Volts?????

[DeGr33z 10+ year member]

Im trying to see how many volts my system is pulling. I dont know how to check my alternuator to see what it pushes. Is there any way to check it, or could someone explain how to check, if its 90, 120. 140 or 200.Reason i asked this is, because i notice my kicker dont hit as hard when im driving. When i first start the car up it has that glass breaking bass feel.(dynamat is in the trunk/doors). I got duralast red top batterys. I didnt have enough money for 2 kinetics, but i will get next time around. Also, do you think if i upgrade batterys ill get consistent volts?

Ps:My alt is stock. I really dont want upgrade alt because the guy told me 700 dollars,and im trying to save for touch screen in dash.

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[youngmillion 10+ year member]

What up homie you know i got tha same problem

 

[alias3r 10+ year member]

hmmm how do i know how good my alternator is? does having constant voltage have to do with the amps? or with the battery? or a combo?

 

[nauc 10+ year member]

you probably need a more powerful alt, stock are only around 60 amps

$700 for a alt?, someones playin you

 

[95BlackGA 5,000+ posts]

It shouldn't be $700 for new HO alt. 200-300 at most. What is the stock amperage of the alt? You can get it rewound at local shops, and it should be cheaper than buying a new alt.

 

[xtremebassjunky 10+ year member]

do you mean amp draw? or voltage drop? clarify that for me please... I get the impression you mean amp draw....

also... 2 red tops on a 1500w amp should be decent I would imagine...

 

[GMCJimmyslt2000 10+ year member]

do u have dimming or any type of signs of low voltage?

 

[reed dollaz 10+ year member]

upgrading the alt isnt bad, but what your explaining is in reverse. when your driving you should be losing any response in bass. if your losing voltage, it wouldnt give out as much at idle, and normally send the amps into protect mode or the drivers will stop playing. so, for you saying it "hits harder" at idle/start up than it does when driving and charging the battery, im confused. dunno what to tell u

 

[XanderMoser 10+ year member]

When you're actually driving, you won't hear or feel as much bass because the noise in the car will be much louder than when just sitting there. I'm not sure if this is your problem, but it sounds like it's part of it.

To check your voltage, get a digital multimeter. Radioshack is fine. Set it to DC volts (20). Now put the red lead on the battery positive, and the black lead on the battery negative. It doesn't matter what battery you do it on, it is a total system voltage. It will be the same everywhere (should be anyway). Do this while your car is off, and do it when your car is on. You can also try it with the system on with the car running. With the car off, voltage should be around 12. With the car on, it should be closer to 13.5 or so.

you probably need a more powerful alt, stock are only around 60 amps

Most stock alternators are higher than that...I'm not saying there aren't any 60 amp alternators, but it's not that common. My stock alternator is 120 amps.

 

[audioarsonal 10+ year member]

$700 isn't high most any thing over 200 amps will be 450-600 and if you get an external regulator to get 17volts thats about $100 so that's bout right.Check out Iraggi alts on ebay Dom has a store there with prices and ouput.If you can't find it there email him he can do ANYTHING you need!!

 

[ballstothewall 10+ year member]

You are confusing voltage and amps. You can test to see how many amperes the amplifier is drawing by using a clamp meter, or you can test to see what the voltage drop is by using a simple DMM.

 

[DeGr33z 10+ year member]

Yea i got a little confused with volts and amps. Let me try to clarify whats going on.When i first turn my car on, everything feels like its brand new. My back seat is down most of the time. The air pressure is emmensive, but after while i have to put my remote gain knob at max to gets results.(That Loud Feeling) My headlights blink at times.(not all the time). Guess what my real question is, What do i have to do to keep my bass amp from dropping.(Feels like it doesn't pull enough at times.)

Also, I only have 4gauge power/ground.(all wires/distributors are rockford fosgate.) Reason i got confused is, because in the manual it said a 140amp alt minium for this kicker amp. How can my system run off of something below that? Thats why i wanted to check my alt. Yea yea and i know 4g is not in the same league as 1/0 gauge. Im not a professional, and it seemed hard to run 0 gauge. Plus i thought my cars electrical system would die.

 

[alias3r 10+ year member]

upgrading the alt isnt bad, but what your explaining is in reverse. when your driving you should be losing any response in bass. if your losing voltage, it wouldnt give out as much at idle, and normally send the amps into protect mode or the drivers will stop playing. so, for you saying it "hits harder" at idle/start up than it does when driving and charging the battery, im confused. dunno what to tell u

i heard that systems are louder when you first start the car and your battery is fresh, and that when you're driving, u lose some power from your battery. maybe i have it backwards tho. im pretty sure thats what i heard tho.

 

[audioarsonal 10+ year member]

voltage will drop as the battery heats up but it shouldn't be enough to tell a differance.what is the voltage of your batteries before you turn your car on?if its 12.0or below you might need to charge your batts.did you buy both of them at the same time?one battery could be pullin from the other causing you to lose power.try charging them for 24 hours and see if it still does it.