My amplifier is overheating behind the passenger seats. Any advice?

The summer heat has been brutal. My amplifier did fine last year but this year it's been getting hot and no ventilation because it's behind my rear seats. Anyone else deal with this?

 

Check the gain on the amp
If it’s too high it will get hotter

 

Check all the grounds also. Is it getting hot hot, or just warmer than usual?

 

Yes , I didn’t think of that
Very important good catch

 

Its pretty hot and since I also know that its behind the seat, it gets no ventilation whatsoever. But thanks for the suggestion. I think my extra sub speaker wire might not be secure

 

Amp model? Impedance setting? Gain set by what method? Is it going into protection mode, or just “hot” because of ambient air temps?

Some amps run hotter than others.

 

Kenwood Excelon 801-5

I'm getting about 109 degrees Fahrenheit and that's not even on a hot day

 

My KENWOOD XR401.4 runs hot too. I don’t have a digital thermometer, but it’s uncomfortable to keep my hand on it, and that’s under the drivers seat, bridges to 2-channel.

Does it go into protect mode? How is the gain set? Are you bridging channels? Ohm load of all channels? Is the LC7 overdriving the inputs of the amp?

Lots of variables. I’d say, if it’s not going into protect, you’re good. If it shuts down in protect, revisit.

 

Is the LCI all maxed on the 3 levels, and the maximize light staying lit? If so you may be overdriving the amp.

 

Just to throw this out there, once you figure out the cause you can build a ventilation system for it using a 12v computer fan and a thermal switch of your preferred temp to help provide a bit of airflow.