Max power amp and sub install car can handle?

[jp1234]

Hi, im new to car audio systems but want to learn, i was wondering if anyone knew what size amp for a single sub can be installed on these cars and not cause any issues with stock electrical components. i have a 2015 gt premium with the 200amp alt. but last time i added a 800W rms amp and sub the cars battery while running would dip into the mid - high 11v and ended up cause misfires and other problems. had the same problem happen with 2 different setups. is there a different way you need to wire an amp and sub up with the BMS in these cars? any help would be greatly appreciated thanks in advance.

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[TreeFiddyAre]

The OEM alternator should handle around 800 RMS — as long as your battery isn’t on life support and you aren't running a crazy fuel system while its tuned properly and not clipping .
What a lot of people overlook is the size, length, and quality of the power and ground wires.
Keep the ground as short as humanly possible, and run the thickest power cable your amp and distro block will accept. Also try to keep the wires away from heat sources — once they start cooking, resistance goes up, and suddenly your amp acts like it’s asthmatic.

And just making sure… you’re really only asking 800 watts from it?
Like, is the amp rated 800 RMS @ 4 ohm, but you’ve got a DVC sub wired to 2 or even 1 ohm, meaning the amp is actually doubling or tripling output?

Just checking — because “800 watts” can turn into “surprise smoke show” real quick depending on how it’s wired. If this was an amp with an unregulated power source you will end up cooking it , this was an issue back in the day with a lot of amps such as OG SoundStream .

 

[jp1234]

The OEM alternator should handle around 800 RMS — as long as your battery isn’t on life support and you aren't running a crazy fuel system while its tuned properly and not clipping .
What a lot of people overlook is the size, length, and quality of the power and ground wires.
Keep the ground as short as humanly possible, and run the thickest power cable your amp and distro block will accept. Also try to keep the wires away from heat sources — once they start cooking, resistance goes up, and suddenly your amp acts like it’s asthmatic.

And just making sure… you’re really only asking 800 watts from it?
Like, is the amp rated 800 RMS @ 4 ohm, but you’ve got a DVC sub wired to 2 or even 1 ohm, meaning the amp is actually doubling or tripling output?

Just checking — because “800 watts” can turn into “surprise smoke show” real quick depending on how it’s wired. If this was an amp with an unregulated power source you will end up cooking it , this was an issue back in the day with a lot of amps such as OG SoundStream .

the set up i had before was 800rms at 1ohm and i made sure it was wired for 1 ohm, i recently found and fixed my positive wire going to the battery in the factory harness as it was super corroded about 5 inchss down inside the wire so im hoping thats what was causing the poor electrical and misfire situation. im still iffy about adding a subwoofer just because i dont want to cause any more misfires though. fingers crossed that was the issue.

 

[G.T.]

800w at 1 ohm is pretty high current. Sorry, no idea what our cars can handle though.

Maybe going with class D amplifiers can help.

 

[TonyT930]

the set up i had before was 800rms at 1ohm and i made sure it was wired for 1 ohm, i recently found and fixed my positive wire going to the battery in the factory harness as it was super corroded about 5 inchss down inside the wire so im hoping thats what was causing the poor electrical and misfire situation. im still iffy about adding a subwoofer just because i dont want to cause any more misfires though. fingers crossed that was the issue.

Im betting this was your problem. In the future, try using some dielectric grease and a piece of wire shrink. It will help to keep the moisture out. Thats what I did with mine

 

[TreeFiddyAre]

That definitely didn’t help. The condition, size, and length of the wiring is critical.

800 RMS is just what the amp can deliver when it’s in full “kill mode.” In reality, you were probably pulling 200–300 watts consistently as you are playing music that is saturated with low frequencies. And remember — as the sub plays different frequencies, the impedance changes, which means the power output changes too. The amp basically has mood swings.

Long story short:

Make sure the battery is healthy and not running on hopes and prayers while being sized properly.
Make sure the wiring is properly sized for your setup. I'd run nothing short of 1/0ga so get a distribution block to accept that size.
Keep the power and ground wires as short as possible. If the run ends up long, drop down a gauge to compensate.
And for the love of bass, use fuses. All of them. Fire is only cool at campgrounds.
With a 200-amp alternator, I wouldn’t stress about an amp that can produce 800 RMS — just check all the boxes. IDK what amp you have been describing but I'd assume its a new age amp and prob pulling 100-120amps so I'd think you are on the upper end of what you can use with the hardware you have.
Lastly , make sure the amp isnt cranked up to high , clipping is an amps and electrical systems nightmare.

 

[jp1234]

That definitely didn’t help. The condition, size, and length of the wiring is critical.

800 RMS is just what the amp can deliver when it’s in full “kill mode.” In reality, you were probably pulling 200–300 watts consistently as you are playing music that is saturated with low frequencies. And remember — as the sub plays different frequencies, the impedance changes, which means the power output changes too. The amp basically has mood swings.

Long story short:

Make sure the battery is healthy and not running on hopes and prayers while being sized properly.
Make sure the wiring is properly sized for your setup. I'd run nothing short of 1/0ga so get a distribution block to accept that size.
Keep the power and ground wires as short as possible. If the run ends up long, drop down a gauge to compensate.
And for the love of bass, use fuses. All of them. Fire is only cool at campgrounds.
With a 200-amp alternator, I wouldn’t stress about an amp that can produce 800 RMS — just check all the boxes. IDK what amp you have been describing but I'd assume its a new age amp and prob pulling 100-120amps so I'd think you are on the upper end of what you can use with the hardware you have.
Lastly , make sure the amp isnt cranked up to high , clipping is an amps and electrical systems nightmare.

i gotcha, i just replaced the battery when i did the repair. im planning on downsizing the amp to something small like a 300w rms at 4ohmz running a 600 peak 12in sub, nothing crazy. when i go to install i should be connecting the power for the amp to the battery terminal directly correct?

 

[TonyT930]

i gotcha, i just replaced the battery when i did the repair. im planning on downsizing the amp to something small like a 300w rms at 4ohmz running a 600 peak 12in sub, nothing crazy. when i go to install i should be connecting the power for the amp to the battery terminal directly correct?

Yes. Connect the amp power wire directly to the battery terminal and ground the amp in the trunk of you are mounting the amp there. Use the same gauge power and ground wires

 

[jp1234]

Yes. Connect the amp power wire directly to the battery terminal and ground the amp in the trunk of you are mounting the trunk there. Use the same gauge power and ground wires

okay will do, when all the parts come in ill give an update after the install whether or not the mis fire comes back

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