Max Amp RMS on a Stock Electrical System

[BigED]

I have a 360w rms amp (peak 510w) Is this ok to run on the stock electrical system or do I need a new alternator? Do I need a capacitor?

[massivefirebird]

You don't really need it, but it's always nice to have a cap to store for big bass hits. Maybe a 1/2 farad would be nice. Be sure not to clip, this can lead to distortion or eventually destroying the amp.

When I first started out, I had the gains set high on my first amp, and was playing a REALLY deep bass song, loud, and knew nothing about distortion. My amp went that very day.

[96firebird311]

You will have NO problems running that on a stock system. You shouldn't even have dimming headlights. If you do, then .5 farad cap will do fine. But your electrical system will be fine. I have nearly 1500RMS on my stock alt. and have 2 farads of cap.

[Jhonathan]

how much would a high quality 1F cap cost?

[massivefirebird]

$100-150, maybe, on a 1 farad.

I used to have a Kicker ZR240, which was capable of pushing 360 watts in 2 ohm mono x1/1 ohm stereo x2. Believe it or not, on big bass hits, my headlights did dim. This could be electical, it could be clipping/distortion. Who knows, it never distorted when I opened my trunk and listened to it close. I'm just saying, it's good to have a cap... because it is only 360 watts RMS, but let's not forget when the ohm levels rise and fall, and the peak wattage and current demand. It is standard to use 1 farad/1000 watts. 300-500 watts? 1/2 farad.

Set your gain properly and try to stay away from bass boost.

[ February 23, 2002: Message edited by: massivefirebird ]</p>