Stock battery
#5
You don't NEED to upgrade your battery, but an after market battery will certainly be able to supply more cold cranking amps or can be drained further without going bad. (depending on if you get the optima red top or yellow top), This could save you from getting stranded with a dead battery somewhere if you forget to turn off your lights.
Whenever your cars engine is running, it is not being powered by the battery. Everything is powered by the alternator. If you draw more power then your alternator is able to produce, you will kill ANY battery in short order.
Capacitors have about as much effect on sound quality as your battery does (IE: it doesn't. If it did improve sound quality, They would have nice graphics showing the effect the cap has on the output waveform of the amp.) Capacitors are much like batteries, but rather then being designed to hold a charge for a very long time and discharge it slowly like a battery, capacitors specialize in storing a large amount of power, and discharging it in (dangerously) short periods of time.
If your alternator supplies 3000 watts of power to your car, the car itself uses 1000, and your stereo tops out at drawing 1000 watts, there is absolutely no need for cap.
If your stereo draws 2500 watts at peak draw, and you rarely plan to crank it up that loud, a capacitor can "fill the gap" between what your alternator can provide, and the load you place on the system while showing off to your friends. The moment the capacitor becomes depleted though (and that happens fast), it's useless until it can recharge, and your amps will only be running of 2000 watts.
If you really want to learn the nitty gritty of all this crap, I'd recommend visiting http://www.bcae1.com/ As it is far more detailed and accurate then I could ever be.
I've never looked into the output of the 8's alternator, as I don't ever plan on exceeding it. The shop manual probably tells you what its output is.
Whenever your cars engine is running, it is not being powered by the battery. Everything is powered by the alternator. If you draw more power then your alternator is able to produce, you will kill ANY battery in short order.
Capacitors have about as much effect on sound quality as your battery does (IE: it doesn't. If it did improve sound quality, They would have nice graphics showing the effect the cap has on the output waveform of the amp.) Capacitors are much like batteries, but rather then being designed to hold a charge for a very long time and discharge it slowly like a battery, capacitors specialize in storing a large amount of power, and discharging it in (dangerously) short periods of time.
If your alternator supplies 3000 watts of power to your car, the car itself uses 1000, and your stereo tops out at drawing 1000 watts, there is absolutely no need for cap.
If your stereo draws 2500 watts at peak draw, and you rarely plan to crank it up that loud, a capacitor can "fill the gap" between what your alternator can provide, and the load you place on the system while showing off to your friends. The moment the capacitor becomes depleted though (and that happens fast), it's useless until it can recharge, and your amps will only be running of 2000 watts.
If you really want to learn the nitty gritty of all this crap, I'd recommend visiting http://www.bcae1.com/ As it is far more detailed and accurate then I could ever be.
I've never looked into the output of the 8's alternator, as I don't ever plan on exceeding it. The shop manual probably tells you what its output is.
#6
I think we are approaching this issue from the wrong angle. The issue is not that amount of "wattage" the amplifier outputs, but rather the AMPERAGE the amplifier draws. For that, I must ask, what is the amp? A relatively efficient class-D? Or a power hungry class A/B? Or maybe a 5-channel with both?
#7
Volts * amps = watts
Watts / Volts = Amps
watts / amps = volts
I honestly hate getting into the math, but I believe you're correct that most alternators measure output in amps not watts, so it would be easier to calculate your total load in amps to see if you're going to exceed your alternators capacity, rather then working in watts and having to convert, not to mention amplifier efficiency...
Watts / Volts = Amps
watts / amps = volts
I honestly hate getting into the math, but I believe you're correct that most alternators measure output in amps not watts, so it would be easier to calculate your total load in amps to see if you're going to exceed your alternators capacity, rather then working in watts and having to convert, not to mention amplifier efficiency...
Last edited by Socket7; 01-30-2008 at 05:23 PM.
#9
relocate your battery to the trunk... add a 5 farret or above capacitor. Maybee even a voltage stabilizer for up in the engine bay ... the apexi grounding thing is my fav when doing this... it grounds the battery.
the alternator may be your issue on this one... I know pheonix gold upgrades altenators if you send them one or simply get another froma junk yard adn send them that one... but were talkign serious wattage and load here... you probably dont need that.
ps .. i think all cars should have their battery in the trunk
the alternator may be your issue on this one... I know pheonix gold upgrades altenators if you send them one or simply get another froma junk yard adn send them that one... but were talkign serious wattage and load here... you probably dont need that.
ps .. i think all cars should have their battery in the trunk
#11
#13
Stock alternator is 100 amps I believe. Back to OP.....1000 watts rms, peak???? If it is 1000 watts peak then you should be fine. If you are talking about a higher quality 1000 watt rms amp, then you would be putting a significant load on your stock alt.
