the mange

I was checking out weldingsupply.com, and I'm stuck between #1 and 1/0. Their "suggested ampacity" chart recommends #3 for up to 150 amps, #2 for 200a, #1 for 250-300a, and 1/0 for 350a. But going off these numbers, it looks like at most I'd only need #2, as my amp has 5x 30amp fuses (leaving 50 amps of headroom). On the other hand, this site makes it look like I'd need 1/0 for sure. Sundown said use 1/0 for sure, just wondering if anyone else could weigh in on this, since I can't find a reliable table for ampacity and wire size.

for sure doing the big 3 since I have the stock alt (~120amps?). Do you think 30ft would be enough for power/ground/big 3 in a 4dr sedan (vw passat)?

Just got the new 1200d, setup with knukonceptz 4 gauge and my old 80 amp fuse from my alpine pdx 600 watt, and so far it sounds a lot more like 600 than 1200. Would I see a huge improvement if I upgraded to 1/0? The reason I ask is KnuKonceptz site says their 4 gauge handles 200 amps, and apparently the 1200 pulls only 150 amps. Either way, I'm definitely upgrading my fuse to 150 like it should be.

It does. My friend has a 1000/1, and after updating just my fuse, even with 4 gauge wire, my saz-1200 is walking all over the JL.

Update- Just threw the new fuse in and its pounding. Very impressed. Sounds just like I hoped it would now. Can't wait to get the 1/0 in there. This picture says it all:

Read: Aiming a woofer box in a car trunk

My pioneer has 4v pre-outs. After reading this I just set it by ear and that's what I thought sounds best.

Yeah I got that off their site too, which is why I built mine to around 2.5 after displacements, but a bunch of other people are saying go bigger, like 3 to even 3.5. I'll email Fi and see what they say.

Yeah sorry about that diagram I wasn't sure how else to do it with MS Paint. But yes the left side of each coil/box is supposed to be the + terminal. I'm headed back to school on sunday where I won't have my car but come summer I'll definitely upgrade to 1/0 and more likely than not a new box. Sundownz- what size enclosure would you recommend after all displacements for a new box? The current box is ~2.3ft^3 after port, sub and bracing. The BL is supposed to bridge the gap between the BTL and the Q so I'm guessing it would perform best in a more spl oriented enclosure, tuned closer to 35 hz maybe?

shoulda had your passenger blast it with a shotty when you had the chance

Dang I feel like a complete noob for asking, but just to make sure I've got it wired right, I have it setup like this: (d2 coils). Cause I've never had an amp with more than one pair of speaker terminals. Sundown says the channels are in parallel internally, so this is 1 ohm right? My gain is a little bit over half way turned up, LPF is ~70, SSF is ~20.

Using a 12" Fi BL dual2 coils in parallel

Yeah i read on the pre-sale thread he recommends the 1/0. My electrical consists of a yellow top up front, Knu 4 gauge, with the chassis to neg. terminal in 4 guage too. All my grounds are sanded. I "crimped" my wires to their ring terminals with a hammer tho last year, didn't know how to solder until a couple weeks ago. I think I'm just gonna do an electrical overhaul here and make it right.

I have a ski port with a latch/door that folds down into the trunk to allow air to flow through. If its ported through the hatch, and otherwise sealed off from the cabin, would that yield higher spl would it be a waste of time/money? Im not looking for pure spl, I just thought this might let me keep my sq but make it a little louder. My current setup is a regular 2.5 cube box with a bunch of room around the top/side to get around to the back of the box and through the ski port. Here's my idea(s)..... And sorry that it looks like a third grader made these sketches.. its all i could do with ms paint.... side view of trunk shape with ski port door open/folded down looking at the trunk from the outside top down view of new box design my attempt at an isometric view of the box..... (note this sketch doesnt have the 45 pieces in the port) I would adjust the width of the port to try and get ~30 hz with ~2.5 cubes after displacements

The port would be the only thing firing into the cabin, sealed to the ski port. The rest of the enclosure would be sealed off from the cabin. The port would be roughly 12"x8". Still a bad idea?

pictures....

So say i set my gain at 50%, if i dont even plug in the remote knob, obviously the amp operates with 50% gain. But if i plug in the remote knob and set the knob to 100%, given the amp's gain setting is still at 50%, will i have identical output? or would i have to reset the amp's gain setting with my dmm? From what i understand, the amp's gain setting sets the maximum level of gain, and the remote adjusts the percentage of that gain setting you want to use. i.e. you have the amp gain set at 50%, and the knob at 50%, so you'd be using the equivalent of setting the amp's gain at 25% with no boost knob correct?

definitely following this build. cant wait to see what 3500 watts does to a passat

Ohh this might be my problem. I need to check out the ignition and the constant 12v because my new cdplayer now stays on (check out the other thread by me in the electrical section). As far as the alt... I still need to finish wiring up most other things until the mechanic feels comfortable with tossing it in. It looks like your constant 12v is working fine if its staying on all the time, bc the 12v switched (red) wire that you crimp in the wiring harness never gets any power as far as i can tell. The 75x relay gives you normal switched power that should turn off upon key removal. Try and snap some pics of the alt install if you can that would be a huge help i think to everyone who has passats who's lookin to do the big 3. To get to the 75x, you have to pop out the light switch that turns on your dash lights tail lights, etc, then just unscrew the hex bolts that hold the panel on that has the slot for the owners manual. The relay then is just a bolt basically towards the lower left where a bunch of wires attach to and its marked '75x' underneath it. This is what the tech at my dealership said to do to reduce the chance of a short, bc usually people just attach it to an existing 12v wire going to another accessory. And have you found the block to chassis grounding wire on your car?

do you mean you cant find the right wiring harness? i thought my hu install was pretty easy, except the 12v switched wire doesnt work, you need to access the 75x relay under the driver side dash. i dont know how to hook up fm radio to my hu though because our cars have the euro plug and I cant find the right adapter. any progress with your alt install?

just pre ordered the sundown 1200d v.2 so i emailed fi with the same question. nick at fi recommended a fully loaded bl if you plan on running it at 1 ohm/1200 watts

My box isnt carpeted, so maybe thats the problem, but whats the best way to make sure you get a good seal? I just noticed there is some vibration in the rim around one of the screws on my fi. ive tried looking for silicone but i cant find anything that stays pliable and doesnt act like glue

I adjusted the clutch on my drill and went around re-tightening all the screws. problem solved.

hey ive got an 03 passat and im looking to do the big three in 1/0 too. I have the v6 so my alt is in a slightly different location, closer to the ground on the passenger side. I have no idea how im going to get to it let alone snake the wire back to my batt. Where is the block to chassis wire on our cars?

Hifonics = inflated rms numbers for little money