hardwire Xbox 360 into car

[lasirk]

hi, I've been searching around for a while now and haven't found any good answers to this one yet. Maybe you guys can help me out, sorry if it's been asked before.

The way I see it, the 360 has a big converter box that converts from AC to DC to plug in a house. According to multiple sites, that converter box has and output of 12V at 16A. Now a car battery is already DC, approx. 12V. Why couldn't I cut off that converter, run some 10 gauge wire up to my battery with a fuse, and tuck it under my seat and have it play? It seems like the most efficient way to do it, eliminating all that converting back and forth and saving me money, power and heat from a inverter/converter. It's been under debate for a while now whether I'm an idiot or not, so I just want to have at least a couple sane people back me up on this theory before I potentially blow up my xbox.

Thanks, love the forums!

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[ecko_0113 10+ year member]

just do it the right way and use an inverter

 

[ahole-ic]

hi, I've been searching around for a while now and haven't found any good answers to this one yet. Maybe you guys can help me out, sorry if it's been asked before.
The way I see it, the 360 has a big converter box that converts from AC to DC to plug in a house. According to multiple sites, that converter box has and output of 12V at 16A. Now a car battery is already DC, approx. 12V. Why couldn't I cut off that converter, run some 10 gauge wire up to my battery with a fuse, and tuck it under my seat and have it play? It seems like the most efficient way to do it, eliminating all that converting back and forth and saving me money, power and heat from a inverter/converter. It's been under debate for a while now whether I'm an idiot or not, so I just want to have at least a couple sane people back me up on this theory before I potentially blow up my xbox.

Thanks, love the forums!

The real answer is because your vehicle is powered by an alternator, not a car battery. The alternator puts ac ripple into the line because it actually creates AC and rectifies it into DC. The car battery does not filter this out because it can't charge up to the alternator's output voltage. A batt can reach around 13v. The alternator is charging around a volt higher. This means that any fluctuations in voltage between 13 and 14 volts are not filtered. What does all this mean? It means that your xbox will power on and play, but fluctuations in voltage can cause it to shut off or even die. What is the solution? A DC to DC converter. Basically what this does is just filter and regulate your power. It can output a steady 12.6v instead of a fluctuating 14-12.6v.

This is what you need.

 

[jco1385 5,000+ posts]

or just buy a DC -> AC inverter and plug it up

 

[lasirk]

The real answer is because your vehicle is powered by an alternator, not a car battery. The alternator puts ac ripple into the line because it actually creates AC and rectifies it into DC. The car battery does not filter this out because it can't charge up to the alternator's output voltage. A batt can reach around 13v. The alternator is charging around a volt higher. This means that any fluctuations in voltage between 13 and 14 volts are not filtered. What does all this mean? It means that your xbox will power on and play, but fluctuations in voltage can cause it to shut off or even die. What is the solution? A DC to DC converter. Basically what this does is just filter and regulate your power. It can output a steady 12.6v instead of a fluctuating 14-12.6v. This is what you need.

Alright, now that's the kind of response I was looking for. That all makes alot of since, for some reason I didn't even throw the alternator into the equation. Good catch, dude. Have you or anyone you know tried anything like this?

 

[Stalin-ohaulic]

Alright, now that's the kind of response I was looking for. That all makes alot of since, for some reason I didn't even throw the alternator into the equation. Good catch, dude. Have you or anyone you know tried anything like this?

Yeah. On xbox-scene.com they actually have a few threads and even tutorials on it. You should head over there for this one. I could help you, but I'd end up just trying to do it myself and selling it to you //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif

 

[lasirk]

hmm, did a quick search and all i can find is stuff about that suzuki. I'll give it another look in the morning when my eyes have refreshed. Thanks for the info!