New Ultra 12 sub quits working

[maxb]

My three month old ultra sub 12 stopped working today :(. Till two days back it was working fine.
1. I have checked connecting coax cable (pre-amp out from AV receiver to unbalanced input) and it is good.
2. Power is connected to sub and I see the blue light.
3. All the settings are left at factory default.
4. Even with max volume on the sub, I barely hear the input music
5. I checked with calibration signal from AV receiver and at max volume on the sub, there is a very feeble sound. Rest of the speakers in the HT setup is working correctly.
6. I went through the trouble shooting steps in the manual. On Emotiva forum had some folks talking about the very same symptom. Nothing helped.

I suspect that amplifier is faulty in this unit.

Has anyone seen this issue before?
Are there any other trouble shooting steps that I can do to find the root cause of the issue ???

[monkumonku]

May 3, 2011 12:55:55 GMT -5 maxb said:

My three month old ultra sub 12 stopped working today :(. Till two days back it was working fine.
1. I have checked connecting coax cable (pre-amp out from AV receiver to unbalanced input) and it is good.
2. Power is connected to sub and I see the blue light.
3. All the settings are left at factory default.
4. Even with max volume on the sub, I barely hear the input music
5. I checked with calibration signal from AV receiver and at max volume on the sub, there is a very feeble sound. Rest of the speakers in the HT setup is working correctly.
6. I went through the trouble shooting steps in the manual. On Emotiva forum had some folks talking about the very same symptom. Nothing helped.

I suspect that amplifier is faulty in this unit.

Has anyone seen this issue before?
Are there any other trouble shooting steps that I can do to find the root cause of the issue ???

This may seem elementary but just in case - you've checked all the output settings on the AVR to make sure there is a decent signal going out of the LFE output? Maybe some setting accidentally got changed or switched. Can you hook up another source to the sub to see if that works?

[maxb]

I will try that out.

[tonymc]

I hate to say it, but I have had to send my Ultra10 in twice to get the amp replaced. Hopefully the third amp last a bit longer...

[maxb]

sending the unit back multiple times and paying for shipping defeats the benefits of buying online. One might as well purchase things locally and pay tax. That way it would be easier to take it back for in-warranty repair.

[tonymc]

May 3, 2011 15:47:56 GMT -5 maxb said:

sending the unit back multiple times and paying for shipping defeats the benefits of buying online. One might as well purchase things locally and pay tax. That way it would be easier to take it back for in-warranty repair.

Oh I only paid the first time. I had the sub about the same length of time you did when it blew. I paid to send it in that time, but it blew again two weeks later. Emo paid shipping both ways on that one.

[KrellAV]

May 3, 2011 12:55:55 GMT -5 maxb said:

My three month old ultra sub 12 stopped working today :(. Till two days back it was working fine.
1. I have checked connecting coax cable (pre-amp out from AV receiver to unbalanced input) and it is good.
2. Power is connected to sub and I see the blue light.
3. All the settings are left at factory default.
4. Even with max volume on the sub, I barely hear the input music
5. I checked with calibration signal from AV receiver and at max volume on the sub, there is a very feeble sound. Rest of the speakers in the HT setup is working correctly.
6. I went through the trouble shooting steps in the manual. On Emotiva forum had some folks talking about the very same symptom. Nothing helped.

I suspect that amplifier is faulty in this unit.

Has anyone seen this issue before?
Are there any other trouble shooting steps that I can do to find the root cause of the issue ???

I had a similar experience a USub-12 and it was the plate amp that was defective. I am sure Emotiva will solve the problem. Have you discussed this with them? To determine next steps. Every product has a failure rate and some of us happen to be the unlucky ones to experience it but there is a solution and Emotiva wants you happy. Give them a call.

[generic]

I have a sub12 that failed in the same way (had it maybe 6 months). It's getting fixed under warranty, but I really hope they can figure out the source problem.

I still like Emotiva, and they have great warranties and support, but if they are having the same failure on both subs, they need to figure out what it is. First failure is just production bad luck. If it happens again, I'm going to be a little unhappy about it.

[tonymc]

May 11, 2011 18:17:32 GMT -5 generic said:

I have a sub12 that failed in the same way (had it maybe 6 months). It's getting fixed under warranty, but I really hope they can figure out the source problem.

I still like Emotiva, and they have great warranties and support, but if they are having the same failure on both subs, they need to figure out what it is. First failure is just production bad luck. If it happens again, I'm going to be a little unhappy about it.

Now my third plate amp is humming bad. It's not a ground loop issue either. I've already established that. Geez, I'm done with the Ultra. 2 plate amps pop and the third one hums.... I'm out.

[eusebio]

May 12, 2011 15:01:51 GMT -5 @tonymc said:

May 11, 2011 18:17:32 GMT -5 generic said:

I have a sub12 that failed in the same way (had it maybe 6 months). It's getting fixed under warranty, but I really hope they can figure out the source problem.

I still like Emotiva, and they have great warranties and support, but if they are having the same failure on both subs, they need to figure out what it is. First failure is just production bad luck. If it happens again, I'm going to be a little unhappy about it.

