Battery Help/Upgrade
#1
Battery Help/Upgrade
Hello
So my problem is that when playing my system my voltage drops are quite large. I get about 14.4v when idling with my system off. I usually see around mid to low 13s with times when it drops to about 12v and does not get above 12.7v for a while. I know that I need a new battery of some sort. I was just wondering what size/ah I should get. Also would it be better to upgrade my stock battery in the front or add an additional battery in the hatch area. I have upgraded the battery negative to ground and chassis to ground with 4 gauge wire.
My amps for reference:
AudioQue
Sundown Audio - SAX-50.4
Thanks,
Mike
So my problem is that when playing my system my voltage drops are quite large. I get about 14.4v when idling with my system off. I usually see around mid to low 13s with times when it drops to about 12v and does not get above 12.7v for a while. I know that I need a new battery of some sort. I was just wondering what size/ah I should get. Also would it be better to upgrade my stock battery in the front or add an additional battery in the hatch area. I have upgraded the battery negative to ground and chassis to ground with 4 gauge wire.
My amps for reference:
AudioQue
Sundown Audio - SAX-50.4
Thanks,
Mike
#3
thanks for answering my specific question!
i am in no way new here I have searched and read many threads. If I would have found something I wouldnt have made a thread. I know that the stock alt does not have a very high output and that upgrading it doesnt do as much as it should thanks to our ecu. I wanted to know which would be more beneficial to me. Hopefully someone else with a bit more insight could help me out or if you happen to know it would be nice for you to explain.
i am in no way new here I have searched and read many threads. If I would have found something I wouldnt have made a thread. I know that the stock alt does not have a very high output and that upgrading it doesnt do as much as it should thanks to our ecu. I wanted to know which would be more beneficial to me. Hopefully someone else with a bit more insight could help me out or if you happen to know it would be nice for you to explain.
#6
Yeah I know that would probably help some but I still dont think that would completely solve my problems. Wire isnt all that cheap and then I have to find somewhere to run the larger wire since I already have tons of wire in the floor
#8
well i havent seen below 12 but i have seen 12v for a while which cant be good for anything. I blew my sub amp and it was determined that it did so due to low voltage. so this is a problem that I would like to fix.
#11
Of course he blaimed your electrical system....would a company ever blame their own product for the problem....lol
#12
Well its not like our stock alternator puts out that much amperage and our stock battery is quite small. My system is not the largest but the music I play puts a lot of stress on the system. I dont think they would lie to me about the problem. maybe it because I feel that I would do in the same situation. They are a small company and have a very good reputation. It could have had a problem from the factory, who knows? I am going to upgrade or add a battery anyway for a piece of mind and because it seems like the right thing to do.
#14
Does your voltage drop when the bass is hitting, or is it just chilling at 12v for an extended period of time? I ask, because since my Fit was new, my Scangauge will show voltage down to 12v when I'm sitting at a light or cruising. I have 94k miles on the original battery, and no problems yet.
#15
Does your voltage drop when the bass is hitting, or is it just chilling at 12v for an extended period of time? I ask, because since my Fit was new, my Scangauge will show voltage down to 12v when I'm sitting at a light or cruising. I have 94k miles on the original battery, and no problems yet.
#16
Battery upgrade will do little to nothing. If the battery is not getting enough juice from the alternator its just going to sit there discharged while all the power is being drained it will build up for short periods of time between bursts but will quickly be drained again and again and again. This will place strain on the stock alternator and lead to premature failure. Only REAL solution is High Output alternator which is relatively untested right now as I have seen NO installs yet on a fit. Random ebay trash of course but nothing reliable. The wiring is fine though 4 AWG is overkill as it is until you (actually we since I am at the same problem) upgrade the alternator and grounding straps. In the short term if you've got 30 bucks to blow just buy a capacitor (maybe 2 or 3 farad at the most) and it will take care of the headlight dimming (mostly) it just wont do much to actually improve the power getting to the amp. Get one with a digital voltage display to make it easier to check on the voltage too. With the cap im showing continous voltage around 14.3 and lows of 13.2 - 13.1 durring bass peaks. Im running a similar setup myself 2000 watt peak 1000 watt rms amp with 2 cvr 12s in the back and 500 watt peak 150 watt rms amp in the front with a pair of alpines in the doors.
One scary possiblity though is that you are already experiencing a decline in the stock alternators output...
One scary possiblity though is that you are already experiencing a decline in the stock alternators output...
Last edited by Lyon[Nightroad]; 09-30-2009 at 06:14 AM.
#17
I could be experiencing a decline in the stock alternators output but I really dont have way to test that. I would never buy a capacitor for a car audio install as they dont do anything beneficial other than digitally display the voltage, which my distribution block already does. A high output alternator would be the solution I would ideally want to have along with upgraded batteries, but since at the moment the stock ECU has too much control over it its not worth it.
#18
Battery upgrade will do little to nothing. If the battery is not getting enough juice from the alternator its just going to sit there discharged while all the power is being drained it will build up for short periods of time between bursts but will quickly be drained again and again and again. This will place strain on the stock alternator and lead to premature failure. Only REAL solution is High Output alternator which is relatively untested right now as I have seen NO installs yet on a fit. Random ebay trash of course but nothing reliable. The wiring is fine though 4 AWG is overkill as it is until you (actually we since I am at the same problem) upgrade the alternator and grounding straps. In the short term if you've got 30 bucks to blow just buy a capacitor (maybe 2 or 3 farad at the most) and it will take care of the headlight dimming (mostly) it just wont do much to actually improve the power getting to the amp. Get one with a digital voltage display to make it easier to check on the voltage too. With the cap im showing continous voltage around 14.3 and lows of 13.2 - 13.1 durring bass peaks. Im running a similar setup myself 2000 watt peak 1000 watt rms amp with 2 cvr 12s in the back and 500 watt peak 150 watt rms amp in the front with a pair of alpines in the doors.
One scary possiblity though is that you are already experiencing a decline in the stock alternators output...
One scary possiblity though is that you are already experiencing a decline in the stock alternators output...
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