RB-1080 overheating

[BWLover]

anytime i listen to music loud after about an hour the amp shuts off/goes into protection. its really pissing me off. its sitting on the top shelf of a stand on glass it has PLENTY of breathing room. its hooked up to a rc-1082 and rcd-1072 and bw 683's. the volume nob is almost at 11 o'clock. it gets rediculously hot...like krell idle hot. all the connections are fine and correct. idea's ?????

[htsteve]

BWlover,

This does not sound normal at all. I had a 1080 on s shelf with about 4 inches clearance above. Also, open sides and back. My 1080 got hot, but never went into protection mode. And it was driving N804's, probably a more difficuly load than the 683's.

Did you get this from a Rotel dealer? Is is still under warranty? If yes, I would call your dealer. Even if not, your dealer probably needs to look at it.
Or maybe call Rotel direct.


Hope this helps.

[BassThatHz]

Crank it to 11 but don't play any music through it... leave it like that for two hours. If it happens with that, then it ain't the volume.

If it doesn't happen, try repeating it with a song that is ~5mins in length... check the temp every 60 seconds; if it survives one song wait till it cools down and keep repeating that cycle for a few hours or until it gets hot.

If it survives that, then you simply need to let it cool between songs.
Does it get hot quickly or does it take some time to build up?

If that's a problem for you, look into buying a RB-1090 or RB-1092.

[bigburner]

BWLover, my 1080 has only gone into protection mode once, on New Years Day a couple of years ago watching the Cream "Albert Hall" DVD with an old school friend, both of us full of wine. It was very loud. I think the volume knob on the 1070 preamp I had then was somewhere near 2 o'clock. Silly but fun.

As a result of that incident I did two things. The first was to put a mains powered fan behind the 1080. The second thing was to buy a subwoofer (ASW750) to take the load off my 1080 and give me the headroom to turn it up loud if I want to.

The volume knob hasn't been near 2 o'clock since but if I do catch the silly bug again I'm confident that my 1080 won't go into protection mode.

Nigel.

[soundhound]

What impedance do your 683's dip to when rockin?
What genre of music do you listen to?
What is your idea of loud, approx. db?
Is there a crossover, driver, or cableing issue?
All things considered it sounds like its time for a healthier amp, as the 1080 is a peach, but it may have mets its match........

[BWLover]

according to B&W it is 8 ohms 3 ohms min.
its usually electronica that it does it
digital db meter from the source (radio shack) says about 100dB
no crossover and the connections are good, very simple cd to pre amp to amp. nothing else is in the mix, the amp in plugged directly into the wall with a hospital grade outlet.

[soundhound]

Sounds like its probably coming a little closer (to a short) than 3 ohm, given the heat its generating.
There are passive xovers (caps, coils, resistors) in the speaks themselves, which send the correct frequencies to the propper drivers as well as keep the volume balanced through out the rated volume range.
Have you tried listening for periods of time @ a moderate volume, say 70 db avg? What does this do?
Also, is it thermal protection or short circuit protection?
I had never had any trouble with either of my 1080's, but assume if it goes into thermal protection, it will stay down until the temp comes back within spec, and if its short circuit protection, it will momentarily engage, then dissengage.

[BWLover]

it thermal protection. at normal volume levels the amp is fine. doesnt get hot just good and warm.

[BassThatHz]

I think your hitting the law of diminishing returns at 100db from a few 6" woofers. You need to look at a 15" subwoofer for those kinds of sustained levels; otherwise to get just a little bit larger woofers, you're looking at 802D's.

[Opus007]

anytime i listen to music loud after about an hour the amp shuts off/goes into protection. its really pissing me off. its sitting on the top shelf of a stand on glass it has PLENTY of breathing room. its hooked up to a rc-1082 and rcd-1072 and bw 683's. the volume nob is almost at 11 o'clock. it gets rediculously hot...like krell idle hot. all the connections are fine and correct. idea's ?????

