Can anyone explain to me how a random piece of elecronics can just stop working...

[BigToque]

The amplifier that I have in my car (afaik) was working just fine a few days ago. Now, it's totally dead. I have not changed anything.

I connected the power, ground and remote wires to a second amp, and it works fine, so my wiring is still good and my fuses are all fine.

Somehing on the amp just decided to stop working.

I opened it up to see if anything might have shorted out, but the PCB looks fine.

I don't get it.

 

[FoBoT]

power supply, follow the power going in with a voltmeter and see where it stops

 

[Viperoni]

An IC chip coudl have failed internally, a capacitor could have dried up, a PCB trace could have broken, or perhaps the turn-on relay isn't turning the amp on anymore.
Maybe the protection circuit is shunting all amplifier power output.
There's many possibilities.

 

[BigToque]

Originally posted by: FoBoT
power supply, follow the power going in with a voltmeter and see where it stops

I don't have any way to supply it with 12V while I'm inside. It's far too dark to do it outside.

 

[Pepsi90919]

Originally posted by: BigToque

Originally posted by: FoBoT
power supply, follow the power going in with a voltmeter and see where it stops

I don't have any way to supply it with 12V while I'm inside. It's far too dark to do it outside.

the power supply from your computer has several 12V leads.

 

[Viperoni]

Originally posted by: Pepsi90919

Originally posted by: BigToque

Originally posted by: FoBoT
power supply, follow the power going in with a voltmeter and see where it stops

I don't have any way to supply it with 12V while I'm inside. It's far too dark to do it outside.

the power supply from your computer has several 12V leads.

You don't really want to do that.

<edit> especially with a faulty amp