Pc power supply powering car amplifier in home
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New member Username: JhovikPost Number: 1 Registered: Apr-04 | I've had a 350 watt car amp and a 12" mtx sub in my garage for years and since I never plan on using it in my car again I wanted to try and hook it up in my home to my stereo or computer. I read several articles that said you could hook it up but the main issue was powering the amplifier in home off of AC power. I finally found a method that works. I used an old PC power supply. I use the 12+V for the positive input and on the remote and the ground for the negative terminal. Im using a 250watt AT PC power supply that provides 10amps on the 12+v line. With this configuration I can easily power my amp and get great house shaking music now in my room. However if I bridge the amp it takes up too many amps for the power supply to dish out and starts to distort. So only connect it to one of the L or R outputs. They make PC power supplies in the 600 watt range that provide 30+amps on the 12+V line if you want to run more subs or run your amp bridged but I got this one for free and it works so I dont need any more power. Everything runs perfect and nothing gets hot. Still a lot cheaper than buying a dedicated power supply. Jsut thought I'd let you all know that it works. Hope this helps someone. |
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Roch Unregistered guest | So, I've got a 640wat blaupunkt car amp and a sub I'd like to connect to my yamaha stereo amplifier, could you please help me out and explain in detail how I should go about powering the car amp? Thanks in advance! |
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New member Username: JhovikPost Number: 4 Registered: Apr-04 | with that high wattage of an amp you may be better off buying a ham radio power supply. But if you go buy one of the pc power supllies in the 550 watt range you should be able to power it for the most part. how many subs are you powering? |
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Roch Unregistered guest | Just one, the pc power is 250 wats, and before I rush to buy a whole mess of powers, I'd like to try if I can even get it to work. I've heard you're supposed to attach the yellow wires from the power supplu to the 12v and the black ones to the ground. But in the middle there's still one empty slot on the amp with an odd marking of a straight line overlapping a small sphere, is this the remote outlet, or what? |
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New member Username: WeskerPost Number: 2 Registered: Jun-04 | I was thinking of only powering the single subwoofer through the car amp, and attaching the speakers on my home amp. |
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Dombee Unregistered guest | For higher power amp, use power supply in parallel. You weld every yellow wires from one PS and do the same on the second. Black wires can be welded together without separation. Each positive (yellow wire welded together) must have their diode. If each PS can supply 7amps, use 12amp diode to be safe. Use heatsink on each diode. |
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Unregistered guest | referring to jeff hovic's idea of powering a car amp with a pc wire, could someone please explain to me hot to do this exactly? pictures would be very helpful my e-mail is josh_w1977@yahoo.com |
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Bronze Member Username: DereckspeakersAlamogordo, NM United States Post Number: 15 Registered: Aug-04 | The only bad thing about using a computer power supply(i am) is that it needs the mother board to turn on the only other way to turn it on is if it is a newer one is that u put a jumper acrossed 14&15 on the man strip u can get this diagram from this website hope this helps http://www.duxcw.com/faq/ps/ps1.htm |
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Bronze Member Username: DereckspeakersAlamogordo, NM United States Post Number: 16 Registered: Aug-04 | main strip* sorry about spelling. |
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Unregistered guest | im looking to power a car amp at home, will a 350 watt PSU work? |
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Anonymous | would it be best to use the +3.3 or +5v for the remote? or is 12v ok? |
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Unregistered guest | Hi there, I am using a Sony XM-222 explode series apmlifier which is 222 watts. It has 12V,GND and REMOTE terminals, can some one tell me if I use the PC powersupply, which wires I need to put in where and does the PC power supply BOX (AT/ATX) gives DC or AC voltage i.e. do I need to use diodes also with every input I give. also it has two types of inputs, can I give the input to the amplifier from the PC soundcard ? Please let me know as soon as possible, you may mail me at charge1007@yahoo.com. Regards Sunny. |
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Sony Unregistered guest | Hi Every 1 i wanted to know how u can connect a car subwoofer to a pc . the subwoofer is called the sony xploder and i have an advent which i purchased in march 2004 with a 5.1 soundcard plz help me out guys thanxs |
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Unregistered guest | Im tryng to convert my pc power supply into a car power supply. So use the 12V of the battery to feed the smps and rewind the transformer to get +/- 35 Vdc. Any sugestion? |
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Evil.Commando Unregistered guest | Ok, The yellow wires of the PSU (computer power supply) are 12v the black ones are earth and the red ones are 5v forget about the 5v(red) ones you dont need these. Connect a 12v wire(yellow) to the positive(+) terminal of your amp. And the black one to the negative(-) of your amp. Some amps also have a mem terminal this is used to keep the amps settings when the cars ignition is turned off. Some amps need this to work other dont, if yours does need/have this attach another yellow wire to this terminal. Now depending on your powersupply and how old it is will depend on how you turn it on older ones have a switch (AT power supplys) newer ATX power supplys are turned on by the motherboard, this isnt a problem though there is a hack to get around this. There should be a largish connector coming out of the powersupply about a 20 pin connector i forget how many now but anyways cut the green wire going into the plug and a black wire. Now when you want to turn on the powersupply short these two wires and it will start up. PS. If you f#ck your amp or powersupply or yourself its not my fault. |
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Unregistered guest | I have a 350 watt pc power supply and a 600 watt peak sub. I got the power supply working by attaching a hard drive to one of the molexes and shorting out the green (PS_ON - 14) with the black one below it(15). The power source then turns on, and you can disconnect the harddrive to have all the power for your amp. I'll be hooking up a 300 watt amp to it soon, and i'll write up an article with some pictures. I've been thinking about doing this for a while, and i did some research on it. The majority of what i found were people saying don't do it, but i found one post of a guy saying it worked perfectly. So hopefully i'll have the same results and i'll share them with you. |
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chadwick Unregistered guest | ok, i have an amp and a sub now what would be best to use if i dont have a wire to run from the amp to the battery or the power supply? |
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NerdKing Unregistered guest | I'm hooking up my Pioneer deck to a PC power supply. Just for nerdiness!! Anyway, in response to the need for a motherboard to power the newer ATX power supplies. That is incorrect. All you have to do is connect the green wire (power on) to any black wire (ground). You can just cut them and permanently wire them together if that's the intention. Once they are shorted the power supply runs at all times. Good luck! |
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Unregistered guest | i have 3 300 watt amps and a 1600 watt amp set up in my house right now. i power this using 2 car batteries, 2 capacitors and a 12 amp charger. Long as i dont run the system constantly it works fine.... you should not use 12 rails on pc power supply for car amps because psus make 12.x volts and car amps want more like 13.8 to 14.4 . Im going to experiment with 3 psus using the 5 volt lines in series to get about 40 amps at 15 volts. im not sure if this will work but if any one knows tell me. |
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New member Username: Juan2005Post Number: 3 Registered: May-05 | hey can some one give me some 12" and a amplifier that youll dont use or if youll have any dj stuff can youll please give it to me if youll want to give me something just email me at reinaayala@sbcglobal.net please |
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Unregistered guest | i have a Majestic 80W+80W Bridgeblae power amplifier its the MA160A and i want to know if some can tell me how can i give it a power supply at home i want to connect it to my stereo. And can you please explain it in lamens terms because i dont know much about all those complicated words ive seen in this site EMail me at slipkno4@yahoo.com I would really appreciate the help |
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zeco1001 Unregistered guest | dose any body have a diagram of how to wire a car amp up to a power supply plz |
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Anonymous | how do i get power from a single car battery to a single amp |
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JohnnyJ Unregistered guest | I have been researching about supplying power to a car amplifier in a house for almost a week non-stop now, but still I haven't been able to obtain the information I seek. I recently bought a Pioneer TS-W5000SPL subwoofer and a Pioneer PRS-D5000SPL amplifier. The subwoofer handles maximum 5000watt/2000rms. The amplifier handles 3000watt/1500rms maximum. The amplifier (the sub also) has awesome technology, performance and features, if you would like (or need) more information, visit the specifications. Anyway, my question: How can I power this amplifier through a normal house wall electricity outlet? I have read about PSU/s from PC's, car batteries even using a UPS. I know that PC PSU's cannot supply the amps I need for this amplifier... I don't want to limit my amplifier/subwoofer, never mind as much as this would cause it to under perform. What is the best way to power this amplifier in my bedroom? My goal is to have some speakers and the subwoofer running off my amplifier, with a car head unit controlling the sound - in my bedroom, through a standard house wall electricity outlet. All this WITHOUT under powering my amplifier too much, if only powering it at 3/4 of it's full capability that's okay, but preferably not - and DEFINITELY nothing less than 3/4. Thanks in advance, I really appreciate any help! |
