2. amps-preamps
  3. 1020447971

Amplifier Fan

I have a Rotel RB-1090 amplifier which is a dual monoblock rated at 380W per channel. It sounds wonderful, particularly at high volumes. The thing is, I admit I do listen to my music very loudly and have been known to go for hours on end at this high volume. This often forces the Rotel to heat up too much and engage it's protective shut down protection.

I bought a 14" air circulator from my local hardware store and put it right on top of the amp, blowing down into the vents. This solved the problem in spades.

However, the fan is pretty loud which can be extremely annoying during the silence between tracks and in softer musical passages.

Does anybody know of an ultra-quiet yet strong and effective fan? I'm open to any and all suggestions.

By the way, the amplifier is completely unobstructed and has very adequate ventilation. I also just had dedicated lines installed for all of my audio/video components which may help with this problem. But my thinking is that I need to use a fan regardless.
wdarwin
4yanx
1,576 posts
 
There is a brand of fans called Vornado which run extremely quiet. Might be worth a try.
marakanetz's avatar
marakanetz
5,473 posts
 
Are you sure that your amp is getting overheat? I know that for SS amp getting overheat isn't a great idea since paramenters of transistors will significantly change. I don't recall the part number, but if you do a thorough research on www.partsexpress.com you will find very inexpencive such named amplfier cooler that you can attach to the place where the output transistors are located. The noise will not be an issue in that case.

Happy listening!
bob_bundus
1,834 posts
 
Your large fan might be a bit overkill & should not be blowing cold air onto the equiment anyway; orient the fan to draw heat away from the amp which will keep it much cleaner (you're presently packing dust into your amp). I use 4" muffin fans & a variac to slow them down to an accepably quiet level. Look for the quieter DBA fans that will still operate at adequate airflow volumes.
autospec
474 posts
 
I use two computer fans wired in series on my tube amp. It cools well and is quiet.
phd
1,314 posts
 
Try using a dc fan with an ac/dc adapter preferable a ac/dc adapter with diferrent voltage settings. This way you can select a lower voltage for quieter operation at lower volumes. Plug the ac/dc adapter into your switched outlet on your preamp , if it has one. Make sure the fan is pulling air from the heat sinks rather than blowing into them. Radio Shack has theses items and are inexpensive.
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