ok when my subs hit and im at idle my rpms drop alot
and by alot i mean ive seen it drop down to 450-550 rpm
and almost feels like its going to stall

setup-

pioneer hu
sony 1000 watt amp i think its 250 rms * 2(not set to full power)
rockford fosgate 1 farad cap
4 guage wire for power
i think 8 guage for ground (is that to small?)
2 40 amp fuses(is that a good sized fuse?) one is a foot after the battery one is right before the cap

could i have a bad battery or alternator? any recommendations?

 

I would guess bad battery because by the sound of it your alternator is working. thats why your rpms drop, because your alternator is working, how well? idk. if you had a beat alternator the rpms wouldnt drop because it wouldnt be charging the battery at all. Go to autozone or whichever place you prefer and get that battery tested, because its easiest; btw how has your car been starting?

~Edit~ i just noticed that you have 4 gauge power and 8 gauge ground, did you install your setup? get that swapped out asap...

 

For one thing, your ground cable is too small compared to your power cable.Both need to be the same size.I don't know for fact that the small ground cable would cause your problem, but I can see where it's possible.


Replace the ground cable first, then see what happens.If that doesn't work, then the next thing may be the alternator.

 

I know that the guy who had my car before I, needed to replace his alternator because of his system. So maybe the tibs have poor alternators or they just cant handle much of an extra load. I dont haved a cap but I only have my amp pushing like 150wattsish. From time to time my lights dim and the idle drops like 100rpms depending on the song.

 

well without the subs the car runs fine
the idle drops once and a while like 50 rpm
i reset the computer and its fixed

i did install it myself i used a schoche(sp?) amp kit rated to 1200 watts
maybe i should get the alt tested i have 138000 miles and never had a problem
maybe its tired battery has like 65000+ on it

also sometimes the subs will hit hard then get somewhat quiet then hit hard again would the ground do this? and is the strut tower a good chassis ground? i sanded down the post to the metal

time to upgrade!!!

 

I grounded to the strut tower as well. Sanded the paint down and only used an 8g wire. Everything is cool sound wise though for me, but i only have like 48k miles and running low power so my alt and battery can take it without a prob

Id say check your battery, if things are ok with that, check the alt. And def boost up that ground cable size if your running that much power.

 

yeah i think ill upgrade it anyways that way the wires can be all red:p:

 

Better grounding would help wonders.

 

well i went with a oxygen free 98% copper 4 gauge wire and dam it helped

the idle thing is still happening though

i checked the charging system and everything is ok so i guess its normal(i hope)

im gonna look into a ground wire system for the engine maybe that will help