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Gold Member Username: GlasswolfWisteria, Lane USA Post Number: 9330 Registered: Dec-03 | do not use a PC power supply to drive a car amplifier in a house. PC power supplies are not designed for high current sustained outputs and lack the proper cooling for such an application. They are also not a regulated switching power supply and what you'll do is run a good risk of setting your house on fire. what you need is a high current AC to DC power supply. They're expensive and usually large and heavy. By the time you buy one you may as well have gone and purchased a real home stereo amplifier instead of wasting your time trying to use car audio gear in a house. |
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Unregistered guest | i have a sony explod amp and two lightning 12" subs and i wanna put it in my house but hook it up with my home recevier, but i have a problem how do i ground it and also hook it up right it the right batterys and ect....thanks alot tyler |
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Unregistered guest | ooo sry it hit the wrong button if u can help me email me at boarderjake2010@aol.com thanks alot tyler |
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Unregistered guest | i have a sony explod amp and two lightning 12" subs and i wanna put it in my house but hook it up with my home recevier, but i have a problem how do i ground it and also hook it up right it the right batterys and ect....thanks alot tyler if u can help me email me at boarderjake2010@aol.com |
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JohnnyJ Unregistered guest | GlassWolf > I need around 550amps at 6.5V(max) to power my amplifier correctly. About the "By the time you buy one you may as well have gone and purchased a real home stereo amplifier instead of wasting your time trying to use car audio gear in a house." comment - there is a REASON for wanting to use my car equipment in my house, the main one being that in about a year I'll have my car all sussed (a '05 BMW M3.. just FYI :P) and yeah then I want to use that equipment in my car and just buy the necessary extras that I need for the car. If I use big truck batteries (brand new, lead acid dry cell), say 2 of them - that should be good enough for 550amps, right? But what about the voltage? On my AMP's spec sheet it shows: Input Level Control Hi-Volt (200mV ~ 6.5v), that means that it can't take any more than 6.5V maximum input right? ..and don't car batteries put out 12V or something..?.. and is it not right that you can't put in higher voltage than the maximum of 6.5V? or is that wrong? NOTE: I may have totally F'd up the amps consumption calculation, I'm not sure. Please corrent me (and teach me how to calculate correctly)if I'm wrong, specs on amp can be found from the link in my previous post. Please note this is a Class D amplifier - I'm pretty sure that makes some difference in the current calculation, maybe not though. I am pretty sure that to supply the best current to the amplifier that it needs, I'll need that many amps, seeing as class D amplifiers are only 80% efficient? Thanks so much in advance |
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JohnnyJ Unregistered guest | Sorry about what it says in the spec sheet, it actually has that under a heading: RCA Outputs (Pass Thru) Input Level Control: Hi-Volt (200mV ~ 6.5v) .. if that makes any difference. It also says: RCA Inputs: Gold, 2 Channel ....which means nothing to me, but maybe it will mean something to you. |
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Unregistered guest | i have an car amp and subs and want to hook them up in my house to my reciever stereo. i would like diagrams if possible. im not sure how to power the amp and how to connect the speakers to the reciever. please help me. j_hoks@hotmail.com |
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Tommy T the third Unregistered guest | Input level Hi volt is for attaching your amp to your head units normal speaker outputs and is not used normally, just use the RCA inputs and attach them to your stereo through a RCA (same as phono) to RCA cable or 3.5mm headphone to RCA. Your amp will have a +12v input (big connector, screw down) and the same for 0v or ground. Just attach a 12v source across them (either pc supply or car battery charging system) although if you didn't work that out already i would not suggest trying it. High ampage even at low voltage will kill |
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Unregistered guest | Why mess with trying to use a PC power supply? Won't a standard 13.8VDC, 20 amp power supply, used for test benches and ham radios, etc work? I've seen a number of them for sale on eBay for less than $30. 20amps should be sufficient for at least 250 watts, shouldn't it? |
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Unregistered guest | hey I am hooking my amp up but the only problem I have is how to turn my amp on???? do I need to connect the remote terminal to something or did I jsut do something wrong... The voltage is reading 12v when going into the amp but the amp power light is not on... can someone please help me. post here or contact me aim: zlittell msn/email: zlittell@msn.com -SpiritSlayer |
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Unregistered guest | First of all u can connect a car amp to any 12V dc PC power supply (every PC PS has dc output because it converts ac power into dc and that's why it exists for). Here's how u do it. First connect one (1) yellow wire (any) from your PC PS (Personal Computer Power Supply) to the 12V positive (+) terminal on your car amplifier. Now connect one(1) black wire (any) from your PC PS to the negative (-, or ground) terminal of your car power amplifier. Now connect another yellow wire (any) from your PC PS to the remote terminal (the one in the middle of the positive(+) and the negative(-) usualy marked as "rem" or some symbol or so). Now connect the RCA cables (one cable that has two endings on every side, or two separate cables), that u got from the local tech equipment store and paid a few dollars, to the RCA inputs on your car amplifier and to the RCA outputs of your stereo [(or u can connect the RCA's from your video game system (xbox, PS2...) direct to the amp - white and red to the amp, yellow in the TV)]. If u don't have RCA outputs on your stereo or wathever, you will have to buy the "headphones to RCA" converter (just ask in the tech store). Now you have to connect the speakers to the speaker outputs on your car amplifier (I don't think I have to explain this). U turn the amplifier on by turning on the PC PS. Note: if anything bad happens(like u getting killed because of an electric shock), I am not responsible for that |
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Unregistered guest | my setup. 1 plastic battery box (wal-mart), 1 car battery, 1 battery tender w/ 1 amp trickle charge(pepboys), 1 2 channel 600 watt kenwood amp, 1 2/3/4 channel 400 watt kenwood amp, 1 JL 10w6, 1 Sony headunit (200x4), tweeters, and two 5.25 speakers. i hook up the accessories to the battery as i would in a car. for the amp and the headunit, hook a switch for remote on the amp and for power on the head unit, this way, you won't have to disconnect from the battery post. i leave the charger charging all the time when the setup is in the garage. the charger i have shuts off when the battery is full. i haven't had any problems with this setup. i'm thinking about hooking up a voltage gauge onto the setup so i could tell the volatage of the battery. it's better setting it up this way because the battery is able to supply the amps with enough power. ac to dc power supply are good, but they don't supply enough power. a decent one putting out 20 to 30 amp is around $100+. meaning you get (30amp x 12v = 360 watt of power). to me, a car battery is a better setup. it should provide about (100+ amps). remember to use fuses along the way and keep the battery in an area where there is decent air circulation. batteries release hydrogen when they are charging. (most unlikely will this happen, but too much hydrogen in a closed room will cause an explosion, if something happens to iginite. 1/1000000 chance.) I've used this setup on a tricyle. just have to take the battery inside to charge when not in used. get a good 2-3 hour of use without the charger bumping it. get a dc-to-ac and run a little t.v. too. it's real good to have a volt meter handy because you don't want to try to run your accessories below 10v. i've also ran it off a 2/10/50 amp battery charger with the charger plugged in (set at 10amp), hooked up to the battery, and haven't had any problems yet. i think there might be a problem with this though because the volt meter on the charger jumps back and forth causing a high power surge through the charger. it might damage the charger. i was able to run it for as long as i wanted it to. basically, what you want to do is keep the battery at 12v. (this is my experiment. it worked great for me. try at your own risk.) let me know how things work for you. (tried to add a picture but it was too big) |
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Unregistered guest | I read all the messages from top to bottom. I am embarking using car amp for home use. A sony xplod amp and 3 xplod speakers. As a matter of advise is it worth investing money and time on building the system. Do I really get the performabce (kick) out of this????? Please advise  |
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iceboy989 Unregistered guest | can any one help me? i have 2 12 inches car speakers.. how do u hook up da car amps? i need sites and pictures.. plz help me thnks? email me it..... xxiceboy989xx@aim.com thnks again |
