Power Question....
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Silver Member Username: MixmastaspigCanada, Canada Canada Post Number: 757 Registered: Sep-05 | Ok I run a Dark Blue 1000.2 (20000rms @ 2 ohm) and a Dark Blue 4 channel, the 1000.2 has 150a fuse and the 4 channel has 80a, I bought a 200 amp alt from Nate and have even taken out REM wire to DB4 channel so only the 1000.2 is hooked up. My question is why does my voltage drop so much (below 12v sometimes) when at 2000rpm and my lights still dim quite abit???? I have an after market battery bigger than a Red top and Yellow top but its not a deep cycle one.....if that will make a diff which it shouldn't as the alt is powering the system (should be) thanks |
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Silver Member Username: MixmastaspigCanada, Canada Canada Post Number: 761 Registered: Sep-05 | Anyone for some input? |
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Gold Member Username: TheelfkeeperStockbridge, GA USA Post Number: 3183 Registered: Feb-05 | well, just with the 2000W amp, thats about 160A...a pretty good chunk of your 200A Alt. not sure is a deep cycle will help, they are suppose to be more resistant to voltage dropping. mabye a second battery close to the amps?? |
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Silver Member Username: BobimpactDanbury, CT US Post Number: 171 Registered: May-06 | Deep cycle will help, but all that not much. Your battery now is dependent upon a very slow (in relation to the power demands) chemical reaction. Deep cycles can create juice much faster and are generally better suited to the demands of a large system. Do the Big 3 if you haven't already to help quell some of the voltage drops, get a good battery and double check the system grounds before sinking money into a second battery. |
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Gold Member Username: Basshead86Try Google Post Number: 6695 Registered: Aug-05 | bob is back! yay! i would def. say the 200wRMS amp is beating your alt. down, the alt. still needs to give power to the car's electrical system, so you will never see all of that 200Amps. w/e Bob says, generally is the pie. |
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Gold Member Username: Basshead86Try Google Post Number: 6696 Registered: Aug-05 | 2000wRMS amp....you know what i mean anyway... btw, Dark Blue, that sounds really familiar but i can't put my mouse on it.... |
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Silver Member Username: MixmastaspigCanada, Canada Canada Post Number: 767 Registered: Sep-05 | http://ampguts.realmofexcursion.com/Helix_Dark_Blue_1000.2/ Sexy amp...made by Helix I have yet to do the big 3 so I will def do that and look into a deep cycle. thanks |
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Silver Member Username: BobimpactDanbury, CT US Post Number: 173 Registered: May-06 | I disagree with Muddy, whatever Bob says is usually wrong. That guy has NO idea what he's doing. Thanks for the welcome back buddy. |
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New member Username: James3146Portland, OR USA Post Number: 1 Registered: Oct-06 | The reason you are having this problem is because you are loading the car down while the alternator isnt putting out what is needed to keep the voltage up. The first source of power is the battery (assuming you hook directly to the battery) and it will draw from the battery until the alternator can take over, if it can take over. What sucks about the whole stereo setup in general is that load is not constant and the alternator has to go high and low at a constant rate so it cant always produce what is needed until it is too late. The cheapest fix would to get a couple 1 farad caps and it will help with both the lights dimming, and the battery voltage, becasue now the first soure of power is the cap and not the battery. It will increase bass response time as well becasue caps discharge many times faster than batteries do. I would also recommend a H/O alternator and a better battery. You want a H/O alternator that will output high at low RPM, and last a long time. You want a dry cell battery and if you have more money get a Deep Cycle dry cell battery ( they can take a hell of a beating and still produce for a loing time). I bought my stuff from Wranlger Northwest in Portland, OR and I have been happy with it for two years now, and have not had to maintain it all. I got the best H/O for my car, a Optima Red Top dry cell battery, and a 1 Farad cap. If you are interested call 800-962-2616 and talk to Stan or Steve, tell them Tyler refered you and they will hook you up, even with the hook up there stuff can get spendy depending what you are getting, but it puts out everytime, and lasts. I am happy to answer anymore questions if you have them. What is the Year make and model of this car, and I can tell a lot about your stock charging system. |
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Silver Member Username: MixmastaspigCanada, Canada Canada Post Number: 771 Registered: Sep-05 | I have a H/O alt, 200a custom alt from Nate at Excessive, and the battery has better specs than a red top but it is not Deep cycle like the Yellow top. the amp has 150a fuse and that alt should produce around 200a at 2grand RPM. that leaves 50 over for lights and cd player (spekers not hooked up when testing)....guess I shoulda went with a 300a alt. But I will do the big 3 and see if that helps any, as I'm sure it would. |
