Amp and alternator question

**Archaelas** · 12-09-2009, 05:50 AM

I have an aftermarket head unit, a Pioneer, in my 98 T/A vert currently but am planning on replacing that. The guy I bought the car from pulled out the monsoon system and put components in (but absolutely no subs...) with a 220W Amp. I'm planning on putting my two 10s in the trunk with a 600W Pyle and two of the ED 6.5" DVC subs in the sails with their Nine.2 amp to power those.

So my question is, with all three of those amps, am I going to need a higher output alternator? I ended up needing one in my 89 LX 5.0 Mustang after just a 400W amp and two 10s. If I do need one, does anyone know a reliable place to get one (local would be better, I'm in Marietta, GA just NW of Atlanta)?

**wenn_du_weinst** · 12-09-2009, 02:47 PM

I doubt you will. I didn't need one in my blazer until 1800 rms was ran in it

**KMdef9** · 12-09-2009, 04:05 PM

What happens is all that draw kills your battery. When your battery is constantly losing and gaining voltage, it works the alternator harder. Since your not running too high of wattage, I would simply get a deep cycle (faster recharge time) battery, I have heard optima have fallen off, so I would avoid them.

If your lights flicker really bad and the bass falls off b/c of lack of power, a power capacitor or 2nd battery may be needed.

Caps (power capacitors) will help the life of your battery and in turn your alternator, usually always a good idea to have these no matter how big or small your system is.

I would only suggest a better (higher amp) alternator if you ever plan on adding a second battery. Twice the battery means twice the work on the alternator.

**Archaelas** · 12-10-2009, 05:33 AM

Awesome, thanks. I'd never gone with this much wattage before, just got 600W a few months before I got the T/A and only had that in car I was driving before. I was planning on getting a newer battery anyway (just don't like the way mine looks, looks old...) so I'll look for something with a fast recharge. Any suggestions on brand?

I also got a power cap from a friend here at work. It's a 1.2 Farad cap, not really sure how to wire it up though having never used them before.

**Dabom75** · 12-10-2009, 11:10 AM

Just wire the positive side in the wire running to amp and then ground it where available.

Make sure it is precharged or it can kill its power holding capacity.

Most come with a light bulb with wires coming off of it for the first charge. Just put it in your inline fuse holder and when it burns out it is charged. If it is one he has used previously it should not need to have it done again.

I learned this the hard way when I shorted mine out just hooking it up the first time and had to go buy new cap.

**KMdef9** · 12-10-2009, 12:18 PM

Originally Posted by Dabom75

Just wire the positive side in the wire running to amp and then ground it where available.

Make sure it is precharged or it can kill its power holding capacity.

Most come with a light bulb with wires coming off of it for the first charge. Just put it in your inline fuse holder and when it burns out it is charged. If it is one he has used previously it should not need to have it done again.

I learned this the hard way when I shorted mine out just hooking it up the first time and had to go buy new cap.

Yes, yes and yes. Need to make sure it's charge before you hook it up to the amp. If you got it preowned, it should be charged as said above, but it can't hurt to double check.

I'm not positive, so please look it up first, but I think all you have to do is hook the one end up to the battery and ground the other end. You may have to look up if your cap is polazized, meaning there is a specific way to charge them (Calling the manufacturer usually is the best route) Only have to do that for 10-15 seconds at the most and it should be fully charged. But double check this info before trying.

Then wire like written above. Also, do yourself a favor and make sure the fuse is pulled out when installing.