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AJF Unregistered guest | I have been looking into doing this as well, and it seems pretty simple to do with an old 250w PSU that I have laying around. As some have mentioned, though, a standard ATX PSU is not really designed to operate at full output constantly, and lacked the cooling for such a task. That being said, I might attach a bigger fan (also powered by the PSU) to the rear side of the PSU to such more air through, as normal PSU fans are particularly slow and weak. Then all I need to do is run the correct audio from my PC to the sub and I should have a working sub, if quite underpowered. And hopefully the PSU won't burst into flames in my dorm room. |
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benjamin j. Unregistered guest | Hi I have a 1600watt car amplifier that i wanted to power in my room....can anyone help me out with powering something like this? where do i start? It seems like everyone else is just powering up little 300watt amps that they can easily power up....can someone help me please? If not, atleast help me on telling me how to power up my kenwood reciever... thanks - ben email me at ebaylover148@hotmail.com |
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Bronze Member Username: QuigPittsburgh, Pa Us Post Number: 34 Registered: Sep-05 | wat is pc power supply.... is that the box inside a computer?? or wat... picture mabye? thanks. |
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Bronze Member Username: QuigPittsburgh, Pa Us Post Number: 35 Registered: Sep-05 | ok nvm i kno wat it is now ... but it has to b hooked up to the mother board correct? and then wat wires do u connect to the amp? |
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Bronze Member Username: QuigPittsburgh, Pa Us Post Number: 36 Registered: Sep-05 | also, is it safe to hook more then 1 poer supply up to the same amp to give it more watts? |
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pcgeek Unregistered guest | i have a 500w pc power supply and a 500w sub. The car amp that i have need to be poered. so can any one tell me how to wire a amp with a pc power supply. step by step and what wires do i need or need to use. thanks |
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Unregistered guest | OK guys, A basic tut to do this is as follows: !!MAKE SURE THE POWERSUPPLY IS UNPLUGGED BEFORE ATTEMPTING THIS TUTORIAL!! NOTE: Wattage from the PSU isn't a important factor, just the amperage (the amps can be usually found on the sticker on the PSU block) Take the YELLOW wire from the ATX plug (the thing with the most plugs, its square, and it's what you connect to the motherboard) and connect it to a black wire (ground, the ground I'm talking about is also located on the ATX plug). You can either use a piece of wire and shove it in the plug holes or cut and twist the wires. Next, locate the 4 hole plugs (molex connectors). NOTE: There is multiple plugs on a single line coming from the PSU, only cut one pair per line! You need to cut the YELLOW (+12vDC) and the nearest black (-12vDC) (the nearest black to the yellow wire leading to the plug). There should be 2 lines, maybe 3 coming from the PSU, cut a single pair of YELLOW and BLACK from each line. Strip the wires and twist all YELLOW and BLACK together (you want to draw power from all lines, technicaly known as "rails"). Connect the YELLOW to your POSITIVE connection on your amp and the BLACK to the NEGITIVE (ground) on your amp. Turn your volume down on whatever source your using and plugin/turnon the PSU (make sure to connect your REM on the amp if it has one, check your manual). After the PSU and amp is turned on (assuming you have your amp hooked up to speakers etc etc) gradually increase the volume while watching the LED (Light on your amp if applicable) and stop increasing volume when the led starts to pulse (fade). You want to adjust volume to your likings, but not loud enough to make your light on your amp strobe (strobing means that the PSu isnt supplying enough power to your amp and will make your AMP burnout over time). !!A note to all that wants to connect 2 powersupplies to a single amp.!! You can't do this unless you know how to put a diode in the PSU powerleds, because if you don't the PSUs will cancel each other out, making the power supplied only be the output of one PSU, not two. The reason behind this is that PC PSUs have a sensor to detect the voltage and adjust the output accordingly, the main PSU would trick the other PSU in thinking that there is no load on the line and the secondary PSU wouldn't put out any power. Hope this helps |
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New member Username: Kid_mikoeStanton, Ca Orange Post Number: 1 Registered: Jan-06 | i am planning to use a car amp to power my speakers at home and i wonder if a 6-ways multi-voltage 2 amps. regulated power supply can power it? need serious help a.s.a.s.p. |
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New member Username: Kid_mikoeStanton, Ca Orange Post Number: 2 Registered: Jan-06 | it would help if we had a diagram |
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Unregistered guest | I am trying to get some sound at the camp, have no AC power (or at least not enough) to do it. I am running 2 12" Alpine Subs, 350.2 Kicker Amp, and Kenwood Head Unit, Deep Cycle Battery (1000 cranking amps), and 2 Kenwood Speakers (Woofer/Tweeter/Midrange) made for a vehicle (4ohm). I have tryed different amps and subs but still don't get real performance (battery at 100% but with no incoming charge) My positive and negative feeds for my amp run directly to my battery, could the negative be causing my problem? Could it be because the batteries are deep cycle? Ishould mention that the wires are plenty big and connected firmly. I am getting not terrible performance right now operating just one of the two subs but no real volume, sounds distorted or something. When I hook the other one (either one!) up, the amp shuts right down. All dials, switches have to be set low to get good bass at even lower volumes. I don't believe any of the equipment can be faulty, all worked great in a vehicle, grounded to chassis and minus the deep cycle batteries of course. Thanks to anyone who understands and can give any suggestions. My next experiment will be to bring a car battery (camp is remotely located), or try while charger (3.5hp Honda gas engine turning chev alternator/74 amps) is running and hooked up. If that don't work I'll try to add a bunch of heavy steel in the middle of the ground for a more "chassis like" ground. If that don't work, I'll throw it all in the tide! Please help if u can.... |
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Unregistered guest | I have a party coming up and i have no money to buy a new amp after my 20 year old faithful amplifier blew up on me. I have a BOSS 160+160w amp and a 200W PSU, i need to be able to run this immediately and it has to be safe, the PSU has only one 12v output at 8 amps, so is this relatively safe to use as long as i dont overload the PSU, would a 300 be better, as i can get one. i know a lot about electricity but i am still jumpy around it and i want some advice b4 the go-ahead, and remember i dont have the money to get a new amp, so i need this as a quick fix. Please help fast, e-mail me |
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Unregistered guest | Hi guys i have a question, I want to get Ac power for my car amp in my home from a ac/dc transformer to get a 12v output to power the amp, what do you think about that? |
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Unregistered guest | sorry i have 4 12volt outputs on my PSU, so will it be ok to play 4 about 3 hours at a volume great enough to satisfy 20 people in a large backyard? Can i get a power calculation, amp is 160wx2, PSU is 200W, it has 4, not 1 like i said 12 volt 8 amp outputs is this safe, and the amp is 2 ohms and my speakers are 8 ohms |
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New member Username: Bigrich151Post Number: 3 Registered: Feb-06 | I need some help i need to hook up my car amp in my house but how to i go about getting power to it and what do i use for the REMOTE wire??? Any help would be great please send info to bigrich_101@hotmail.com or leave info in here THANKS!!! |
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Mr. Stretch Unregistered guest | I wanted to use my two 12" subs in my room and hook them up to my panasonic stereo. I used the pc power supply to power my car amp and hooked my subs up to the amp (i followed the directions given by "Evil.Commando" above). I hooked my panasonic stereo to the amp with the rca cable. However when i try to play a cd it only comes out of my stereo speakers and not the subs. When i switch my stereo to AUX it should work but it doesnt. It doesnt play anything on AUX. I read my stereo manual and it says i need an analog player with a built-in phono equilizer and the switch needs to be set to "Line Out" position on the back of the analog player. I don't think my amp has this phono equilizer or a switch for line out. Any suggestions to still make it work. Thank you Very Much. |
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New member Username: Civ99Post Number: 2 Registered: Mar-06 | All i can say is i'm struggling to get my Kicker 12'inch solo X to move. i'm hooking 2, 400watt power supplies to a 1200.1 kicker amp. does anyone else know how i can break glass in my apartment? |
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New member Username: Civ99Post Number: 3 Registered: Mar-06 | All i can say is i'm struggling to get my Kicker 12'inch solo X to move. i'm hooking 2, 400watt power supplies to a 1200.1 kicker amp. does anyone else know how i can break glass in my apartment (windows cracking) plz help not enuf power. |
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New member Username: Audioluv2222Cambridge , Ontario Canada Post Number: 1 Registered: Mar-06 | I was wondering how to power my amp off of a switching power supply, i currently have 2x Soundstorm DC-112DVC Car Audio 12 Inch Sub Woofer Speakers(RMS Power Handling:450 Watts),and a Soundstorm F350.2 Car Audio 2 Channel Sub Woofer Speaker Amp Amplifier (350W rms x 2) I was would like to know everything i need to know about being able to power my amp off of a computer power supply, before i go out and buy one, can someone please email me with pictures/instructions on how to do so   |
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New member Username: Jattyajatt1SloughEngland Post Number: 4 Registered: Jun-06 | elo i've got a pyle 2400watt ampliflier for my car i wanted 2 connect that up 2 my PC so i could run 2x12" 1240 watt subs i've got a computer sub i was wondering if i could take that apart n connect it to my 2400watt amp i open up my computer sub n i found 2 yellow wires 1 brown wire and 1 blue wire help me connect this up plzzzzz |
