Batterey upgrade?

[Kalgatha 10+ year member]

My amp is ordered, my BL is running off of my component amp for now, and my HO alt is on its way. Now for a battery. But first, what is the use of upgrading the battery? Do I really need to spend 200$ on a battery for my system? (15" BL, zx1500.1, 400watt cheap sony amp + kenwood speeks) the alt i ordered is from MotorCityReman.Com and idle 75, max 150. done the big 3. I was planning on getting a Kinetik HC1800 (biggest that will fit in my car) but my friend questioned why I needed it and i realy didn't know how to respond.

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[tru_44 10+ year member]

well if the alt supplies enuff power to current battery and there is no loss of power, then there is not a real need for it.

 

[shadow_ 10+ year member]

I'm stumped on the battery upgrade also. I have a honda civic, i think the alt is a 70amp. I was talking to my mechanic and told him the system i was getting and if i needed a upgraded battery, he goes on telling me i don't need a battery, it will be the alt i need because he said once my car is on, the battery has really no function, the car runs off the alt. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/confused.gif.e820e0216602db4765798ac39d28caa9.gif

 

[krisfnbz 10+ year member]

just get a kinetic 1400 or 1800 for like 175 used here or some shit and call it a day

 

[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

depends on how big the system is. ask your mechanic what the full function of a battery is. let them know what the amplifiers can pull current wise.

 

[IgnoreMe 5,000+ posts]

if that alt really does what it claims, you wont need a battery.

 

[spoonraker 10+ year member]

Your alternator is the main source of power in your system, it charges the battery and has the highest voltage potential of all the components of your system.

Most batteries have a voltage potential of about 12.7 volts, and most alternators have upwards of 14 volts. The alternator will run the system, by its self, while the car is running, provided the current demands from the system do not exceed what the alternator can deliver. If the alternator can not keep up with your system's demands, the voltage will drop sharply, and when it drop below the voltage potential of your battery, the system will begin to draw from the battery instead of the alternator, since it would now have the highest voltage.

Basically if your alternator can keep up with what your system needs, you are fine. If not, then you will drain your battery, and your alternator won't be able to keep up with recharging it unless you play your system for very short periods of time letting your battery fully charge between each use. Unless you have a deep cycle battery, doing this will eventually damage your battery and it will need to be replaced.

 

[Kalgatha 10+ year member]

I was told that 150amp alt wasn't enough...but not untill i already placed the order and its now shipped... do you think it will be fine? or do i need to try and get a bigger one? or get a battery and run it off of that for awhile?

 

[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

at idle from what i know about others who bought from there at idle and you try cranking it you might need some help also some say they over rate their alts compared to others....i dont have anything to varify that though just word of mouth

 

[spoonraker 10+ year member]

With only one really power hungry amp and then a cheapo sony 4-channel you should be fine with a single battery and a 150 amp alternator.

If you play your system loud for a long period of time without stopping you might eventually drain your battery, but as long as you occasionally don't play music full blast I think your battery will stay charged just fine.

 

[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

thing is it does 75 amps at idle so say it does that with what the car takes to run and what the system needs i bet it would be safe to say he will get a nice voltage drop at idle-low rpm range