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Front Door Amp Repair

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Old 07-14-2010 | 01:18 PM
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Front Door Amp Repair

If your front door speakers are cutting in and out or just not working it's probably your door AMP(s).
There is a power relay on the board that is usually the problem. I couldn't find the NAIS p/n anywhere to replace it but I did find a better replacement part.
Search the web for NTE p/n R46-5D3-12 and it will kick to several suppliers. It is less then $5.00.
Old 07-14-2010 | 05:00 PM
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both my speakers are starting to cut out like this. Do you have an actualt DIY for this or just the part needed to fix it?
Old 07-15-2010 | 08:56 AM
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DIY: Front door amp removal and repair

You have to remove to door panel(s). Start with removing the tweeter assy. It is just snapped in with one push pin. Next remove the window control panel (it just snaps out) and unplug. There are 3 screws to be removed. One is located behind the door handle; you have to pop out a small round cover plate to access the screw. Another screw is located toward the top rear of the door pocket and the last one can be found where you took the window control panel off. Next I used a large screwdriver to pop the push-pins out from around the door panel. Once all the pins are popped you lift off the panel and there will be a few plugs that you need to disconnect. Next remove the speaker (4 screws) and un-plug. On the door you will see a shinny box about 3” square, this is your amp. It is held in place with 3 screws. Once removed there are 4 screws to remove the amp from the bracket. Once the amp is removed from bracket you can pop the cover and gently remove the circuit board. You will see a small gray plastic box on the board (this is the relay).
If you not good with a soldering iron you might want to have someone do this for you (one mistake can very easily ruin the board). Replace the relay and reassemble.
NOTE: The replacement relay is a little bigger. There are 3 extra pin holes on the board. You will need to fill the old holes with solder and then open the three extra holes to install this relay. It looks as if this board was designed for the larger relay. I'm thinking they put the cheap on in there so it would fail. $$$

Last edited by RADDMAN99; 07-20-2010 at 01:02 PM.
Old 07-19-2010 | 03:54 PM
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I've been having this problem for months now. Tapping the door panel would sometimes make it work and sometimes not. I'm going to try this soon...finally getting to put my engineering degree to use.
Old 07-24-2010 | 06:34 PM
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If I'm not good with a soldering iron. Where would be a good place to look for someone to do this for me (like a store or whatever)?
Old 07-27-2010 | 01:48 PM
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I grew up in N. Wilmington. Try giving these guys a call. They might be able to help you out.
I new these guys back in the day but haven't seen them in 20+ years. They repair CB's but I don't think your amp should be a problem. You can order your relay from Newark In One.
R & R COMMUNICATIONS, INC. 2312 Carpenter Station Rd Wilmington, DE. 19810 302-475-1351 Phone 302-475-5598 Fax

If not you can try CB Joe.
Old 07-28-2010 | 10:46 AM
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I just did one Bose amp and it worked great.
Old 08-02-2010 | 12:34 PM
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Originally Posted by RADDMAN99
I grew up in N. Wilmington. Try giving these guys a call. They might be able to help you out.
I new these guys back in the day but haven't seen them in 20+ years. They repair CB's but I don't think your amp should be a problem. You can order your relay from Newark In One.
R & R COMMUNICATIONS, INC. 2312 Carpenter Station Rd Wilmington, DE. 19810 302-475-1351 Phone 302-475-5598 Fax

If not you can try CB Joe.
Thanks.

I ordered the relays today (my driverside AND passenger side are doing it) and will give them a ring once the part gets here.
Old 08-06-2010 | 02:02 AM
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could we get some pics up in here?
Old 08-06-2010 | 05:10 PM
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NJ

Originally Posted by Shijin-Kun
could we get some pics up in here?
If I have time to work on the passenger side door this weekend, I'll post some. If not, it's really simple (provided you know how to use a soldering iron).
Old 08-20-2010 | 12:39 PM
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Just got my relays in yesterday. Will do the install tomorrow ill try to take pictures.
Old 08-31-2010 | 11:33 PM
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Hey all - My speakers (all front speakers - doors and three in dash) all were coming on and off together randomly - then they all just stopped working....

Anyone know if this amp issue can effect all the front speakers - or if there is another possible cause?

When I turn on the car I do hear a very very light hummm and then a click suggesting a short. When i turn on the radio the two rear speakers work fine - but no front....

