Help me set up my stereo!!!

[Lib201]

Hey all, I got a liberator and it came with a pretty good stereo system. Well this is what it had, two amps (Directed 2400 Watt amp) some other small 150 Watt amp, two 12 inch Directed subwoofers with boxes, and 3 batteries.

Well we had a hard time with keeping those charged and we didnt like all that extra weight so now its currently...

Directed 2400 watt amp, one 12 inch subwoofer, and 2 batteries.

Now the stereo sounds great and we have the batteries wired together, but it still drains quite a bit and we wanna be able to listen to it for hours without worring. Now i heard theres this box thing that you should buy if you have two batteries..... Whats up with that? What do you all think?

[FUN4ME]

Hi , I am sure someone will chime in with a lot more detail but I used a Blue Sea Systems ACR (automatic charging relay) I leave my battery selector switch on #1 and let the ACR
charge battery #2 which is exclusively for the stereo. When running (the engine) both batteries are combined when sitting (engine off) the batteries are automatically separated which allows your starting battery to be fully charged when you are ready to leave.
Hope this helps
here is a link
http://bluesea.com/productline/overview/387
Erich

[njj502]

Directed 2400 watt amp, one 12 inch subwoofer, and 2 batteries.

I have found out that no battery will last with that much power pulling from it. I'd be lucky after an hour of pounding on my subs and getting a jump.....

[STV_Keith]

Fun4me hit it with the blue sea ACR. With a lot of power, you need a lot of Ah rating, and reserve capacity. The easiest thing to do is add batteries until you have enough to have at least 50% battery left for the stereo at the end of the day. Much less, and the batts won't last long...they don't like going down more than about 50% on a continuous basis.

Another option is to buy a small generator, like the Honda EU1000i or EU2000i and run a charger off of that. Lots of guys on the West coast out here do that. The Honda's are portable, quiet and relatively inexpensive. Also, they aren't too heavy. Less than 2 more batteries.

[Riverman]

The ACR is a wonderful thing. DON'T let anyone talk you into an old style RV battery isolater, they have a 1-1.5 volt drop across them. The ACR has virtually no voltage drop. The one pictured below is about $70 from West Marine.



http://i3.photobucket.com/albums/y66/river_57/7600-1.jpg

[STV_Keith]

One thing to note, that's the CL line you have in that picture - current limiting - so you can use smaller gauge wire. I personally used the SI series which will transfer up to 120amps...but you have to use regular battery cable size cables (I used 4ga).

Just a note. :)

http://bluesea.com/files/images/products/7610.jpg

[150aintenuff]

if some one needs one at good pricing I carry Blue sea, just need the PN for what you want and I can beat most major retailers pricing.

[Lib201]

Ok sweet thanks guys. We just got the alternator rebuilt on the boat but havent had it out yet. Thanks for the offer 150aintenuff Il see what needs to be done and il get back with you through a PM.

[150aintenuff]

I hope when you rebuilt the alternator you upped its output as well.... marine alternators are 35-40A at best in the fords, there are kits out there to turn the Y wound 40 A into delta wound stator 75+ amps output... and if you want to pound a big system they are a must, OR adapting a newer Delco or Nipondenso high power alternator is a must for anything over 100A output.. however marinization will be required for anything over 75A...

[Thor200587]

Another thing that you should look into is that deep cycle batteries, which I'm assuming you have, take a long time to reach full capacity. No matter how big you're alternator is it won't fully charge them by driving for a little bit. I would pick up a trickle charger that is deep cycle (agm) specific so you can get a full charge.

I have 4 deep cycles in my boat with a rockford fosgate 2000 watt amp fo the subs and two 500 watt amps for my 8 component speakers. Two of the batteries run the stereo at 3/4 volume the entire day. But when I don't charge the batteries all the way beforehand I have problems. Also one bad battery will suck the juice from all the others.