There's something not "right" with this amplifier.... JL Audio HD Repair

[@wilsonrawlin8547]

You're amazing at how well you know these components and their operational parameters as a whole system. That awareness is priceless when it comes to trouble shooting.

[@kissingfrogs]

I thoroughly enjoy following your approach to diagnosis and I pick up many great ideas and tips along the way. Thanks for sharing.

[@Pulverrostmannen]

I made quite a few repairs myself during the years but one of my most remembered ones was on a monoblock I had when I was competing, one day I had my brother with me and he wanted me to play loud for two girls on the walkway. I said no but he insisted. the play just faded out into nothing. when I got home the amp seemed to be on with green led but nothing played, however the amp stayed like this even when remote was off. turned out everything had blown, the output fets, both the power supplies, the oscillators, the driver circuits, the protections circuits, all of it had exploded and smoked into oblivion. the amp was a dead mess without any comparable case with less than 2 weeks before the finals, the amp was 4 weeks old but since I compete everyone knew me and I can´t get warranty for such damage. I had to either buy a new one that would probably break the same way again during the finals or fix it myself and maybe even improve it. it would take one week finding and repair all the broken parts and issues with parts for more than 100 dollars. tweezers and small SMD soldering along with all the rest I managed to get it working better than factory since I swapped one of the output banks with different fets (one side would only accept the 640 chips) I enforced the power supply with more than 50% stronger components which made it even take direct short without breaking ever again regarding I was testing this for the best output fets which shorted out many times during test runs. all in all it was a stronger and better performing amp after all this trouble and I went to the finals and got a second place with that amp, and then I sell it because I did not want to see it ever again after all that headache lol

[@TheTimshady337]

I learn a little something with every video. Thanks!

[@matk22]

Love these shorts....

[@twinmeli90]

I really enjoyed this video …. You are truly a bad ass! That was amazing how good you are at this and how good you explain everything that you are doing! Crazy good!!!!!

[@Jamez84]

As Always love your videos Sam

[@cartycartyamplifiersalesrepair]

Great video like always keep up the good work Sir nuff respect 👍🙏

[@TheSara200424]

I like the quicker videos great job

[@kswis]

Another excellent victory. Well done brotha

[@slocavky]

Great diag on this man. Well done...

[@HaNg_ALL_ThE_tRaItOrS_hiGh]

@3:03. I've had to do that with 2 amps I've owned in the past. And had to do it to the 1216.4 I have running my premier 6x9's I just installed last week and that amp is only 3 years old and never had moisture ingress at all.

[@barevids]

yep, ive even had some brand new amps from factory that needed the switches cleaned!

[@HaNg_ALL_ThE_tRaItOrS_hiGh]

@@barevids this amp works amazing but i have noise through the mid range speakers for some reason. It's barely noticeable but I'm going to disconnect the rca patch cords and see if it still does it. If it doesn't I'm going to re route the midrange patch cords farther away from where they are ran now.

[@CL-yp1bs]

Wow!! Thats a damn fuzzy sine wave for that price...

[@craigedgar2828]

He usually doesn't have a ground lead on the probe = that'll be why

[@barevids]

The fuzziness on the sine wave disappears as soon as the channel is loaded, watch near the end when I connect a speaker, dead silence. It's nothing to do with the probe ground in this case.

[@chloeleedow7250]

I own this amp and the hd 1200/1 both brilliant amps, wish you were in Australia I've got a parasitic drain when the car is off that seems to disappear when I leave the 1200/1 disconnected but I brought it inside and left it connected to a battery and yet it didn't seem to drain out of the car, so weird and no one repairs them here at all. And yeah the comax switches are garbage lol

[@Jacobt844]

That's why we flew him out here for a vacation a few years ago as it was cheaper then mailing a bunch of amps to the UK lol

[@Wineman3383]

Great video brother

[@07Corcaigh]

Nice work! Hope i can get someone like you to diagnose and fix my XD400/4. Had to force one channel to wake up by turning up the volume. Seems to be getting worse now and the guy i bought it from has lost interest in dealing with car audio.

[@orangejjay]

You'd think that after so many custos not sending the terminal blocks that YOU'D HAVE YOUR OWN SET BY NOW. hahahaha just bustin' ya balls. Spent a few hours binging on your channel. Made for a great Saturday. Thanks, mate.

[@barevids]

Love hearing that buddy! 😊

[@JonathanDFielding]

I was just working on a MHD750/1. use some beefy alligator clip leads and clamp the power and ground

[@stephanc7192]

Great video

[@willsteele9249]

Damn! I got to work in the morning lol!

[@izzzzzz6]

clever !

[@ThatsNotFunnyThatsSick]

People like to put amplifiers under the seats, and then pour every liquid known to man on them. I saw it all the time at Earmark Audio in Addison, Tx. during the early 90s.

[@ChrisLuke-uz7hz]

Do you have a suggestion on where to send my 600/4 for repair?

