lights pulsate
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Lead Lap
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 459
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From: washington
lights pulsate
hello i have a system in my gs3 and when all the lights are on and i turn up the vol (bass) the lights pulsate with the bass... so im thinkin battery???? alternator???? or do i just need one of those capacitor things
Lexus Test Driver
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 1,209
Likes: 3
From: IL
If you're talking about the factory stereo, I would have the alternator output checked. I've never heard of an OEM stereo causing that.
If you have some big power draws from some high wattage amps (assuming your alternator & battery are ok) a capacitor would probably do the trick. Those things store up the power so when the heavier bass hits it'll draw from that instead of you seeing the lights dim.
If you have some big power draws from some high wattage amps (assuming your alternator & battery are ok) a capacitor would probably do the trick. Those things store up the power so when the heavier bass hits it'll draw from that instead of you seeing the lights dim.
Rookie
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 53
Likes: 1
From: washington
well a red top optima wouldn't hurt but it won't solve your problem. a capacitor would be a better and more affordable solution, provided you but the right size for however many watts your amp is. for example a 1000 watt amp would need a 1 farad capacitor at least. the best solution is a high output alternator, that can provide the extra amperage that your system is trying to draw. the factory alternator is designed to handle your factory options ie, power windows, door locks, heated seats, lights. when you add something that requires it own power, it has to pull it from somewhere. that's where your lights start to dim. the high output alternator will supply the extra power so the amp doesn't have to steal it from the other accy's. plus your amp will perform better because i'm sure it's not getting all the voltage it needs to run at full capacity. the alternator will be the most expensive, but it's well worth the money in the long run. hope this helps.
Thread Starter
Lead Lap
Joined: Feb 2005
Posts: 459
Likes: 0
From: washington
well i have a 300watt jl amp... and a jl box with one 12w6 and a kenwood ddx-8017 or something like that...
cause it never did that b4 the system so probably just a capacitor will do the trick.. also using 8gauge wire is that to small?
cause it never did that b4 the system so probably just a capacitor will do the trick.. also using 8gauge wire is that to small?
Lexus Test Driver
Joined: Sep 2005
Posts: 1,411
Likes: 1
From: Hells
Originally Posted by mr. aristo
well i have a 300watt jl amp... and a jl box with one 12w6 and a kenwood ddx-8017 or something like that...
cause it never did that b4 the system so probably just a capacitor will do the trick.. also using 8gauge wire is that to small?
cause it never did that b4 the system so probably just a capacitor will do the trick.. also using 8gauge wire is that to small?
For a 300w RMS amp 8ga. should be fine, you might want to consider 4ga. since its so cheap these days.
Also, are your dome lights dimming or is it your headlamps that are dimming?
If its your dome lights, and the dimming is occurring while the engine is idling (as opposed of driving around), it pretty normal for that to happen. It is a problem however when you're driving around and the lights are dimming.
If thats the case then try upgrading to 4ga. power and ground wires in addition to adding a cap.
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You shouldn't be getting the brownout at all, with only one 300W amp and one woofer.
Here's the full deal:
1) your battery may be dying. Its internal resistance climbs as it dies. an optima yellow top is always a good choice to replace it with.
2) your alternator may be hurting, but this is not that likely.
3) there is most likely a problem with your install. you can benefit from installing a cap, upgrading your ground connections (adding an engine grounding kit won't hurt)
4) swapping amp power wires to 4 ga will help the AMP get current, but will do nothing for the rest of the car's voltage, and could even make the problem worse. that's not to say that 4 ga is bad at all, it's better than 8, but won't solve your particular problem
5) think about how you're getting power to the amp & system. have you tapped into any stock wiring? is your connection direct from the battery teminals, or do you split the main +/- wires off the battery with an aftermarket terminal block? any added resistance thru terminal blocks/fuses that supply the rest of the car will cause the voltage to drop when amp current increases.
Jerry
Here's the full deal:
1) your battery may be dying. Its internal resistance climbs as it dies. an optima yellow top is always a good choice to replace it with.
2) your alternator may be hurting, but this is not that likely.
3) there is most likely a problem with your install. you can benefit from installing a cap, upgrading your ground connections (adding an engine grounding kit won't hurt)
4) swapping amp power wires to 4 ga will help the AMP get current, but will do nothing for the rest of the car's voltage, and could even make the problem worse. that's not to say that 4 ga is bad at all, it's better than 8, but won't solve your particular problem
5) think about how you're getting power to the amp & system. have you tapped into any stock wiring? is your connection direct from the battery teminals, or do you split the main +/- wires off the battery with an aftermarket terminal block? any added resistance thru terminal blocks/fuses that supply the rest of the car will cause the voltage to drop when amp current increases.
Jerry
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