I have done NO work around the radio wiring - any suggestions on where i should look??
Old 11-22-2010 | 05:58 PM
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i had the same problem for about a month, where the driverside woofer would cut out randomly and unless i tapped around the area of the amp it wouldnt come back on. i bought the relay for the driverside door amp from my local electronics store for $3 and paid $25 for the install. The speaker has been working all day and isnt cutting out anymore
Old 05-04-2011 | 11:00 AM
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I bought the relay, installed it on the board, and it didn't fix a thing. I'm actually about to rip out all the factory audio and build in aftermarket. Who puts an amp inside a door anyway? The thing never stood a chance, every open-close event putting added strain on the little circuit board and components in the amp.
Old 05-29-2011 | 11:50 AM
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I dont get humming, I dont get ANYTHING like that. But my speakers do go left to right or stop sound all together at random times. Would the relay help?
Old 05-30-2011 | 01:50 AM
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Originally Posted by Digi
I dont get humming, I dont get ANYTHING like that. But my speakers do go left to right or stop sound all together at random times. Would the relay help?

I think you have similar problems like the op. It should be the relay or loose wiring connections. Replace the relay and see what happens. Keep us updated on the outcome. Good luck.
Old 05-30-2011 | 08:09 AM
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You could just look around in the forsale section and buy used working door amps, thats what I did. (I actually bought the entire system with speakers/amps/head unit so I had extra parts).
Old 05-30-2011 | 10:37 AM
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^ That's not a bad idea, but the used stuff will likely fail in the same manner.
Old 06-11-2011 | 10:04 AM
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thanks for the post, it was very helpful!
Old 01-24-2012 | 11:22 AM
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Just FYI, I did a small writeup on this. I covered the main topic, which is actual repair of the amp itself by changing out the relay. You'll have to look for proper instructions to get to them though. Here's a link:

https://www.rx8club.com/series-i-do-yourself-forum-73/diy-bose-speakers-doors-not-working-%241-67-relay-fix-218790/
Old 07-03-2014 | 06:28 PM
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This was very helpful. I had the same problem on both of my door speakers and had the relay replaced and it's working great. thanks
Old 07-16-2014 | 02:00 PM
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Rx8 door amp

Does anyone know of someone in the st louis mo area that can do this kind of work?
Originally Posted by RADDMAN99
If your front door speakers are cutting in and out or just not working it's probably your door AMP(s).
There is a power relay on the board that is usually the problem. I couldn't find the NAIS p/n anywhere to replace it but I did find a better replacement part.
Search the web for NTE p/n R46-5D3-12 and it will kick to several suppliers. It is less then $5.00.
Old 07-16-2014 | 03:41 PM
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Originally Posted by HiFlite999
^ That's not a bad idea, but the used stuff will likely fail in the same manner.

Driver door amp failed today lol. Looks like I'm rebuilding my old ones to put back in.

Still bought me 3 years of procrastination...
Old 04-21-2018 | 02:10 PM
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The door bass speakers in my 04 RX8 were not working at all. Googling for fixes led me to a simple solder repair that doesn't require replacing the relays, just doing a little repair soldering on the ones you have.
Old 09-07-2023 | 04:17 PM
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Thank you for this thread! Today I fixed my driver speaker by replacing the relay.

I have used a relay that fits the original pins positions: MCCMA51-S-DC12V-C (found it on the 350z forums as curtisknockout posted).
You can find it here: MCCMA51-S-DC12V-C - Multicomp Pro - RELAY, AUTOMOTIVE, SPDT (newark.com) - this website has warehouses in multiple countries, so you might find what you need.

I followed instructions in this 2 videos to fix it.
Removal of door panel:
youtube.com/watch?v=BjupLm6hvBg

Removal of amplifier, soldering and reinstalling:
youtube.com/watch?v=5zXzE2UtSq8

Additionally, as mentioned before, you can seal the circuit board against dust/moisture with some Circuit Board Coating Spray.

Another way if you can't find the relay, is to solder the old one as in this video, by adding some extra flux on the old flux on the relay body (not on the board) as mentioned above my post by LESTATE
youtube.com/watch?v=Pb-6utVaPPI

Another way to fix if you don't want to solder at all, you have to put some pressure on the relay (so put some insulating material between the relay and the interior of the metal case, as you can see in this video:
youtube.com/watch?v=6FAGEFqW0fI

Last edited by cristidotro; 09-07-2023 at 04:26 PM. Reason: Youtube videos not playing, so added manually the links for you to copy-paste in the browser..
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