I used to frequent this site quite a bit as a young basshead, but adulthood changes things as most of you probably know. I still have passion and love for bass and I'm excited to finally be able to put a system back in my car as I'll be driving a lot for my new job. I know the basics of car audio to an extent, but still need some help with some elementary questions and decisions.
The plan is to install my 12" SSA GCON powered by a Sundown SAZ-1000D that I ran in my Jeep a few years ago in my current car which is a 2014 Accord. What I do need is a line out converter, a secondary battery, and wiring for the big three upgrade. Here's what it looks like in the trunk as of now:
Now here's what I need help on:
1. It seems like the stock electrical system is weak and wouldn't even handle 500 watts without dimming. My initial thought is to do the big three in 1/0 and go with an XS Power XP750 as my secondary. Should I even bother doing the big three? I'd rather not do too much in order to save money and this won't be my car for too too long, but I'd also rather not fry my alternator and have a system that dims everything.
2. When I ran a secondary battery in the past I had a 250 amp battery isolator to go with it. Is an isolator necessary? Or will using a fuse between the main battery and secondary battery, and then another fuse between the secondary battery and the amp do the job? I remember hearing issues about secondary batteries battling the main battery for a charge when the car was off. What's the best way to approach installing the secondary battery?
3. There's no way I'm doing an aftermarket head unit, so it seems like line out converters are the best bet in these scenarios. If I'm correct, where is the best place to tap in? Directly behind the stock head unit or off of the rear speakers? Do these things kill sound quality. Is there any tuning involved on the actual little piece of hardware?
4. I'm definitely going to have to do some sound deadening since this car already rattles. What brands are you guys using these days that are the best bang for your buck? I used Second Skin back in the day when they were fairly new so I was considering them again.
It's good to be back. Thanks for any help and input peeps