Amp Rack Or Amp Mount Location

[schujd3]

Hey everyone my ac has been working great in my car. Better than my gf 2011 Honda Accord :). Anyways I upgraded my system I have 3 12s in the back 2 optima yellow tops and two runs of 0 gauge wire. I also have a 250 amp alternator and ran a thicker wire from the alternator to the front battery and upgraded the ground on the front battery. I have a t30001bd amplifier for my subs and a jl 400.4 for my door speakers it sounds great. Mobile concert on wheels. Anyways I have the amp mounted on the back of the box and it is flexing the hell out of it. I'm afraid of damaging this expensive amp and wondering if yall had any ideas for mounting spaces. Trunk is off its packed full. The amp is 3 feet long about a foot wide and 2 or 3 inches tall. I was thinking behind the back seat or below the back seat. I haven't had a chance to check clearance. I was in a 70mph motorcycle crash and was very injured 3rd degree burns on half my body. It took all my energy to get that box with 3 12s an that huge amp in the car wire it up and install the 250 amp alternator. Thanks in advance God bless

[LSPaul]

If the seating in the '99s is anything like the earlier cars, say good-bye to the back seats if one wants to mount underneath (plus the resultant heat and amp cooling issues you'd run into). The shape of the seat springing underneath pretty much takes up any available space, plus the driveshaft tunnel makes it too narrow to fit the amp's length. The only flat-ish mounting surface long enough for that big of an amplifier would be behind the seat back, but it's an impossible fit with the seat back in place. Once again, kiss your back seat good-bye.

The only space inside the car that I could think of using... if you're not using the original sub mounting hole for anything, is under the parcel shelf cover. You'd need to get an extra parcel shelf skin, cut away a good chunk of it, and build a vented/grilled cover (or access panel!) to fit the amp. Fit grill cloth so it looks stock-ish, sorta' like the original parcel shelf cover, where the opening for the sub rises to the bottom of the rear window. You've gone this far for a custom sound system, might as well keep going! ;-)

Failing that, if your subs are bolted down in the trunk, mount a sheet metal plate to the back of the box then mount the amp to that. Done right, it'll add strength to the box, cut down on the box flexing and as a bonus, give you extra metal for heat dissipation.

Paul

[schujd3]

I had a piece of mdf bolted in front of the gas tank that holds both amps nicely. Two small slits in the carpet and the wires come through very very clean setup. I have about 3 inches between the back of the box and the t30001bd so plenty of venting. Now my 250 amp alternator is acting funny. No problems driving without music but as soon as I cut the subs on the lights start flickering like crazy and don't stop until you cut the car off and start it back up. Alternator is brand new and it doesn't make since for it to be the voltage regulator because it would do it all the time right? Not just when the music is on. Im not talking about dimming. I used to get very little dimmingh voltage never drops below 12.2 now after I play the subs for a few songs lights are just a flickerin. Wish I could post some pics they're too big

[LSPaul]

That does sound like a nice, clean setup!

Those two amps together weigh, what, 40-50 pounds or so, right? MDF, by the nature of the stuff, isn't going to do that great structurally with that kind of weight mounted to it... it's going to flex--your concern here. Call in the reinforcements for that. ;-)

I didn't see that amp model on RF's site, so I don't know what the current demand would be for the 3KW amp on top of the amp for the drivers--given that Rockford Fosgate recommends a 200A alternator for their 2-2.5KW amps.

Cutting the big amp in is going to have a significant demand of current right off the bat, no matter what car it would be mounted in. Are you using any kind of inrush current limiter (also known as a "soft start" device) with your system? An inrush current limiter goes between your charging system and amp power input and should mitigate the HUGE current inrush spike that happens when one powers up a BIG amp. You'll to want to do some research on car audio forums or even check with RF's tech support to see if you really need some sort of current inrush limiter for this setup, and if so, what's the best design to use.

There's plenty of guides out there online to calculate your needs and DIY your own limiter, as this is a common issue in the ham radio world--plenty in that crowd use 2KW RF amplifiers, and have to deal with this issue on a larger/higher voltage scale (110/220V in, 2000+V high voltage transformers, etc).

[schujd3]

I think my electrical is more than enough the audio shop calculated it and said it's perfect. I am hoping that it may just be the pig tail connector loose on the alternator. The t30001bd is the older generation but is a great amp. Made in the United states last generation that was. I have two optima yellow tops to help with the deep drains. I'll check that connector and make sure it's plugged in right. What else would cause it to flicker like that because it didn't do it before until I got all of the wiring re done. I have two 0 gauge wires and seperate grounds for everything. Gold plated battery terminals too.

[LSPaul]

You were using the amp before adding the second battery? Yes, check your connections and grounding everywhere... but because of the size and current demands of the amp, you're still getting a spike in current demand to power up the amplifier, which is what you want to address to keep the charging system from doing what it's doing.

[schujd3]

No I had 2 batteries. I've had them since my t15001bd and 3 alpine type rs. All connections are right in the trunk wires are not even warm

[Exhaustgases]

I don't understand why the factory system isn't sufficient. Its good enough in the older LS's to ruin your hearing, and that is the only reason a person needs super duper speakers and huge amplification of sound.

And really an amp 3 feet long and a foot wide? Was it made in the 1950's? Gosh I think the woofer amp in a gen1 is 3 to 4 inches long.

[schujd3]

It's just a hobby. I enjoy doing it and have always enjoyed a loud stereo. My house has one as well.

[Exhaustgases]

Lucky I don't like the newer LS's, but still I don't like to see non factory holes drilled into a car. It ruins any collector value it has in the far future. The only acceptable non factory holes would be dealer installed Lexus options like the phone.

When someone messes up a metal panel on the car, to fix it right can be a horrendous job and hours and hours of goofing with it. And usually the best place for such cars is a junk yard at least until they are so rare that huge holes of rust will be desirable kind of like the old 50's Chevys.

[schujd3]

Found out why the lights are flickering!!! Popped the hood with the engine running and the serpentine belt tensioner is flicking back and forth on idle! Is this hard to replace? It looks pretty simple. Any ideas on where to get one? I usually get parts from rock auto but don't get the cheap ones. Made the car feel like it was miss firing too when I was stopped and when I let it roll with my foot off the brake. Thanks in advance joel.

[schujd3]

OK I am still have the same problem.. I replaced the tensioner and the new one is jiggling back and forth as well. Any ideas?

[sha4000]

Is the pulley jiggling or the bracket?

[schujd3]

The bracket is moving the pulley moves smooth.

[schujd3]

Here is my amp rack I had made. I also have sent back my subs this Fosgate amp blew them but I am having them upgraded.

[Exhaustgases]

I wish I could be in on some of these installs and mods. I could figure out how to do it with out adding a single new hole on the car, or goofing anything up on the car to do it. One exception would be the console box like in the Lexus dealer phone install.

There is always a way to build some kind of bracket or use some existing hole to accomplish the task.

[LSPaul]

Here is my amp rack I had made. I also have sent back my subs this Fosgate amp blew them but I am having them upgraded.

How often does one get to say this with a straight face... "Nice rack!" ^_^

[schujd3]

Hahaha thanks for the compliment. It's nothing fancy but it's a nice clean setup. We could have probably mounted it without drilling any holes but it would have required more fabrication brackets/wood and I'm not too sure I would have had the clearance for the box. It fit in there perfectly and have about 6 inches of clearance for excursion although these subs don't move that far and I have about 4 inches of clearance on the back side to let the amps breathe.