I agree with the most about capacitors. They will not help the situation much or for long. As for a bigger battery. IMO this is a good idea any time you are putting after market audio in the car. It wont change the sound at all. However you will show the system off, sometimes with the engine off, and you loose all cool points when you have to jump the car to start it after playing your stereo for a few min.
#14
Oh yeah - the general rule of thumb for a capacitor is 1 farad per 1000 watts RMS
I am running 1000 watts RMS out of a Alpine PDX amp for my subs and then another PDX amp pushing my interior speakers.
I'm running it on stock battery and alt (for 3 years now)
I didn't need a capacitor, but I put one on.. didn't make that big of a noticeable difference, but i'm sure it helps ease the load on the electrical system..
a good forum for car audio geeks is the12volt.com - spend some time there before you do anything serious..
I am running 1000 watts RMS out of a Alpine PDX amp for my subs and then another PDX amp pushing my interior speakers.
I'm running it on stock battery and alt (for 3 years now)
I didn't need a capacitor, but I put one on.. didn't make that big of a noticeable difference, but i'm sure it helps ease the load on the electrical system..
a good forum for car audio geeks is the12volt.com - spend some time there before you do anything serious..
#15
battery in trunk ...
1. takes away 50 lbs and put it in the rear making the car more ballenced
2. makes adding amps easier and you have to run the wires anyway
3. trunk is insulated and it protects the battery a little more from the elements.
4. frees up much needed space in the engine bay -- easier to work on engine
5. Gives you a reason to polish your engine
im sure there are more reasons ... but thats all i can think of at the moment. In all the FR ive had I've mainly done it to shift the weight to the rear.
also .... I want a ferret! ahahaha
the reason I suggest a 5 farrat or greater cap is because of the nice remote digital readouts and grounding protection they come from.
1. takes away 50 lbs and put it in the rear making the car more ballenced
2. makes adding amps easier and you have to run the wires anyway
3. trunk is insulated and it protects the battery a little more from the elements.
4. frees up much needed space in the engine bay -- easier to work on engine
5. Gives you a reason to polish your engine
im sure there are more reasons ... but thats all i can think of at the moment. In all the FR ive had I've mainly done it to shift the weight to the rear.
also .... I want a ferret! ahahaha
the reason I suggest a 5 farrat or greater cap is because of the nice remote digital readouts and grounding protection they come from.
#16
Just looked at the Alpine site and that PDX amp looks sweet. If WikkedOne can run that with no problems you should be fine. They measured it in the following way. 1000 watts @ 14.4 volts so....1000w/14.4v=69.5 amps of current drawn by the amplifier at full volume. If this set up works, then you will be fine. Nothing like real world experience to clear things up.
Heyarnold69,
The farad (symbol: F) is the SI unit of capacitance.
In general use, a ferret is a domestic ferret (Mustela putorius furo). Domestic ferrets typically have brown, black, white, or mixed fur, have an average length of approximately 20 inches (51 cm) including a 5 inch (13 cm) tail, weigh about 2 pounds (1 kg),[1] and have an ordinary lifespan of 7 to 10 years.[2][3][4]
before you get mad, I am just having a little fun at your expense. If you see enough of my posts you will definitely get the chance to return the favor as my spelling in horrible at times.
Heyarnold69,
The farad (symbol: F) is the SI unit of capacitance.
In general use, a ferret is a domestic ferret (Mustela putorius furo). Domestic ferrets typically have brown, black, white, or mixed fur, have an average length of approximately 20 inches (51 cm) including a 5 inch (13 cm) tail, weigh about 2 pounds (1 kg),[1] and have an ordinary lifespan of 7 to 10 years.[2][3][4]
before you get mad, I am just having a little fun at your expense. If you see enough of my posts you will definitely get the chance to return the favor as my spelling in horrible at times.
Last edited by Solidtrance; 01-30-2008 at 08:17 PM.
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