A subwoofer is one of the components in a car that is needed to make the atmosphere of the car more lively. When the subwoofer is broken, the car feels quiet. Some are completely dead, while others have a shrill sound that is unpleasant to hear. Both are equally unpleasant.

When a car subwoofer is dead, the first thing to know is the cause. Once you know the cause, it will be easier to fix the dead subwoofer.

Causes of a Dead Subwoofer

There are several reasons why a car subwoofer suddenly dies. Here are some possibilities.

Broken Cable

The lightest damage is due to a broken cable. You don't need to struggle to fix this type of damage. Just replace it with a new cable or reconnect the broken cable. How likely is it for a subwoofer to die due to a broken cable? It's small. However, there is still a possibility.

Power Supply Not Functioning

In addition to a broken cable, the cause of a dead car subwoofer could be that the power supply is not functioning. A non-functioning power supply can be caused by forcing the power supply to supply power to a subwoofer that is not its size. This damage is usually marked by total failure. It is very important to pay attention to how much power is needed by the subwoofer you are using, and then choose a suitable power supply.

Power MOSFET

Another subwoofer damage is due to worn power MOSFETs. This is very common considering how often the Drain and Source parts of the power MOSFET short-circuit. Usually, damage due to power MOSFETs occurs due to prolonged use.

IC 

In addition to these three things, a dead subwoofer can be caused by a damaged audio circuit component (IC OCL amplifier). You can test it yourself with an AVO-meter in several positions. If there is a DC voltage that appears, it can be confirmed that the IC OCL amplifier is damaged and needs to be replaced.

How to Fix a Dead Subwoofer

Fixing a dead subwoofer can be difficult or easy. It depends on the cause of the damage. If it's due to a broken cable, you just need to reconnect or replace that cable.

If the cause of the dead subwoofer is a faulty power supply, then you just need to buy a new power supply that matches the subwoofer you are using. You can ask the power supply seller which one is suitable for the subwoofer installed in your car.

For cases of damage due to power MOSFETs and ICs in the audio circuit components, it is better to leave this task to an electronics repair technician. For someone who is not familiar with the world of electronics, it will be difficult to understand and solve this problem. Moreover, each component has its own capacity rating. Buying components that do not match in capacity can lead to further damage to other components.

If you consult a general car service, they will likely suggest replacing the subwoofer unit with a new one. Because on average, they do not want to bother looking for damage one by one at each point. Therefore, it is better to go to an electronics repair technician who specializes in audio.

However, if you want to try to fix the dead subwoofer yourself, you can look for tutorial references on YouTube or blog articles that discuss subwoofer damage that matches what you have. Because each subwoofer has different components if the brands are different. 

That is how to fix a dead subwoofer that you can try. Some are easy, some are difficult, depending on the case of subwoofer damage you are experiencing.

Author: Iskael