I saw a thread somewhere that stated you can use some ford alternator w/ little to no modifications. Those things were dirt cheap and iirc 150A+

 

Lights galore!!!!

 

1. if you haven't done so already, do the "big 3" with 1/0
2. do NOT get a cap for your setup. it is a temporary, and very bad band-aid in this scenario and you WILL fry your alternator. get a 2nd battery instead. optimas are great batts, but you would be better off with something else such as a kinetik as suggested, or something like a deka, powermaster, etc. you're looking mainly for aH or reserve capacity here

i'm not too sure, but that amp is probably overrated, but it will still pull a bunch of amperage. the 2nd batt is always a safe measure...imo anything over 1500 or so rms is pushing the need for a HO alt in our trucks since our stock alts suck.

i'm personally running a 225a alt w/ a kinetik 1800 up front and 4 equivalent to 2400's in the back for my needs, and i wish i could do a dual alt setup.

 

^ Wow do you need some juice.

I was thinking last time I looked yellow tops were over 200. I have talked to a shop here in town and they would rebuild my alternator to put out over 200 amps for about 200. That was all a couple of years ago. I would get a high output alternator and a cap. Of course I ran a yellow top in my Accord with the stock alternator and I was pushing about 1000 watts RMS and it took care of my problem.

I wish I could get one, of some of our MRAPs in Iraq. I think the Buffalo had an 800+ amp alternator on a 24 volt system. They're big enough they have places to attach a crane do you can pull them out. Of course I don't think a 3.4L engine would turn one.

 

invest in a volt meter just so you can keep an eye on things. when playing your system, if voltages start dipping into the low 12's, turn the volume down, or get another batt asap to prevent damaging your trucks electricals or the amp itself...low voltage blows power supplies.

i need the reserve capacity because my substage alone has the potential to draw 600 amps, hence my need for so much "juice" back there

 

volt meters are nice! i laughed at my friend who thought it was cool that his volts kept fluctuating from 14v to 12v. i warned him to get a new battery to to knock it off. he said 'its all good' ... $200+ later i laughed ... he had a jeep grand cherokee on 20's lol. i'm in the process of getting the smaller kinetik battery.

 

So pretty much what I am getting from all your posts is that i need to start with the Alternator. If I get another battery and/or cap my amp will still be drawing more power then my alt can produce to recharge the battery/cap/2nd battery or whatever, thus still having a strain on my electrical system, and only solving the lights dimming problem.

Correct?

 

Or will if I get a cap/powercell and since I don't blare my subs 24/7, my alt will have time to slowly recharge the secondary power source while not putting a strain on it?

 

you dont necessarily need an alt for this application. a 2nd battery would be okay to help from having huge voltage drops when playing it loud. there will still be the strain on the alternator, but youll be protecting the vehicles electricals and your systems electricals.

stop worrying about a cap, it will be useless in this situation. get a battery. i recommend a g31 optima if you must go with optima, but kinetik, deka, powermaster etc all produce high quality g31 size agm power cells for automobile/audio. the deka intimidator 9a31 would be your best bet for performance and money. it has a large reserve capacity, and should solve your problems.

 

As a replacement for the main battery or as a 2nd battery?

 

2nd battery. run it parallel to your starting batt and secure it down. i'd suggest 1/0 between the batts, but 4ga would probably be okay too w/ a stock alt. for the 2nd batt, you can ground it in the back, or you can do 2 runs of wire if you like (+) and (-). if running big wire, it might be easier to run under the vehicle, and bring it in through the floor pan. i have 2 runs of 1/0 front to rear and i go along the frame, and come up right in the little area on the side of the back seat then run them through the plastic interior panels.