Resistance Problems

[pioneerisloud 10+ year member]

what impedance are your subs?
edit: nvm

dual 4 ohm coils. And what I'm trying to say....is this entire setup runs just fine at 4ohms (with 2 subs). I just kinda lost one sub.

 

[Pioneer~Saturn 5,000+ posts]

dual 4 ohm coils. And what I'm trying to say....is this entire setup runs just fine at 4ohms (with 2 subs). I just kinda lost one sub.

//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wow.gif.23d729408e9177caa2a0ed6a2ba6588e.gif//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/crap.gif.7f4dd41e3e9b23fbd170a1ee6f65cecc.gif...no, thats not what he was asking..//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif

 

[pioneerisloud 10+ year member]

//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wow.gif.23d729408e9177caa2a0ed6a2ba6588e.gif//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/crap.gif.7f4dd41e3e9b23fbd170a1ee6f65cecc.gif...no, thats not what he was asking..//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif

I'm lost then. I thought that impedance meant resistance.

 

[mtlhead 10+ year member]

//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wow.gif.23d729408e9177caa2a0ed6a2ba6588e.gif//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/crap.gif.7f4dd41e3e9b23fbd170a1ee6f65cecc.gif...no, thats not what he was asking..//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif

no...thats what i meant

 

[Pioneer~Saturn 5,000+ posts]

Wow...I phail. I read it wrong, i thought he said 'impedance rise' before...ive gone artard for a minute...//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/crap.gif.7f4dd41e3e9b23fbd170a1ee6f65cecc.gif

 

[Rashaddd 5,000+ posts]

Your car only needs a certain number of cranking amps (CCA) in order for it to turn the engine over and start the car, if you can do that, your battery is enough.

What gauge power wire do you have to your amp..? Like I said its probably too small...especially considering you acted like you were thinking of upgrading to 8 gauge...and a 40 amp fuse? 40 amps of current draw is enough for about 400 watts rms...

 

[pioneerisloud 10+ year member]

Your car only needs a certain number of cranking amps (CCA) in order for it to turn the engine over and start the car, if you can do that, your battery is enough.
What gauge power wire do you have to your amp..? Like I said its probably too small...especially considering you acted like you were thinking of upgrading to 8 gauge...and a 40 amp fuse? 40 amps of current draw is enough for about 400 watts rms...

I currently run an 8 gauge kit with a 40a fuse. And I believe (could be wrong), that if I put in bigger wire, that's just going to cause more problems right now. That would mean the amplifier has the ability to draw even more power (gain is almost all the way down ATM). Which would cause an even bigger drain on my electrical system. I'm pretty sure its just my extreme cheapo battery. But it was perfectly fine when I was running a 4ohm load with 2 subs. It just started acting up when I lost a sub (dropping the load to 2ohms).

 

[Pioneer~Saturn 5,000+ posts]

I currently run an 8 gauge kit with a 40a fuse. And I believe (could be wrong), that if I put in bigger wire, that's just going to cause more problems right now. That would mean the amplifier has the ability to draw even more power (gain is almost all the way down ATM). Which would cause an even bigger drain on my electrical system. I'm pretty sure its just my extreme cheapo battery. But it was perfectly fine when I was running a 4ohm load with 2 subs. It just started acting up when I lost a sub (dropping the load to 2ohms).

No, it'd make your electrical setup more efficient in transferring the current..

 

[pioneerisloud 10+ year member]

No, it'd make your electrical setup more efficient in transferring the current..

So if I am understanding this correctly:

Run a 4 gauge kit (ouch, that's gonna take a couple months to buy) with roughly a 60a fuse. 60a should be PLENTY considering the amp can only draw up to 60a.

Put in a better battery up front (good luck finding one that'll fit).

Do I pretty much have it down?

If so...what CAN I do in the meantime...short of running the sub at 8ohms?

 

[Pioneer~Saturn 5,000+ posts]

So if I am understanding this correctly:
Run a 4 gauge kit (ouch, that's gonna take a couple months to buy) with roughly a 60a fuse. 60a should be PLENTY considering the amp can only draw up to 60a.

Put in a better battery up front (good luck finding one that'll fit).

Do I pretty much have it down?

If so...what CAN I do in the meantime...short of running the sub at 8ohms?

Yes, I would most definitely step up to 4 gauge...and as for the fuse, remember, it isnt there to protect the amp (though it is a good idea to make the ratings come close to the amps max current draw)...its there incase your power cable grounds itself and short-circuits, the amp should have its own protection...be it fuses or circuitry inside to go into protect-mode.

But yes..

