Wiring questions 1500w rms

[FLORIDABOY561 10+ year member]

I got a powerbass class D amp that runs 1500 rms at 1 ohm.. I have a 1992 honda civic hatchback and am having some problems.. my system SOMETIMES turns on and then cuts off after about 15 seconds of hitting hard.. wont come back on.. none of the fuses are blown at all in the car.. I have a question about the big 3 first.. If I understand I need a fuse in the wire that runs from the alternator to the positve battery terminal? I am not sure what my alternator is rated to but I want to put 0 gauge wire under the hood..I just dont want to fry anything in my electrical system.. I guess im just getting mixed messages between here and the tutorials i have been watching on youtube.. what kind of fuse do I need to run between the alternator and battery with 0 guage? greatly appreciated thanks

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[Johnny Law.Lulz 5,000+ posts]

you dont need to run a fuse, i dont have one between them.

What size wire do you have going to the amp and how high are your gains ??

 

[FLORIDABOY561 10+ year member]

I have 4 gauge wire running from the battery to the amp, and the gains part I don't know. I actually had a professional tune the amp I had it in another car but sold it, so I just took my amp and subs and left them the way they were.. So I don't need a fuse? but isnt that bad if something shorts out then my system will get fried wont it?

 

[4OZGLOVES 10+ year member]

Go to your local Carquest and buy a deka group31 battery to wire in the back You will never have this prob again and you most likely will stop your amp from releasing the magic smoke.

I would also sell that run of 4 gauge and hop up to some 1/0

 

[FLORIDABOY561 10+ year member]

But if I were running a seperate battery in the back of the car also, wouldnt that just drain the battery very quickly since its not hooked up to an alternator or as long as that 2nd battery is grounded than it should be ok? I Dont know much about wiring/ batterys, dont mean to question you just tryin to understand

 

[4OZGLOVES 10+ year member]

But if I were running a seperate battery in the back of the car also, wouldnt that just drain the battery very quickly since its not hooked up to an alternator or as long as that 2nd battery is grounded than it should be ok? I Dont know much about wiring/ batterys, dont mean to question you just tryin to understand

It's easy just run your power cable from the + of the front to the + of the rear batt then ground the rear batt in the trunk.

 

[FLORIDABOY561 10+ year member]

alright, but doesnt my power cable have to attach to my amp?

 

[daboyfrumdabx 10+ year member]

You'll run a 2nd cable from the second batt to your amp.

 

[FLORIDABOY561 10+ year member]

alright, so there will be 2 power cables running from my 2nd battery. 1st one on the positive to the amp, 2nd from positive to front battery postive. does that mean I shouldnt upgrade my alternator?

 

[FLORIDABOY561 10+ year member]

also I just found out that my alternator is rated to 70 amps. is this too small? mabye i NEED an upgrade?

 

[prcwitt 10+ year member]

How do you have your subwoofers wired? Are they single or dual voice coil? 4 ohm 2 ohm?

 

[Lonnie 10+ year member]

It's easy just run your power cable from the + of the front to the + of the rear batt then ground the rear batt in the trunk.

Wouldnt he need 2 of the same batteries to do this?...Also the 70 amp alternator might not be enough to keep 2 batteries charged...

Also about the 4 gauge amp wire to 0 gauge. He would need a distro block for that since I dont think a 1500 watt amp has a big enough terminal to put 0 gauge into. Mine is a 1500 rms audio pipe and the biggest wire it can hold is 2 gauge.

ALSO another reason as to why it could be doing what its doing...he might not have the amp grounded good enough. When your amp cuts off does it go into protect? Assuming it has a protect light that turns on when its in protect.

 

[FLORIDABOY561 10+ year member]

yeah the amp does go into protect mode, mabye I need to try grounding it better. my amp can hold 0 gauge wire also. Im going to try grounding it better and see what happens.

 

[Bumpin' Goalie 10+ year member]

Since the problem occurs when "hitting hard" it is possible that the 70amp alt and his under-hood batt are not able to maintain suitable voltage for the amp. The amp will go into protect when voltage drops too low. He could always measure his voltage to find out. A second battery in the back can help by having a reserve. However, a battery is like a band-aid. A better alt would cure it (given that this IS indeed the problem and the under-hood batt is of quality.)

Ground could be suspect as well. But i'm guessing it's voltage, non related to the ground. Just make sure your ground is as short as possible if mounted to the chassi and on bare metal.

 

[FLORIDABOY561 10+ year member]

I didnt do the ground properly because its not on bare metal. there is paint under it. I am going to do the big 3 , just wanted to know also is it ok if I ground the amp with 0 gauge and have 4 gauge power wire?