first big three

[lithium 358]

ive read afew "big three how to guides" on sites and forums.

guess i can start with what i am runing in the car.

• kenwood excelon x10d -- 600rms
  
• tsunami 1.2 farad cap
  
• **adding small 2 channel no more then 250rms (total)**
  
• 1 run- kicker 4 gauge
  
• battery---- car was baught used. evidence of this being a second battery however it is not a deep cycle
  
• i believe the stock alt is like 105 amps (not sure though)
  

ok now with the questions.

1. some one mensioned that a cap isnt needed becasue its just putts a bigger strain on the electrical system. however after installing the cap i noticed better quality proformance from my subs. according to some websites i have read a cap can even out the alts output. so this is what i assume happened. see bcae1.com.... that being said, cap or no cap???
   
2. what guage sould i run? what is some good wire? links to a site would be nice.
   
3. ive got afew question about where to do the chassis to motor grounds. ill post some pictures of the engine bay.
   
4. u can only get tothe alt from below so ill have to look at that too. ill post pics so i know i have the right wires or whatever.
   

[WildSebring 0]

I'd say on the cap, get rid of it and take the money you get and buy you a deep cycle cattery...i.e...a Kinetik or a Yellow top Optima.

As for the wire gauge..for no more then your using, some Kicker Hyperflex 4 gauge or some Knu Konceptz 4 gauge should work nicely. You shouldn't need 0 gauge for only 600 RMS, but I could be wrong. You might try going with 0 gauge anyways so in the future if you do decide to upgrade in terms of power, you already have the wire to supply the power.

Big 3 is quick way to improve your overall charging system. When I did it, I noticed a great difference. My alternator is easy to get to from the top. Just grounded it to the frame with 0 gauge, ran 0 gauge positive from alternator to battery post, and grounded my front battery to the frame with 0 gauge.

I'd say do this with even the smallest of stereo systems, as it helps quite a bit.

[Adrian_D 520]

You might try going with 0 gauge anyways so in the future if you do decide to upgrade in terms of power, you already have the wire to supply the power.

That's a very good method of not throwing money out the window in case you want to upgrade

[lithium 358]

ill post some pics alittle later. im not sure on the chassis to motor part.

i have to take that skirt thing that is attached under the bumper off the front of the car to get to the alt.

as far as sellin the cap and geting a better battery, ill have to look for some prices but that seems like a sound idea.

any links to some 0 gauge wire and a battery???

[lithium 358]

i dont think i can get to the alt.... ive got some pics on the way.

would adding a new battery really help??? i thought the alt was source of power to the amp.

[lithium 358]

ok tried to get at the alt from below but that didnt really work out to well. the alt just stuck under everything

heres some pictures that can explain what i mean.

engine bay

battery

another view of battery

see it down there... batter to the left and engine to the right

taken from above the battery looking down towards the alt

this is from under the car. the alt is on the left.the hose on the right has some wiring in it. one of which goes to the alt. but u cant see exactly where it goes

another shot from below

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

just to make sure its

• battery ground
  
• battery + to alt +
  
• chasis to motor ground...? or is it alt to chasis??
  

Edited April 6, 2008 by lithium

[sqguy 0]

You want to add a battery ground to chassis since you grounded your amps to the chassis in the trunk. The stock wire is mostly for your headlights and a few other things that ground to car. Then put your large positive run to amps. Then a positive run to alternator positive...I never have on my cars as I figure the stock wire should be good for a stock alternator, and I have not put a larger alternator in my cars. Also have not seen a test that showed it making a difference but I don't really know. A larger alternator may need it. The twin cam, yeah those are a treat to work on. I run a 700.5 kicker and it has plenty of power during the day on a 5ga wire, I think alternator is 125A not sure. I get slight dimming at night if I have blower and stuff on with lights....that is loud as it goes clean on 4 speakers and 4 12s at 2 ohms.

Edited April 7, 2008 by sqguyib

[lithium 358]

any idea on how i can get to the alt's positive?

would runing a new battery (kinetic,etc) be of any benifit?

