What Am I Doing Wrong?

[Neo_frog]

Why is it that I see people running one 300A alternator to power up to 12000W like it's nothing? I have a better setup than most, but I continue to see everybody out do me power wise (wattage).

This setup in my car cannot handle a Memphis MCD4KW.

5 Kinetik HC2400s (1 under hood, 4 in bank)

Iraggi 300A alternator

Big 3 with double runs of 1/0

3/8" copper buss bars in front and 1/4" aluminum buss bars in back

4 runs (+) 1/0 front to back all soldered

All grounds bolted through chassis, stripped paint, soldered, etc...

MLA module Pro Series Dual Volt 14.7 - 16.1

Seriously, this is starting to really piss me off. I've redone this wiring shit so many times to make it better and find my problem... I've done everything I can do short of rip out my AC and put another alt in there. But I'm seriously considering it.

Please give me ideas.

[Team Nemesis-DJ]

I assume ,your having some serious voltage drop ?feel free to shot me a pm ...with a number ...ill help you troubleshoot the problem

Edited December 29, 2008 by Team Nemesis-DJ

[Neo_frog]

Yes, that's exactly it. I've checked and double checked everything... There must be something I'm missing.

ygpm Nemesis

[Aaron813]

Yes, that's exactly it. I've checked and double checked everything... There must be something I'm missing.

ygpm Nemesis

Ya that does seem weird your setup sounds great

Edited December 29, 2008 by Aaron813

[tacomabanga1986]

umm, u try runnin a wire from back batters to front battery? maby theres to much of resistance in the chassis to let the voltage go back up fast enulf, ied do 1 run or 2 of neg to front battery n try that n see if it works better befor u take out or ac, i done the big three in my geo n my voltage stays around 14.8 but it drops to 13.2 when bass hits and my truck goes down to 13.8 with a lot bigger setup than my geo, when u test ur system are u idleing at 2krpm? or flat idle(with foot off gas peddle)? my geo would idle around 14.4 but when i would play my radio it would drop but when i brought up my rpm it wouldn't drop hardly any, that might be why ur voltage drops so much at idle, did u do a voltage test @ driveing to see how much a drop is there? but all in all ied do a run or 2 of 1/0 neg from back batters to front that might help it, or if that aint it ur truck must not like loud radios lol, anyways good luck with ur voltage prob man

[Derrick824]

That setup is way more than enough for that amp. How low does your voltage drop and how fast? Are your subs wired @ 1ohm or lower? First thing I would test is what the voltage difference is from the front to back. If it rests lower or drops bad in the back but not in the front then it's a wiring problem.

[Neo_frog]

Well I'm going to run 4 new negative wires back there just to help out, but I think there's another problem somewhere else...

I'm gonna do troubleshooting piece by piece tomorrow (thanks Nemesis). Some possible issues were brought up to me that I didn't think of.

EDIT: And my next build is going to need sufficient power.

Edited December 29, 2008 by Neo_frog

[Team Nemesis-DJ]

Well I'm going to run 4 new negative wires back there just to help out, but I think there's another problem somewhere else...

I'm gonna do troubleshooting piece by piece tomorrow (thanks Nemesis). Some possible issues were brought up to me that I didn't think of.

anytime ...let me know if you find anything ..

[Boon]

How badly is your voltage dropping?

If it's below about 12.5 then there's something wrong with your wiring or amp.

If it's above 12.5 but below 14.x then there's probably something wrong with your alt.

[audiofanaticz]

Id do 1 run of negative from front to back, maybe 2 if you got the spare cash.

Id also do a positive run from the stud on your alternator to the rear batteries. Or if you got 2 runs of positive going front to back, just swap one over to the alt stud.

Another thing that can be major is the placement of your power and ground wires comming into your battery bank. As well as your location you get your power from your amps.

Kinda hard to explain, but basicly have your power connections comming in at the first battery, and have your grounds come in at your last battery. Still use the same method of running buss bars on the batteries, but make sure you have the power on one side, and the negative on the other side to ensure a even flow of electricity thru all batteries.

I may just do things over board tho

Edit:

I would then wire your amp off of the middle battery in the good diagram.

Edited December 29, 2008 by Bangin Caddy