im using a jl 1000 watt and 2 jl 300 watt amps.

 

im going to be pushing 750-1000 watts constantly

 

it's funny how wattage figures vary.. on home amps, it's all the same usually (8ohms).. on cars it's variable.. Let's take your JL 1000Watts.. it's at 1.5ohms.. funny because when you do this on a 3 ohms load it's 500 watts, on a 6ohms load, it gives 250 watts, and at 8 ohms it's ~200 watts.. wow, now you super dooper am isn't that super! You can also say your amp is a 2000Watts amp at .75ohm. All this just to say that the power of the amp, if you only say the wattage, doesn't mean a single thing. It's still a killer amp, I'm jealous.

now, we'll go on their webpages and get the amps it draws. It states a 100amps fuse for the 1000. it's 40 amps for the 300 watts.

Now I'm not in electrics, so I don't know if you need to sum up those figures. If yes, then you would need 180 amps, plus your 85 amps of the car = 265 amps.. I wouldn't think so. 265 amps alternator is huge! I would ask a second tough than your father to compare. and get capacitors for the big current demands.

Etienne

 

ill post some more info about this tomorrow, but im still looking for a new alternator, cant find one anywhere. i called the mitsu dealer and they said my lancer is too new to find one. if anyone out there can help, please post some links. thanks.

 

if it uses a 100amp fuse it DOES NOT draw 100 amps!!! this is the max current that it can handle before it becomes detrimental to the amp. at 100amps of current the fuse will break. this means that the amp is designed to operate at a significantly less current draw. the fuse is there to protect the amp from power spikes. if it tries to draw too much power, it will damage it. but it can handle a spike to a certain extent. you have to calculate the load and current and voltage yourself using a VOM meter to see exactly what you are drawing. it's different for each application.

just an example:

an amp draws say 10amperes of current under normal situation. if the amp draws say 35 amperes, then it will damage the transistor. so to be safe, you would use a 30amp fuse to protect it. this way, it would draw 10 amperes regularly, but if there were a spike to say 28 amperes, it could still operate (spike meaning a short <1 second draw of current). if it tries to draw 30amperes or more, than the fuse would break, not allowing any more current to pass to the amplifier. you can't go by the fuse size to see how much current it draws.

 

to be honest with you, if you do not know what you are doing, and you do not know the correct way to setup electronics, you should have a professional do it, or at least help you out. if you do it wrong you are going to damage your entire electrical system. you should be completely sure you know what you are doing and the correct components to use. from the looks of it, you don't know much about it, and should get professional help.

 

oh, and you can't sum it up like that anyway. first of all, the car isn't continuously drawing 85amps of current. that is what it is rated to deliver. plus the amps don't continuously draw current, it peaks and valleys with the music. plus when you are talking about the wattage of the amplifier, it is musical wattage. it's different. when dealing with a lot of power and a lot of current, you really can't mess around, you gotta know your stuff.

 

a buddy of mine has 4 seperate amps providing around 2000 watts of power to his stereo. he has stock alternator, underdrive pulleys (which REDUCE accessory current draw), and a 1 farad cap. his car works fine.

 

Some kid that came into my store had the same thing that my son has, he was told to upgrade his alternator. he didnt. it resulted in his amp catching on fire. I've been working with car audio for 40 years, I'm pretty sure I know what I'm talking about.

 

well when you use formulas like current=watts*2/voltage, i tend to think you don't. and his amp shouldn't catch on fire from NOT upgrading his alternator, since in theory it wouldn't provide enough current as you say. that makes NO sense whatsoever. the fuse should blow in any case and protect the amp. the alternator is not at fault. the kid probably blew a fuse, and instead of checking his wiring just installed a higher rated fuse, which when it tried to draw too much current, the amp caught on fire.

 

hum, three word to comment the last post: "In your face"

Etienne

 

I personally called JL today. the 1000x1 amp and the 2 300x2's are going to draw 208 amps. Call JL if you like, heres the phone number: (954)-443-1100. Ask them how much power its going to take to power those. Thanks.

 

208 amps huh? if that's the case, then you need to get more than just a 200 amp alternator. how do you plan on running your headlights, a/c, air bag sensors, fuel management, etc, etc. good luck with your electronics.

PS. it's not 208 amps.

 

oh yeha....and based on the fuse ratings......the absolute peak current that those amps could draw before they blow up is 180. so where do you get 208 from? they probably quoted you on the peak current draw. next time, ask them if you can expect those amps to draw 208 continuously...like refrigerator continuous.

and it's AUDIO. it's not constantly drawing current. if you drew 180 amps for even a total of 10 seconds, it would melt everything. the amps would fry, the speakers would melt, the lead posts on your battery would be destroyed......

 

ok, go to http://www.mechman.com/alt.htm

get what you want, then go to http://www.mechman.com/order.htm and pay

it's that simple.

you'll pay 624$US for the goddam 225 amps alternator and if your super calculations are good, with 208 amps + 85 you won'T even have enough.

Goddam it if youre so stubborn to have that 200+ amps alternator, go for it.

If your father was a pro installer, he would know where to get an alternator, he would custom fit it.

Etienne