How much heat is excessive?

[touchmyrouter]

Ok I recently purchased a new receiver (Pioneer VSX-D814) and its my first nice receiver (with more than 4 speakers) and I would like to know, how much heat is allowable?

For music I will typically have 4 speakers running, two towers, and two bookshelfs, both are set as "fronts" just on A and B so I run A and B together and it gets fairly warm.

It does this no matter which speakers, or configuration i use

anyways, its warm, I can easily place my hand on the metal grill on top without it burning or hurting but there is definite heat (even when run at lower volumes, though the heat is not as much). So is some heat normal?

Thanks all


P.S. The grills are not covered by anything and it has about a foot between its top and the shelf above it so plenty of clearance

[foobagger]

Depending on the amp design, amps range from cool (e.g. class G) to hot (e.g. class A) and all temps in between. The amp designer provides enclosure venting and heat sinks necessary for proper cooling. Most receivers use amp designs that run cool to warm in my experience.
My Adcom 5802 is the hottest amp I've ever used. The external heat sink fins will burn my skin when it's been driving my 4 ohm Maggies loud. But that's what heat sinks do, get very hot so the rest remains only warm. They can get to 85 deg C. before thermal protection kicks in.
So whatever temp you find in your equipment is what it is designed for. Just be sure to leave adequate room all around per manufacturer specifications - usually at least 4". Never stack other equipment on a receiver or amp. Avoid crowded cabinet installations.

[uncooked]

if you just have 4 speakers you are better off hooking the bookshelves to the rear terminals and use a party mode or 6 channel stereo type mode or whatever that pioneer has that just plays stereo for rear and front.

because when you flick A and B on its sharing the same amplifer circuit inside the amp therefore putting the front amp under alot of load. "and you will only get half the volume"

if you use the rears then the amp isnt working as hard and doesnt have to drive an extra set of speakers off of that internal amp.

i dont know the amp specs but say its 100 watts a channel if your running a and b your only going to get 50 watts for each set. while if you use the rear amp as well then they both can pump out 100 and run smoother and i bit cooler probably.

[skeptic]

It is impossible to say in general if an amplifier is running too hot. It depends on many factors related to the design of your particular unit. What is excessively hot for a low power class AB transistor amplifier may actually be too cool for a high power vacuum tube amplifier which must heat up to operate properly. Most manufacturers will advise you to allow plenty of ventillation for their equipment expecially power amplifiers, integrated amplifiers, receivers, and any equipment containing vacuum tubes. They will advise you not to block any vent holes or heat sinks, allow sufficient clearance for air flow, and don't install it near a source of heat such as a radiator. If you install it in a cabinet, consider forced air cooling from a small inexpensive box fan or at least convection cooling. Because transistors are so sensitive to being overheated, most amplifiers and receivers incorporate thermal shutdown circuits. Sensors within the amplifier are triggered when certain components like power output transistors get too hot and shut the amplifier down or put it into a standby mode where power output is severely restricted. If these circuits are triggered, many are self resetting, some are not. Consult your owners manual. If you have an amplifier which activates its thermal overload protection circuit repeatedly, you have a problem which must be addressed immediatly to avoid costly damage. From your posting, I cannot tell if you have such a problem and whether or not your concerns are warranted. From your description, paralleling two pairs of speakers to the "front speaker" output even though one is A and the other is B, you may have connected a load which has too low an impedence to be safely operated by your amplifier. You might want to contact the manufacturer's service department and ask for advice on your model. They know exactly what is normal and abnormal for that particular unit.

[Geoffcin]

Ok I recently purchased a new receiver (Pioneer VSX-D814) and its my first nice receiver (with more than 4 speakers) and I would like to know, how much heat is allowable?

For music I will typically have 4 speakers running, two towers, and two bookshelfs, both are set as "fronts" just on A and B so I run A and B together and it gets fairly warm.

It does this no matter which speakers, or configuration i use

anyways, its warm, I can easily place my hand on the metal grill on top without it burning or hurting but there is definite heat (even when run at lower volumes, though the heat is not as much). So is some heat normal?

Thanks all

P.S. The grills are not covered by anything and it has about a foot between its top and the shelf above it so plenty of clearance

In my second system, the Pioneer VSX- 812s. The unit has been bulletproof, but there are some caveats you should know. It does not possess a high current amp section. Hooking up two sets of main speakers will cause them to draw more current than the receiver is designed for. Depending on what volume you like to listen at, you might overload, or worse, overheat your receiver. I've done both without any damage to the receiver, but I don't recommend you try it.

The unit runs moderately warm all of the time, even if there is no current draw, so if you can hold your hand on it then it's still within it's temperature operating range.

[Dusty Chalk]

anyways, its warm, I can easily place my hand on the metal grill on top without it burning or hurting but there is definite heat (even when run at lower volumes, though the heat is not as much). So is some heat normal?

Yes, that's fine. Just make sure it continues to get proper ventilation, and that nothing falls in to block the free flow of air.

[touchmyrouter]

The only reason I have 4 mains is because of the blown tweeter I mentioned earlier, the bookshelfs sound good, but a bit tinny, and the Energy's sound good, but a bit flat, so together they seem to even out.

With this 'double' set-up I only use it for lower volumes so just for qualities sake, when I really want to turn it up I have Altec Lansing floors for my rears and I use them coupled wtih the Energys

Thanks again all for the heat tips (this forum replies quickly! lol)

As of yet no problems with heat, I was just curious as to whether it could be something but nothing has blown or shut off or melted.

And if anyone is new and is reading this and wondering if it is any good, I am extremely happy with my Pioneer VSX-D14 (insert commercial smile here heh) but it seems to perform great for me, now I just need to update everything else in my system - an everlasting war in my mind

[Weister42]

I have an older Technics amplifier(SU-V8X) running 2 pairs of 4 ohm towers in parallel and it gets very hot at high volume, even though the amp is designed to run such a low impedance(rail voltage switch in the back). I also have another Technics receiver(SA-DA10N) that runs hot enough to cook my hands even at idle, but that's what it supposed to do. I put a computer fan on top of both amps blowing up to keep it cool at all times.

[cam]

I have an older Technics amplifier(SU-V8X) running 2 pairs of 4 ohm towers in parallel and it gets very hot at high volume, even though the amp is designed to run such a low impedance(rail voltage switch in the back). I also have another Technics receiver(SA-DA10N) that runs hot enough to cook my hands even at idle, but that's what it supposed to do. I put a computer fan on top of both amps blowing up to keep it cool at all times.

I have heard before that your technics receiver, including the sadx-1050 that I use to own, have actually caught on fire when the homeowner wasn't home all because it was left on with not even a signal sent to it. Just idling and then poof, your house is gone. I see no need for an amp that is apparantly running full throttle all the time. I know the Technics use mos-fet which I believe to be class A. If your house burns down I would say that is excessive heat!

[Weister42]

I have heard before that your technics receiver, including the sadx-1050 that I use to own, have actually caught on fire when the homeowner wasn't home all because it was left on with not even a signal sent to it. Just idling and then poof, your house is gone. I see no need for an amp that is apparantly running full throttle all the time. I know the Technics use mos-fet which I believe to be class A. If your house burns down I would say that is excessive heat!

Whoa....I ran the unit without the fan for about a year and a half before I did something about it, guess I was the lucky one...

Now I'm scared