I second thermal protection.I had a similar issue with my 1075.With the RC1070 set at the 11 o'clock position and listening to music at 100db after about a hour it would go into protection mode and shut down the channels.If I left it alone it would cool down and then the channels would kick back in.And it would only take a few minuets. I do like it loud but 100db for 2 channel is pretty darn loud.I also have the 683's .I called Rotel and in the end , I was just driving it to hard.If I am in the 10 o'clock position on the volume control there is no problem.Putting a fan on it did stop the amp from going into protection mode at the 11 o'clock position.But of course who wants a fan added to their setup.The other fix is to use a sub and set the fronts to small. This is what I am currently doing.I was told by members here that I should add a 1080 for the fronts but looks like that's not a fix for me either now.Looks like the B&W 600 series requires a lot more power than I realized.At least when you want to play them loud.

[BWLover]

I've been searching the forum and it seems to me like this amp is a piece of sh*t. I cannot believe this crap. Tones of people talk about the left channel going out. that's what happens to me when it overheats. its always the left channel first. i just don't understand how this amp can overheat so easily when you have "normal" consumer grade systems like pioneer AV receivers with junk speakers that you couldn't get to overheat if you tried. can someone explain why spending $6000 on a 2 ch rig gets you MORE problems then a $1000 system from best buy!!!!

[Opus007]

I've been searching the forum and it seems to me like this amp is a piece of sh*t. I cannot believe this crap. Tones of people talk about the left channel going out. that's what happens to me when it overheats. its always the left channel first. i just don't understand how this amp can overheat so easily when you have "normal" consumer grade systems like pioneer AV receivers with junk speakers that you couldn't get to overheat if you tried. can someone explain why spending $6000 on a 2 ch rig gets you MORE problems then a $1000 system from best buy!!!!

Just a thought ...do you have a different set of speakers other than the 683's that you can hook up and use them to see how long you can drive them before and if the amp goes into protection mode?

[pixeljedi]

If this is due to overheating and not component failure (I'm not sure if you've had this looked at by a Rotel tech), another solution would be to mod the amp yourself by putting a couple of silent running pc fans in it. This is assuming your warranty has expired. I've seen some fans run as quiet as ~13dB, but you could get fancy make it only run at a certain temperature.

Not a great solution for you, but I would send this amp off to be looked at first before modding.

[BWLover]

no I don't have another set of speakers. thats a good idea though. how do you get in contact with rotel? I'm probably just going to buy some class d stuff from rotel and if that overheats I'll throw it thru the window lol. I'm really frustrated with this if you can't tell haha

[Opus007]

no I don't have another set of speakers. thats a good idea though. how do you get in contact with rotel? I'm probably just going to buy some class d stuff from rotel and if that overheats I'll throw it thru the window lol. I'm really frustrated with this if you can't tell haha

You can get the number to Rotel off their website.When you call you will probably not get a live person but leave a message and Mike from Rotel will call you back as soon as he can.He is a good guy and will help in any way He can.As far as frustration goes I know the feeling.You pay all that money and I am firm believer that when doing that... it should work and work well.But alas ,this is not always the case.I am currently waiting on my 1069 to come back and probably have a week more to wait.I had it sent in due to a black crush issue so that they could install the bypass board and whoops....there may not of been nothing wrong with the unit as my bulb in pj was failing.I noticed I still had the issue after I sent it in and replaced the bulb.But anyway hang in there.I would first talk to Mike and maybe he has a solution.

[bleeding ears]

I had a similar overheating issue with a rotel 200 w 2channel amp, think it was a 990, cant remember now.

It got damn hot for no apparent reason. In fact it got so hot I sometimes could barely put my hand on top of the amp.

It went into protection mode once when I pushed it hard, so I got some cooling fans out of some old computers and powered them from a variable voltage transformer from jaycar/tandy/or radio shack as it is known in other countries.

Eventually, the damn thing gave out, and after hearing a very deep loud humm from my left speaker the speaker was blown.

Not happy.

Turns out it was a dry solder joint, and was repaired for about $120 dollars Australian, and my speakers were repaired by Energy under warranty.

Yes I did tell them the truth about what the amp had done, but they were happy to repair the damage done by the amp, how good was that !

Any way after that episode, I had had enough and got rid of the amp.

I went to a lower wattage, 5 x 100 watt Rotel amp and noticed very little change in sound quality. The amps were both about the same age, but the 5 channel 985 amp never gets hot and has enough power for my needs.

