Fitting kicker compvx in single cab
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Okay, so basically I got the kicker zx1000.1 and it came with a peice that I am unfamilliar with. I can't even find a picture of it. It is basically a little oval shaped thing that has a fuse in it and two ends that looks like wires connect to. If it goes to the battery, then I already have a wire that has a fuse in that.
My MAIN question is when I start listen to the sub the amp will be working and the sub will be hitting, and then all of the sudden it will stop.. Then after a while continue again. I can't figure out why. (The whole amp turns off and looses power) I checked the fuse that runs to the battery and it looks fine, but I might change it out just in case anyways, it was blowing them quite frequently. My ground is not extremley secured, but I wiggled it around and it did not kick the amp back on. I was wondering if it was something behind my head unit, it started doing this with the last amp I had and I thought something was wrong with the amp. Now i'm starting to wonder if it's the fuse or something behind the head unit. Any suggestions as to what it might be?
My MAIN question is when I start listen to the sub the amp will be working and the sub will be hitting, and then all of the sudden it will stop.. Then after a while continue again. I can't figure out why. (The whole amp turns off and looses power) I checked the fuse that runs to the battery and it looks fine, but I might change it out just in case anyways, it was blowing them quite frequently. My ground is not extremley secured, but I wiggled it around and it did not kick the amp back on. I was wondering if it was something behind my head unit, it started doing this with the last amp I had and I thought something was wrong with the amp. Now i'm starting to wonder if it's the fuse or something behind the head unit. Any suggestions as to what it might be?
Post Fiend
Joined: May 2006
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From: Central Florida
IF the amp is turning off, then it's power or the remote. Being your ground isn't perfect, I would finish it up before starting any diagnostics. Once you have that done, it's time to start thinking about the current. At 1000w, it takes 73a at a minimum, if you have a class D amp (I think that's what you have), they are approx 50% efficient so you need closer to 140a at full power. You really should have 1/0 wire with 2ga being a minimum for both the power and ground.
If your running 4ga then you're experiencing a voltage drop at load. The oval thing is probably a fuse holder and hopefully has a hole for the wire almost big enough to fit your thumb in.
If your running 4ga then you're experiencing a voltage drop at load. The oval thing is probably a fuse holder and hopefully has a hole for the wire almost big enough to fit your thumb in.
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IF the amp is turning off, then it's power or the remote. Being your ground isn't perfect, I would finish it up before starting any diagnostics. Once you have that done, it's time to start thinking about the current. At 1000w, it takes 73a at a minimum, if you have a class D amp (I think that's what you have), they are approx 50% efficient so you need closer to 140a at full power. You really should have 1/0 wire with 2ga being a minimum for both the power and ground.
If your running 4ga then you're experiencing a voltage drop at load. The oval thing is probably a fuse holder and hopefully has a hole for the wire almost big enough to fit your thumb in.
If your running 4ga then you're experiencing a voltage drop at load. The oval thing is probably a fuse holder and hopefully has a hole for the wire almost big enough to fit your thumb in.
I also need to get longer wire (Not ground, not power, not rca, not speaker wire) the one that hooks up to your head unit. For that what guage wire should I get? I also will probably need a capacitor. My head lights and my interior lights blink quite a bit when the sub is hitting. What is the differences in capacitors? (I researched and now I know how they work) I would like to spend as little as possible on one thta will get the job done.
Thank you much, Tyler!
Post Fiend
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 10,007
Likes: 4
From: Central Florida
1/0 is size, it's the long name for 0 gauge wire. It's big stuff and what you need since your wire is going to be longer than 15'. 4ga is giving you a voltage drop at high amps, you can probably watch it with a DMM on the power/ground terminals.
The remote wire is low current, 18ga should be fine, but 14-16 will do if you have laying around. 10-12 is bigger than necessary. You don't want to pull a lot of current on it anyway, if you want to hook up multiple accessories to this wire, add a relay.
Caps store energy, sort of. The Farad rating is how much they store. These are really a band aid fix for dimming lights, but it's not a bad thing to have inline. A bigger battery, higher output alt and "the big three upgrade" are the real fix. In your position, I would pick up a 25' spool of 1/0 red wire, about 12' of black and at least half a dozen terminals. Run a red 1/0 from the battery to the fuse holder, from the fuse holder to the amp. Then run a red 1/0 from the big terminals on the alternator to the battery. Run a black 1/0 from the amp to the chassis ground. Run a black 1/0 from the engine to body and the body to the battery. This should help out a lot without spending a lot.
The remote wire is low current, 18ga should be fine, but 14-16 will do if you have laying around. 10-12 is bigger than necessary. You don't want to pull a lot of current on it anyway, if you want to hook up multiple accessories to this wire, add a relay.
Caps store energy, sort of. The Farad rating is how much they store. These are really a band aid fix for dimming lights, but it's not a bad thing to have inline. A bigger battery, higher output alt and "the big three upgrade" are the real fix. In your position, I would pick up a 25' spool of 1/0 red wire, about 12' of black and at least half a dozen terminals. Run a red 1/0 from the battery to the fuse holder, from the fuse holder to the amp. Then run a red 1/0 from the big terminals on the alternator to the battery. Run a black 1/0 from the amp to the chassis ground. Run a black 1/0 from the engine to body and the body to the battery. This should help out a lot without spending a lot.
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Okay, thank you. Well litterally no one here sold 1/0 gauge wire so I looked and the power wire that use to be hooked up to my truck was 8 gauge. hmmm. So I ended up just buying this little kit thing and basically it was made for 1600W and 1100 RMS.. It at least will power my system now 
. But I guess the capacitor is not big enough because my lights still flickor.
. But I guess the capacitor is not big enough because my lights still flickor.
Post Fiend
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 10,007
Likes: 4
From: Central Florida
Yeah, 8ga should make a big difference on powering the amp. Hopefully the new wire is as big as the holes in the fuse holder and you'll be set with them. I want to say 2 farad is sufficient for 1kW, but I know very little about them and 1 farad may do just as much.
Just for fun, you might try doing the big three with the take out 8ga wire to reduce the flickering. But consider upgrading the alt to one that can handle the extra load, and possibly adding another battery to soften the hits to the system.
Just for fun, you might try doing the big three with the take out 8ga wire to reduce the flickering. But consider upgrading the alt to one that can handle the extra load, and possibly adding another battery to soften the hits to the system.
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Wait, so what did you suggest doing for fun? lol. I ended up getting 5ga because it was the largest wire I could find around here locally. I am not sure how many farads it is to be honest. Ya, my dad was telling me that I should probably get another alternator to, but how much money approx would that cost? What could happen if i don't? Thanks, Tyler.
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Post Fiend
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 10,007
Likes: 4
From: Central Florida
5ga automotive wire? Use the wire that came with the kit, it's at least 4ga if not 1/0. The 5ga would be good for the big three upgrade for now.
Knowing what I know now, I'd skip the metra/tsunami alt and get it directly from HO-Alternators directly. There was an even less expensive option someone in the excursion forum used. Figure $300-800 for a high power alt depending on how much power they produce. You might even find 180 or 200a in the $240 range. Over 200 amp gets expensive. With any of the high amp alts, you need upgrade the wiring on it and the grounds which is where the big three comes into play.
Knowing what I know now, I'd skip the metra/tsunami alt and get it directly from HO-Alternators directly. There was an even less expensive option someone in the excursion forum used. Figure $300-800 for a high power alt depending on how much power they produce. You might even find 180 or 200a in the $240 range. Over 200 amp gets expensive. With any of the high amp alts, you need upgrade the wiring on it and the grounds which is where the big three comes into play.
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