new to sq needing help?

[stingray72]

From what I can see you have a 130 amp alternator.  I'd say you can run 800 watts total without needing a alternator.  As far as the other questions I'll leave that to more experienced people.

[teardrop]

4 hours ago, stingray72 said:

From what I can see you have a 130 amp alternator.  I'd say you can run 800 watts total without needing a alternator.  As far as the other questions I'll leave that to more experienced people.

thanks for the info i cant find anyone that says they make a high output alt would a extra batt or caps help for say a 1500-2000 watts total system mids highs subs 

[stingray72]

You could get 40 àmp hours of lithium and you should be ok with that power.

[BumpedCX5]

For what it's worth and this is likely an unpopular opinion...

 

You're building an SQ daily driver. The amount of time you'll be running the system hard is will be far less than listening at "normal" volumes. 1500W total system capacity on a 130A alt I'd do all day long. Hell I have a SIA3500D in a CX5 with less alt than that and, because it rarely gets played at ridiculous volumes, my voltage never really suffers. Even with the sub up enough to vibrate the shit out of everything voltage doesn't drop below 13.5V. Admittedly I'm probably not near the limits of the amp but it just goes to show you can get pretty damn loud without a ton of power. Realistically, 95% of the time you'll be running at less than 500W. 3% of the time you'll probably tap 1000W...the other 2% of the time when the system is maxed will be on the odd full song or that "this part of the song is fucking awesome" passage. If you can honestly say that you'll be playing your music loud all the time (and you really need to take into consideration how little watts it takes to play really loud) then I might consider looking into a better alt but I honestly think you'll be fine.

 

Upgrade whatever power and ground wires (some vehicles it's easy and others not so much you'll have to research your car) you can to make the flow of power as efficient as possible. Nothing wrong with small sealed enclosures but consider ported if you can spare the space. A good ported enclosure will be bigger than a sealed but will play more efficiently and save you some wattage needs. Speaker sensitivity can play a factor but I wouldn't get too hung up on it. Find components you like the sound of first and foremost. If by some fluke you find two different sets that you like equally and there's a fair (2db+) difference in sensitivity you could get the ones with a higher sensitivity and get a minor increase in volume for the same watts. Personally I wouldn't worry about it but if you're trying to get every last bit of loudness it's something that you could consider.

[stingray72]

What you need to keep in mind op is that your car needs some amperage to run all the electronics like ac, headlights etc.  I have 600 watts total on a 110 amp alternator and I wouldnt push it with any more power than that based on voltage drop that i see from my volt meter at full tilt.  If you want to run the kind of power you mentioned run this lithium battery with your stock alternator.

 

https://store.soundsolutionsaudio.com/ces-custom-electric-service-40ah-lto-battery-cased-lithium-10-spot-terminals-actively-balanced/

[Kyblack76]

1 hour ago, BumpedCX5 said:

For what it's worth and this is likely an unpopular opinion...

 

You're building an SQ daily driver. The amount of time you'll be running the system hard is will be far less than listening at "normal" volumes. 1500W total system capacity on a 130A alt I'd do all day long. Hell I have a SIA3500D in a CX5 with less alt than that and, because it rarely gets played at ridiculous volumes, my voltage never really suffers. Even with the sub up enough to vibrate the shit out of everything voltage doesn't drop below 13.5V. Admittedly I'm probably not near the limits of the amp but it just goes to show you can get pretty damn loud without a ton of power. Realistically, 95% of the time you'll be running at less than 500W. 3% of the time you'll probably tap 1000W...the other 2% of the time when the system is maxed will be on the odd full song or that "this part of the song is fucking awesome" passage. If you can honestly say that you'll be playing your music loud all the time (and you really need to take into consideration how little watts it takes to play really loud) then I might consider looking into a better alt but I honestly think you'll be fine.

