Fogs dim with subs or power windows

[Qxxx4]

Never noticed this before but if I have my music loud enough and I'm parking in the garage I see my fogs dim a little with the bass. So I figured I need a cap now. But now I noticed if I adjust a power window with music down the fogs also dim a little bit

Do I have a dying alternator? Bad ground? I know I need a new battery ASAP but I hope I don't need a new alternator! The q never has a problem starting ever even in the cold. Only if I play music with car off on the weak battery....been like that since I got it

Any input is much appreciated

[Pwnin O'Brien]

It just sounds like you need a higher current battery. Caps are really a band-aid for a larger problem. The best way to fix the dimming is to spend a little more on a battery which has a higher current which can feed all of your electronics. My suggestion would be to take the current capacity of the original factory battery for your vehicle (447CCA) and add the current of your other electronics (800W / 12V = 67A, add 67A to 447A and you get 514A). You will probably also want to add extra amperage for future electronics as well.

[Qxxx4]

Awesome I was planning on getting a new battery soon anyways! Any reccomendations? My dad loves his interstate batteries with the green tops.....and I've heard lots about optimas

[Empty V]

Awesome I was planning on getting a new battery soon anyways! Any reccomendations? My dad loves his interstate batteries with the green tops.....and I've heard lots about optimas

Optima YellowTop brutha, 100%, with our setups it's the only way to go.

Billy

[Pwnin O'Brien]

Awesome I was planning on getting a new battery soon anyways! Any reccomendations? My dad loves his interstate batteries with the green tops.....and I've heard lots about optimas

In choosing a battery you really have to balance output current with reliability. You need to choose a battery that has enough current to power your stuff and also last a long time (and take lots of abuse). Most retail batteries lack the cold cranking amps necessary for a powerful sound system or some aftermarket fogs. I also have an Optima yellow top and it can power all of my electronics without a hiccup. I get no dimming on low bass notes with my PIAA's on and my brights on. It supplies more than enough current and it can take a huge beating without any problems. Of course, most audio "buffs" will tell you that you need a second power cell for your audio stuff alone, but that simply isn't necessary unless you are running some $20,000 system.

[Qxxx4]

Awesome! Good to hear! Well only place I know that sells optima here in Canada is walmart. They only have blue top for marine and the red tops are $220 with 800cca if I remember right when all I need is 600ish. I know the yellow is more for cars with sound systems but can a red top suffice? I heard warranty is void on red top with a system and I need to get yellow top is that true? Is $220 a good price...its double the price of other batteries

[Pwnin O'Brien]

Awesome! Good to hear! Well only place I know that sells optima here in Canada is walmart. They only have blue top for marine and the red tops are $220 with 800cca if I remember right when all I need is 600ish. I know the yellow is more for cars with sound systems but can a red top suffice? I heard warranty is void on red top with a system and I need to get yellow top is that true? Is $220 a good price...its double the price of other batteries

You are correct, if you purchase the Optima red top in a vehicle with an upgraded sound system the warranty is voided. The red top is really meant only for more starting power. They provide LOTS of amperage and will take anything you throw at it, but it's not good when it comes to cycling. The red tops aren't meant for lots of cycling (or deep-cycles for that matter). The yellow tops are really meant for more long term amperage-intensive applications, but they are great at starting as well. I would try to find a yellow top if possible since it will last longer than a red top in your situation. I would only suggest a red top if you had an upgraded alternator that could keep the battery fully charged while under load (to prevent cycling).

As far as the price, yeah, they are pretty expensive batteries because they are extremely reliable and extremely powerful when compared to your retail brands like Interstate. They are worth every dollar, however.

[Empty V]

Awesome! Good to hear! Well only place I know that sells optima here in Canada is walmart. They only have blue top for marine and the red tops are $220 with 800cca if I remember right when all I need is 600ish. I know the yellow is more for cars with sound systems but can a red top suffice? I heard warranty is void on red top with a system and I need to get yellow top is that true? Is $220 a good price...its double the price of other batteries

Do you guys have Costco up in Canadia? I bought my YellowTop from them for a good price.

Billy

[fueler]

yellow tops are nice deep-cycle batteries for cars with sound systems (you can bump with the car off and it will still fire right up) but i dont think an upgraded battery is gonna solve your dimming prob.

PS stock headlights would dim along with the fogs but the HID's eliminate that since they are running on ballasts

you want to do the big three http://www.caraudio.com/forum/....html

[Qxxx4]

Yeah we have costco here but I need to go with a friend who has a membership. Only them and walmart has optima and walmart only has red or bluetop.

Fueler are you sure? Pwin makes sense from an electronics standpoint.

As far as I know all my grounds are solid. My amps ground is under my rear seat and bolted down strong and the metal was sanded down for a solid connection

I need a new battery anyways so ill go interstate or optima and see how that goes.

[longhornsqx4]

the member "wot" would tell ya a good place and what battery to get or whats wrong Im sure, why cant we PM on this forum? is it a hidden function? Id pm him

[Pwnin O'Brien]

Yeah we have costco here but I need to go with a friend who has a membership. Only them and walmart has optima and walmart only has red or bluetop.

Fueler are you sure? Pwin makes sense from an electronics standpoint.

As far as I know all my grounds are solid. My amps ground is under my rear seat and bolted down strong and the metal was sanded down for a solid connection

I need a new battery anyways so ill go interstate or optima and see how that goes.

Fueler makes a valid point, the big three could definitely be contributing to the issue. What he means is the factory big three (battery to alt., battery to chassis, engine to chassis) are rated for a specific current depending on their gauge. I'm not sure what gauge the factory big three are, but I'm sure WOT knows and can comment. The big three may not be big enough to pass enough current to power all of your electronics. The big three upgrade is usually completed when upgrading to a high-output alternator. I didn't suggest upgrading the big three because I didn't think your system was big enough to warrant that kind of current draw; I could definitely see WOT's system requiring a big three upgrade.

Qxxx4, how many watts are all of your amplifiers (RMS)?

[Qxxx4]

well I have factory amp driving speakers nd my amp for the subs is under 1000w rms for sure. my old battery has formed a lot of white s*** that I clean and comes back a week later. I'm well overdue for a new battery. She starts fine but if I run the stereo at low Volume for two mins with ignition off...she doesn't start

[Pwnin O'Brien]

well I have factory amp driving speakers nd my amp for the subs is under 1000w rms for sure. my old battery has formed a lot of white s*** that I clean and comes back a week later. I'm well overdue for a new battery. She starts fine but if I run the stereo at low Volume for two mins with ignition off...she doesn't start

So it sounds like your battery is most definitely the issue. With your system being under 1kWRMS you shouldn't need to do a big three upgrade.