still having dimming with big three done

[phemps 10+ year member]

Yup, after my Kinetik is in place, that will be my next step if the new batt doesn't address it.

X2 that's my approach. Big 3, batts, and lastly the go alt. It's 650 bucks so I can't just jump right into that

 

[AlterEgo99 5,000+ posts]

Yup...I created a new chassis ground point with the 1/0 Knu wire and a new frame ground point as well right from the same location on the block where the negative battery post grounds to. Cleaned off the frame under one of the strut bolts...nice solid ground. Still dims...and my bass amp is only a Alpine 1.600. I've moved the amp grounds around as well. They are grounded well, but the dimming continues.

I'll keep you posted on what happens altho there was another dude on here with an '07 Avalanche who replaced his stock batt with an HC1800 and still had dimming issues. But I'd like to think my stock AC Delco 70Ah batt is just not able to handle the load...we shall see in the next couple of days! If not, the HO alt. is the next step. ****, this shit is sooooo much fun to diagnose isn't it? Fun and oh so cheap! //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/tongue.gif.6130eb82179565f6db8d26d6001dcd24.gif

 

[smoka 10+ year member]

HO alternator, I think that should be the start of every car audio build.

Absolutely wrong, especially for a system near 1kw.

 

[smoka 10+ year member]

Thats why its a good idea to run a ground cable along with your power cable. Most will argue its a waste, but at least you are guaranteed a good ground connection.

If you guys want to check your grounds, then there are two ways. Do it at your own risk.

Test 1 (check ground with no load): with car off, get a decent ohm meter and a long piece of wire (size not really important). First measure the ohms from both ends of the wire (will be very small number, this is the wires resistance). Then connect one end of the wire to your batt neg terminal. With the ohm meter connect one lead to the end of the wire that runs to your batt neg, and the other lead touch to your amp ground. Take that reading (ground resistance) minus the wire resistance you saw earlier. If your result is greater than xx ohms, then you have a bad ground. If you don't see any resistance, then you could still have a bad ground and you can try the next test.

Test 2: (check ground with load) Keep the wire connected to your batt neg. Now start your car up and have your radio blasting so the dimming occurs. Switch your meter to measure DC volts. Now connect one lead to your amp ground again and the other lead to the wire again. The voltage should always read 0 volts. If you see any small voltage when the bass hits and the lights dim then you have a bad ground.

 

[smoka 10+ year member]

honestly if i had the choice and it wasnt a pain in the *** i would do it to all my systems. knowing i could bump it without problems is nice and having headorom is nicer.

(More headroom) vs (less horsepower/worse gas mileage with little to no noticeable difference until you upgrade battery capacity)

I'm not against them, but they should not the start build unless you are planning on 2kw+ IMHO.

 

[Twista89 10+ year member]

I have a 1200 watt amp and a 400 watt amp on my 105 amp alternator with Big 3 done and red top duralast battery for now and I only get dimming at idle and close to full tilt...I can usually play the subs at 6/8th full tilt and not get dimming when Im idling...Full tilt I usually get voltage drops to around 12.7 1500rpms full tilt never go below 13.4...

 

[AlterEgo99 5,000+ posts]

Thats why its a good idea to run a ground cable along with your power cable. Most will argue its a waste, but at least you are guaranteed a good ground connection.
If you guys want to check your grounds, then there are two ways. Do it at your own risk.

Test 1 (check ground with no load): with car off, get a decent ohm meter and a long piece of wire (size not really important). First measure the ohms from both ends of the wire (will be very small number, this is the wires resistance). Then connect one end of the wire to your batt neg terminal. With the ohm meter connect one lead to the end of the wire that runs to your batt neg, and the other lead touch to your amp ground. Take that reading (ground resistance) minus the wire resistance you saw earlier. If your result is greater than xx ohms, then you have a bad ground. If you don't see any resistance, then you could still have a bad ground and you can try the next test.

Test 2: (check ground with load) Keep the wire connected to your batt neg. Now start your car up and have your radio blasting so the dimming occurs. Switch your meter to measure DC volts. Now connect one lead to your amp ground again and the other lead to the wire again. The voltage should always read 0 volts. If you see any small voltage when the bass hits and the lights dim then you have a bad ground.

I've performed Test 1 before and gotten next to 0, but have also been told, as you said, it could still be a bad ground. I'll give Test 2 a try and see if I get any volatge. Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[mk_ 10+ year member]

Absolutely wrong, especially for a system near 1kw.

Absolutely wrong huh? Please explain why starting at the generator of power would be absolutely wrong. This is a car audio forum not a racing forum so let's not try and make HP/gas mileage a point. If either was a concern 100+ lbs systems and batteries probably shouldn't be considered anyhow.

The dimming would be associated with the generator not being sufficient enough in regards to the electrical system. I don't see how upgrading the heart of the electrical system can even remotely be considered absolutely wrong.

Enlighten us car audio god.

