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Official CarAudio.com Big 3 Thread
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<blockquote data-quote="kopimon" data-source="post: 5766552" data-attributes="member: 598990"><p>Alternators can provide much more power than you think. If you have a 4x75W RMS amplifier and a 1x400W RMS amplifier, that's 700W RMS. Let's assume the amps are only 80% efficient, so 560W RMS.</p><p></p><p>Average output voltage of an alternator is 13.8V, so 560/13.8=40.5A. Considering that music signals use 1/3rd the average power of a test tone, that brings you down to 40.5/3 = 13.52 amps.</p><p></p><p>My numbers were off the top of my head, but it's enough to make my point. While your car is running it uses about 40% of the alternator's available output current (more when you have the AC on), so any modern car should be able to handle a basic system with no problem.</p><p></p><p>Adding a larger wire doesn't make the alternator put out its max current all the time. It just provides a less-resistive path for the electricity to flow, meaning more and cleaner power gets to the amps (and the rest of the car).</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="kopimon, post: 5766552, member: 598990"] Alternators can provide much more power than you think. If you have a 4x75W RMS amplifier and a 1x400W RMS amplifier, that's 700W RMS. Let's assume the amps are only 80% efficient, so 560W RMS. Average output voltage of an alternator is 13.8V, so 560/13.8=40.5A. Considering that music signals use 1/3rd the average power of a test tone, that brings you down to 40.5/3 = 13.52 amps. My numbers were off the top of my head, but it's enough to make my point. While your car is running it uses about 40% of the alternator's available output current (more when you have the AC on), so any modern car should be able to handle a basic system with no problem. Adding a larger wire doesn't make the alternator put out its max current all the time. It just provides a less-resistive path for the electricity to flow, meaning more and cleaner power gets to the amps (and the rest of the car). [/QUOTE]
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