[Citadel Magnus]

I just started working with the stereo in my 05 Sable...so I'm far from a professional. I was wondering if I have to upgrade my alternator, battery, and Big 3 if I'm only working with a 2 farad capacitor, 600w and 300w amps? I don't imagine that I would push either of those anywhere close to capacity.

At what point should I start upgrading the electrical system? I'm trying to do the system on a budget, so I'm just trying to do whatever is necessary.

 

[fct]

Just try it and see how it goes. If your headlights dim when you turn on the stereo or when bass hits, perhaps you have a problem. I have no problems myself with a ~500 RMS watt amp.

 

[Escblads]

If the total wattage you're pulling exceeds ~1200w rms then I would consider doing Big3 and/or an extra battery, otherwise you should be fine with stock wiring as long as your grounds are good grounds making contact with bare metal. But I would do Big3 anyway since it's cheap, pretty quick to do and does nothing but help.

 

[WhiteBlackBlue]

I would upgrade my ground from the batt to the chassis and some good terminals. I have the big three on my 98 and i did notice a bit more thumping and clearer mids and highs from my speakers and woofers. . . but then again i did upgrade my batt the same day sooooo. I can show you some pictures if you want

 

[Citadel Magnus]

Finally got everything installed and so far it seems to be working pretty well with no signs of drain on the electrical system. I took a look under the hood at the "big 3" wires trying to decide if I wanted to attempt to do those as well...but eventually decided to hold off on those.

 

[00tec-satx]

Doesn't matter what the wRMS rating is.

Find the draw of the amps, then you'll know.

 

[sheila]

^ Citadel Magnus, click on the topic finder at the top of this page, scroll down to Electrical and click on: Clean Grounds (The Big Three). Good luck!

 

[sheila]

P.S. ^ Big 3 tutorial written by 00tec-satx.