Screwdriver www.amazon.com/dp/B0015SBILG/?tag=Hifivega5-20 (amazon) ebay.to/31vA986 (ebay)
Another grade A video from my guy HiFi only thing I wld say is never buy an amp at night and if doing the Facebook/Craig's list thing ALWAY'S meet in a VERY public place. R.I.P. Sony "Big Red"😭 #TeamHiFi
@@438marcus so what do you do with the jumper cable? I get you connect both black and red to battery, do you bridge the connection between them to turn on the amp?
Since most folks meet in a public parking lot, cheap 8ga jumper cable is perfect for powering the amp since you'll be in your car.
Solid tip!
Can you explain
@@JamesTaylor-du3oo Sure, cut the clamps off one end of the jumper cables. Now you can simply pop the hood and clamp to the battery. Use a 3.5mm to RCA for an input from phone or mp3 device and a test spk. Takes about 5mins to hook up and test an amp.
If you buy online you can also request a video from the seller showing operation. Most sellers who have nothing to hide will do this for you. You always take chances buying used, but if you are careful and do your homework, you can get good deals this way. Great vid!
Pro tip!
A good thing to take is a multimeter to check ohm, the fuses, and if the amp is getting the correct voltage; and a toggle switch to turn on the amp manually.
so do i hook the RCA cables to the positive input of my Amp to test? also all on low?
Great video. Just a quick question ....where did you connect the other end of the amplifier remote wire?
same Q
I just did a restoration on a guys turntable that belonged to his brother who had passed away.
The guy was hard up and considering the situation i cut him a deal (cost of parts only ) .
Anyway... The guy gave me 3 car amps and despite my vast knowledge of vintage audio service and repair i know essentially nothing of car audio.
He didnt know if they worked and i certainly didnt want to have to hook them up to a car.
Having said that, a big thanks for the video!
Thanks for watching! I love hearing that one of my videos actually helped someone out a bit.
Thnx for the great explanation. Can the power output of a amplifier be used for other devices..?
i have a 5 chann
el cerwin vega amp, it will only play the front speakers, how can i repair this amp, or find out whats wrong with it. willard carroll, thanks
Be sure when using contact cleaner to not have power to the amp and to let it evaporate before making any connections it’s extremely flammable a small spark could be bad!
This is a good vid for how to troubleshoot amp issues as well. Nice little kit to keep handy.
Vimfinius Longstride for sure!
Hey great video HV, when I buy amps under the conditions that you mentioned I do everything you demonstrated except the use of contact cleaner. I always use a 10 or 15 amp fuse when I connect the positive side because if there’s an issue these are small enough to blow quickly but big enough to withstand the initial power up surge. One last thing is I always bring a DMM to check the voltage level at the speaker terminals because if the level is too high you don’t want to run the risk of frying your test speaker. I have a collection of well over 150 amps and I’ve done this procedure numerous times. Again another great video so keep them coming.
I have a Rockville 1000 watt 6 channel amp that is in protection mode, or at least the light is red not green now. Only one light. I have checked all connections and all are good. Fuses are good. What else could it be?
Covered pretty well. Same stuff I do. I just didn't think about the contact cleaner.
Dumb question. Why isnt it louder?
Question where can I temporarily check a remote wire
what do ido with the remote wire?
same Q
Use a small gauge wire and jump it to the main power
that speaker looks familiar 🤣 funny thing is the new 1200.1 i bought right out of the box the gain pot came unsoldered and fell off inside i sent it back and got a new one 2 days later and all is good. 👍
eric dudley oh no! Good thing they shipped the replacement quickly
Good topic, good video! I am shocked by how many used amps I see on Craigslist/Facebook/Pawn Shops that are missing the terminal screws.
DIY Audio Guy That’s for sure! Carrying a few different types with you would probably be a good idea
@@HifiVega or use alligator clips and skip messing with set screws when testing if possible
Hey PLEASE HELP Me where can i find the caps i have 2 blown i bought it and the lights came on but no sound i took it apart and saw 2 caps blown any websites to replace them?
I am getting blown fuses every time. I tested all my connections and all just over 12 volts. Have a good ground, remote and battery connection. Could it be the Amp? It’s pretty old.
Definitely the amp. Mine ended up doing the same thing after I ran it a few times playing with the high power/ high current switch
@@HifiVega thanks for the quick reply. Yea I went threw 5 fuses. Just tried different combos. I made sure I turned all the knobs down. Off to look for a new amp. Recommend any good 2 channel amps?
@@Kla2024-s5t I don’t have any new 2 channels on my radar right now...