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New member Username: James3146Portland, OR USA Post Number: 3 Registered: Oct-06 | Is that 200A alternator going to produce 200 Amps at idle, or even at 2K RPM. I know the alternator I bought would only do 125 amp at engine idle, and about 190 at 5K RPM. But no matter which alternator you get in the world it wont stop the flashing of lights, especially if your alternator has LRC (Load Response Control). Because the load from the bass is so fast and sporadic that the alternator doesnt know it needs to charge until it is too late and the bass is gone. Listen to the alternator turn on and off as the bass hits. The only way to fix this problem is to get a different primary source of power for the amp, whether it is another battery or a couple of caps it is up to you. I reccomend the caps for multiple reasons: They are faster at charging and discharging. They dont require any maintainence, and they take up less space than a battery does. Lastly, they will never leak. On the flip side the battery can store more energy and will take light dimming and make it non existent. I dont want to make you sound bad or be mean, I am trying to help you with your problem. What is the vehicle? It is very possible your regulator is LRC and it will only apply the load at a curve instead of all at once. |
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Silver Member Username: MixmastaspigCanada, Canada Canada Post Number: 776 Registered: Sep-05 | 94 Saturn SC2, twin cam, 1.9L. The only way I have seen my volts is through my deck (as it tells you the volts it is getting) sometimes it displays 14.5v at idle other times 13.5ish and when turned up alot it drops even at 2000rpm. I have thought about a cap for both some help with bass and it adds more "style" to the system. As well as at "normal" volumes light dimming is non existant its when I up the volume to above 40% of listening is when the volts start to drop, lights dont dim very much at all. And I appreciate the help |
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New member Username: James3146Portland, OR USA Post Number: 5 Registered: Oct-06 | I looked up your car, and the regulator has a 2.5 sec LRC (load response control) meaning if a continous load were put on the battery/alternator no matter how much load is applied it take 2.5 seconds max to respond, and then it will curve the load at a controlled rate. The pic i have below will help represent that. So since your car has LRC, it will take roughly 2.5 seconds to respond to any load and once it does it will output within its rate. If you are worried about the voltage itself, then the caps are what you need. If your lights arent dimming then dont worry about it. When the car is cold the alternator will bring up the voltage set-point to about 14.7, to stablize the system. Once the engine warms up it will bring it down, on my car it starts out at 14.5 and stabilizes at 13.7 ish. When I turn my system up it will take it down to 10-11 volts AT the cap for a split second till they refill. But at my main car battery, it will go lower to like 13.0 but doesnt really go below that, so for me the caps are working, but others with bigger systems really need a deep cycle battery with cap after that. Personal preference is where you are at now.  |
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Silver Member Username: MixmastaspigCanada, Canada Canada Post Number: 779 Registered: Sep-05 | Cool thanks alot |
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Gold Member Username: CarguyPost Number: 5682 Registered: Nov-04 | Mike, most of your voltage problem should be fixed with the big 3 upgrade. You may have 200A alternator, but if you still have the factory wiring, it'll only be getting 75A or less. Use a DMM and monitor the car's voltage as the music plays. It shouldn't fall below 12.5v. That is the battery's power. Anything less and you're risking the life of the battery, as well as your car's ability to start. |
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Bronze Member Username: James3146Portland, OR USA Post Number: 11 Registered: Oct-06 | Isaac makes a good point, but take your DMM and measure voltage at the battery when the starter is running. It will probably be around 11 or less, and then jump back up to 12+ once the starter load is gone. One of the biggest things to remember also is the alternator is probably only going to get to 200A if the rotor in the alternator is spinning at like 5000 or 6000 Rotor RPM. What you should try and do is find someone with a full load carbon pile tester and load the vehicle at different RPM and see what you are really going to max out at. |
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Silver Member Username: MixmastaspigCanada, Canada Canada Post Number: 782 Registered: Sep-05 | I will try that, thanks alot Have to wait until next year as I allready parked the car, I drive over 500km a week for school so I didnt want to put unecessary clicks on it, so im in the beater! |
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