I have a 1993 civc lx, stock alternator 70 amps. I installed a 1000 watt amp, half for my back 3-ways, and half for my 10" sub. After about a month, my alternator went bad. I had this same problem with my 1988 Prelude SI. I have 10 gague stranded wire that I bought from Home Depot that is sending my power. I read on another post that you should use 2 gague. I am wondering if my problem is the 10 gague wire, alternator not strong enough, or both?? I hate to run 2 gague back to the trunk because there is nowhere to hide it... it would be laying on the floor, unless someone has a suggestion? Anyway, If I got an alternator that was 100 amp to compensate for the extra 30 amps that the amp takes up, would I need new wire off of the battery for the car?
I hope that the 1000w isn't rms power. If it was, the amp would be pulling about 145amperes...even if it's max, it is still putting too much load on the alternator...
Also, definitely get smaller gauge wire: 2-4 if the 1000w is rms 6-8gauge if it's max. 10gauge is too high.
yes for a 1000 watt rms amp u need a 4 gauge wire minimum depends on how far your running it.. also u will need at least a 130 amp alternator for a 1000 watt amp.. u still need room for other electronics in your car to work as well
wel, the 1000 is peak, and the amp has a 30 amp fuse in it, so it wouldn't draw more than that right?? and can someone explain why you need 2 gague wire, is DC that different from AC? at max would pull 30 amps going about 10 feet.