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New member Username: Jattyajatt1SloughEngland Post Number: 5 Registered: Jun-06 | eloi've got a pyle 2400watt ampliflier for my car i wanted 2 connect that up 2 my PC so i could run 2x12" 1240 watt subs i've got a computer sub i was wondering if i could take that apart n connect it to my 2400watt amp i open up my computer sub n i found 2 yellow wires 1 brown wire and 1 blue wire help me connect this up plzzzzz |
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New member Username: Jattyajatt1SloughEngland Post Number: 6 Registered: Jun-06 | eloi've got a pyle 2400watt ampliflier for my car i wanted 2 connect that up 2 my PC so i could run 2x12" 1240 watt subs i've got a computer sub i was wondering if i could take that apart n connect it to my 2400watt amp i open up my ccomputer sub n i found 2 yellow wires 1 brown wire and 1 blue wire help me connect this up plzzzzz |
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New member Username: Themaze42oPost Number: 1 Registered: Jun-06 | I don't know if anyone uses this forum anymore but if i could get some help it would be great I have an MTX thunder 5500 single 4 ohm coil sub and a MTX 421D amplifier, running about 150w as it's hooked up and I am trying to hook it up to a PSU 350w (16 amps) but here's my problem i hooked all yellow +12V wires which is 5 and 6 black -12V wires up to the amp and I have high level inputs which automatically turn on the amp when there is current running to it. However when I short the green turn on wire in the main clip (PSU) the PSU turns on and i get 12V current tested with voltometer but the amp won't turn on and when i tried putting one of the 12V wires to the remote and the PSU shut off. I know the amplifier works i had it hooked up to a battery and it was on. could someone please explain why this is not working is 12V not enough for MTX amplifiers the lowest rated voltage for it is 12.5V i don't know please get back to me. Thanks |
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New member Username: Audioluv2222Cambridge , Ontario Canada Post Number: 4 Registered: Mar-06 | Hmm i dunno, i didnt seem to have any problems i just used a 350watt psu, and taped green and black wire together, and just used the 2 yellows and the black ground and i had no problems sry i couldnt help very much ttul |
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New member Username: Mast3rshakeBrooklyn, New York Post Number: 1 Registered: Jul-06 | Actually for using an amp for the house it should a small circut composed of a few transformers, diodes, capacitors, and some other parts including a fan. I'm workinhg on one right now, when im done, Ill post the schematics and start making kits since I want to have a display of various amps at my shop. |
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New member Username: VinaybhaiPost Number: 1 Registered: Jul-06 | hey i have a rockford fosgate 400W RMS amp, and 12" Orion 500W RMS sub, i've tried to hook it up to a PC power supply. The power supply is a 450W ATX PS. I've shorted a ground rail and a green rail from the 20 pin connector to keep the power supply on. I've connected a yellow rail to the B+, and REM terminal on the amp. I've also connected a black ground wire from the power supply to the GND terminal on the amp. When I give the power supply power from an outlet from my house- the amp LED will light up red, and slowly fade away as the power supply turns off at the same time. I've stopped trying, I'm afraid that I might ruin my amp. I've read somewhere that the amp may not be properly grounded but im not sure what the case is. I've also tried to disconnect the RCA plugs, incase that the amp may be tring to ground itself through the sub. So in the end, I cant get the amp working, the power shuts off immediately. Thanks for the help in advance. -Vinay |
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New member Username: Only_13_and_need_helpPost Number: 1 Registered: Jul-06 | Can someone help me i want to hook up a visonik amp inside but have no idea what power supply to use, and how to hook it up, i have a visonik amp i think it is 400watts but im not sure. could use all the help i can get. thank you |
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New member Username: Thespirit3Post Number: 1 Registered: Aug-06 | Wow, good advice, bad advice, and some crazy stuff too. I actually found this whilst searching for an article for a friend - I thought there must be a simple DIY guide available - but obviously not. I felt the need to post - just to try and clear some things up! Firstly, the audio 'power' of car audio stuff is hugely overrated. It's 'peak' or 'PMPO' or worse still, some manufacturer-invented rating. Many club sound systems are not much more than a kiliwatt - do you really think your car speakers are capable of that power? Crazy. But - my point is, you can't use the '1600 watt' rating to calculate power requirements. You really need to check the manufacturers website/documentation/etc to discover how many amps the head unit / amplifier will draw from the supply. Now, people have mentioned PC PSU's and batteries. Batteries work fine, you can draw a huge current, but it's untidy - but apart from that it'll work. A charged battery will provide ~12V. Someone mentioned car audio gear designed to work up to 15V - this is true, as a *charging* battery (with car alternator running) may peak up to about 14V. However, turn the ignition off, and the supply will drop down to 12V (or less, if a poor condition battery). Any car electronics are designed to operate within this tolerence level (say 10-14.5 volt or so). Increasing the supply voltage in most cases will just cause the poor amplifier to waste more energy as heat (heat being something you want to avoid!). Now, PC PSU's. A PC power supply provides 12v, 5v, and a number of other power rails. You're only interested in the 12V - which in most modern PSU's will supply 15, or maybe 20 amps. Be aware that a 600 watt PSU may not be any better than a 300 watt PSU - as the 600 watt may provide 40A on the 5v supply, but offer no additional current on the 12V. The 'watt' rating may be an indicator of a supply capable of higher current on the 12v line, but not necessarily. So check the details. Someone also said PC PSU's are not capable of providing power under a constant high load. I've found this to be incorrect. Most do have sufficient cooling, plus thermal protection should they overheat. Many of the high drain PC devices (such as hard disks) *do* produce a reasonably constant load. Now, some PSU's require something drawing power on the 5V line to startup. I think this was common with older AT style supplies. One model I played with required load on several of the other voltage rails too. As someone else mentioned, connecting a hard disk or similar to another output may draw enough current on the 5V line to power it up. Disconeccting the HD may appear to make the PSU stay powered up - but draw too much current on the 12V line and it may shut down again. Essentially, PC PSU's are designed to power PC's. They may check for 5V loads, as that's what they're designed to work with. No 5V 'drain' means no motherboard connected, so little point in powering up fully. The post above (Vinay Patel?) shows an example of a PSU turning on and immediatley going into shut-down mode. A lot of PSU's behave differently. Some do additional checks, some do none at all. Some you can simply short the two 'power on' pins and away you go. It's pot luck, really. Basically - there's no reason why you can't power your car audio gear with a PC PSU. However, an old CB radio PSU may be an easier way of doing this. For the true high power amps, a battery may be the lower cost solution. But - do bear in mind - that 20+ amps at 12v is enough to cause a serious bang, enough to melt wires (if not fused correctly) and enough to start fires. Start playing with batteries and the short term current potential jumps up to hundreds of amps - enough to weld a spanner across the terminals. So be careful. PC PSU's should trip if shorted - but there's certainly no harm in putting an additional fuse inline. And - as others have also said - it's easier to just buy a proper home system. Not only that - but it'll sounds 1000 times better too. |
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New member Username: Mental_sub_manNottinghamEngland Post Number: 1 Registered: Aug-06 | Hey if uve read Evil.Commandos idea of using a camputer psu well i have a 5 amp setup and i want to no if i can power all these amps by a 1 computer psu or will i have to buy 5 ? thanks |
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New member Username: TblazersPost Number: 1 Registered: Aug-06 | I got a powerman 250 watt power supply it has 13 amps on the 12 volt rail and i hooked it up to my insignia 360watt and it works perfectly. |
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New member Username: Mental_sub_manNottinghamEngland Post Number: 2 Registered: Aug-06 | Hey it me agen i was thinkin that inside halfords and othe car audio shops they power ther amps and subs and car sterios , i though does anyone know what sort of power converters do they use then. i might go in and ask them dought theyl no but ill keep u informed on my progress thanks |
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New member Username: Mental_sub_manNottinghamEngland Post Number: 4 Registered: Aug-06 | hi me yet agen do you think i could power my 1000Watt amp thats hooked up to 2 sony Xplod speakers with my old 250W max bestec pc psu ????????? |
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New member Username: Themaze42oPost Number: 2 Registered: Jun-06 | Sam I believe they use 60 or 80 amp power invertersin the stores kind of like CB power supplies and if you have a good 1000 watt amp there is no substitute for a 12V battery I had my 1000 watt amp hooked up in my house to a battery and even on low power I could go maybe 2 days if I was lucky my amp took 150A though. If you want to hook a 1000 watt amp in your house withought poseing real threat of blowing it you should hook it to a battey and hook one of those battery tenders as well however don't run the tender and the amplifier at the same time. |
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New member Username: Mental_sub_manNottinghamEngland Post Number: 5 Registered: Aug-06 | thanks have you got any pics or diagrams nicholas deleon |