[@kissingfrogs]

I am curious, did you say the large caps were connecting signal to ground and not used for DC blocking?

[@peterfitzpatrick7032]

Thats not gonna work !! 🙄

[@cheeseburgerbeefcake]

I know it would be less interesting troubleshooting, but having schematics to these would you so much time! I presume they aren't somewhat available for the car audio market?

[@barevids]

Some are some aren't, I love the satisfaction of working it out without the schem as I learn more and remember it better, but sometimes there's no alternative other than to go find one!

[@Karizma231]

I have this amp and its been making some weird noises. I've put the sub into another amp and don't hear any noise. I also switched a different input lead into the amp and same thing so appears theres an issue with the amp which is annoying as its expensive and only had around 2 years.

[@aetch77]

Power supply cable jankiness - maybe some insulated crocodile clips?

[@barevids]

Yes that would work I think, provided big enough to grip the power lugs ☺

[@edwardeady8949]

Do you still fix these amps. I have the exact same problem with mines.

[@Sherky59]

Hello, do you still do repairs on JL hd1200? If so please let me know so I can work something out with you

[@jlev505]

One of the most annoying amps I ever repaired was a MTX TA7804. Nothing was shorted. All transistors and mosfets were good. I had to draw out all pins and connections on ribbon cable from main board to daughter board. It ended up having water damage on the daughter board and main board. The tiny vias that jump traces from bottom to top were corroded from via to trace. Under the crossover pushbuttons and several pots. Had to remove all pots and push buttons to find where traces switched from top to bottom. Also had corroded vias and traces under the heat sink for thermistors and signal. I will never buy an amp with any water damage unless a schematic is available. It took days to draw out all the signal circuits! Nightmare!!

[@barevids]

Oh god yeah I know the headache with bad vias all too well!

[@sickoej8]

Where are you located and how can I send you my amps ? I'm having problems with same amp but mine turns off when I turn up the volume

[@colestillwater6560]

Do you do these repairs I have one going into protect mode with nothing in it but power and remote and ground. How much would it be to ship it to you to look at

[@barevids]

@@colestillwater6560 yes, but I can only take work from UK based clients

[@nickhuber9232]

I have a v1, 400/4 that sounds absolutely horrendous. When the RCA’s are plugged in, I’ve tried several different pairs, and the problem does not go away, I took the amp apart, and did your recommendation with the isopropyl alcohol, and flicking the switches back-and-forth as many times, as my fingers would allow, any chance I can send this thing into you and have you take a look at it?

[@barevids]

If you're in the UK sure!

[@mk3man89]

I have one of these that will at times drop FL/RR/RL channels and then overdrive the hell out of the FR channel. It will eventually go back to normal but it keeps happening off and on- any ideas?

[@kenabi]

i do love JL's products, but i just can't justify the price. also not a huge fan of those connector choices they make. i mean, i sort of get it, but i'm not a fan of proprietary anything for interfaces.

[@GreenDreamzGarden]

I need your help

[@First_Take.]

What does it take to send you an Amp?

[@Jamez84]

Phone calls and stamps.... lol

[@barevids]

Live in the UK lol

[@First_Take.]

@@barevids that's a hike, and a swim. I got a paperweight skar rp 2k. Sad.

[@KenAllison-b9j]

i live in canada niagara falls is it possible to send you my older JL 900/4 i cant find a local repair person and would love to have it working again.

[@barevids]

@@KenAllison-b9j I can't take work from overseas I'm afraid buddy

[@KenAllison-b9j]

@@barevids no problem i guess i will dig out my old O scope and give er a whirl LOL here goes nothing. LOW ohm light issue pretty common i see across the net LOVE YOUR SKILLS MAN YOUR A PRO take care MATE

[@timramich]

They're sending audio through mechanical switches? Yikes. I think if I got such an item and never needed to change the settings, I'd just solder some bridges at the PCB between the switch pins.

[@Mrhalfpint305]

I have a JL audio 1200/1 V3 I’ve had it for about five years or so and the last few years I feel like it’s in a protective mode of some sort, even though no lights are on but, it’s not pushing out what it used to push out. I feel like it has the output of a 500/1 jl amp. Do you think something internally went bad over time and if so, can you fix it?

[@barevids]

Start off by confirming all the settings on the side at collect, maybe go through and recalibrate. Then check both your rcas are actually working, unplug each one and make sure the sub still plays with only one or the other connected. Then spray isopropyl alcohol or contact cleaner into the toggle switches and flick them back and forth many times to clean the contact rails.

[@diabolicalartificer]

Thanks for another grand video. BTW, how do you do your filming setup with the shot of the scope, headshot etc. Is that done live or in edit? Cheers...DA.

[@barevids]

Thanks! It's all live, as this setup was done for live streaming, but I use it for filming as well. I have about 8 different cameras all around the workshop, some USB and some HDMI, and I can switch to different cameras with a USB pedal set under the desk with my feet.

