alt powering amp...

[Jbarbier 10+ year member]

I've always powered my amps through my alternator (like my local shop installs) and thats pretty much the way most everyone i know hooks then up as well, but this dude in one of my other messages said i'm mad for doing that...i mean if you look at my battery terminals (side post) its impossible to power it through there (the way the battery cable is made) so im pretty much stuck the way it is now...and i've had like 3 different systems, one which i had for 3 years and it never caused any harm on my alternator OR amp...now im thinking otherwise...cuz i have had ONE shitty pyramid amp quitworking on me for no apparent reason. so, someone help me out...cuz thats the first ive EVER heard of that being bad...thankz //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/eek.gif.771b7a90cf45cabdc554ff1121c21c4a.gif

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[loserpunk 10+ year member]

idk if the alt will damage your amp but i wouldn't think so...but i think i know why your amp stopped working(PYRAMID) hahaha //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif ...but anyways..i've always connect to the battery terminals and had good luck so far //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/rolleyes.gif.c1fef805e9d1464d377451cd5bc18bfb.gif

 

[Jbarbier 10+ year member]

lol yea, pyramid, lolololol....hey i HAD to start somewhere and as a then 15 yr old, it was a sound investment, it laster awhile too, lol....but, lol, yea....oh welll

 

[DJ B-Stee 10+ year member]

My friend and I hooked up a Kenwod amp to the alternator in his oldsmobile delta 88 and it ruined his alt. (good thing he had a lifetime warranty on it) If it's a gm car, get a extended battery post just in case.

p.s. i have a grand am and i connected it to the engine bay fuse box, cuz i didnt know about the battery posts. if i get any trouble from my current install, i'll pick one up.

 

[Wonderbread 5,000+ posts]

the thing I can think of is that the alternator does not provide a constant source of current... Alternators produce much less voltage at lower RPM's and full power at higher ones,. The battery acts like a pool of electricity for on-demand use...

think of it as a pool with a hose filling hte pool... if someone does a huge cannonball (say a sine bomb), then more water (electricical enrgy) is removed from your pool (battery). So the hose then opens up and pours more water back into the pool,... get it?

 

[DJ B-Stee 10+ year member]

My friend also had problems with his alternator before and after we fixed it.

 

[Jbarbier 10+ year member]

yep, i get it, but i mean, i have enough bass and all, i was just curious about the alternator going out....hey who cares its under warranty, lol, thankz

 

[Jbarbier 10+ year member]

i mean, no dimmage or nothing, we're talkin a rockford 300 watt amp here, nothing too drastic

 

[Wonderbread 5,000+ posts]

I would be worried about two things... not sure if these are teh two things to be worried about but these are what my brain is telling me to stay away from. 1 - that unconstant voltaeg level for teh amp and 2 - the additional strain right on teh alternator, without that stabilizing force of the battery.

 

[Jbarbier 10+ year member]

yea those are good points...now i guess i need to find a way to hook it to my battery...*sigh* //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/confused.gif.e820e0216602db4765798ac39d28caa9.gif

 

[dlugolinski 10+ year member]

well heres a point, whether you run it right off the alternator or the batter it is always the same voltage at the battery and at the alternator. they are connected by a wire that lets the alternator charge the battery. there may be a slight difference because of the resistance of the wire that goes from the alternator to the battery, but it should be close, check it with a voltmeter. you can ruin your alternator with it hooked up either way if you are drawing too much current it can burn up the alternator.....