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Gold Member Username: IlluminatorUSA Post Number: 4088 Registered: Apr-05 | You need a high amperage power supply as shown below, that's it. Try Astron or Tenma. If you use a car battery, you're incredibly stupid and must have a death wish.  |
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New member Username: TblazersPost Number: 2 Registered: Aug-06 | You can use a atx powersupply aswell its safe and reliable. just need a good amp rating on the 12 volt rail. |
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Gold Member Username: IlluminatorUSA Post Number: 4093 Registered: Apr-05 | Actually, computer power supplies are a bad idea. They have next to no output filtering (lack of caps) and the heatsink design is poor. Not to mention all of the bad caps in them as of lately: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capacitor_plague Dedicated power supplies will last decades, computer power supplies..hardly years. They're crap. |
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New member Username: ShimotyPost Number: 1 Registered: Aug-06 | where can i find a dedicated power supply and how could i connect my amp and subs to my computer |
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New member Username: TblazersPost Number: 3 Registered: Aug-06 | If u want u can use pc power supply , buy one with atleast 10amps on the 12+ volt rail athen u just connect the yellow wire to + terminal of your amp and the black wire to the - terminal and sen a little wire from REM to + of ur amp |
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New member Username: DukiycrapsterPost Number: 1 Registered: Aug-06 | i am tring to hook up a 600 watt car amp in my room and i cant get it to work i have a power supply hooked up to it and i cant get it to go it turns on only for a second when i turn off the power supply |
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New member Username: TblazersPost Number: 4 Registered: Aug-06 | What is the amp amount on the 12 volt rail because you need 50amp to make the run 100% , so your gonna have to use two power supplies. |
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New member Username: ArmbarPost Number: 1 Registered: Sep-06 | I've been using the 12v rail on a 300watt ATX power supply to run 2 kicker ST100 truck speakers off an old Sherwood 50X2 amp. I just bought a small fan from walmart and mounted it in the general direction of the electronics to keep them cool. It works fine. I'm only worried about how reliable it is if I'm using it for music at a party and it craters |
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New member Username: Rubel100Sydney, Stratfield Australia Post Number: 1 Registered: Jan-07 | hi i got an car amplifier and i want to use at home. i also got an pc power supply. my aplifier has three point of power supply (12v+ , REM, GMD) i do not know which cable of the pc power supply will be connected with 12v+ or REM or GND if any one know the soloution of that problem please mail me at faysolbd@gmail.com |
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New member Username: Rubel100Sydney, Stratfield Australia Post Number: 2 Registered: Jan-07 | hi i got an car amplifier and i want to use at home. i also got an pc power supply. my aplifier has three point of power supply (12v+ , REM, GMD) i do not know which cable of the pc power supply will be connected with 12v+ or REM or GND if any one know the soloution of that problem please mail me at faysolbd@gmail.com  |
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New member Username: Elecman121Post Number: 1 Registered: Feb-07 | look im an electrition and an car amp takes 12 vonlt DC and needs a minimum of 50 amps so unless you want to speen hundres of dollors on a converter i suggest you buy a car battery and then bridge the positive(red) into the remote and then connect the ground(black) on to the ground port!. |
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New member Username: Elecman121Post Number: 2 Registered: Feb-07 | look im an electrition and an car amp takes 12 volt DC and needs a minimum of 50 amps so unless you want to spend hundreds of dollors on a converter i suggest you buy a car battery and then bridge the positive(red) into the remote and then connect the ground(black) on to the ground port!. |
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New member Username: Timex90210Post Number: 1 Registered: Mar-07 | ok jeff i took ur advise and it was good i now have a 1000 watt spl amp running on 2 PC power supplies (connected in parallel) it plays like a dream.... also it may also be to add another 500 watt aupply to turn the amp up to full capacity as the current needed for is about 60amps and the to supplies in parallel puts uot 30amps.... |
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Gold Member Username: IlluminatorUSA Post Number: 4885 Registered: Apr-05 | Matt, I sincerely hope nobody follows your advice. A car amp will take a minimum of even 5 amps, depending on the power it puts out. Converters do not cost hundreds of dollars, and car batteries are incredibly ignorant. You're obviously not an electrician, heck, you can't even spell it. I know what you've posted is a joke, but when somebody actually follows your advice and severely injures themselves, it isn't a joke. |
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New member Username: MrjdmcivicSydney australia Post Number: 1 Registered: May-07 | dear people of earth,lol, seriously im going to explain how to wire up your amp safly. first you need a good powersupply or two or three. if you are going to use a computer powersupply you must use diodes or you could cause damage to the power supply unit., as these power supply have a rating of there maximum ampage. once you exceed that ampage by adding another powersupply, the parts internally can go bang!. so if your using 1 power supply, then you don't need a diod. basically my setup is rather simple., first check how much your existing car amp is going to drain? how much amps you say, well a good way of telling this is to look at the fuse that it comes with, if your fuse is rated at 30amps, then get your self 1 computer 30 amp power supply or above. for older computer power supplys, lets just say you have a 15amp @ 12volts, well get 2 computer power supplys, join them together and you have 30amps. point is, your probley never going to be draining that much amps, but it is safe to do so incase of power spikes. ok, so lets just say you have a car amp which drains 80 amps (like me) and packs a punch. well the first step, is to get a decent computer power supply.  now as you can see, my power supply provides 34amps @ 12volts. so im going to need three power supplys, making a total of 102 amps, thats 20 amps or so more than i need for my amplifyer, which is good. second step is a battery (sealed), the reason why is the spikes your amp takes from the power supply, and not to mention that a battery will act like a big capacitor. which will get rid of buzzing noise.  then we need some diodes, you need to make sure the diodes have a higher amp rating then the power supply, now alot of people are like but we cant find a 100 amp diode. thats fine, just combine the diodes parelle to eachother, and it will double the amp rating on the diode. so you get 3 30 amp diodes,combine them together and you then have 90amp, (as long as your car amplifyer does not drain more than what the diodes supply.  now comes the wiring, the yellow and black wiring found here.,  must be combined., get all the yellow wires and all the black wires from the hard drive connector. and wire all the yellow wires together, and all the black wires together, DO NOT PUT THE YELLOW AND BLACK WIRES TOGETHER. the yellow is your +12 positive as in your red wire in the car world. and the black is negative - now all the blacks will connect to the negative terminal of the battery, and also to the negative terminal of the amplifyer. all of the yellow wiring comeing from one of the power units, will then connect to the 34amp diode. (if your unit is more or less amps your diodes need to be of the same value or stronger than the unit. and do the same two the second power supply and the third. i drew up a diagram, this should help you all understand what im talking about. if you can't understand it, i don't recomend you playing around with electricity. its dangerous if you don't know what your doing, if your wiring isnt thick. and is untidy, it could catch on fire! be careful. you have been warned. keep in mind the power units and the amp need good air ventalation. excuse my spelling, im really rushing this so i havnt checked what i wrote. enjoy. Mr T diagram  as you can see, ive made a simple paint picture diagram, follow that, and you should be fine. the blue wire is the remote wire, it turns on your amplifyer, ive put a small picture of a flick switch which connects it to the positve., this does not need to be thick, as remote draws small current. also if you have a powersupply that requires a motherboard to turn on, just put a switch between the two pins mentioned at the top of this forum page. enjoy, |
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New member Username: FrankimburPost Number: 1 Registered: May-07 | Ok, I have a related question. I got the bright idea to hook up a marine CD player in an available waterproof housing on my deck. (housing: There are also outdoor speakers that will complete the setup. I'm thinking I can use a 12V power supply designed for landscape lighting. These power supplies are measured in watts. Since the CD player uses a 15A fuse, I think I need a 200W 12V power supply. (200 watts/12 volts=16 amps). Does this sound correct? Thanks in advance! |
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New member Username: MrjdmcivicSydney australia Post Number: 2 Registered: May-07 | cdplayer will drain about 14 amps at full volume provided your using the amplifyer with all four channels connecting your speakers directly to your cdplayer. otherwise, if your cdplayer is using a external amp, you only will drain a max of 3 amps. |
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New member Username: FrankimburPost Number: 2 Registered: May-07 | NEWSFLASH!!! Those 12 volt power supplies for landscape lighting made by Intermatic, sold under the name Malibu, Toro, etc. are AC, not DC. The power supply is not labeled as either AC or DC, but I have bought one, tested it, and confirmed this. Back it goes to Home Depot. I appreciate the answer about the amps required, but obviously the outdoor supply I was hoping for won't do the trick. I am going to abandon the idea of converting a marine stereo to one for the deck. Thanks to all! |
