well, the gain on my old DEI amp is going bad, resulting in the right channel cutting out at times and unless you get the switch positioned just right, it results in a wonderfull "whistling" sound whenever the car accelerates or decelerates(friends have commented it sounds like a turbo).
at the moment I am too broke to afford a new amp, and this old amp is a classic, the sound is better than any amp i can buy for under 200 bucks...im spoiled with the sound quality but dont have the money to replace it. from what i can tell its the switch itself, because the problems magically disapear when you play with the gain and get it set just right.
so, my question is, where can you find the type of potentiometer for a car amp?
it depends a lot on the type of potentiometer, and the "range" that it has. there's 1 of 2 ways you can do it.
one, open up the amp and see if you can find a manufacturer's part number on the potentiometer, and see if you can find it from that. the other, and more difficult way, is to unsolder the pot, put a multimeter across the leads, and move it from full counter clockwise to clockwise, and write down the ranges. using that info, you can find either the one you're looking for, or a suitable replacement. google is a good tool when trying to find electronics parts, or you if you have an electronics parts store where you live.
if you need any help, let me know. I'm an electronics tech at an avionics manufacturer and should be able to get a hold of some catalogs to help you find the part.
Desert Tuners
“When you come across a big kettle of crazy, it’s best not to stir it.”
ok, thanks for the help, i really really doubt i can find a usefull catalog number hence why i am asking here, was wondering if there was more to it than just measuring resistance with a ohmmeter or if there was differances in quality of pots.
the amp is like 20 years old, no joke. it was before DEI became sort of a junky company...now DEI's electronics seem to be on par with lower level audio gear such as jensen.
this old dei amp i have(no one has been able to tell me the model or whats yet,guessing somewhere around 50w x 2 chan) sounds better than even some of the higher quality low power amps i have run across in the $200 range, well more than i can spend ATM
well, i will pop the case later tonight hopefully, and see what i can see
Also try some terminal cleaner, radio shack should have it.
yeah, i have terminal cleaner and grease, if i am lucky maybe thats all thats wrong, i gotta go through the hassle of pulling the amp out, gonna do that today...what fun! ill know more in a couple hours after i have pulled it and popped the case
hope the cleaner helps. sometimes, the terminals inside the pot can oxidize and that keeps them from making good contact.
if it doesn't work, and you can get a number off of it, let me know.
Desert Tuners
“When you come across a big kettle of crazy, it’s best not to stir it.”
hey, guess what? a 20 year old amp doesnt need a new pot, just needs some rubbing alchohol and electrical grease lovin!
tore it apart, and not only was it oxodized to the point where it wasnt making contact, the oxidisation(is that a word?) grew between the contacts pushing the contacts apart,lol.
so, now the amp works as good as new! no more whistling ect., sounds as good as the day i bought it from a garage sale for 25 bucks 6 years ago,lmao!!!!
P.S. i cant seem to find any info about it, 2 channel DEI 5102 amp. should be a piece of crap, but sounds great with the kappa components, better than any i have found in the $200 price range.
