Amp remote switch question
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 1,613
Likes: 0
From: Orlando FL
Amp remote switch question
ok....i'm stumped. i installed a new rockford fosgate amp in my C4's storage hatch. all wired up and workin fine, pushing new 6x9's. I installed an inline switch and LED on the "remote" wire to be mounted in the ashtray so that i can turn the amp on and off if i want to. i did this in another car with a amp and it worked fine. however, once the switch and light were installed in the vette, then the amp stopped working (the red power indicator light on the amp didn't come on). i removed just the switch, and it still didn't work. i returned it to just the wire, with no light and no switch and it all worked fine again. what am i missing here?? why does an "on/off" switch and a small indicator LED light on the "remote" wire cause it to stop working?
Last edited by XQIZT; Jan 2, 2005 at 08:08 PM.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 8,991
Likes: 2
From: Hanger 18 Taxachusetts
is it one of those lighted switch or are you using a separate switch and LED ??
Those lighted switches you can wire them without the LED to see that the switch is working. You may have wired the LED in series and blown it out like a fuse. The LED need something like a 650 ohm resistor to keep it from blowing out.
Go back to Radio Shack and get a normal toggle switch without the light to see that your wiring is OK.
Hard to tell until I know what sort of setup you are trying to use.
Those lighted switches you can wire them without the LED to see that the switch is working. You may have wired the LED in series and blown it out like a fuse. The LED need something like a 650 ohm resistor to keep it from blowing out.
Go back to Radio Shack and get a normal toggle switch without the light to see that your wiring is OK.
Hard to tell until I know what sort of setup you are trying to use.
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 1,613
Likes: 0
From: Orlando FL
i am using a separate switch and LED. i figured this would be basic. out of the head unit, to the switch, then to the LED and then to the amp. each piece works alone, but not all together. both the switch and the LED are 12V DC parts, so whats goin on? i have to admit that i am not an electrical genius, but DC circuits are pretty basic, right?
Drifting
Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 1,961
Likes: 2
From: Fort Knox
A voltmeter sure would be handy at this point. You didnt mention you had one, so im assuming you didnt. Yes, if at any point you reversed the current to the LED, you probably turned it into an instant fuse. If you can tell us where ya got the LED and switch, maybe we can guess better on what happened. Remember, most LED's are 2 to 3 volts DC only, and you can usually buy one with a resistor inline, or built right into the GaAs diode of the lamp. There just may be a defective part - it happens. its not like they actually test that stuff before they make it and sell it.
This site is great for hooking up anything that requires a resistor, such as a standard 3 volt LED : http://www.7volts.com/led_resistor.htm
Hope we're helpn'
snoopdan
This site is great for hooking up anything that requires a resistor, such as a standard 3 volt LED : http://www.7volts.com/led_resistor.htm
Hope we're helpn'
snoopdan
Le Mans Master
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 8,991
Likes: 2
From: Hanger 18 Taxachusetts
Sounds like you put the LED in series with the switch 
I can't get a drawing at the moment but:
1) take the +12v and put it into the switch.
2) On the other switch terminal you need 2 wires
3) The first wire will go to the amp so that the switch turns the amp on/off
4) The second wire you need to connect a current limiting resistor around 600-700 ohms will give you 15mA
5) To the other end of the resistor connect the positive side of the LED (the neg side usually has a leg shorter than the other or is marked by a flat spot on the side of it)
6) now connect the neg side of the LED to ground
This way the amp will always turn on even if the LED dies. I think you ran it in series and did as stated above, turned it into a fuse.
I can't get a drawing at the moment but:
1) take the +12v and put it into the switch.
2) On the other switch terminal you need 2 wires
3) The first wire will go to the amp so that the switch turns the amp on/off
4) The second wire you need to connect a current limiting resistor around 600-700 ohms will give you 15mA
5) To the other end of the resistor connect the positive side of the LED (the neg side usually has a leg shorter than the other or is marked by a flat spot on the side of it)
6) now connect the neg side of the LED to ground
This way the amp will always turn on even if the LED dies. I think you ran it in series and did as stated above, turned it into a fuse.
