Seperate Battery?

[TSiFTW]

Yep...adding more equipment that charges from the battery/alternator is putting the electrical system under more strain. Even though, visually it may help in dimming lights...actuality is it is hurting it. I would add the first step as getting a deep cycle battery to replace your stock battery. This will help out tons alone and is a quick and easy replacement.

This = truth. That is what I should have told you earlier. Try the deep cycle battery first then if absolutely necessary upgrade your alternator. Don't do it though unless you are going through alternators like underwear though. Keep in mind that when you go fooling with your electrical system you really NEED to know exactly what you are doing, because a screw up in your electrical system can affect more than just your stereo system and your lights. Seek a professional installer if you must do those upgrades.

[BanginJimmy]

This = truth. That is what I should have told you earlier. Try the deep cycle battery first then if absolutely necessary upgrade your alternator. Don't do it though unless you are going through alternators like underwear though. Keep in mind that when you go fooling with your electrical system you really NEED to know exactly what you are doing, because a screw up in your electrical system can affect more than just your stereo system and your lights. Seek a professional installer if you must do those upgrades.

Go back and read my post. Upgraded battery and alt are steps 2 and 3. Step 1 should ALWAYS be a big 3 upgrade.


If you dont know what the Big 3 are.

1. Alternator to battery Pos wire.
2. Battery to engine frame ground
3. Block to frame ground.

until those 3 are upgraded you will only see minimal gains from an upgraded battery as your alt will not be any more efficient.

[TSiFTW]

Go back and read my post. Upgraded battery and alt are steps 2 and 3. Step 1 should ALWAYS be a big 3 upgrade.


If you dont know what the Big 3 are.

1. Alternator to battery Pos wire.
2. Battery to engine frame ground
3. Block to frame ground.

until those 3 are upgraded you will only see minimal gains from an upgraded battery as your alt will not be any more efficient.

I know what big 3 is. It all goes hand in hand though. If the system is working correctly in the first place then even with a 50-60 amp draw from an aftermarket stereo system the big 3 alone will do ALMOST nothing. Notice I didn't say it will do nothing. What it will do is allow more current which in turn will just put more strain on a stock battery and alternator. You WILL eventually wear out a stock alternator. A deep cycle battery will hold a charge better therefore put less strain on the alternator when the stereo system is drawing more than the alternator can put out.

[DynamicSound]

I know what big 3 is. It all goes hand in hand though. If the system is working correctly in the first place then even with a 50-60 amp draw from an aftermarket stereo system the big 3 alone will do ALMOST nothing. Notice I didn't say it will do nothing. What it will do is allow more current which in turn will just put more strain on a stock battery and alternator. You WILL eventually wear out a stock alternator. A deep cycle battery will hold a charge better therefore put less strain on the alternator when the stereo system is drawing more than the alternator can put out.

I am with you. A battery upgrade comes before a wire upgrade. The deep cycle battery creates a less strain on the alternator without changing any wires. If you do a wire upgrade on a stock system, it is not going to do anything because the stock wiring is good for the stock system. Even in my Accord I had dimming lights with a 1200rms amp. I simply installed a Optima Yellow top battery and fixed the problem. So here is how should go...

1) Battery Upgrade - Reduces stress from alternator. Adding a battery does not increase the voltage or power. So you wouldn't need to upgrade the wiring because NOTHING EXTRA IS GOING THROUGH THE WIRES. Think of it being more efficient. It is not putting out anything extra. It just reduces the strain on the alternator which will help the alternator move power to other places.

2) Big 3 - This will not do much for the upgraded battery, but will be needed to upgrade your alternator.

3) High Output Alternator - The reason you need to upgrade the wiring prior to the alternator is because the smaller wires can prevent too much of a change in output from the alternator. So upgrading it by itself might not do much. So you ready the new alternator by upgrading the wires BECAUSE IT WILL BE PUTTING OUT MORE POWER.

[BanginJimmy]

I know what big 3 is. It all goes hand in hand though. If the system is working correctly in the first place then even with a 50-60 amp draw from an aftermarket stereo system the big 3 alone will do ALMOST nothing. Notice I didn't say it will do nothing. What it will do is allow more current which in turn will just put more strain on a stock battery and alternator. You WILL eventually wear out a stock alternator. A deep cycle battery will hold a charge better therefore put less strain on the alternator when the stereo system is drawing more than the alternator can put out.

You are wrong though. The Big 3 will make your entire charging system more efficient.

You dont put more strain on anything by making the charging the system more efficient. If anything you will take strain off the alternator by lowering internal resistance.