-A new, good battery (such as XS Power, Kinetik, Stinger, BatCap, Yellow Top, Northstar, Odyssey etc.)

-4 gauge all around (including upgrading the Big-3 under the hood to atleast 4-gauge...I would use 1/0 gauge)

-60 amp fuse should do fine

-Make sure to find a good ground as well that is scrapped clear of paint and dirt and cleaned before making the connection

That right there should solve it, and it is pretty easy to do and not ridiculously expensive or anything.

PS-I would just try upgrading your wiring and do the Big-3 before the battery because I bet that may be enough to help the situation..and head to knukonceptz.com and check out their power wire...very reasonable prices for good power wire (try the klmx...good wire and great price)

 

[pioneerisloud 10+ year member]

Yes, I would most definitely step up to 4 gauge...and as for the fuse, remember, it isnt there to protect the amp (though it is a good idea to make the ratings come close to the amps max current draw)...its there incase your power cable grounds itself and short-circuits, the amp should have its own protection...be it fuses or circuitry inside to go into protect-mode.
But yes..

-A new, good battery (such as XS Power, Kinetik, Stinger, BatCap, Yellow Top, Northstar, Odyssey etc.)

-4 gauge all around (including upgrading the Big-3 under the hood to atleast 4-gauge...I would use 1/0 gauge)

-60 amp fuse should do fine

-Make sure to find a good ground as well that is scrapped clear of paint and dirt and cleaned before making the connection

That right there should solve it, and it is pretty easy to do and not ridiculously expensive or anything.

PS-I would just try upgrading your wiring and do the Big-3 before the battery because I bet that may be enough to help the situation..and head to knukonceptz.com and check out their power wire...very reasonable prices for good power wire (try the klmx...good wire and great price)

Okay, so here's the steps I will take:

Do the big-3 with 00 gauge wire (I already have about 16ft of it)

Install a better battery (I know I need a better battery anyway. Looking at a gold Duralast from Autozone with 700cca)

Run a 4ga kit.

Will 2x 8ga kits ran in parallel WORK instead of running a single 4ga kit? If so, I could do that for free, and use 30a fuse per wire. I've got MORE than enough 8ga wire, and enough 00ga wire to do the big 3. So all I'd have to buy is battery clamps (and whatever other clamps I need) and a battery. I can afford that in a couple months of saving.

 

[Pioneer~Saturn 5,000+ posts]

Yea, the dual 8-gauge will work i suppose...and after you upgrade that, dont forget the under-hood upgrades as well....like alternator to positive, chassis to negative, and engine block to negative...they are a big part of that getting better

 

[pioneerisloud 10+ year member]

Yea, the dual 8-gauge will work i suppose...and after you upgrade that, dont forget the under-hood upgrades as well....like alternator to positive, chassis to negative, and engine block to negative...they are a big part of that getting better

Of course....I have 00 gauge wire that I will use for that from my old car (charging wire for rear kinetik batteries). I can use that for my big 3. Its just sitting in a box right now in my closet. Might as well put it to use.

 

[TurdFergueson2 5,000+ posts]

I appreciate the actual help you are providing //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/wink.gif.608e3ea05f1a9f98611af0861652f8fb.gif.
I already have backed the gain down a notch.

Here's my plans:

Run 2-3 more cheap batteries inside the trunk (I'm broke, leave it alone please).

Run my 8ga kit to said batteries with a 40a fuse as a charging wire. Run 8ga from those batteries to my amplifier.

Wouldn't that help solve my issue?

My other thought was to run a 2ohm resistor and wire it in series with the sub in the meantime. I don't know if that'll work though.

Please just take the advice given. If you ae asking what to do, follow the advice please.

There are too many solutions to your problem. One would be to get a better box. Next would be to get better wiring to your amp. Run 1/0 wire to a fused distro and 4 gauge to the amp. yeah, 1/0 is overkill, but you have some room for upgrade. Hang around here and you will upgrade.

Do a search for how to do the big 3. When i first say it, I thought it was some bullshit, but I can swear by it now.

If you want to be into this even casually, just do it correctly the first time. You'll save yourself a lot of time and headache doing so. For your immediate problem, I would redo all of my wiring.

http://cgi.ebay.com/KICKER-PKD1-1-0-GAUGE-DUAL-AMP-KIT-AMPLIFIER-0_W0QQitemZ290245984355QQihZ019QQcategoryZ14932QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD1VQQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1638Q2em118Q2el1247

I'd go with that being that you plan on running batteries in the back. You may also need a few feet of additional wire.

Before I did anything else, I would do the big 3 upgrade my wiring to the amps and change my battery. You will without a doubt see a difference.