[@wetdookie3808]

I like how regulated their amps are. Same power from 11-15 volts. Same power from 1-4 ohms. F box rise. It’s awesome for those of us without beefy electrical but the price is too high for those of us without the funds for a beefy electrical. LoL. I have a cheap JL regulated 3k. Taramps smart 3!

[@kswis]

Those are both good amps I would buy. The t1500 sitting next to me is also decent with the constant power but with lower voltage I'm not sure the Rockford can keep up with the HD JL. Def excellent amps

[@CL-yp1bs]

@@kswis Rockford are excellent bespoke designs as well... not as highly regulated power as the JL is but pretty damn close.. and it puts out way more power.. both are super clean amps made by real engineers.. not some generic clones..

[@Jamez84]

There is NO such thing as Cheap JL

[@Jamez84]

The Sad thing about JL audio... 1500 watts is their most powerful amp and for the price of many of their amps you could buy the electrical system upgrades go with a cheaper amp and get double the power. A 1200 watt JL audio amp is $1,500.00 before taxes for that much you could buy 2 Taramps smart 3ks upgrade the alternator and get a 2nd battery...

[@CL-yp1bs]

@@Jamez84 Yeah its more of an Audiophile/Low distortion thing.. thats the only reason I would pay that much.. electrical upgrades are not that expensive as you mentioned..

[@Craigjackson12]

I have a jl hd 1200/1 and 900/5 that don’t work I’d love to send them to you !!

[@barevids]

Happy to look at them if you're in the UK

[@markcunningham2959]

Great job if you could please I have a Kenwood ps500 4,3, and 2 channel on the top two channels one of the negative doesn’t work so it’s +*+~ … * being the bad ground but if I Bridge it say +_ _~ it works fine is this repairable and yes it’s an old amp It’s actually my first amp I bought in my twenty’s so it’s very sentimental thank 😊 ps I don’t repair amps I just really enjoy your videos😅

[@edwardeady8949]

Id like you to fix mines. Please.

[@barevids]

If you're in the UK yes

[@waldemardelvallevelez4996]

Any banda videos

[@trevorballoo1197]

Hey, I have a JL HD 900/5 a speaker wire grounded off and the amp is presently in protective mode, where can I start to trouble shoot. Thank you, love your videos

[@erinbrooke743]

Are you interested in making some money? i bought a Jl audio 500/1 and only left side powers up and doesn’t push the subs only a little bit if i plug all four rca’s in so it’s very similar to this only the right side doesn’t work correctly. please if you can. I spent 450$ on a used one and can’t get it back.

[@barevids]

I'm in the UK buddy sorry

[@ManofCulture]

The only one "left" is the left channel.

[@GreenDreamzGarden]

Bro I have a 1000/1 slash and something happened to it I think

[@barevids]

If you're in the UK you're welcome to send it to me

[@Jamez84]

To me JL audio products are overpriced compared to other stuff on the market. They make nice products, but the cost per watt on the amps is insane when compared to other brands on the market. Even when compared to others in the SQ class seems to have cheaper prices that also have bespoke designs.

[@guysgt5003]

Can’t really compare JL to the chunk that’s on the market

[@daijoubu4529]

TIL IPA is non conductive, nice trick testing for evaporation

[@peterfitzpatrick7032]

Sometimes spraying an active component whilst powered up will actually cool it down enough to make it work... its a handy hammer to have in the toolbox.. 🔨 😎👍

[@ThePurePlayaz]

I always wonder why China doesn't copy JL audio. Or have they?

[@djrockon5729]

Because of patents

[@TheSara200424]

@@djrockon5729 china don’t care about a patents lol 😆

[@djrockon5729]

Yes my friend money always talks regardless at some point but that won’t happen with the W7 🤣😂

[@MickeyMishra]

They have where it makes sense to do so. Still. Those off brands will never be JL audio customers.

[@Jamez84]

@@MickeyMishra you mean blindly loyal and willing to spend any amount for a name tag.... JK... most JL audio fanboys are genXers in their 50s now...

[@Jamez84]

Same power from 1 to 4 ohms but who is buying 1 ohm door speakers? If JL had made the same power from 4 to 8 ohms that would make a lot more sense...

[@chloeleedow7250]

It can run 300 WRMS @ 8 ohms bridged too 😉

[@Jamez84]

@@chloeleedow7250 Yeah, I don't think people are spending $1100.00 for an amp they are going to bridge and sacrifice the half the channels the amp has.

[@Jamez84]

@Jamie German Your running infinity or JBLs I bet. They're the lowest ohm rated speakers I've seen for stock locations. But I bet its not JL, I've seen their speakers and they're all 4 ohm which mean in motion they are probably above that 4 ohm load. It just seems like it would make more sense to be a 4 to 8 ohm load maintaining that 150 watt rms value... IDK If it were me I would just buy a much more powerful amp from a competitor of theirs....

[@othaTaylor-s2h]

How do I contact you

[@barevids]

Barevids facebook page

[@joshholden8561]

Another way way over priced amp.!!!