 

Upgrade whatever power and ground wires (some vehicles it's easy and others not so much you'll have to research your car) you can to make the flow of power as efficient as possible. Nothing wrong with small sealed enclosures but consider ported if you can spare the space. A good ported enclosure will be bigger than a sealed but will play more efficiently and save you some wattage needs. Speaker sensitivity can play a factor but I wouldn't get too hung up on it. Find components you like the sound of first and foremost. If by some fluke you find two different sets that you like equally and there's a fair (2db+) difference in sensitivity you could get the ones with a higher sensitivity and get a minor increase in volume for the same watts. Personally I wouldn't worry about it but if you're trying to get every last bit of loudness it's something that you could consider.

 

Id run a 1500 watt amp, all day, every day on a oem battery and alt. And not even worry in the least. 

 

[Kyblack76]

13 minutes ago, stingray72 said:

What you need to keep in mind op is that your car needs some amperage to run all the electronics like ac, headlights etc.  I have 600 watts total on a 110 amp alternator and I wouldnt push it with any more power than that based on voltage drop that i see from my volt meter at full tilt.  If you want to run the kind of power you mentioned run this lithium battery with your stock alternator.

 

https://store.soundsolutionsaudio.com/ces-custom-electric-service-40ah-lto-battery-cased-lithium-10-spot-terminals-actively-balanced/

Well, the battery is probably like a 70 amp hour,..  So, there's 200 total. For a 1500 watt system that will most likely be wired at a normal nominal load, .... it wouldn't pull much at all. For me, I would put a nice agm in, and let it rip, and not be concerned in the least. But, everyones different.  Would i watch voltage, ya, but mostly when the car is off. Id toss the charger on the batt now and then. And just watch it a little bit more than i would if it didnt have a small system in it. 

 

I mean dude above up there, has a 3500. And if he only see's 13.5, that means hes not even getting to battery rest. His alt, is powering EVERYTHING. The car, the system. Everything. The reserve (the battery) isnt even getting used. 

But, to each their own. 

[Bluetegjoe]

A  thing to keep in mind when building a system for newer Hondas is the ELD system. The ELD (Electric Load Detector) is integral to the electrical system and the ecm and controls the output of the alternator. The ecm , through the ELD, keeps the alternator at a lower energy state to lighten the load on the engine and theoretically save gas. The ecm response to a higher electrical load in the system has a delay which results in a momentary voltage drop before the alternator goes into high output mode. This results in headlight and interior/dash dimming that, depending on the total amp draw, many find unacceptable. Capacitors are not a solution and the ELD will cause dimming even with higher output alternators built for Honda applications. There are some workarounds that involve “custom” wiring for those really dedicated to higher power. The easiest solution for a smaller system is to limit the system to 1000 or under watts rms  and get the highest capacity agm battery that will fit in the car. This will minimize the dimming without wiring modifications to the car.

[TheBKG]

My normal MO is to build the system I want first and respond to power issues only when they actually happen.  Excluding the Big 3 upgrade, Always upgrade the grounding system to match the guage of your systems power leads.  However in the last 2 generations of vehicles they've been making a lot of changes complicating things significantly, as @Bluetegjoejust explained for your Honda.

 

As I first recommended I suggest you spend some time visiting shops in your area and listen to speakers yourself.  No one can tell you what speakers will sound good To You.  And while your there talk to them about your Honda and ask them what they recommend doing.   They will have experience installing systems in those new Hondas and they can tell you exactly what to expect and what your options are.  Running a large AGM as a second battery so it's minimizing the effective draw on the Alt and ELD might work?  But I'm just guessing.  They won't be.  That said, never just listen to the opinions of One Shop.  Keep in mind they're a business and it's their job to sell you something.  So make sure to talk to two or 3 at least.  Doing so you will hopefully find a good one you feel you can trust.  Even if you want to do most of the work yourself it's a very good idea to find a good local shop to develop a relationship with.  

 

Now, I gotta ask why you think you need more than 1500 Watts for a SQ daily driver?  Especially when your only planning to run a single sub.  Your front speakers on a 2-way system will be peaking at 200-250 Watts (per side).  Anything more and your gonna be pushing into uncomfortable and damaging volumes for listening more than just a few minutes.  Doesn't do you much good if you build a great quality sounding system if you damage your ears to the point that they can't hear quality anymore.  And pushing much over 100dB for 30 plus minutes will result in hearing loss. 

