what alternator do you have? if its a HO alt you aren't getting anything at idle. Thats just the way they are. my ohio gen makes a whopping 1a until 2000 rpm and doesn't make its 200a rating until 4000rpm

The best setup would be a dual alt configuration with a factory and HO alt and a few good batteries to back it up.

You could also go the ghetto route and just get a gigantic battery bank. but you would want to invest in a battery charger and run it overnight every few days. Simply put if your amp is physically shutting off do to low voltage at idle then you have a power issue since it doesn't do it while your driving and the alt is actually working wire isn't going to help much and a cap is completely useless. so your only for sure options to fix this is either adding 4 or so more batteries so your capacity cant physically be drained that fast or fixing the alt issue is the only way to solve your problem completely

 

also as an fyi it takes about 8 minutes or 2 songs at full tilt parked for my 2 kinetik hc16v batteries to be "drained"... with ~200a of draw from a sundown 3000d the subs start distorting a bit from low voltage and at that point i turn it down. Now i rarely do this and when i do i give it plenty of time to recharge. It sounds like your doing this at every stop light and your electrical just cant keep up so take my above advice if you dont want to turn down the volume ****

 

lol, alright, thanks man. It is H.O. but it was built to put out almost 60 amps (57) at idle. It puts out a little over 200 at around 3800 rpm. I'm going to get a better front battery then take things from there. I probably shouldn't be listening to mine with the engine off as much as I do....

 

So optima is not cheap, but local .... what else is there? I know Kinetik but heard they are real expensive and don't know where I can get one. What else is there??

I remember Yuli mentioned Hawker?? before?

 

if you run a better starter battery, and have a matching one in the trunk, there should be no way, especially with a HO alt that you will drop below 13V at full tilt.

i have no electrical upgrades in my car. just a yellow top as my starter batt and 4AWG with a 200A fuse.

with the car at idle, and a consistant bass song, i drop to like 12.2V at the amp.

 

definately a cap. you always use a cap!

 

Definately replace the Alternator. Honestly, how often are you running your car at an RPM range where your "upgraded" alt is putting out more than factory? 5% of the time, maybe 10% at best.

The problem is, your car is using everything your alt is putting out at idle/normal driving and there is nothing left over for your stereo. Honestly, your battery probably isn't even reaching it's full charge in this condition.

I had one of these alts before and it was horrible. The voltage drop was unbearable, a true waste of $300 bucks.

My best recommendation is burn out you stock alt and then find a shop who can install a good HO stock alt with a warranty that covers labour. Make sure they are a little crooked and won't report that you have a high output stereo system.

Or you can get a large case alternator like a Delco 21SI installed. These can be built up to output 220amps at low RPM's. I had a friend who had one installed in a Mazda MX-3, it required a custom bracket but it worked great.

Lyle

 

well im currently running 2 yellow tops matched. no probs running 2 500.1 for daily driving plus it running my mids amp. I only have a 200amp alt under the hood. More then enough power.