 

[smoka 10+ year member]

Absolutely wrong huh? Please explain why starting at the generator of power would be absolutely wrong. This is a car audio forum not a racing forum so let's not try and make HP/gas mileage a point. If either was a concern 100+ lbs systems and batteries probably shouldn't be considered anyhow.
The dimming would be associated with the generator not being sufficient enough in regards to the electrical system. I don't see how upgrading the heart of the electrical system can even remotely be considered absolutely wrong.

Enlighten us car audio god.

This doesn't have much to do with car audio, its more just common sense and a little electrical theory.

Lesson 1: Music is very dynamic. An amplifiers demand for current is changing constantly and very quickly. An alternator simply isn't designed for a fast changing output.

Lesson 2: You are confusing an alternator with a battery. The battery is the heart of a cars electrical system. It takes all the abuse of the constant load changes. In simple terms, you could say the battery filters out the load spikes in the electrical system. Really the alt should mostly be considered/used to keep the battery(s) fully charged.

Lesson 3: If you upgrade to a HO alt and only have a stock batt, compared to, if you upgrade to a good AGM batt and only have a stock alt, which do you think should be the first upgrade?

Like I said above, HO alts are great, but to say its the heart/beginning of your electrical upgrade is just wrong.

 

[smoka 10+ year member]

I've performed Test 1 before and gotten next to 0, but have also been told, as you said, it could still be a bad ground. I'll give Test 2 a try and see if I get any volatge. Thanks for the suggestion.

The first test will just tell you that a ground connection is present, but if your 0ga cable is acting like a 8ga cable because of bad connections in the frame, you can't tell unless you have a load on your amp. As you draw high power through your ground, any resistance will become more noticable.

When the amp is pulling alot of power you will get a voltage drop across your amp terminals (whether you have a good or bad ground). You want to compare the voltage drop across your batt to the voltage drop across your amp. If there is a difference, then you have a bad ground. By using a meter with a spare wire attached, you can check for any potential voltage which will only occur if the voltage drops are not equal.

Hope that makes sense, your best bet is to use a test tone cd or a song that has a constant high amount of bass to make any voltage difference stand out.

Or save yourself the trouble and just run a permanent 0ga ground cable to your amp from the battery.

 

[mk_ 10+ year member]

This doesn't have much to do with car audio, its more just common sense and a little electrical theory.
Lesson 1: Music is very dynamic. An amplifiers demand for current is changing constantly and very quickly. An alternator simply isn't designed for a fast changing output.

Lesson 2: You are confusing an alternator with a battery. The battery is the heart of a cars electrical system. It takes all the abuse of the constant load changes. In simple terms, you could say the battery filters out the load spikes in the electrical system. Really the alt should mostly be considered/used to keep the battery(s) fully charged.

Lesson 3: If you upgrade to a HO alt and only have a stock batt, compared to, if you upgrade to a good AGM batt and only have a stock alt, which do you think should be the first upgrade?

Like I said above, HO alts are great, but to say its the heart/beginning of your electrical upgrade is just wrong.

Listen man, I can certainly see what you're saying. I understand a car battery can often be called the heart of a car's electrical system. I'm going to go against the grain and make a point. You don't run a car on just a battery. That battery is there to start the vehicle and be the in between of the generator and the electrical components of a vehicle. You can run the vehicle off a battery... sure, it won't get you too far and be reliable in doing so. Without your sufficient supply of power to recharge the battery you're getting no where. The battery isn't supplying the power by itself (with the engine not running, it is) but rather through the alternator. If you have a weak alt, the battery is not going to be too far behind unless something is done to remedy the situation. Truly, I think you can look at the situation from either perspective and be right. I don't think upgrading a critical component of the electrical system is wrong, and without extraordinary explanation, I won't change that thinking.

So in conclusion to my poorly written thesis statement, without alternator, your car will not work very long and reliably and without heart you wont last very long or reliably.

And just to add, I'm not saying youre wrong, because without battery, car wont start at all - thus creating a larger problem at hand!

 

[smoka 10+ year member]

Truly, I think you can look at the situation from either perspective and be right. I don't think upgrading a critical component of the electrical system is wrong, and without extraordinary explanation, I won't change that thinking.
So in conclusion to my poorly written thesis statement, without alternator, your car will not work very long and reliably and without heart you wont last very long or reliably.

And just to add, I'm not saying youre wrong, because without battery, car wont start at all - thus creating a larger problem at hand!

^ I agree, no point in continuing a chicken vs egg arguement. There may be more pure electric cars coming out, but for the car audio fan its going to be a long time before we can give up our alts!

Btw nice tweets, how do you like them? I have the same ones but not far enough into my install to hear them yet.

 

[mk_ 10+ year member]

Whoa, forgot about this thread! I really like the tweeters, I switched to the Z6 tweeters just because I never used them before. It's a toss up which set is better but both were fun to play with when I was running active.