 

Fun fact, when you go to a concert or just listen to a loud stereo for a while and hear a high pitched ringing in your ears afterwards, you just Lost Hearing.  That high pitched ring is a precise Frequency down to 1 or 2 decimal places.  When you hear that charish the sound of that frequency.  Because it's the last time your ears will ever be able to hear that specific frequency ever again.  It's gone forever.  Do that enough times and by your 40s music won't sound the same anymore.  You'll have to push the top 3rd of your EQ way up to even hear the high end, but even then it won't sound as good, won't ever sound 'clear' again.  I'm grateful I learned that early in life and have managed to protect my ears.  Even still, age still takes hearing quality down.  But couple age with SPL damage and the loss is serious.  Food for thought. 

 

So again, my recommendation is 400 Watts total for your Front Stage, another 200 Max for rears (which if your running correctly will play at less than half power).  For a proper SQ sound your Sub should match the total power of the rest of the speakers.  So 500 - 600 Watts on the sub.  1000 - 1200 Watts total.  Anything more and you'll be wasting money.  Spend that budget on better quality speakers and better quality installation, not on higher SPL. 

 

~ My 2cents

[stingray72]

1 hour ago, TheBKG said:

My normal MO is to build the system I want first and respond to power issues only when they actually happen.  Excluding the Big 3 upgrade, Always upgrade the grounding system to match the guage of your systems power leads.  However in the last 2 generations of vehicles they've been making a lot of changes complicating things significantly, as @Bluetegjoejust explained for your Honda.

 

As I first recommended I suggest you spend some time visiting shops in your area and listen to speakers yourself.  No one can tell you what speakers will sound good To You.  And while your there talk to them about your Honda and ask them what they recommend doing.   They will have experience installing systems in those new Hondas and they can tell you exactly what to expect and what your options are.  Running a large AGM as a second battery so it's minimizing the effective draw on the Alt and ELD might work?  But I'm just guessing.  They won't be.  That said, never just listen to the opinions of One Shop.  Keep in mind they're a business and it's their job to sell you something.  So make sure to talk to two or 3 at least.  Doing so you will hopefully find a good one you feel you can trust.  Even if you want to do most of the work yourself it's a very good idea to find a good local shop to develop a relationship with.  

 

Now, I gotta ask why you think you need more than 1500 Watts for a SQ daily driver?  Especially when your only planning to run a single sub.  Your front speakers on a 2-way system will be peaking at 200-250 Watts (per side).  Anything more and your gonna be pushing into uncomfortable and damaging volumes for listening more than just a few minutes.  Doesn't do you much good if you build a great quality sounding system if you damage your ears to the point that they can't hear quality anymore.  And pushing much over 100dB for 30 plus minutes will result in hearing loss. 

 

Fun fact, when you go to a concert or just listen to a loud stereo for a while and hear a high pitched ringing in your ears afterwards, you just Lost Hearing.  That high pitched ring is a precise Frequency down to 1 or 2 decimal places.  When you hear that charish the sound of that frequency.  Because it's the last time your ears will ever be able to hear that specific frequency ever again.  It's gone forever.  Do that enough times and by your 40s music won't sound the same anymore.  You'll have to push the top 3rd of your EQ way up to even hear the high end, but even then it won't sound as good, won't ever sound 'clear' again.  I'm grateful I learned that early in life and have managed to protect my ears.  Even still, age still takes hearing quality down.  But couple age with SPL damage and the loss is serious.  Food for thought. 

 

So again, my recommendation is 400 Watts total for your Front Stage, another 200 Max for rears (which if your running correctly will play at less than half power).  For a proper SQ sound your Sub should match the total power of the rest of the speakers.  So 500 - 600 Watts on the sub.  1000 - 1200 Watts total.  Anything more and you'll be wasting money.  Spend that budget on better quality speakers and better quality installation, not on higher SPL. 

 

~ My 2cents

Not to hijack the thread but what you said about hearing is part of the reason i switched gears with my install.