OK I dont kno what else to do anymore and im frustrated now..... I changed my alternator a week ago and i haven't experienced any headlights or interior lights blinking so i thought the problem was solved. Until last night when the damn headlights started jumping again with the pulse of the bass from my system along with the interior lights. The battery tested good when i checked it , i have cleaned the ground connection that comes from the battery to the body and i dunno what else i have to do. I am thinking of adding a capacitor to my system but i dunno how much that will help. What else can anyone suggest before i run my car into a wall???

 

How large is your system. The alt are not that big in the sc's so you will get a little dimming with the lights on. A cap will cure this if you get the right size.

 

Im sure mine are not as bad as yours...but my turn signals make all of the lights blink through out the whole car...but unless you are looking for the blinking lights you would never notice...confusing sentence..lol

CEO

 

The blinking/dimming headlights is normal if you are running a high powered system in the car at a high volume. The reason that it does this is because of the amount of current you have running thru the car while bumping your system. The alternator runs everything in the car from headlights, misc. bulbs, LCD displays, to sound. The reason your headlights dim a bit while the bass booms is because your amps are borrowing power/current required from other applications, while it powers the "boom" for that particular second. A stock alternator can only push out so much power. There are many ways to cure this problem. Getting high farad caps to match your wattage from your amps, a high current alternator that is made specifically for sound systems, or both.

However, if your headlights are completely blinking as in on and off like a triggered alarm system, then you might have more of a problem than expected.

 

I added an engine grounding kit from techkits and it reduced the dimming of my lights when my turn signals were on. As far as the stereo is concerned, get a Cap.

 

Getting a big cap could only help, BUT... If you say everything was fine for a week, then the dimming started again, I think that would point to your battery. It may check out fine, but suffer after prolonged exposure to high volume levels You might want to consider getting a deep cycle battery like an Optima yellow top along with the cap(s). BTW, the stock alternator only puts out 90 amps at speed. Getting a higher output alternator would be the sure cure.

 

I agree with the optima, try that first before you get a cap. I went with a redtop, but if you can afford it go with a yellow top. But I think the red will suffice, well depending on the size of your system. I can run my radio with the car off for two to three hours straight. the car starts right up. Good luck.

 

I have a 12 inch sub powered by a 2 ch 900watt amp , and also i have a 4ch 900watt amp that powers the interior speakers. Hope that can give u guys an idea on how strong of a cap i might need.

 

What type of amps are these, brand? Not all amps list true wattage. specifics please.

 

Buy a new battery, plain and simple.

 

The amp powering the sub is an Alpine and the other one powering the interior speakers is kinda cheesy called Bolt.

 

That's a given, running that much power you definitely need a better power supply.

Go optima red and get a cap. They have all sorts. When I ran my setup with Soundstream amps 700 for subs and a 400 for mids and highs. I used a Soundstream cap with the optima. My dimming light situation went away. That was on an Integra. Caps range from 1 farad, Alumapro has a nice 15 farad for around 5 bills, I recently saw the Rockford catalog they have *** all the way to 100 farad, insane.

Get a cap depending how you listen to your system. Or simply talk to an audio tech.

 

A battery will help but still wont fix the problem. You will have better luck with a cap. Genral rule is 1 farad for every 1000 watts. On your system you will be fine with a 1 farad cap but if you plan to expand the system or run a better highs amp you may want to go up to 1.5 to 2 farads. A cap stores mass amounts of energy and releases juice on demand where a battery is limited by a much lower storage capacity. There are a lot of caps out there and some look realy cool but they are not all equil so look around first. Some will have a much better surge ratting which is ideal. If you want a good cap that performs well the Lightning Audio caps are a good choice.

 

Oh yea with that kinda power, for sure your lights will dim! Optima, cap, alternator. Problem solved

 

Any one think having a less powerful amp(goin from 900w to say 40watts) for my highs will make a difference.