Subwoofer question...

I have an 8" Rockford Fosgate 4-ohm Punch sub in a small sealed enclosure located in the back corner of my 3 hatch (see attached pic). Recently the sub has been cutting out.

If my car has been sitting for a while (ie overnight) and I start it up, my sub works fine till I shut the car off. Like driving to work, for instance.

Say I refueled my car on the way to work then started it up after refueling--the sub won't come on most of the time. However, if I open the hatch and touch the sub with my hand then it "magically" starts again at least for a little while. If it stops, all I have to do is touch it again with my hand and it starts up again.

Any idea what is wrong with the sub to cause it to be like this?! (shrug) I know it's probably going to need to be replaced, but I'm one of those who like's to know the cause of the problem! Thanks!

sound like you have a loose lead on the sub or a short in the voice coil

I was thinking it was the voice coil too. The leads are good. I already checked that. Getting power from the amp and all that. It's just funny that all it takes is just a little pressure on the speaker and it starts working again!

I just don't understand why it works fine after the car has been sitting for awhile. If I start up the car after it's been sitting and then turn it off soon after, then it usually continues to work. It's only after it's been playing for awhile it won't work after I restart the car. Or it might not work after I restart the car and then all-of-a-sudden it works for a little bit and shuts off again.

What could be wrong with the voice coil to cause this? Just a loose connection? Why does it work fine after the car has been sitting for awhile?

after sitting the woofer is cold and the wire contracts back into postion ,after playing for awhile it heats up and the wire gap expands thus wont play until it cools down again

Thanks a bunch for the insight! These forums rock!(guitar)(rockon)(headbang)

Might want to check the leads going from the box connectors to the actual woofer, they could be loose. I understand the leads from the amp to the box connectors are good, but there is another similar connection inside the sealed enclosure.

ecniemann said:

Might want to check the leads going from the box connectors to the actual woofer, they could be loose. I understand the leads from the amp to the box connectors are good, but there is another similar connection inside the sealed enclosure.

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Thanks for the advice, but there aren't any box connectors on the enclosure. It is a custom made enclosure just for the 3 hatch that is molded for an exact fit of that "cubby hole" in the back corner of the car. The wires goes right from the amp to the speaker through a very tight hole in the enclosure. The first owner of my car had it professionally made and I think it turned out nice. I could see your point on checking the leads INSIDE the enclosure if it had box connectors.

BUT, if that were the case with loose leads, then why does the sub work when the woofer cone is touched? And why does it always work fine when the cars been sitting for awhile? That is why the voice coil theory sounds to me like it might be what is causing the problem. Thanks again for your input!