alternator enough power for amp?
02-07-2006, 08:47 AM
#2
MalleusMaleficarum
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Simply, no. Will the amp power up and play, most likely. You just wont be getting the amplifiers full potential. Id bet the farm that your lights will dim as well. Get a full farad capacitor. Don't let people tell you they dont work either, I have one. As long as your car cranks fine as it is and your alt. and battery are in good shape a cap will make up for where your factory charging system would otherwise fall short.
02-07-2006, 11:28 AM
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Your alternator's power is measure with amperages, not wattage. You can take a look at the amp and see what size fuse it uses. That will give you a general idea of how much power it *can draw before blowing.
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02-07-2006, 11:47 AM
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A cap can help smooth voltage drops but if your constantly drawing more then the alternator can provide it wont do anything to help your situation. It also depends if its a true 1000 watt amp or if thats peak and how loud you listen. If you never listen that loud its not a big deal cause the amp wont be drawing much. If you always have it cranked you may have problems.
Last edited by 97teg; 02-07-2006 at 11:49 AM.
02-07-2006, 05:53 PM
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A cap will only bandaid the problem. Buying a new higher output alternator would be the best choice. But like 97teg said, is that 1000 watts RMS or MAX? Are you going to be pushing the amp to it full potential all the time?
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02-08-2006, 06:14 PM
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ok check this out...you have two cheap choices here to look at...you can either buy a new battery and run your car with 2 batteries so your alternator wont be much of an isuue(judging on the fact that one battery will be always be charged), or just cap your car with a 2.0 farad capacitor...simple as that..both are around the same price range...and they both solve the same issue
02-09-2006, 07:31 AM
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second battery will only help with prolonged listening with the car off... the alternator still needs to keep the batteries up when the car is running.
A capacitor is not really a "band aid" solution, if its matched to the system properly, it helps a great deal.
it all depends on what amp it is... saying "I have a 1000 watt amp" dosent tell us crap... as some people refer to their $15 computer speaker system as a "1000 watt system". Give us more details... if the amp is running subs or your main speakers, how you listen to your music, brand, model #, model of your car (different models have different output alternators)... tell us whatever you can, then we can try to help you.
A capacitor is not really a "band aid" solution, if its matched to the system properly, it helps a great deal.
it all depends on what amp it is... saying "I have a 1000 watt amp" dosent tell us crap... as some people refer to their $15 computer speaker system as a "1000 watt system". Give us more details... if the amp is running subs or your main speakers, how you listen to your music, brand, model #, model of your car (different models have different output alternators)... tell us whatever you can, then we can try to help you.