For you guys that compete in shows and stuff, how do you keep your system from draining your battery when you park it for a long time?? Do you hook up everything to a seperate battery when parked??

 

I'm not in competitions, but the shop where I got my system installed did sell battery to power the system. It looks just like a smaller version of the car battery. Perhaps someone can tell us how is that wired. Does it go through where it get's fed by the alternator too?

Another related question. Is power use a relation to the volume, or the number of equipment that is receiving power?

Meaning, if I listen to CD loud on 4 speakers power by HU will it use more power than if I was to listen to AM stations, even if I got the amp and sub hook up?

 

eh?

i was reading your question and i have no clue what you are talking about.

there are too many variables in power use, etc, etc, etc.

You could have a stroker and push 1500 watts to it, or you could have 150 speakers and push 10 watts to them. i dont see any negligable difference whether you're getting your signal from a CD vs antenna. the power being sent to the speakers is still coming from your headunit.

 

sorry if i was too vague i'll try to explain better. I have no problem with my system, everything runs great while my car is running. What i'm worried about is, at shows, when my car is parked (engine not running) and i have my subwoofers blaring, foglights on, etc. for an extended amount of time, how do i prevent this from draining my battery so that when the show is over i can start my car without any problems and drive home??

 

RedDawg, I think I was confusing him with my questions, but he did answer part of it. Again, feeding of your question (to help answer mine).


1. Assuming RedDawg got all his system running, would it drain less power if he simply turn the volume down?

2. Does it make a difference if RedDawg was to play Classical Music instead of Getto Rap because Rap would require the subs to work harder?

 

i know that the harder the subs hit the more voltage it is draining, i can see this happen on my digital capacitor, when i play some "ghetto rap" the volt meter drops rapidly on the loud bass hits. I would imagine the same thing would happen at a higher volume too

 

hey,
how old is the battery and what brand and type is it? is it those deep cycle battery all those "racers" use to make their engine bay look cool or is it those regular sears, kragen, or oem type of battery? if its the regular kind of batterys and it drains quickly, it maybe time to get a new one. an old battery will only hold so much power before it dies, lower capacity with age is usually the case. if its those deep cycle battery that cost hella money, then, i dont no, maybe you should buy one of those jump packs for about 80 bucks, and everytime your batt. dies jus jump it and take off.

 

Actually, what it's draining is current. The harder the bass hits, the louder your music, etc., the more current it will drain from your amp and thus, your car battery. As the battery gets current drawn out so quickly, it makes it more difficult for the battery to maintain it's voltage. As for competitions, they usually have an external power source at the shows to use and don't usually use their batteries.

 

its a regular battery, i'll have to look into getting one of those jump packs. A friend of mine told me that theres some company that makes solar panels for cars that recharge your battery, anyone else heard of them?? I'll see if i can get the website from him

 

your amps require lots and lots of current, hence the possible dimming of your headlights... solar panels will not make up for the HUGE current drain from the amp(s). Look into a good deep-cycle battery and a nice 1 farad capacitor. either way, if you are competing or showing off your stereo, you will only pull about 12 volts if your car is off... start the car and you get roughly 14.4v, hence more power to your amp(s). Just get in the habbit of having your car running. It'll sound better and you won't have to worry about a dead battery. Good Luck.

 

tell me if i'm wrong here, but interrpret the question as: he is showing his car and it's not running and he wants something so that he won't drain his battery
if that is so, i have seen like a big battery charger used by a local shop that a guy uses in shows
he is running a full entertainment system with Cerwin strokers and PSX and screens and all that good **** in a suburban
as to what it's called i don't know, maybe a jump station that a car shop uses would work

 

i don't kno much about stereo systems but my girlfriend's brother uses an extra optima battery in his itr to help run his system... which includes alpine hu, alpine speakers, 2-12" square solobarics, 2-ppi amps, etc.

 

how often does he have to recharge the battery?

 

so you reccommend just replacing my main car battery with an optima yellow top?

 

ok ill give you some more info. As of right now my car is always running when my system is in use but very shortly, (once i complete the exterior upgrades to my car, coilovers, grill, etc.) i will be going to the local cruise nights to show off my car. I do not want to leave my car running for 2+ hours in order to display my audio/visual system. Once i finish the tedious process of installing everything this is what i will have:

<U>In the trunk</U>
a rockford fosgate punch 800a2
a rockford fosgate punch 800a4
a rockford fosgate x-punch crossover
an audiobahn 1 farad capacitor
a panasonic 8 disc CD changer
4 blue neon tubes

<U>Interior</U>
1 pair of boston acoustic pro series 6.53 speakers (the 3-way components)
1 pair of boston acoustic pro series 6.5 speakers
panasonic headunit
strobe lights behind the heating vents and the rear speaker vents
4 blue neon tubes (2 under the seats, 2 under the the dashboard)

<U>Exterior</U>
Blue strobe lights in each of the 4 headlights
4 fog lights in the grill

and before i get criticized i WILL NOT be driving around with any of the strobes turned on, they will be strictly for show use only


The current alternator i have is the stock one that came with the car


All i want is to be able to display my car at shows for a few hours without having the the engine running, and be able to start my car and leave at the end of the show without any problems

 

I've been looking at alternators and i think i'll save up for a stinger alternator, i'll probally also get a yellow top to replace my original battery. Thanks for all your help Teken, i really appreciate it
Also, i forgot to mention there are also 2 12" infinity perfect subs in the trunk, just incase that will change your recommendation of upgrading the alternator.