I was told one time that just spraying contact cleaner onto a noisy potentiometer could cause other problems. I was told that the pot is lubricated somehow from the manufacturer and that contact cleaner removes that lubrication. Is there any truth to this?
fadetoblack73 on a brand new pot I’d say that’s about right, but in a 10+ yr old amp that lubricant is long past it’s usefulness imo.
Did I miss the part on how to hook all this up?
How the hell do you hook the wires up?????
Thanks for the video...can I connect the Amp to my car battery directly? Thanks!
For sure that’s one of the easiest ways to test it
@@HifiVega thanks for your answer...I've got the battery of my car which is 12V 65A, if I connect that battery to my amp which is a Sony 500W XR-504Z, will it blow up right? Thanks for your help!
JCOM Rock&Roll you it won’t blow up just hook the + and remote to the pos terminal and the - to the neg terminal and it should turn on
Same works for testing a mono block amp?
Yeah
Great video! But where did you hookup the jumper cable to activate the trigger to turn on the amp? Did you just connect it to the + terminal on the battery?
Chetan Savkoor yeah I do that because I can trigger on my power supply with a switch
Awesome, thank you! I just found my old Phoenix Gold ZX500 v.2 in my storage locker. There was some flooding recently and I want to check if it still works. I don’t think it was damaged, but if it’s good it’s going in my car replace the terrible stock amp.
Would you recommend that sony amp I just found one at a pawn shop,and it looks great
O.G. AIR BENDER oh yeah it’s a great amp, I just abused mine lol
How did you ground the battery and the amp to test it on that table?
Kirk D just grounded straight to the battery
That is the Amp i have in my truck.wish you were near by. Im at my witts end. I cant figure it out.
Good video sometimes you don't know if it works properly been doing this for a while and I've got some deals that would seem to good to be true 👌🏽
Sal Batres every now and again you can pick up something real nice on the cheap if you’re vigilant
Thank you so very much. This was extremely helpful!
Great video as usual! Did you need that Sony repaired ? If so just let me know. I may have the output transistors for it.
HifiVega , Yeah was probably the output section that failed. I’ve actually repaired a few that were ran at low impedance in the high current mode. Usually the Power Supply section holds up pretty well on these. Should be a quick, easy repair.
Hello I have a question this off-topic I’m looking to purchase sundown 6.5 V2’s versus B2 6.5 is better in your opinion
John Doe I don’t have any personal experience with B2, but I can say you shouldn’t be disappointed by either from what I’ve seen.
HifiVega Thank you which one would you pick
I’d go with the Sundown only because I know how it does, but that’s simply because I haven’t used a B2 yet. The B2 looks very beefy though.
if you're in a situation like a garage sale or flea market where the deals at hand but you can't drag out a power source, speakers and all that other lame shit, how can you do a quickie preliminary test on an amp to at least make sure the amp doesn't have any direct shorts so you know there's at least a good chance the amp works???
Quadflopper101 a visual inspection of the board is a good idea, but it won’t always tell if you if the amp is functional or not
My subs sound like they’re almost bottoming out even tho I have my amp gain low and the subsonic a lot higher than it should. Can anyone tell me if my subs are bad or if my amp is making them sound like that
Could be a lot of things. Are they in the correct enclosure? This could also happen if they’re free air
@@HifiVega I have 2 10s and they require 2 cubic ft each and my box does 4. The box is tuned to 30hz and my subs should be at 42 hz I believe
Would have been a useful video if you showed how to actually hook it up
Put power and ground to it and power to the remote turn on
Some affiliate links to a few of the tools I used in the video.
3.5mm to RCA
www.amazon.com/dp/B01D5H8KO2/?tag=robertvega-20
Klein hex key tool
www.amazon.com/dp/B001BQ20UA/?tag=robertvega-20
Klein 11n1 Screwdriver
www.amazon.com/dp/B0015SBILG/?tag=Hifivega5-20 (amazon)
ebay.to/31vA986 (ebay)
Another grade A video from my guy HiFi only thing I wld say is never buy an amp at night and if doing the Facebook/Craig's list thing ALWAY'S meet in a VERY public place. R.I.P. Sony "Big Red"😭 #TeamHiFi
Chief9-10 yeah man don’t wanna be a Craigslist killer victim
Solid video.
Step 1. How to connect wires.
Ground to black on battery power to red on battery remote wire bridge into battery wires
@@438marcus so what do you do with the jumper cable? I get you connect both black and red to battery, do you bridge the connection between them to turn on the amp?
YES SIR!