Re: Sub amp question

Re: Sub amp question Answer 4299 in reply to 4226

Hi William,

I have an S-10 with OFF-AUTO-ON switch and run the sub in AUTO.

I became interested in this post and decided to check the temperature of the amp’s heat sink.

I used a Fluke 52 dual probe digital thermometer to compare room temp with heat sink temp. I expected that running the sub in AUTO, with my receiver off for 9 hrs that the heat sink and room temp would be equal.

The temps were not equal. The amps heat sink was 10 degrees above room temp.

I unplugged the power cord and after 9 hrs, the temps were then equal.

I plugged the Sub in and after about 3 hrs in the OFF position, the heat sink was again 10 degrees higher than room temp.

Illuminating an LED does not create that kind of heat.

I don’t know if this has anything to do with Sub amp failures, but I am curious.

Jack

Hi Caleb,

My receiver had been off for about 9 hrs and I had placed the S-10’s switch to the off position.

I am running power to the S-10 through an APC 350 CS UPS/Surge Protector.

I just did a current check on the S-10 plugged in with the switch in the OFF position.

I did not check the current draw of the receiver since after 9 hrs, it was @ room temp.

I made a patch cable to connect the S-10 and placed my Fluke 79 III DMM in series with the hot wire.

My S-10 draws .175 amps in off and does not change when switched to auto with the Sub cable disconnected.

This is about 22 watts the S-10 draws when idle and wll draw 22 watts 24/7.

Jack

I'm also very interested in this subject. As Caleb mentioned in another thread, sub shouldn't be drawing unnecessary power, no matter how small it may be. By the way, is there a design difference between S10 and S12 in relation to this matter? S12 doesn't seem to have this problem as a friend had told me. He could be wrong, but I'm just curious. Any response from Aperion team would be appreciated.

Owen

Owen,

Thanks for the reply.

The S-10 and S-12 have the Off-Auto On switch and with my S-10, just because the Led turns to Red does not mean that amp is not drawing power.

There may be a problem with the amp in my S-10 since it draws 22 watts when supposedly off. I guess that a person could do the heat sink temp test with a meat thermometer comparing room temp with the heat sink.

I spoke with both Caleb and Ben about this and my impression was that they did not have the means to do the tests that I made.

I just don’t like the fact that an electronic/electrical device draws power when turned off.

The Led should draw 1/10th watt or less.

Jack

Thanks for the info, Jack. I'm not concerned at all with the power drawn by the LED. That's nothing. Like you, however, I also don't like any electronic components that you can't really turn off turn off and I'm not sure this is specific to your S-10 or S-10 in general. In my case, while I don't think it's drawing much power when it's off, I can hear a low level humming noise coming out from the back around the heatsink area. you can barely hear it, but it's there and that tells me some electronic component is still active. That just bugs me.

Owen

Hey Owen,

I got a reply from Caleb via E-mail and the result was that he could send me a new Sub amp kit. I doubt that this will resolve the issue, but possible. The amps are 3 weeks out for delivery.

I just spoke with Ben and he will be in contact shortly with an engineer regarding the Sub's amp.

Do you have an S-10?

Jack

Jack,

Yes, I have an S10.

Without the power cord being plugged in, the heat sink was measured at 23C (73.4F)

With power cord being plugged in, and the switch being off, it measured at 29C (84.2F)

With power cord being plugged in, and the switch being on, it measured at 32C (89.6F)

Owen

Hi Owen,

Thanks for your reply.

You came up with almost identical results to mine, which validates my findings.

I don’t think that the continuous draw of 22 watts will force me to buy Carbon Credits, but this is an interesting subject, at least for us.

I believe that Ben is working with his engineer to find an answer.

Jack

Jack,
Let me know how the sub amp kit works out. I would definitely want to get one if it does indeed fix the problem. Also please keep me posted on Ben's finding. Thanks.

Owen

Owen,

I am guessing that your S-10 is 3 months newer than mine.

If there were problems leading to amp failures reported back in December 06, the problem may not have been discovered but just accepted as a batch of bad amps.

Below is a link to a thread that I ran across after I had already received my S-10 on 01-05-07. This was my original post regarding S-10.

http://www.aperionaudio.com/community/forums/thread/4226.aspx

I remembered the following post and this is why I became interested in the subject.

http://www.aperionaudio.com/community/forums/thread/2323.aspx

Jack

Hmm,

I have a S-10 Sub on order and this thread caught my eye.  Is a fix for this in the works?  It's not a deal breaker, but it would be nice of the sub really did turn off as it is supposed to. All these watts add up...

Peter 

Peter,

An additional note.

I am happy with my S-10 and really enjoy the low-end response.

If, within the next two weeks, Aperion has not properly addressed this issue, then you can send the S-10 back at Aperion’s expense. I expect resolution to this issue before that.

Hi Peter, Owen and other interested viewers,

Just out of curiosity, I checked my 36” Sony XBR CRT TV while in standby waiting for the remote to turn it on.

The Sony draws about 3.5 watts in standby and about 165 watts when turned on with internal speakers off.

My S-10 sub draws 6 times the power in standby compared to the Sony.

I believe that to be excessive and possibly may contribute to shorter life of the amp.

I am hoping to hear from Aperion regarding this S-10 issue soon.

Jack

Owen,

Regarding your post # 4420.

The S-12 also has had failures.

Reference post #2323.

I offered my home phone # to speak with the Sub Amp engineer and discuss my findings.

Jack