ugly_duck

tHE PROBLEM WITH rewound/ "performance" alts is that they require mor rpms to function properrly. This leads to high or un stable idle RPMs. Unfortunately a higher amp alt is tough on our 1.5l plus they rob what hp we have due to the extra stress to run them effectively.
But if you need one you need one. I believe we have a 90 amp alt.
A mild to moderate system >1000 watts should operate fine with a ret top up front and a cheap 1 farad cap to fill the gaps.

Huskersnow

I do not run a capacitor, I only run one Optima battery. But it is your choice with what you want to do. My system does fine with my optima and there is no headlight dimming or any other electrical issues.

ugly_duck

Well think about it. A alt provides recharging for you battery not the other way around.
If the alt has trouble charging one battery effectively how would another batt fix the issue. It would only prolong the batt charging issue and tax the alt more.
MAKE SENSE???
2 Batteries would help only when the car is off.

Huskersnow

Edited because I came off as an A**hole....................



Believe what you want about the alternator issue. It's your car not mine.

My Optima works fine and solved my problem.

Minsk99

In certain cases I would think a second battery would help. Think E=IR. What you are tying to do is keep up with the current or Amperage demands (draw down) of your ride. If resistance (R) remains constant and E (voltage) is increased from adding a second battery, then your Amperage (I) has to increase. Its basically the same thing as adding a second water pump to a well if the demands of the water current increases.

DB_Fan_4_Life

Nice try with the formula, but you are not adding voltage.....when put in parallel voltage stays the same and amperage does increase, series wired you will increase the voltage and amperage stays the same. Increasing the amperage available by adding an additional battery ONLY makes the need for more supply from an alternator even greater! This is why you definitely need to upgrade to a high output alternator.
If you have a small system, say under 1000W, adding a battery or a high farad cap will probably do the trick...once you get above 1000W you are only prolonging the innevitable and your stock alternator WILL BURN OUT!

DB_Fan_4_Life

You are correct, but how long do you think that an alternator that is only designed to run stock components is going to handle having to charge an additional battery!!! Say your stereo system alone is drawing 100 amps (which isn't really that much), along with your stock electronics running you are looking at at least a 150-160 amp draw! Do the math, your stock alternator is designed to put out 90 & and you're drawing 160...hmmmmm. The stock alternator is going to be working non-stop, full output trying to keep up with an amperage draw it can never achieve. Kinda like sprinting the whole Boston Marathon and expecting your heart not to EXPLODE!!!

squirrel

So if I'm running 1,400 watts, what should I do then?

Reign_Man

my friend is running 2000 watts (2X L7 12) and his head lights dim while hes driving (also while hes stopped duh) and one time this chick was at a red light and he turned it up loud and his car (97 mustang) was dimming something feirce, so this girl asks him what wrong with his car

"i payed $2000 to hook my subs to my car so that all the lights would strobe with the music...its really custom, im the only with it in town"

"oh" she says "wow youre really into that stuff arent you?"

"yes, its my life" and we drove off....i almost peed my self from laughing, he kept the straightest poker face ive ever seen

Munch

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

ugly_duck

Dont be an _______ its un attractive and no one will talk to you. Justa frienfly hint.

DB_Fan_4_Life

If you are running it full out, all the time then I would seriously recommend upgrading your alternator. You may be able to get away with just adding a battery and cap IF you aren't listening to it at peak output all the time.

Notacop

a second battery only minmally increases voltage.



Your alternator provides 13.8 volts on average (give or take depending on grounding wires and whre you measure voltage)


batteries provide 12 volts of power.


When your amplifier draws more current than your alternator can provide @ 13.8 volts it will draw power from your battery @ 12 volts. If you continue this in theory you can completely drain your battery, but that would take a really long time since with the car running.



Now lets use a little common sense. The main reason people see lights dimming is because of voltage fluctations. You can see a difference in light output between 12 volts and 13.8, so when your system hits hard and pulls more current than the alternator can provide you will see the lights dim.


A second battery does not change the issue between 12volts and 13.8 it simply provides more time @ 12 volts, so it is not really the cure to the low output alternator situation.

DB_Fan_4_Life

Second Battery DOES NOT increase voltage unless ran in SERIES!!

The rest of what you said is correct and thank you for your reply. I a big advocate of upgrading to a higher output alternator and the reason I told him he may be able to get away with adding an additional battery is that he is kind of in an "in between ground" (little over kill to upgrade to a high output alternator but enough draw to need to pad it a little bit with an extra battery). True it will not SOLVE the problem but is much cheaper to counter his current setup.

silvadragun31

I have a 2500watt system in my xb. I found a company called Iraggi Alternators, that can do 180amp for $379. and 200amp for $399.. catch is you have to send in your alt casing. Also, to help with my dimming lights I installed a hid kit, they will never dim again.

