Lights dimming badly!!

[Cameron P]

How can I fix my interior and exterior lights dimming when the bass hits? I don't even want to hook up a voltage meter lol

[kcpwns]

Kinda battery you run? Optima yellow tops are great, talk to vkcommo about getting one. Also doing the big 3 upgrade helps with voltage drop. Do a search on here about it.
Kinda set up you got running?

[Jesterarts]

It's called a capacitor...

Not sure what size you would need, but bigger is better within reason.

Put it somewhere along the power line and dimming interior/extrior lights will be a thing of the past.

Cheers.

[wraith]

Capacitors are a gimmick. Upgrade the big 3 check your earth and go from there.

[Cameron P]

Alright I will search this big 3 thing.

Got 2x option audio pro series subs with 1800 watt each I think and I big amp powering those and I got 4 350watt pioneer speakers running off another Amp with 1800+watt and a kenwood headdeck

[Brenah]

Yeah bud check out the Big3 on You Tube.
The Big3 is what most should be doing to there system b4 going big, and reading your system your getting there.
My 2c
Brendan

[VKCOMMO]

Cam, ive just done a ground upgrade (2 more 4awg grounds) and it makes a big difference, So yeah, try the big three, and if that doesnt help then we can talk about an optima at the next cruise if you want?

[Cameron P]

How much did the big 3 cost jack? To do yourself?

Cheers man

[Cameron P]

And cheers Brendan.. It is getting there, after I fix the dimming and make everything all neat and tidy it will be done

Makes me cringe when it's turned up as loud as it can go =P

[acarmody]

How much did the big 3 cost jack? To do yourself?

Cheers man

4AWG, $10. A few lugs, $10 more. Plus some soldier and a blowtorch, or a big crimper, equals cheap as piss.

[VKCOMMO]

Yeah, It costs next to nothing.. Just before you buy the wire, get some rope or something and measure out how much youll need (run the rope loosely along the path you need it to go, remember, its better to have more than less) and then go buy some wire..

For wire, Ive found that Precision Car Audio at Penrith is pretty cheap/lenient on wire, I think last time I was there I asked for 2m of 8awg and got about 5m for the price of 2..

They also have a pack of 4x 4awg gold plated ring terminals for about $10 (there the ones i used for my ground upgrade, seem like a good terminal, see pic below)..

[acarmody]

My local audio places want about $15/m for 4AWG, rip-off bastards. Then I discovered my local Supercheap has it for a few dollars a metre, LOL.

VKCOMMO, did you use a blowtorch or crimp?

EDIT: I remember once I wanted some 8AWG for sub speaker wire (looks better), but my local WOW Sight and Sound wanted ~$8/m, so I went inside and bought a 8AWG DNA wiring kit for $20 on special, LOL, retards.

[VKCOMMO]

My local audio places want about $15/m for 4AWG, rip-off bastards. Then I discovered my local Supercheap has it for a few dollars a metre, LOL.

VKCOMMO, did you use a blowtorch or crimp?

EDIT: I remember once I wanted some 8AWG for sub speaker wire (looks better), but my local WOW Sight and Sound wanted ~$8/m, so I went inside and bought a 8AWG DNA wiring kit for $20 on special, LOL, retards.

$15/m is a rip.. I think I picked up a 4 channel complete 4awg wiring kit for about $50-$60..

These terminals are crimp, I need to invest in a blowtorch to connect my sub's amp (whole setup is designed to be removable in a matter of seconds, so it all goes through an anderson plug, but with crimping with a vice it just fell out after a while..

[acarmody]

I'm going to see if any welding stores sell small amounts of welders flex. Figure its only the engine bay, who cares what it looks like.

Besides my car is black and welders flex is black insulated, so see, I'm colour coordinating

[VKCOMMO]

Welding flex is 00awg isnt it?

[sweefu]

Welding flex is 00awg isnt it?

There is no general size for welder's flex, comes in many sizes though its not measured in American Wire Gauge, rather measured in cross sectional area or mm2
I did my big 3 upgrade in ~70mm2 welders flex, which works out between 2/0 and 3/0

[Nic92]

There is no general size for welder's flex, comes in many sizes though its not measured in American Wire Gauge, rather measured in cross sectional area or mm2
I did my big 3 upgrade in ~70mm2 welders flex, which works out between 2/0 and 3/0

may i ask,what is a welder's flex?

[kcpwns]

Thick as copper cable. Welders use it obviously haha.

[Pickle']

Capacitors are a gimmick. Upgrade the big 3 check your earth and go from there.

How do you figure.... i had massive dimming hooked up a 2 farad cap and it stopped it completely.. please explain?

[kcpwns]

Bandaid solution mate, what are you running?

[Cameron P]

Cheers for all the info fellas, it will all come in handy!!! Hopefully start buying shit to do it next week

[Pickle']

not running jack shit anymore lol.. that was my old vr.. You say bandaid solution, it was there 18 months + without a problem. I had 2 x 1000w 12 inch subs with a mon0block and 2 x 4 channel amps (not sure of wattage), and it never missed a beat.

[kcpwns]

Yeah what I mean is the proper way to fix it is upgrade ya battery and ya earths.
I run 2000wrms just to my subs, so probably 4000 peak watts or whatever the made up number is, and. Barely get voltage drop. I have to crank it all the way and the car has to be idle before I get drop.
And I'm yet to do my big 3. And I have to install another amp yet lol.

[Pickle']

I had re run earth cables in the VR and im still unsure of the 'big 3' i dont get it lol. Though i am an electrical retard i like my stereo's but i just dont do them myself, the guy i go through generally charges me 2/5th of #### all to install anyway.

[Cameron P]

But doesn't a capacitor use the same amout of power if not abit more but at a stable rate and stores it so you don't get irregular power draws?