Havent looked back, Oh and the 5 channel amp was cheaper than the 200 watter.

Why do they get so hot ?

Beats me. The repair guy said it was a good amp but had no explanation as to why it got so hot.

I expected a lot more from such a powerful heavy amp.

Very dissapointing.

My amp was a different model however the specs were pretty much the same as the 1080, in fact I could not tell any difference.

Hope this helps, your not the only one that has had this heating and protection cut in problem.

Good luck.

[BWLover]

i've contacted mike. thanks guys

[BWLover]

test

[Opus007]

i've contacted mike. thanks guys

What was the final outcome.

[B_W_Guy]

just a bunch of tests at home so far. waiting for a response via e mail. vary nice guy to deal with.

[Opus007]

I did a google search for the 683's and the Rotel Amps and there is some interesting stuff.Makes me wonder if the speakers are the problem.A lot of the stuff I read was from 683 owners having the problem with various Rotel amps.You with the 1080 and me with the 1075...hmmmm.

[BWLover]

he did say it could be the speakers?

[BWLover]

could you pass on those links to the stuff you were reading?

[Opus007]

could you pass on those links to the stuff you were reading?

I can not remember what sites I was at for those links.But in my browsing earlier I found 3 people who had 683's and Rotel amps who had protection issues.All this got me to thinking so I decided to do some some more testing with my 1075.Last time I drove the 1075 hard it was connected through the pre-outs of a Sony 4300es.I now have a rsp-1069 and have removed the Sony so thought I would see if I could push the amp into protection mode.I broke out my Allman Brother Eat A Peach cd as this was always the cd that would put the amp in protection.I also got out my rat shack meter.I let the pre and amp warm up before I started.With the first track I set the volume to around a steady 105 db with some spikes at 110 and 112.The 4th song on the cd is Mountain Jam and is a 33 minuet tune.Always near the end of Mountain jam is where my amp would go into protection mode.I had to leave the room as it was pretty loud and listened from down the hall.To my surprise the amp never missed a beat.After Mountain Jam I felt the top of the amp and it was pretty warm but not hot like it was with previous testing.I then let it play the rest of the tracks waiting for protection mode to kick in.It never happened.Why?I have no idea.Only thing different in my setup is the removal of the sony and the adding of the rotel.Would this make a difference?I do not know.The only other thing I have done since adding the rotel was a complete rewire of my system as it was messy.But with all the same cables.I may of had a loose connection that was shorting something out.I just do not know.
I would suggest you check all your cabling.At this point it is all I can think of.Also I have been listing to music with the mains set to small and crossed over at 80 with the use of subs.For my testing today I used the bypass mode on the 1069 so I was getting full range to the speakers.I am stumped at this point.

[BWLover]

OK im a little confused. did you have overheating problems before? when you were using the Sony with the Rotel amp?

And the 105dB-112dB your getting that just out of the 683's or in full surround?

But ya i tried re wiring and checking and that got me knowhere. My dealer keeps passing the buck saying im just driving them to hard. So thats why i called rotel directly.

[Opus007]

OK im a little confused. did you have overheating problems before? when you were using the Sony with the Rotel amp?

And the 105dB-112dB your getting that just out of the 683's or in full surround?

But ya i tried re wiring and checking and that got me knowhere. My dealer keeps passing the buck saying im just driving them to hard. So thats why i called rotel directly.

Yes I was having overheating with the 1075 5x120watts amp and sony receiver.It has never shut down in surround... only when in 2 channel stereo with a analog connection.The 105db was a average db form my spl meter with spikes reaching 110 to 112.I had the shutdown problem many months ago and just figured I was pushing the amp to hard.So I ran the amp with less volume and fed it a digital signal and fed the lower end to the subs to take the strain off the amp.I was not thrilled about playing music this way but it took care of the overheating problem.When I did my testing yesterday trying to push the amp into protection mode, I fed it a analog signal in stereo with no subs and giving the mains full signal with no crossovers.I pushed the amp very hard as I said to where it was so loud I had to leave the room and it never went into protection mode.I am stumped as to why it did it before but not now.

[BWLover]

wow thats some serious volume out of the 683's what kind of music was playing.