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New member Username: Bobbby., . . Post Number: 1 Registered: Oct-07 | ok i have a 1300watt sony xplode subwoofer and a 280 watts hifonics warrior falcon amplifier. the fuse on the amp say 30 and thats all i can tell you about them. what do i need to wire this up to my home amplifier? please help me....thank you in advance. |
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New member Username: Emran2486Post Number: 1 Registered: Feb-08 | Just a question i would like to connect a car stereo and a car amp to a 1 x PC PS 400w, and the amp will be no more then 300watts. would that work? Got spare equipment round my house thot i might as well use it. |
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New member Username: BlizzsterPost Number: 1 Registered: Apr-08 | Anybody here tried adding a capacitor and a car battery to the setup??? can the PSU charge battery??? or charge a capacitor????? |
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New member Username: EdgmaisterPost Number: 1 Registered: Aug-08 | can someone please help me, i've gone the route to hook up my amp to my power supply, it's only a 200w vr3 amp from walmart. i'm using a 250watt atx, i've got all the wiring figured out, the amp turns on but goes into protection mode and doesn't turn green after that...any pointers please thanks. |
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New member Username: MacusersPost Number: 1 Registered: Oct-08 | Hi all, I have no such experiences in car-audio stuff but recently I get myself involved into same sort of project for my kitchen. I have a 350W Kenwood amp, which runs at 14.4V (11-16V allowable) and draws 17Amp, according to the user guide (the fuse stamped as 25A - I'm confused here) and I was looking for a work around to power it up. While I found an ATX power supply should be good enough, I was looking for some ready-made alternatives for that as well. And found this: http://cpc.farnell.com/PW01559/batteries-power-supplies/product.us0?sku=stontron ics-rs-25-12 Dose any one have any comment/suggestion on this? |
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New member Username: Rav987Post Number: 2 Registered: Jan-09 | does the number of amps from the 12v rail from the PSU need to be larger or smaller than the number of amps my car amp can handle? I have a PSU that has 22A on the 12v rail, and my car amp is 500w max, 30A, are they ok to use together? |
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New member Username: Bglt2004INDIA Post Number: 1 Registered: Nov-09 | Hi Everybody. I am new to this forum. I desperately need some advice. I have a Kicker ZX350.2 amplifier which I intend to use only for subwoofers and that too to watch movies only. The Amplifier which I have has two built in fuses i.e. 2x 25 AMPs . The input power slots are described as +12, Rem & Ground and Yes I know how to connect power to it as I use familiar kind of active crossover device. What I need to know is how will I be able to run the amplifier in my home (home only) and how much amp of current do I need to have to run two 10" subwoofers of 300 watts each at 2 ohm and 4 ohms at the two output slots available. Now, I have tested the subwoofers roughly (i.e. openly without box ) by running them at the two available output slots and they performed normally. So what I need to ask you intellgent people is will this be enuf or I need some high amperege of current as my PC SMPS (The one I am using) gives 13 AMP of current only at 12 volt. So before I start making a sub-BOX I need to know what I don't know yet. What are the precautions that I need to follow. I have already combined all the yellow wires coming out of the SMPS as +12 v and all strands of black wires into one as -ve 12. Would my amplifier perform to even 80% of its ability? What do you think guys? Or if you have better ideas to derive the maximum output from my amp. Help me out coz Its been with me since a year (I ordered it thru EBAY.com from USA) and have not been able to use it once. We Indians don't have access to certain useful electronic instruments of a particular capacity. And asking for 50 amperes from a 12 volt something is just too much here. Morever the place I reside is a small town and theres nobody to help me besides myself. PLEASE HELP ME BROTHERS. SPECIFICATIONS OF THE KICKER AMP. Bridge mode: 350 watts at 4 ohms, 175 x 2 at 2Ohms, 110 x2 at 4 ohms., |
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New member Username: Thespirit3Post Number: 2 Registered: Aug-06 | Watts = Volts * Amps so, Amps = Watts / Volts so, Amps = 350 / 12 = 29 Amps if bridged. However, amps are not 100% efficient (a lot of energy wasted as heat) so I'd guess at 35A peak if run at full volume? You could connect several PC PSU's together in parallel, but you'd have to be careful to match voltage levels precisely, otherwise you could have one doing all the work and the other sat there pretty much idle (so be no better off). The PSU with the higher voltage will always do the majority of the work. You'd need to investigate the best way to do this. Steve (amazed at how often this thread keeps getting revived) |
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New member Username: Bglt2004INDIA Post Number: 2 Registered: Nov-09 | Thanks Stevie for your response. My yahoo id. is bglt2004@yahoo.com Please add me there if you can and we shall talk abot it if you don't mind. There were some forumers suggesting the use of diodes as a measure to avoid disaster from happening when multiple (parallely connected) SMPS s of unmatching output voltages are connected as the power source. Do one really needs batteries for that. |
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New member Username: The_madmanPost Number: 1 Registered: Mar-10 | I have built SubZilla!! It operates magnificently , beyond expectations. Floor shaking , chest thumping power for my home theater. AND I built it in my Ottoman !!! 12in Dual Subwoofer. 3cu foot box , ported. 2-3 inch ports. 165W Bridged car amplifier 500W Computer power supply. AudioEngine WiFi wireless. |
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New member Username: NeoasusPost Number: 1 Registered: May-10 | oky i have a 600w 4channel amp its fuse is 30A ...how much watt PSU wil i need ? my email neo15@live.co.za |
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New member Username: CrystawthPost Number: 1 Registered: Jun-10 | Well that depends on what voltage it's expecting. the computer PSU will put out 12V, so 12V x 30A = 360 Watts (which is lower than your amp supplies, which leads me to believe there is either more than one fuse, or it has an incorrect fuse rating.) I could be wrong on how it's calculated.. but from what i understand... the fuse should be rated comparable to the amps output power. Some put out more power depending on input voltage (ie 13-15V while the car is running, VS ~12v When the car is off) In any case, if it uses UP TO 30A, a 350 - 400 watt PSU with 30 amps at least to the 12v rail, should suffice. But I would go higher. I like to be very conservative when powering devices in this manner. Pushing a PSU to its max for extended periods of time can greatly reduce its life, or kill it all together. Never use a cheap PSU, do yourself a favor and use a reputable PSU with ample current availability greater than what you require. The amount it pulls will also be determined by how you've wired your speakers and will increase with a higher output level and gain. For example, my 300 Watt pioneer amp, has a 25 amp fuse. To use the amp at full volume, max gain, i need to be able to supply 25 amps from the power supply if it needs it. Normally the amp will likely draw about 12.5 - 15amps since the RMS is 150 Watts @ 4 ohms. Again, this is at max gain/volume. Your actual requirement will vary depending on how you use it. If you are merely powering a low end set of 6x9's as additional speakers, it won't pull much more than a couple of amps. Again, your actual mileage will vary. When wiring it into your computer's PSU, be conservative with the wires. use at least 1 18 AWG Copper wire for every 6 - 8 amps you need. for example, the 25Amps the pioneer requires is split across 3 12 volt wires (~8.3A per wire at max.) I used 16 AWG for increased Ampacity and for added safety. When pulling that much current through the wires, you want to make sure you leave enough overhead so as not to risk overheating and damaging your wires. (or starting a fire...) Always be safe, use common sense, and insulate all connections you make to avoid a short. Not all computer power supplies have short circuit protection, and a short circuit will load the wires with as much current as the PSU can put out on that rail. This can cause the wires and connections to overheat and melt the wire insulation, cause a fire, and kill your power supply extremely fast.   |
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Gold Member Username: IlluminatorUSA Post Number: 5262 Registered: Apr-05 | This thread is still around? Lol. I can't believe how bent people are on using a computer power supply. And look at how difficult it is! What's so difficult about paying the same price for a dedicated DC power supply? |
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New member Username: CrystawthPost Number: 2 Registered: Jun-10 | A decent computer PSU will supply stable voltages of 3.3, 5, and 12 volts. Lots of things can be run on those voltages. Even if the device requires a lower voltage, you can use diodes to drop the voltage in increments. Myself for example, I have 3 computer power supplies sitting in my room (i rent a small room from a friend), I do not however have a dedicated power supply, nor the extra money to buy one. I do however have a computer power supply, running the system i am using right now, that can supply 60A to its 12V rail. with a little bit of work, a cable is easily made to power a device. Not to mention, I really have no place whatsoever to put an additional power supply lol. I also enjoy piecing things together, and playing around with different ways to do things. That's MY reason for it =D |
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Gold Member Username: IlluminatorUSA Post Number: 5270 Registered: Apr-05 | Yeah, that's usually why people use computer PSUs; they're more familiar and easier to find. But I'm just saying, a dedicated power supply is SO much more convenient and safer to use. And in the long run it's going to outlast the PC PSUs. Also, it looks like you have more runs of your (+) wire than your (-) wire?