Now my third plate amp is humming bad. It's not a ground loop issue either. I've already established that. Geez, I'm done with the Ultra. 2 plate amps pop and the third one hums.... I'm out.

now you got me worried. i've had 2 Ultra 10s for 4.5 months now and they have been working fine but i haven't put that many hours on them. perhaps this is the main reason they put the ultra subs on closeout

[generic]

I wouldn't worry about it too much. They do have a 5 year parts and labor warranty. I did have to pay shipping the first time (at about $15 using a shipping label from Emo), but it sounds like they cover 2nd failure shipping? They will ship it back to me for free.

I was going to build a DIY sub using a Dayton RS sub and Bash amp, but even the Bash amps are failing right out of warranty and they don't have a 5 year warranty.

In the end, I hope they figure out the problem and end up with a plate amp that doesn't fail. If they don't, I guess they will be fixing it for the next 4.5 years, or however long my warranty has left. If it fails over and over again, then I'd prolly try a SVS sub next, or just build and hope for the best.

[Lonnie]

Hmmmm

This is interesting. I am not sure why anyone would have multiple failures, but I will dig into it.

L

[nerve8]

I have (had) two Ultra 12 subs in my home theaere (got them at christmas, so about 5 months old). One quit working last week, now the other one has quit. I tried a new AVR, cables, etc, but still can only get barely audible sound with level set to +12db and volume on sub up all the way.

These subs have barely been used at all. They sounded great while they worked...Perhaps there is something I am doing wrong...

[nerve8]

May 21, 2011 14:35:56 GMT -5 nerve8 said:

I have (had) two Ultra 12 subs in my home they're (got them at Christmas, so about 5 months old). One quit working last week, now the other one has quit. I tried a new AVR, cables, etc, but still can only get barely audible sound with level set to +12db and volume on sub up all the way.

These subs have barely been used at all. They sounded great while they worked...Perhaps there is something I am doing wrong...

OK, so I was wrong...only one has quit working...I only put one through the complete ringer of tests yesterday. However, before I shipped them both off to TN this morning, I checked them both again. It turns out only one has issues of some sort, the other seems OK.

[McD]

My personal unit, installed last June 2010 is fine. My work conference room unit, purchased in Jan. 2011 just failed, I think. I've done all the standard receiver and connection diagnostics. I will confirm by testing it on my home system, then ship it back.

Emo should be able to isolate this bad run of amps, yes?

[vitocorleone]

May 23, 2011 10:20:38 GMT -5 nerve8 said:

May 21, 2011 14:35:56 GMT -5 nerve8 said:

I have (had) two Ultra 12 subs in my home they're (got them at Christmas, so about 5 months old). One quit working last week, now the other one has quit. I tried a new AVR, cables, etc, but still can only get barely audible sound with level set to +12db and volume on sub up all the way.

These subs have barely been used at all. They sounded great while they worked...Perhaps there is something I am doing wrong...

OK, so I was wrong...only one has quit working...I only put one through the complete ringer of tests yesterday. However, before I shipped them both off to TN this morning, I checked them both again. It turns out only one has issues of some sort, the other seems OK.

Had the same issue after 11.5 months (light use overall) on my Ultra 10 - a barely audible audio signal. Just shipped the unit back. If the replacement plate amp also fails, it's going to be parted out and sold and I'll buy a different brand as a replacement.

I don't know if it's actually a "run of bad amps" or all have potentially bad amps - when did you buy yours? I got mine in June 2010.

[Deleted]

Perhaps Ntrain was correct?

[mrg99]

You can add me to this list, my Ultra 12 just quit over the weekend. I have two Paradigm subs, the one I bought 10 years ago is still going strong, the other which was purchased 3 years ago quit after about 2 years - I was told that Paradigm had switched to a Chinese amp and was much more prone to damage from voltage spikes on the AC line. Maybe this is the same problem that the U12 is experiencing.

[mokus76]

I totally agree with you, because I was considering to purchase an Ultra 10 for my bedroom, but then I decided its best not to.
I started putting my HT together back in the early 90's and I learned my lesson that you get what you pay for. I still love Emotiva, and their Amps are awesome, but honestly they should have never gotten into the Speakers and subwoofer category. I use Definitive Technology and Martin Logan. These two have never quit on me and they both are very well known in the audio industry. So I went ahead and bought a Definitive Technology Supercube III for my bedroom and it works great, and in the livingroom I got a Supercube I
I honestly would never buy anything else, because most of the stuff lasts only for a few years if that. My DefTech PF15 was still working at 9 years old when I sold it. Most subwoofers will never last that long.
You might say I am obsessed with Def Tech, but then again I fell the same way about Apple products, "It Just Works" without any hickups or problems. Check out Def Tech, Martin Logan, REL Accoustics, and maybe the higher priced Velodyne's. The rest is just not worth it in my opinion. Good luck with everything and I am glad I stuck with Definitive Technology for my HT needs

May 12, 2011 15:14:43 GMT -5 eusebio said:

May 12, 2011 15:01:51 GMT -5 @tonymc said:

Now my third plate amp is humming bad. It's not a ground loop issue either. I've already established that. Geez, I'm done with the Ultra. 2 plate amps pop and the third one hums.... I'm out.

now you got me worried. i've had 2 Ultra 10s for 4.5 months now and they have been working fine but i haven't put that many hours on them. perhaps this is the main reason they put the ultra subs on closeout

[babaganush]

My Ultra 12 just went out after two months. Great service however...getting a new plate amp so hopefully that will fix it.