[Opus007]

wow thats some serious volume out of the 683's what kind of music was playing.

The Allman Brothers Band.They are pretty heavy on the organ so there is a lot of music going on in their songs. :T

[Mig17]

The 1080 uses very large surfaces of heat radiation
that is why 1080 is just warm when working

I think your 1080 may have problem with protection curcuit or thermal sensor sticked on the surface of the heatsinks may provide " false alert message"

[BWLover]

ya i dont mind it being warm. i like it warm. i actually never turn it off so it stays warm. but it gets insanely hot when under a good load. that's my problem

[Opus007]

BWLover
I have had receivers that in the manual state that it may get very hot and could cause burns if touching the top of the receiver.About 2 years ago I had a 1080 paired with a rsx 1057 to run my mains.If I recall right it did get very warm but not extremely hot.I never had the 1080 go into protection mode and I did push it pretty hard.Did Mike at Rotel ever get back with you?

[BWLover]

We've e mailed a couple times but i think im going to give him a call. He seems like a pretty busy guy. But ya the 1080's going into protection He told me that its a work horse and it should not ever go into protection. Mind you I'm driving it pretty hard. But that's not the point. I don't want it to ever go into protection. I've ran a lot of different tests on it for him. Also i checked all my wiring (which is basic cd to pre to amp) and even tried plugging the amp directly into the wall. But i think he'll sort it out for me.

[bigburner]

but it gets insanely hot when under a good load. that's my problem

Get a sub and give your 1080 a break. Go on. You know you want to.

Nigel.

[BWLover]

can no one read? i am not getting a sub. i shouldn't have to. this amp should be able to drive my whittle 683's awl by its self. this is crap. I'm not looking for a solution to make it easier on the amp. I want the amp to do it damn job. And if i hook up a sub thru the pre outs on my pre amp its not going to make any difference to my amp b/c the pre amp doesnt have a cross over. but that doesnt matter b/c getting a sub inst the solution to to my problem.

[Opus007]

can no one read? i am not getting a sub. i shouldn't have to. this amp should be able to drive my whittle 683's awl by its self. this is crap. I'm not looking for a solution to make it easier on the amp. I want the amp to do it damn job. And if i hook up a sub thru the pre outs on my pre amp its not going to make any difference to my amp b/c the pre amp doesnt have a cross over. but that doesnt matter b/c getting a sub inst the solution to to my problem.

Hey BWLover,
I think all the recommendations from people who say add a sub are well founded....But I am in concurrence with you.I like my music with out a sub.Yes a sub will take some strain off the amp and if properly configured will integrate nicely..But it is not the same as having pure 2 channel stereo and a full signal being sent to the mains.I have tried many times to really like music with using a sub but to me it is just not the same.Without a sub the music just seems fuller.
I also agree that your 1080 should power the 683's without a problem.I think the amp getting hot is normal especially with the volume you are applying to it over a long period of time.The sensor could be bad and could be shutting the amp down prematurely.A fan could be a temporary solution till you and Mike figure out what is going.I would not set a fan on top of the amp due to vibration.The attached picture is a 4 inch fan from walmart that I added when I was having overheating problems with my 1075(cost 7.99).It runs extremely quit and really keeps the the amp cool.I took a support arm from a old directv dish and attached the fan to it.There is a downside to this as it looks stupid but it does its job.Also I do not even use the fan anymore as I have had no more protection shutdowns since redoing my system and removing the sony receiver...but I am leaving the fan in place just in case.

[bigburner]

can no one read? i am not getting a sub. i shouldn't have to. this amp should be able to drive my whittle 683's awl by its self. this is crap. I'm not looking for a solution to make it easier on the amp. I want the amp to do it damn job. And if i hook up a sub thru the pre outs on my pre amp its not going to make any difference to my amp b/c the pre amp doesnt have a cross over. but that doesnt matter b/c getting a sub inst the solution to to my problem.

I've answered this in another thread so I won't repeat myself.

My medium priced B&W ASW750 sub has a 1000 watt amplifier in it. 1000 watts, not 200. Why do you think that it has such a powerful amp? It's because low frequencies require lots of power if you want to listen at high volume. From your other posts you like to listen at high volume.

Over and out.

Nigel.