The amp will still pull the same amount of power regardless of the size of what is hooked up to it if the resistance remains the same. So you could have a 4ohm sub that can take 1000w or a little 4 ohm 3" speaker that has a max handling of 50w, you're still going to draw the same amount of amperage. |
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New member Username: CrystawthPost Number: 3 Registered: Jun-10 | There are 3 16 AWG Red and 3 16 AWG black. And you're right about the resistance =). I didn't clarify myself lol, the 6x9's i have are 4ohm. each one set to a seperate channel. the amp can power speakers at 2ohm on each channel, so it's seeing greater resistance than if i hooked up a sub, since if it was a sub, i would wire it to get the most power out of it (4ohm bridged). |
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Gold Member Username: IlluminatorUSA Post Number: 5276 Registered: Apr-05 | Cool. Well hey, it's fun to see another car audio enthusiast here (especially with car audio equipment in the house Lol.). I have a PPI amp hooked up to a JL sub as my computer subwoofer. It's a good alternative to the tinny subs that come with logitech, jbl etc. speakers with computer systems ;) |
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New member Username: CrystawthPost Number: 4 Registered: Jun-10 | Yea, I never knew what good sound was until i met a buddy of mine. his 2 15's in his SUV turned up are quite nice. It was at that point i knew i'd fall in love with good car audio. when i get the $$$, i'm setting up a killer system. 7.1 Channel Surround sound, custom boxes, housing 6x9's, 5 1/2's, and 1" tweeters in each box, and 2 10's or 12's for bass. http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_6360_AudioControl+LC8i+-LC8-.html that's going to convert each channel signal FR, FL, R, L, RR, RL, Center, and Sub to RCA outputs, the Speakers will be connected to a 6 channel amp, the subs and center channel will be hooked up through a 2 channel amp with individual gain controls for each channel. (haven't entirely picked it out yet.... ) Of course, powered by... a computer PSU.. (corsair PSU's are a good value, and under testing, they can hold their max rating for extended periods with very little voltage fluctuation. (of course i won't use it to the max...) It's all gonna be hooked up to a 42" or 47" LCD hanging on my wall, hooked up to my computer of course... lol It's gonna take some time, money, and elbow work to wire it all up, but when it's done, it's gonna beat the piss out of any computer or home theater audio system you can buy. When that car on screen explodes... You'll feel it in your bones. of course it's going to be a little at a time, considering i work for walmart....... and they pay us zilch lol. But when I get it together, i'll post it up here for everyone to see. and yes, I've put a lot of thought into this, and yes, i'll be spending a small fortune, but the satisfaction of knowing that i myself pieced together a killer system, will be well worth it. |
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New member Username: NeoasusPost Number: 2 Registered: May-10 | JIs thats going to cost a House load but in the End it will all be worth it ! nice nice i like i like ! |
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New member Username: West_soundsPost Number: 1 Registered: Nov-09 | Ive have used a PC PSU to power a 12" pioneer TS-W305C sub and amp at home. Its a 250 watt RMS amp powered by a Silent 700W 40A @ 12V power supply. It sounds amazing is extremely powerful and can handle high volume with ease. The power supply doesn't even get warm but the amp does when driven very hard, but it is designed like a large heat sink so its fine. Its a sealed box and the only other thing ive done to it is put some Dacron fleecy lining inside to dampen it. The wires were cut down and soldered to larger wires for the power and ground so it looks a lot neater. I am going to add some good spikes to the bottom now which may improve the sound further and to finish it. I know it doesn't have the same finish and build but I would love to put it against a home AV bk electronics xls200 or even a xxls400 sub woofer to see how it compares. They cant be that much if any better and this was a fraction of the cost. Anybody living in Wales with either who fancies a challenge : )     |
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New member Username: CrystawthPost Number: 6 Registered: Jun-10 | Now that's how it's done. completely portable! =P |
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New member Username: MatthewttPost Number: 1 Registered: Sep-10 | This may be the wrong area of the site (especially since it doesn't involve stereo equipment), but the issue I have is along the same "power supply" route. I need to supply a 12vDC 70amp wheelchair lift with power from the wall (110VAC). I have a power supply that provides the proper power (with power to spare actually), but I need to install the power to the lift in a negative ground (generally to chassis) installation. How can I do this without a "chassis"? The lift only has one power cable that is normally attached to the battery positive post with a lead going to the chassis for ground. Can I just drill a 3/8" hole through the concrete floor, install a grounding rod, attach a cable from the negative post on the power supply (which CAN be installed in a negative or positive ground hookup...I checked) to the rod and then insulate/protect the entire assembly with PVC conduit? Trying to a)be safe, b)not burn house down or blow motor in lift, c)nt blow power supply, and d)have the thing work without hurting anyone. If you'll post comments or email me...I think you can send me messages by clicking on my name with my post. Thanks! |
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New member Username: MatthewttPost Number: 2 Registered: Sep-10 | Nevermind on my last post... I figured it out, thanks if anyone reads this. Matthew |
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New member Username: Mojoe2bPost Number: 1 Registered: Dec-10 | hi, i need help.i have a Power Supply, regulated, 13.8v 5A 55w. i want to wire up a 1400w v12 amp & 1500w sup to it an hook it up to my stereo. can anybody help??? |
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New member Username: D4nny392Post Number: 1 Registered: Mar-11 | if you're not too worried about using an amplifier and just want to run a car head unit in your home, you can pick up 12vDC power packs from the likes of Halfords (or whatever your local auto/leisure store is called) that converts your 230V source to the same output level as your in-car cigarette lighter socket. you can then hardwire in feeds from where the socket is mouted to the board, and attatch these to your head unit. there will be no dip in the power, and you're guaranteed a good sound. may work with an amp too.......... = http://www.halfords.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_storeId_10001_catalogI d_10151_productId_785261_langId_-1_categoryId_165657 |
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New member Username: Cbom5199Post Number: 1 Registered: Apr-11 | hey well im here to tell you from my own experience i am an electrician and in my barn i put 12 6x9 pioneers with a pioneer car deck and 2 12" fosgate amps and yes it is by far one of the sickest stereo system ever, but did cost me a boat load of money and alot of time testing and figureing the system out. I absolute love it though, i went with a 55 amp pyramid ac to dc converter, a workman 25amp ac to dc converter, and a fierce capacitor to make it all happen, it was very expensive but i wouldnt trade it in for anything. i do have the diagram of how to wire it up and make it work if anyone is interested and looking. email me at cbom5199@hotmail.com and i will send it all to you. |
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New member Username: SparkyuiopPost Number: 1 Registered: Jun-11 | R.E #POST119339 I don't much see the point in this. A PC power supply's 12v lines all come from the same place so that's just a pointless lot of work. You will see a result as you are in effect making the cable bigger but the diodes are pointless. The best option here is to use a proper car amp power cable, remove all the yellow 12v leads, strip the end of car amp power cable, twist several braids of wire and solder into several holes that you removed the 12v PC cables from. Do the same with the negative and try and keep the cables to each amp (and you won't run many) the same length. |
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New member Username: JackchrispChennai, Tamil Nadu India Post Number: 2 Registered: Jan-12 | Hi, i'm planning to use Sony Xplod 600 Watts Amp(XM-GTX6042) plus a 1000 Watts Xplod woofer in my home. Can somebody suggest how much rated PC SMPS should i use?.. I saw the first post is very helpful, but its posted on 2004, so i think so could be changes in PSU these days. and tell me how to hook them up pls.? |
