Need help just, Installed My Kx2500.1.

[hoodkid 10+ year member]

I just installed my kicker kx2500.1 recently,and at first i hooked the amp up just to see if it worked, and all i had was some 4 gauge wire ran, and with the gains set accordingly to 1000 watt rms @ 4 ohms,my voltage would be around 11.8- 12.8, but today i installed 0/1 gauge wiring, + a yellowtop in the back and my voltage still stays around 11.8 - 13.1, Maybe this is because I haven't done the big 3 though maybe? but I know everyone is going to say I need a bigger alternator, which I plan to get one but dam i thought a yellowtop in the back would atleast make a difference, any ideas on what could be wrong? I'm guessing I might need the big 3 done.

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[casper97ta 10+ year member]

do the big 3 of course. But having a second battery isnt going to create voltage. It will help with voltage drops but your voltage isnt going to magically raise because you added a battery. For your voltage to raise you will need a bigger alt.

 

[talon2nr7588 10+ year member]

do the big three that will help. depending on the vehicle you might need a HO alt.

 

[hoodkid 10+ year member]

im getting one reagrdless but it wont be till next month, but dam i thought the yellowtop would be atleast a little help...

 

[IgnoreMe 5,000+ posts]

what is your voltage at idle?

extra batteries will do nothing to add voltage. they are just going to stabalize voltage (to what the alt is currently charging at) during the song.

so lets say at idle your @ 13.5V.

all stock, you drop to 12.0V

now you add the yellow top and now you drop to 12.9V.

as you can see youve gained .9v over what you had with only the stock battery. but you will never go above that 13.5. you can add 1000 batteries and you will stay @ 13.5 volts at idle.

btw: if your at 12.9 or 13.1 at idle with system off you need to do the big three because im willing to be some wire is corroded. you should be in the 14V range.

 

[hoodkid 10+ year member]

yea thats probally why at idle im at like 13.4- 13.8, im going to have a local shop do the big 3 for me tomrrow though, ill keep yall updated

 

[hoodkid 10+ year member]

got the big 3 done today, and it didnt make a difference //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/confused.gif.e820e0216602db4765798ac39d28caa9.gif, my system still idles @ like 13.5, and at full tilt drops down to like 11.8 - 12.5

 

[IgnoreMe 5,000+ posts]

got the big 3 done today, and it didnt make a difference //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/confused.gif.e820e0216602db4765798ac39d28caa9.gif, my system still idles @ like 13.5, and at full tilt drops down to like 11.8 - 12.5

the big 3 really doesnt help that much if all connections and wiring is already good.

its better to have it done like that, especially once you upgrade the alternator (as having 200A+ running through 8g wire isnt very good) but for the most part unless you have a corroded wire or a bad ground you wont notice an increase in voltage.

your alternator is probably regulated to sit at around that level. anywhere from 13.5 or so to 14.5 is about normal depending on manufacturer. even with a HO alt, dont expect it to raise your voltage to 14+, like many people do. it will still be regulated to about 13.X but it has the current to back up the system now.

btw: even with an HO alt, you can expect decent voltage drops with that amp. that amp is no joke, and even efficienct as it is, you cant expect a 200A alt to solve your electrical issue completly. but it looks like you got a good start with the 2nd upgraded battery. i run a kx (2.96kw @ 2 ohms) @ 1.4 ohms on a upgraded battery and a 200A alt and still get good voltage drops (not anywhere near what i got with a stock alt, but still decent enough to suggest getting at least 1 extra battery for the system)

 

[hoodkid 10+ year member]

im probally going to get a 200 amp alt, and another yellowtop

 

[SeanDub 10+ year member]

You need to have someone take a look at your charging system. Maybe your stock alt is bad. Charging at idle is supposed to be 13.8 - 14.4 on a 12 volt system. What kind of car is this?

 

[hoodkid 10+ year member]

1995 Caprice, I'm thinking that my alt is bad too, I plan to get it amped up to 200 amps or just buy a new one next month, i'll keep yall posted!

 

[ThatChevyGuy 5,000+ posts]

alt is weak. when i got my first big system, it dropped to 11.3 and stayed there, and my alty just went out. I managed to drive 20 miles, but then the car finally died.

 

[UndercoverPunk 5,000+ posts]

LOL, when I hooked up the ZX in the new car it was killing the voltage. Did the big three, and the dips got WAY BIGGER, Tossed in the G31, didn't help much, then put in the 200A alt and things FINALLY settled down.

 

[hoodkid 10+ year member]

LOL, when I hooked up the ZX in the new car it was killing the voltage. Did the big three, and the dips got WAY BIGGER, Tossed in the G31, didn't help much, then put in the 200A alt and things FINALLY settled down.

lol r you serious?, Over the days though I have noticed that the big 3 and the extra battery does help a lil but to get my voltage back up to 13.3- 13.5 after magor dips, buts its not a magor improvement

 

[UndercoverPunk 5,000+ posts]

Now that I think about it, that's out of order, I put in the D31t before I did the big three. When I did the Big three my voltage dips did get much worse, then after I put the big alt it everything smoothed out nicely.

My theory is that before the big three, with just the big battery in the back there probably was a lot less current heading to the back due to the lack of a good ground up front, so the PCM wasn't seeing as high of a voltage drop.

Then when I did the big three the power was more evenly distributed so the voltage up front at the PCM dropped more quickly.

Just my theory, I know what I saw though.

 

[hoodkid 10+ year member]

dam, I just cant wait till I get my alternator beefed up, I might put my yellowtop up front and put like a kinetic 2400 in the back