Well Ive mentioned this in a few posts and gotten some questions about it so i though i would toss it up here since i did it this weekend.
The the purpose is to augment the existing electrical system with larger gauge wires, for better continuity between chassis and ground, engine and chassis, and alternator and the positive battery terminal. Look at it like this, if you are running 4 gauge wire to your amp from your battery, how much good is it doing if the alternator wire is 4 gauge or less? Its got to run the power for the whole car and now your amp on top of that through that wire. Like a straw feeding into a garden hose. Same thing goes for your grounds. There is no need to remove and replace the wires that are there already, just add to.
Anyway here ya go. I used 0 gauge, which is likely overkill for most of you, but use the biggest wire you can afford, and dont cheap out, all wire is not created equal. Go with good brands for your wire, also it never hurts to solder you terminals to the wire poking through. This will protect against oxidation increasing the resistance in your wires over time. I didnt do it yet as my iron took a crap on me.
Anywho...
First I got rid of the stock negative terminal. This is optional of course, I just had these stinger upgrades laying around.
Next i removed the bolt from my new grounding spot and exposed the metal with some sand paper. I did the same for both sides of the washer and the bottom of the bolt head.
This is the new ground installed and the new battery terminal. I need some splices for the positive because the wire is too short with the yellow top. You can choose any chassis location you want, but this was easy and the shorter the distance to the battery the better.
Here is where wired block to chassis. Im certain there are better places, but the metal bracket seemed large enough to support the wire size and it hooks right up the the block.
Here is where I ran it off the alternator to the positive side of the battery. I will be throwing some F4 tape around where it gets near the heatshield to protect against chaffing.
Here is the battery all hooked up. The red wire is running to the amp, and there is some much extra because i havent installed my fuse yet. for the love of god install a fuse. Install the fuse (fuses fi you plan to install one on the alternator wire as well) as close to the positive terminal as you can.
Thats it, I noticed it helped right away. The dome lights would dim with the stock speakers cranked, and the dimming is just a little worse with 1000w sub pumping in the back. For people running half or so power than that, this may very well be all you need. I will need an alternator upgrade
. When i get my meter Ill post some before and after ohm checks.
Oh and credit where credit is due. Here is the link to the thread about it for those that want more info.
Official CarAudio.com Big 3 Thread - Car Audio Forum - CarAudio.com
Good cheat sheet on gauges and watts.
Recommended Power and Ground Cable Sizes
Hope this helps!
The the purpose is to augment the existing electrical system with larger gauge wires, for better continuity between chassis and ground, engine and chassis, and alternator and the positive battery terminal. Look at it like this, if you are running 4 gauge wire to your amp from your battery, how much good is it doing if the alternator wire is 4 gauge or less? Its got to run the power for the whole car and now your amp on top of that through that wire. Like a straw feeding into a garden hose. Same thing goes for your grounds. There is no need to remove and replace the wires that are there already, just add to.
Anyway here ya go. I used 0 gauge, which is likely overkill for most of you, but use the biggest wire you can afford, and dont cheap out, all wire is not created equal. Go with good brands for your wire, also it never hurts to solder you terminals to the wire poking through. This will protect against oxidation increasing the resistance in your wires over time. I didnt do it yet as my iron took a crap on me.
Anywho...
First I got rid of the stock negative terminal. This is optional of course, I just had these stinger upgrades laying around.
Next i removed the bolt from my new grounding spot and exposed the metal with some sand paper. I did the same for both sides of the washer and the bottom of the bolt head.
This is the new ground installed and the new battery terminal. I need some splices for the positive because the wire is too short with the yellow top. You can choose any chassis location you want, but this was easy and the shorter the distance to the battery the better.
Here is where wired block to chassis. Im certain there are better places, but the metal bracket seemed large enough to support the wire size and it hooks right up the the block.
Here is where I ran it off the alternator to the positive side of the battery. I will be throwing some F4 tape around where it gets near the heatshield to protect against chaffing.
Here is the battery all hooked up. The red wire is running to the amp, and there is some much extra because i havent installed my fuse yet. for the love of god install a fuse. Install the fuse (fuses fi you plan to install one on the alternator wire as well) as close to the positive terminal as you can.
Thats it, I noticed it helped right away. The dome lights would dim with the stock speakers cranked, and the dimming is just a little worse with 1000w sub pumping in the back. For people running half or so power than that, this may very well be all you need. I will need an alternator upgrade
. When i get my meter Ill post some before and after ohm checks.Oh and credit where credit is due. Here is the link to the thread about it for those that want more info.
Official CarAudio.com Big 3 Thread - Car Audio Forum - CarAudio.com
Good cheat sheet on gauges and watts.
Recommended Power and Ground Cable Sizes
Hope this helps!
