How much air does an amp need?

Budabear

Budabear

Junior Audioholic
Hello Everyone,

I have a Proton D1200 amp in a stereo cabinet with a glass door in front and I'm planning on putting 1 or 2 more. Can someone tell me how much room I need above the amp to give it correct ventilation so I don't burn them out. I am attaching pictures so you can see where the air holes are. The amp is rated at 100wpc however it is capable of peaking at 1500wpc according to what I have read. THX











 
afterlife2

afterlife2

Audioholic Warlord
I would do 5-7' I actually put mine on top of my sub with a cloth underneath.
 
fuzz092888

fuzz092888

Audioholic Warlord
I would run it hard for a few hours and see what kind of temperatures build up in the cabinet. That would be the best place to start and all you need is some sort of thermometer to keep track of the temps. All my amps run hot as h*ll, like Walters so they need a ton of ventilation. They're in as open faced/back cabinet, but the area around the sides and top isn't all that much so I have 6-200mm fans pulling all of the hot air out of the back and cool air in from the front. You probably won't need to go to anything extreme like that, but figuring out where you stand temperature wise is a must before you add anything else.
 
Budabear

Budabear

Junior Audioholic
Thanks guys! I will run them and check that out. Unfortunately the lower part of the cabinet, where the amps will be, is not open. I think i will have to take the cabinet apart so I can take the back board off, there is only a big circular opening to get the wires out. I do keep the doors open when running the system so air does get in from the front but I know that's not enough. I think the fans a re a great idea.
 
Pyrrho

Pyrrho

Audioholic Ninja
The general question you ask is like asking how much gas a car needs. Different cars need different amounts, and so it is with air for amplifiers. I have a couple that run quite cool. My ODL has massive heat sinks and never gets very warm, and it does not have any air holes (so the circuitry inside never gets dust and dirt on it either). My Crown K2 gets warm, but never hot, and it is also sealed, so no dust or dirt gets inside.

Now, looking at your amplifier, one can see that almost the entire top of the case is a grate, and so we can guess that they expect a lot of heat to be coming out of there. I recommend several inches above it. But one cannot say precisely how many inches, both because I am not familiar with that specific amplifier, and also because how much space is needed will also depend on the room temperature, as well as how much heat is generated by other devices close by, and also it will depend on how hard you push the amplifier.

Just remember, there is no such thing as too much space over it and empty space around it; there is only such a thing as too little.

I also do not recommend putting an amplifier on a piece of cloth, especially if it has vents on the bottom. Cloth insulates (and can block vents if present), and you don't want to keep the heat in, you want the opposite.


If you have the manual for it, it will likely give you advice on this subject. I recommend following such advice, and never giving an amplifier less space than the manufacturer recommends.
 
H

herbu

Audioholic Samurai
there is only a big circular opening to get the wires out
I had similar situation. Glass front cabinet w/ left & right sections. Only 4" hole in back of each section for wires. I was putting Emotiva XPA-5 in one side, and Denon X4000 in the other side. I expanded 4" wire holes in back to ~6"x14". In addition, I cut 28, (count 'em... 28), additional 4" holes in the sides, back, and internal divider between the l/r sections. No fans. So far, no problem.

Pyrrho said, you can't have too much air. Makes sense. And if you have to disassemble/rework your cabinet anyway, easier to do it all only once. You can get a good hole saw for your drill at Home Depot for $10.
 
Budabear

Budabear

Junior Audioholic
Since my first post I have since removed the rear panel, now it's wide open. So, I don't think I would need to cut holes in the sides of the cabinet. The back is wide open and I usually leave the doors open.

 
fuzz092888

fuzz092888

Audioholic Warlord
Since my first post I have since removed the rear panel, now it's wide open. So, I don't think I would need to cut holes in the sides of the cabinet. The back is wide open and I usually leave the doors open.

Have you measured any temps from inside the cabinet? You can always add fans to the rear panel and put it back on depending on how much heat is there. There are a lot of good solutions for this, some of which don't require you to do anything to them once they've been installed since they have an auto on/off with heat sensor.
 
Budabear

Budabear

Junior Audioholic
I actually haven't yet. Currently I have one of the amps hooked up in a small narrow cabinet. I have been playing it and it doesn't seem to be getting very hot with only about 2.5" of head room. I know this is not enough but I don't use the system much. I have another cabinet which I will be moving everything my equipment to but including another of the same amps and then a third when the time comes. This is where I' was planning to make for more space and trying to figure out what would be best. Unfortunately the cabinet has less interior space and I'm still trying to figure out if I can use it and fit all my equipment.