[lithium 358]

ok tried to get at the alt from below but that didnt really work out to well. the alt just stuck under everything

heres some pictures that can explain what i mean.

engine bay

battery

another view of battery

see it down there... batter to the left and engine to the right

taken from above the battery looking down towards the alt

this is from under the car. the alt is on the left.the hose on the right has some wiring in it. one of which goes to the alt. but u cant see exactly where it goes

another shot from below

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

just to make sure its

• battery ground
  
• battery + to alt +
  
• chasis to motor ground...? or is it alt to chasis??
  

did my links work? i cant tell at school.

[sqguy 0]

Yes, battery ground to chassis.

Battery positive to amps.

Battery positive to alternator positive....but if you can't get to it I would not worry about it for a stock alternator and see how it works without. If you want to do it then you will have to get it out of there, or get at the plug anyway. It comes out one way or another search some auto forums you might find posts about it. You can also tap into the hot wire near the alternator and it would work fine. Be very careful of making a solid and insulated connection however you do it, and make sure the wire can't short on something/etc.

Should not have to worry about battery ground to engine block since the starter has a large cable and you don't often/can't use the starter when playing music. Most cars cut the HU on start unless you rewired it.

[lithium 358]

thanks ill try to get at the alt again. but if i cant ill just hope that addin the 2 channel isnt too hard on the alt.

would upgrading to a kinetic/stinger battery be of any benifit versus my lead acid pos.

[sqguy 0]

More battery will always help, in quality or quantity.

[lithium 358]

ya so i found the alt positive i think. i deff cant get to tho. its on the back side of the alt with a rubber shoe cover type thing over it. i can even get a finger on from bottem or top.

[lithium 358]

ill try to get the cover off with a screwdriver or something and hope its some kind of bolt. i can probly get a ratcket on there if it is.

[lithium 358]

ya so i found the alt positive i think. i deff cant get to tho. its on the back side of the alt with a rubber shoe cover type thing over it. i can even get a finger on from bottem or top.

gota watch the typo's... i cant get to it with my hand, i cant touch it, however i may we able to get some tools in there.

[sqguy 0]

Don't forget to unhook the battery. Often a nut on there if it is separate from the other wires.

[lithium 358]

ya ill give it a shot. if i cant get a tool in there ill have to come up with another idea...

[KoolDrew 0]

You might try going with 0 gauge anyways so in the future if you do decide to upgrade in terms of power, you already have the wire to supply the power.

This is probably a stupid question, but... Is 1/0 gauge wire the same as 0 gauge wire? Because looking on parts express I only see 1/0 and it's pretty expensive as well. What wire do people here recommend and where do people usually buy it?

[lithium 358]

its way to far and way to tight from to the top. ill try from below but i dont think its possible

how if its possible, can i tap into the stock wiring close to the alt... is this recommended? or safe? would i just cut the sock wire... im not sure if i can solder upside down in such a comfined location...

i think this is looking alittle hopeless... are there some other thing i can do like replacing the battery up front to help the charging system out alittle... guess i can do a big 1 lol

[sqguy 0]

What size is the big wire to the alternator? I would do the rest and see where you are at. A better battery certainly will help especially if it is the only one you have.

Like I said, new alt wire would only help if the factory put too small a wire on the stock alternator. Otherwise you may get a hair more voltage but that wire is fairly short.

[lithium 358]

id say its about 8 gauge wiring. length is atleast 4 feet.

yesterday i relocated the powerwire from where the bolt on the fuse block to the battery. idk why i havent done that up till now... i hope i can get alittle more current from there....

[lithium 358]

small but notice able difference in power after relocated the wire. ill order some 4 gauge when i buy my amp and new components and do the battery ground and chassis to motor ground

not sure on details withe the latter.

[buickid 0]

1/0 is 0 Gauge, 2/0 would be 00, etc.

You can get these large gauge wires for a decent price at weldingsupply.com, thats what was recommended to me on this board.

Good luck!