alt, batt, or both?

[sps1989]

i have a 2002 chevy silverado 1500hd that has all stock electrical on it. i have a crescendo bc2000 that i plan on running to 3 dc level 2 8s at 2.67 ohms (about 1100w), which is accompanied by a merlon 50x4 for the door speakers. and i may change my setup later to use its full potential, so lets just say i will have about 2500w. i have all the 1/0 wiring ready to go and am going to do the big 3. but do i need to upgrade to a high output alt or get a battery to replace the primary one like a stinger spp1500d or do both? or is there a better way to do it? let me know the best way to do this setup.

Edited August 14, 2011 by sps1989

[Louisiana Bass]

If you can afford it, a HO Alt would be better than battery, but Alt and battery would be the best option.

[RickyFriery97]

get the biggest XS power batt you can fit under the hood (i would think its a D3400)

and do the big 3 in all 1/0, that will help alot.

you could get away with that single batt and your stock alt, just get a volt meter andt keep a eye on your voltage, then upgrade the alt later on, unless you got the $$, then hell yea do both!you can never have too much power

[sps1989]

which brand and or size alt should i get?

[kickass audio]

For the alt, i run a mechman 270 in mine and have next to none voltage drop and im running at .25 ohms resting on my amps. I always say it because its true, i did have one problem with an alt from mechman but it was damaged in shipping and matt hooked me up, since i was looking for a new car i found my truck i have now and he gave me a deal to just pay $50 and get an alt that was bigger and better than my old one i had that was broken. I did that and the alt works like a tank on my truck. I have never had any problems with this alt other than getting the damn thing in the engine but thats by no means mechmans fault.

For your case i believe a 250-270 amp alternator would be great for your needs. I would just get the biggest you possibly can because like me, i didnt think i would go as extreme as i am with electrical and stuff for my truck. I knew i was gonna keep upgrading it since im never satisfied but i didnt think in a million years id have a setup like i do now so im glad i bought what i did.

What you can do is just like i did. At first i bought an XS Power S3400 battery (it was the largest i could fit in my engine without having to retrofit a hold down for it or anything). I then did the big-3 with the stock alternator i had on my old car. My voltage drop was a hell of a lot better than with the crappy walmart wet-cell battery i was using but i still had drop since i was running a 1400w 2 channel class ab amplifier and as most people know, most class ab amps suck a TON of power. What i would do is play my system loud but when my lights got too dim i would turn it down and let the alt charge the battery back up and then go back to slamming. I also to take good care of that single battery i put it on my battery charger once a week just to keep them working great. Then i got a mechman alt, another xs power d3100 battery, and another 3 more xs power d3100's.

I usually say to go with an xs power battery first and then an alt after that when you can afford it since the battery will be a little bit cheaper than the alt but you got to look at it this way. If you are drawing a shit ton of power and you have a tiny alt, you will have voltage drop. With voltage drop your amps have to work even harder to put out their power ratings and your lights will flicker badly at night. Plus when your voltage starts to drop like that you are slowly killing your alt as it cant keep up with your current demands and it will get very hot and possibly overheat and die on you.

If you are tight on money do this: Get the biggest battery you can fit under your hood from XS Power, then as soon as you get enough money again, get a Mechman alternator

If you are not tight on money do this: Get the Mechman Alternator first, then get an XS Power battery.

[Dangerous10K]

do you run just the mechman or do you run the mechman and your stock alt?

[kickass audio]

Just the mechman. Putting a dual alt on my engine is a pain in the ass and I didn't want to do it.

[sps1989]

has anyone ever used the alts that are on dbelectrical.com?

[sps1989]

would the optima yellow tops group 34 batteries be good for this system? i have a buddy that works at autozone and can get me a discount. im tight on cash and am itching to put all of my system in and use it to its full potential. but if they are not good, then would a different group be better or should i just try to save up for a good while for a xs d3400?

oh and i am really only wanting to have one batt up front if possible...no batt in the back

Edited August 23, 2011 by sps1989

[Nastymateo]

I have a yellow top optima and can say im not happy with it. Had it replaced 2 times in the last year. Im running about 2500w with stock alt and a KINETIK KHC800. Will do the big three upgrade this weekend. Was going to buy an HO alt but dont want to spend that money just yet. Will see how the big 3 does with keeping everything charged up. Only good thing with the yellow top is 3 year free replacement:)