So, while I have been using the amp it has not been getting hot at all but I haven't really had the opportunity to really push it for a long period. I'm in an apartment with neighbors. Monday on during the day I will be to push it more without bothering the neighbors.
 
fuzz092888

fuzz092888

Audioholic Warlord
Then you'll probably be fine without cutting too many holes. A fan or two to increase circulation couldn't hurt on the cabinet with less space though.
 
fuzz092888

fuzz092888

Audioholic Warlord
I'm figuring the fans would be a major plus
They certainly never hurt. These are some fan kits for cabinets. You could also just buy a PS and a temp controller from them and buy your own fans that are larger and move more air. I went with a fan controller, external PS, and 6-200mm fans. Mainly because I like to be able to dial the fan speed up and down as necessary on an individual basis. I'm a bit of a control freak that way.

http://www.coolerguys.com/allofourcoki.html
 
Pyrrho

Pyrrho

Audioholic Ninja
I'm figuring the fans would be a major plus
They certainly never hurt. These are some fan kits for cabinets. You could also just buy a PS and a temp controller from them and buy your own fans that are larger and move more air. I went with a fan controller, external PS, and 6-200mm fans. Mainly because I like to be able to dial the fan speed up and down as necessary on an individual basis. I'm a bit of a control freak that way.

http://www.coolerguys.com/allofourcoki.html

Fans can make noise, so they can hurt the audio experience. I personally prefer to not use them, and purposefully have avoided amplifiers that have them built-in because of fan noise that I have heard with some of them. Also, a truly passive system of cooling is more reliable; if a wire comes loose and your fan does not come on, you may not notice it (unless it is noisy when it works), and then you would not have your cooling. They also, of course, use extra power, so you have a slightly higher electric bill with fans than you would have without them.
 
fuzz092888

fuzz092888

Audioholic Warlord
Fans can make noise, so they can hurt the audio experience. I personally prefer to not use them, and purposefully have avoided amplifiers that have them built-in because of fan noise that I have heard with some of them. Also, a truly passive system of cooling is more reliable; if a wire comes loose and your fan does not come on, you may not notice it (unless it is noisy when it works), and then you would not have your cooling. They also, of course, use extra power, so you have a slightly higher electric bill with fans than you would have without them.
If done right fans aren't intrusive at all. Most of the issues arising from fan use is too little control over fan speed/using fans that are too small. A temp controller can also help. As for amps with fans, the Crown amps are excellent in this respect and so is the Cinepro 3k6SE I have. I know what you mean and a lot of companies can get fans wrong, but these two companies have gotten it nearly perfectly and it pays off big time in weight.

Also, c'mon man, higher electric bill? We're talking like 2-5 extra watts (slightly more for me since I have more fans than most) while the system is in use. Odds are if you've got the kind of components that are generating enough heat to warrant these fans you're probably not sweating the extra dollar or two a couple fans would add. Plus if they extend the life of the electronics in question then they're worth the investment IMO.
 
BMXTRIX

BMXTRIX

Audioholic Warlord
Fans have to be thought out. While they typically work well, they can actually create a cold front which warm air can't pass through and can cause a build up of warm air that can't get to exits if not done properly.

Fans, when used in an open cabinet really should blow over components pushing cool air to them.

In a cabinet that is sealed, fans should be at the top and blow air out. Care should be taken to have the equipment rack act as a chimney. Drawing cool air from the bottom, and ONLY from the bottom so that warm air is pulled from throughout the cabinet out the exit and the only entry point for more air is from the bottom of the cabinet.

Generally, an open cabinet with about 2" between each component will generate plenty of natural convection airflow to keep the equipment running at a properly cool temperature without any fans in use at all. But, when I am forced to use fans, then I vent from the bottom and exhaust from the top being very careful NOT to allow a air path from anywhere else which could cause a air dam.
 
Swerd

Swerd

Audioholic Warlord
Excellent points from BMXTRIX.

It is important to pay attention to the path and direction of airflow. Hot air naturally rises unless it is trapped. If you add a fan, work with that, not against it.

This should be required reading for all who are thinking about adding fans :).
 
Last edited:

bxboyjhs

Audiophyte
I thought the general rule of thumb was to give the amp or avr a good 4" of breathing room on all sides. If not possible they make fans that either push fresh air in or exhaust the hot air out.The last thing you want is to clip your amp/avr because of heat.I pushed my Yamaha abit to far on the volume scale and it shut down. Thankfully it went into protection mode and came back and that was the last time I aired them out and got an external amp.If not an expensive enclosure I would drill it and use both the fans on the units and from the back also.Sorry no link but there many co. out there that make these.
 
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