Upgrade electrical, where should I start?

[xmakeafistx 10+ year member]

How about one of those C&D batteries that RAM had up? or maybe two?... Just ordered some 2/0 gauge wiring for the big 3.

Thank you everyone for the help, Yeah, I was really leaning on just buying batteries rather than buying an H/O alt or doing dual alt..

 

[Team TH (Donny) 10+ year member]

I ran about 2000 Wrms off a 85 amp stock alt from the time I bought the truck until I sold it. Setup was at .5 ohm load daily only had a red top battery from Autozone, lol. So, at 1000 Wrms if you don't want to spend the extra cash right now just do the big 3 perhaps a new battery like some of which has already been suggested on this thread and you will be ok. I also hit 150 db in the kick with that setup, btw. If you have the money then by all means upgrade, but we all know its the recession got to do what you got to do...

 

[dipitydoo 10+ year member]

op, what is your goal in upgrading the electrical system? eliminate/reduce dimming lights? minimize voltage drop to maintain power output? properly keep battery(s) charged? do you play your system with the engine off frequently? knowing why you want to upgrade will determine what you need to do. as an example, in my system, i have moderate dimming lights at very high bass levels. but this problem is tolerable for me given the price to upgrade the alternator. the stock alternator keeps the battery sufficiently charged. to me, its a luxury upgrade, but not a necessity, given my listening habits.

 

[xmakeafistx 10+ year member]

I am looking to upgrade to be 100 percent safe when I decide to run more power. So far my lights do not dim whatsoever, & I run about 13.8v idle.

I want to minimize voltage drop when it comes to the time I run more power also, & yeah I'm looking to save as much money as I can..

I am a 17 year old working at mcdonalds, can't really keep up with paying for an h/o alt. & when I buy the C&D battery, would it be better to run it in the front or the back?.. May be a dumb question but I figured better safe than sorry.

Also thanks Donny, Its good to hear what people can run off of a stock alt, keeps me hopeful hah.

 

[Jd377 10+ year member]

Cheapest upgrade is def. doing the big 3 upgrade. From my expericence.. I did big 3 first then added a second batt later, then got an HO alt... I wish I bought the HO alt first.... IT will solve most problems.. IF you get big batts without HO alt, your batts will drain faster than they get recharged by stock alt and causes problems! //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif get HO alt. You can get a 170a for about 250-300. A good battery would cost about 300 anyway..

 

[i2ain2thunder 10+ year member]

Its a toss up.....do the big 3 first to see where your charge rate is at. If you have dimming issues and it's almost as loud as you want but not quite get a battery. If you have severe dimming issues and your battery doesn't sit at a full charge when the car is off after you've been playing the system then you want to go with a HO first to avoid hurting the battery/amp at all, but you could survive for a while prob with a better battery. HO alts really aren't needed till you are USING at least like 2k watts rms.

 

[i2ain2thunder 10+ year member]

I would like to add that having more then enough electrical for your system is very good, it keeps you from being tempted to use bassboost or anything to get loud, and it helps protect all of your equipment from issues with low-voltage. As amps are not made to handle less voltage then 12volts really. Also if you are going to stay in the car audio game for a while and might be upgradeing it feels pretty good to have the electrical to change up whatever you want whenever you want and never have to worry about it. If you are planning on keeping your current vehicle for 3 or more years it is very worth it to have a HO alternator to avoid any number of issues....even a smaller system 1k watts or so can shorten the life of your stock alternator, and it is no fun when those die out of the blue.

 

[Team TH (Donny) 10+ year member]

Its a toss up.....do the big 3 first to see where your charge rate is at. If you have dimming issues and it's almost as loud as you want but not quite get a battery. If you have severe dimming issues and your battery doesn't sit at a full charge when the car is off after you've been playing the system then you want to go with a HO first to avoid hurting the battery/amp at all, but you could survive for a while prob with a better battery. HO alts really aren't needed till you are USING at least like 2k watts rms.

^ This ^

I would like to add that having more then enough electrical for your system is very good, it keeps you from being tempted to use bassboost or anything to get loud, and it helps protect all of your equipment from issues with low-voltage. As amps are not made to handle less voltage then 12volts really. Also if you are going to stay in the car audio game for a while and might be upgradeing it feels pretty good to have the electrical to change up whatever you want whenever you want and never have to worry about it. If you are planning on keeping your current vehicle for 3 or more years it is very worth it to have a HO alternator to avoid any number of issues....even a smaller system 1k watts or so can shorten the life of your stock alternator, and it is no fun when those die out of the blue.

I forgot to mention that the amp I was running at the time can run 10-18v. My electrical ran at 11.5v when music was playing. Running just 1krms will be a lot different because in a previous system I had in same truck as mentioned I clamped 1200 Wrms and never dropped below 12.2v. The alt will be stressed over time, though I think you will be ok to get by with extra battery and big 3 until you save up the cash for a HO alt. The less you drop in V the more power you'll put out anyway. I know how money can be tight, so I'd do what I described. When I had my firebird I had big 3, an extra Kinetik 2400, and a 180 amp alt and never dropped below 14.3v pushing 2krms.

 

[Jd377 10+ year member]

Def. do the big 3 first and see where it leaves you. It could be as simple as that, so try to do it whenever you get a chance and then get back to us with your results.

 

[dipitydoo 10+ year member]

i'm not sure if there is such a thing as 100% 'safe', depending on what you mean by that, but given limited funds, best thing to do is to install system, and upgrade as needed. big three is cheap, so good place to start. minimizing voltage drop can be done through upgraded battery, HO alternator, or both. but really, mild to moderate voltage drop will not result in big audible difference. you should be more concerned with the alternator's ability to properly charge your battery. if you don't run into problems starting your vehicle, you are okay. it may not be ideal, but for practical purposes, it would be 'safe'. i would recommend against a second battery in most cases. that's another load for the stock alternator to charge. upgrading to a larger main battery, if it fits, can help buffer some of the voltage drop, without taxing the alternator too much. it all depends on your listening habits and music selection. two people can have the exact same car and exact same system, and their upgrade necessities may be different.