I was wondering about the alternator and it drawing too much current.

Though I love the idea of the Icon speakers, I think it's a little over kill for what I'm looking for.

Then I'm pretty much back to square one looking for sub recommendations. I'd like to do the 10" sub box in the side, rather than a tool well. Any recommendations for subs and amps?

 

how about getting some very nice components and a good amp to start with? You can always add the sub later.

what do you listen to most of the time?

 

I listen to rap/techno/country/drum & bass/classical. I listen to pretty much everything... I already ordered the PPI speakers though... But didn't order the Sundown Amp for them yet.. My budget is pretty much $1250-$1500, and I would like to include a sub in that. Preferably a 10, because I like the way the boxes for the 10's are, but if a 12 would be better suited, I can deal with having a tool well box. I'd probably fiberglass it myself though, instead of buying one.

I know it's going to very from car to car, but what's Approximately the most current you can draw from the alternator, without draining the battery? I've got an Optima Yellow top, if it makes a difference. I'm just not sure how much wattage my system can pull, without killing my car.

 

unless you're trying to shake the neighbors, you won't have a current
problem. remember that no matter what your amp(s) are rated, they'll
only be outputting a fraction of the rated wattage most of the time - the
reason to use powerful amps is so the musical peaks don't get clipped.

before you choose your gear, define your goals. all systems involve
tradeoffs - sound, space, money. you've defined how much you want to
spend, now...
how much trunk space are you willing to give up?
do you want to keep your spare tire?
do you want your gear stealth, or displayed to the world?

 

I'm looking to keep most of my trunk space, which is why I want to do the side mount box.

I've decided I'm going to stick with this setup:
HU: Alpine IDA-X305
Component Amp: Sundown Audio SAX-125.2
Components: PPI 356cs
Sub box: BerlinaS2k2

Major Imporant Question: Do you think the car could run the Icon sub without killing my battery? I'm not going to be running it full blast. But if the stock alternator could run it, I think I'll go with the icons. I'll only be using 125 RMS from the Components, and probably have the sub uber low a majority of the time. I don't plan on running it hard all the time.

 

Wiring setup:

Monster 300 Positive SlimLine Monster Battery Terminal
Monster 300 Negative SlimLine Monster Battery Terminal
KnuKonceptz Set Screw Ring Terminals - 1/0 Gauge (use one for the power to the trunk, one for battery ground terminal, and one for the battery ground.)
KnuKonceptz Fleks Kable 1/0 Black Power/Ground Wire (18 Feet)
KnuKonceptz In-Line Waterproof ANL Fuse Holder w/ Fuse (What Fuse Rating?)
KonFUSED 2 Way Distribution System ( http://www.knukonceptz.com/productDe...?prodID=KNF-12 )
Kolossus Fleks Kable 4 Gauge Black Power/Ground Wire (5 Feet total used for Distribution block to the Sundown 1000.1 Amp, and Amp to Ground)
Kolossus Fleks Kable 8 Gauge Black Power/Ground Wire (5 Feet total used for Distribution block to the Sundown 125.2 Amp, and Amp to Ground)
Karma SS 4 Channel 6 Meter RCA Cable
Monster MPC S304 4C-7.5M Extra Low Noise 4-Conductor Speaker Wire (7.5 meters)

What fuse size should I put in the In-Line Fuse Holder?
What fuse size should I put in the Distribution block?
Will I need more Monster Speaker wire? Do I need 4-conductor? or two? Watching the video on Youtube (video after text), they have only two conductors plugged in, but the crossover appears to have 4 input connections.
Where is it better to use a spade, or a ring connector?
Will I need more Ring or Spade terminals?
If so, where will they be used? I think I'll need one to go from the distribution box to each amp (So one 4 awg, one 8 awg), and then one on each end of each amps ground wire (So two more 4 awg, and two more 8 awg)

Anything else I'm missing? You guys have been an amazing help. Sorry for asking so many questions, I'm just trying to make sure I get everything right, considering I've changed my budget from $1000, to now almost $1600...


[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S86MRaiLCCk [/media]

 

in this situation he is actually wasting $.

not enough current = lower power output from the amp = easier to saturate the FETs & clip output = faster equipment failure = faster dead alternater

please also remember that the subwoofer is rated at 1000W rms so most likely it will require quite a bit of power to operate at an acceptable volume.

 

Jaeden,

You don't need the negative battery terminal since your amp ground wires should never exceed 3ft.

also, 6 meter is over kill. I think you'll have "plenty" left if you use a 5 meter and if you do not plan to install the amps right next to each other, you should get 2 two ch. RCAs.

for speaker wires, go with knu as well. I dunno where you plan to install your crossovers, so I can't tell you how many ft to buy.

can't tell you about fuse size and everything else until you finally make up your mind.

 

Does anyone know approximately the current output for the stock alternator?

http://www.the12volt.com/info/recwirsz.asp That website has a list of approximate current draws, based upon wattage (I know it's an approximate).

Please keep in mind that I don't plan on running this sub at 1000wrms everyday, all day. I would most likely run it either off, or 1/4 way on. Also, the speakers are only 125 RMS (it says 60 per set, So, I'm still not sure about how to wire these up. Sonic says 240, but people say the manual says 50-125 rms.)

Info:
http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_17121_...+PPI+356CS.html
http://www.onlinecarstereo.com/CarAudio/p_..._PPI_356CS.aspx
https://www.s2ki.com/forums/index.ph...ic=707508&st=0



How long should the RCA's be? 4 Meters? They only offer 4 or 6 meter from KnuKonceptz. I'll probably install the amps over the gas tank hump.

I was going to use the negative battery terminal, because darkknight recommended using them.

Thanks again guys. You've been a lot of help, and given me a lot of information.

 

I'm a little concerned that you're working on the wiring details without
making sure you've go the big issues worked out.
1) you mention wanting to use a side-mounted sub box, and a specific sub.
are you sure the sub will physically fit in the box (I know the Darkside box
will not fit all 10" subs) and that the box has an appropriate volume for the
sub you've chosen?
2) you mention wanting to mount two amps above the gas tank - I'm not
sure there's room there for both, and I'd also worry about heat with a
total of 1250 watts between both amps (though it looks like you've chosen
an efficient class D for the sub, which will help)
3) you started off saying you're not an audiophile, and now your budget
has grown by 60% as you've moved into better/more powerful gear that
may or may not be overkill for your needs/desires