trouble shooting a posssibly bad alternater

[EazyBreazy]

back ground,

s14srrelocated batteryno previous electrical problems with sr installed

situation.

i must have forgotten to tighten my positive cable when i finished relocating my battery, because sometimes it pops off while driving. when it pops off, if i switch my high beams on, the radio goes off for a minute then comes back on in addition to the car loosing some spark and trying to die, also if i rev the car, the lights become a little brighter.

question,

is my alternator going out, it stays running without the battery connected for as long as i need it to, but the electronics act funny and i will not be able to deal with that for 1700 miles accross country

[audtatious]

Did you use power wires that are too small? Do you have a proper ground?

[EazyBreazy]

grounding is good, power wire is huge compared to the stock one from when battery was in the engine bay. battery is a optima red top.