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New member Username: Thespirit3Post Number: 3 Registered: Aug-06 | Looking at the Sony site with specs (http://www.sony.co.in/product/xm-gtx6042) this amp is actually 70w x 4 (240 Watt). This works out at 20A if 100% efficient ... which it won't be ... so I'd suggest a supply of at least 25A, possibly 30A if you're going to be driving it hard. An example of a PC PSU approaching this spec would be something like the OCZ Fatal1ty Series 550W (rated at 20A on 12V line). A supply capable of supplying 30A would be better though |
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New member Username: Thespirit3Post Number: 4 Registered: Aug-06 | Also regarding previous comments suggesting using parallel PSUs - this isn't ideal as unless the voltage is matched 100% (in reality two supplies of the same type will always vary) the PSU with the higher voltage will end up supplying the majority of the current. You're better off finding a single PSU to deliver the current required. |
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New member Username: IsaacPost Number: 1 Registered: Jan-12 | I need some help...Im using a PC power supply PSU to power my power amplifier....My problem is why after im done wire the 12v,remote and ground to my amp,after that my sub heard blow or distort when the bass are playing and i can see the green light of the amp is not bright if the bass are playing....im using 550w PC power supply and 4ch amp 1200w...PLEASE help me...(sorry for my poor english) |
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New member Username: Thespirit3Post Number: 5 Registered: Aug-06 | Hi Isaac - this is most likely due to the PSU being unable to supply the required current on the 12V line. Please check the specifications for your PSU as whilst it's a 550W model this doesn't guarantee it's capable of supplying the necessary current at 12V. Also, it may help if you combine all 12V wires from the PSU as a single wire may not be able to suplly the full 20+A by itself. |
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New member Username: ViciousPost Number: 1 Registered: Jan-12 | Hey guys, n00b here (as well as first-time user) and need some advice. I have two sealed 12" Kicker CompVR subs powered by a Phoenix Gold RSD600.1 car amp and was wondering if anyone could possibly direct me to a PSU that would work if I were to try to hook this up for use as a PC home theater system. Not quite sure if this would even run if at all, but hell, I figure it's worth a shot since this poor sub and amp is just sitting in the garage and picking up dust anyways. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks! The specs for the subs and amp are listed here: http://www.abt.com/product/11322/Kicker-03CVR122.html http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_7287_Phoenix-Gold-RSd-600.1-RSd600.1.html |
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New member Username: Thespirit3Post Number: 6 Registered: Aug-06 | The RSD600 is quoted as 600W when driving 2 ohm loads. In an ideal world where everything is 100% efficient and no energy is wasted as heat: I=P/V (Amps = Watts / Volts) so 600/12 = 50. However, assuming the amp wastes 50% energy as heat and you're then talking 50*1.5=75A - which, looking at the dual 40A fuses (total of 80A) seems realistic. Some of the modern 1000W PC PSUs (with all the 12V outputs joined together) may be capable of this. For example something like this (http://www.anandtech.com/show/2395/3) is *almost* there (4x18A outputs at 12V for a total of 72A). |
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New member Username: Thespirit3Post Number: 7 Registered: Aug-06 | I notice http://www.anandtech.com/show/2395/4 has a total of 96A available on the 12V lines. Some of these PSU's will require minimal drain on some other lines though in order to 'power up' so you may need to do a little more work. It's still a very cheap solution though |
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New member Username: ViciousPost Number: 2 Registered: Jan-12 | Wow Steve, thanks for the quick reply! Judging from all the physics you wrote down, I knew I was way over my head when I thought of doing this. And seeing that buying a 1000+ watt power supply isn't going to be cheap, it probably doesn't justify me undertaking this project at all. I was hoping to just pick up one of my old 6-700 watt power supplies that were lying around and using it, but guess it was way underpowered to even power up up the subs and amp. Haha, oh wells, at least I can put this idea to rest. |
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New member Username: Thespirit3Post Number: 8 Registered: Aug-06 | No problem. Actually, your 600-700 Watt PSU *would* power your current amp and sub - at low volumes this would be fine. At higher volumes you'd likely suffer bad distortion (or the PSU would trip out). There's also a risk when under heavy load your nice sine waves would start to look like square waves - would would heat up the voice coil on your sub (this is bad). So, it all depends on volumes - if you only drive your amp at quarter of it's potential output you'd probably be fine. Also - yes, a head unit will most likely be run from any PC PSU just fine. The voltage (12V) is what's required to 'power up' your gear, the current (amps) are what it pulls (or the max the PSU can deliver) when under load. |
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New member Username: JackchrispChennai, Tamil Nadu India Post Number: 5 Registered: Jan-12 | Hi, Regarding my previous post, we ordered and assembled a AC to DC Transformer using a local electrician here. Its designed for 12V, 15 Amps, the electrician recommended a 35A Diode, assembled and everything's finished. Now we gave it to the Amp i told(1 Sony Xplod 1000w Bridged and 2 Front Speakers, like a 3 channel connection). The amp fuse is 25A. Now after ON, we started from Low volume input, everything works good. But now the Problem is after about 40% of volume increase, the output is Distorted, the woofer and the speakers gives noise, no proper output sound. The Power in my home is 3Phase, 250V AC(the transformer itself is designed for that much of voltage), and the output from the Power Supply is 12V DC, i measured using the multimeter it is about 12 to 13.5 V DC, can't measure the current since my multimeter isn't facilitated for that. So Please can people tell me what could be the problem, how to get good efficient output from audio system, to get more volume o/p without any distortion or noise? |
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New member Username: Thespirit3Post Number: 9 Registered: Aug-06 | Jackson - see my post in direct reply to your original question. The amplifier you listed would likely try to pull 30A at peak. You now post stating a 15A causes problems beyond 40% volume. At least I've proven my rough calculations (based on assumed efficiencies) are roughly correct! Try using a PSU capable of delivering 12-14V @ at least 30A and let us know how you get on |
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New member Username: BadanPost Number: 1 Registered: Sep-12 | correct me if i'm wrong., in order for you to avoid distortions or in some cases temporarily shuts off your PSU when your amp eats up alot of current for example if you hook it up with a subwoofer., simply put a power capacitor with a 1 FARAD rating at the terminal., in my set up i used 4 10,000 uf Capacitors that are connected in parallel., my PSU is rated at 600 watts., |
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New member Username: AlexmcononMiami, Florida Сполуч... Post Number: 7 Registered: Mar-20 | I was thinking of only powering the single subwoofer through the car amp, and attaching the speakers on my home amp. |
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New member Username: Fields0024Post Number: 1 Registered: May-24 | I made an account just to commend some heroes out there. And resurect this gold mine of a thread. Absolutely incredible the amount of info on this one page. For those that gave advice and warned people what they were getting into and the dangers. THANK YOU. The simple words from a surprisingly small group of people have helped more than anything the haters insulted everyone over. Lol. They must live in a home owners association neighborhood bahaha. It's wild to see the contempt from people that would rather folks struggle or make mistakes in a process that involves a lot of variables and people just wanna do things right and safe. What's wrong with that? To all y'all modifying whatever you want and living your life to the fullest. I SALUTE you. What a time to be alive, right? Good luck for anybody that comes across this thread again like me. May this thread last forever. |
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