TXboxdriver

lets not forget the Screens, Neon, Led's, DVD players, Playstations, Xbox's, AC/DC converters,AirConditioning, headlights, interior lights, IGNITION SYSTEM, ECU, alarm, wipers, sensors, ABS&VSC, washer pump, cooling fan, starter, airbag system, radar detector, and phone charger

all these take current to work
still wanna tell me that 90amps is enough for a 1000w+ system, you will experience failure

i have personally seen any one of these contribut to charging system failure
not to mention most wont upgrade the dinky wire that runs from the alternator to the battery
but will run a 0 guage for thier amp rack from the battery?????

chadfo

I don't mean to be rude but there are too many wanna be experts in here.

I'm only going to address one small issue that's been discussed so far because there's just too much flying about on the others. Using a capacitor does help stabalize your system and helps prevent dimming. If you don't believe this, go find a basic electronics book and educate yourself. A capacitor's main function is to store power and it's able to store and release that power very fast. They are also very reactive to the overall power within the circuit that it is applied to. If the main power level drops the capacitor discharges which maintains the previous level for a short duration essentially negating the power drop. As long as the power level returns, the overall output will be almost constant. When an amplifier plays a certain note it takes a lot of power very quickly to play that note, if it requires more power than the system can provide for that short burst, the capacitor discharges providing the needed power. This is a VERY simple explanation. If you still believe they don't help then you are calling every major audio installer in the business a fraud as well as all the electrical engineers, and technicians in the world. I'm not saying it'll cure all your power needs but it does help keep things stable and stable in electronics is very very very good.

ugly_duck

Agreed spikes in voltage are what cause the dimming and a cap can HELP control that. A cap is just a small battery that can charge and recharge quickly as stated before. If you have a cap and you think it is worthless than remove it ans sell it to me, If you have never ran a cap and think they are worthless then shut the hell up, If you have never ran the equipment than how do you know.?

A CAP ALONE IS NOT THE FIX TO DIMMING LIGHTS, IE VOLTAGE DROPS
Electical sytems are like a suspension, one componet alone is not going to fix or satisfy your needs. Be realistic and figure out what you need for your system. sheesh!

DB_Fan_4_Life

Everyone has GREAT points and I think that everyone's input on this subject has been very educational to those who aren't quite sure what is going on.

TRUE: 90 amp alternator IS NOT going to be enough for running your O.E. electrical system and a 1000W system....BUT....with the additional battery and cap, he will be able to GET BY. Like I said though...it does strictly rely on how loud he listens to his system. A cap is designed to absorb voltage spikes and so if he doesn't have it cranked all the way up and for long periods of time, he SHOULD be fine.

TRUE: Capacitors are NOT useless! Now if you have a constant draw a capacitor doesn't have enough time to recharge fully and discharge its full rating I.E. the longer the constant drain, the less good the cap will do.

TRUE: High output alternator WILL solve constant draw problem (obviously)!

Back to the battery issue...the reason adding a second battery to an "in between" system will help is this: Voltage is defined as the electrical difference of potential between two points (basically)...laymans terms-voltage is basically like pressure, it "pushes" amperage out so to speak. By adding the second battery you are helping to prevent a voltage drop that may be caused by too much drain on the single battery. Drop in voltage means a drop in the "pressure" pushing the amperage out which in turn causes the dimming issue previosly mentioned. The second battery doesn't ADD voltage it just helps prevent a loss of the voltage that is already there.

FALSE:Trying out Iragi alterntors would be a good idea!!! The dude is a rip off!!! Check this out... the guy ACTUALLY offers a lifetime guarantee on his alternators AND he sells them for cheap, hmmmmmm sounds a little scary to me. There are companies that won't warranty an alternator PERIOD if they know it has been or will be used for an audio application because they know what it is going to be put through! I know people who have dealt with him and they have said that the alternators don't output what he says they will and WHEN they break down, they can never get ahold of any one so it can be warranty'd. IF they by chance DO get ahold of someone and ship it back they don't see the alternator for months (you wanna be without your ride for that long, I sure don't)

K I'm done!

Notacop

Right but it does increase the time it takes to drain from 12 volts on down. So once you exceed what your alternator can maintain the second battery will keep you at 12 volts longer than a single could. That is what I was trying to say