My lights don't dim or anything, maybe slightly if i crank it up. but its an 05 Civic, stock alt and battery...is there still any concerns i should be aware of?

my amps:

JLA 400/4 (using 75x2 currently) class a/b

MTX 1501d (using about 1400 watts, 1.33ohm load) class d

4 guage power.

Overall, system seems fine, nothing cutting out..etc. The OEM alt is a Mitsubishi, no idea how many amps it pushes but i'd be suprised if its over 100a. if lights don't dim, is it ok?

get a dmm and check your voltage.

what i would do is check voltage BEFORE starting it up to leave to go to work or school.

You don't wanna check it after you turn it off unless u do it several hours afterwards. This will ensure u get an accurate reading.

Your battery should rest either at 12.8-13.0v when fully charged.

IF your battery is reading 12.5v or lower, i would be a little concerned about longevity.

oh and a side note...

you live in Indiana. If you have any problems about anything, get your hoosier ass down to louisville, ky Several of us can help you.

There are also many people in the surrounding IN area that are fond of car audio troubleshooting as well.

i think the last i checked, it was 12.8 volts with engin off. but i'll double check it later. thanks

So i assume if its lower than 12.5 that means what exactly?...that its not charging completely? never any problems starting it. or does it mean its weakening the battery?

in my opinion, if it's ever at 12.5v or lower, the battery needed more time to charge back up before shutting it down because u were jamming on it to loud for too long.

Ok, after letting it sit for a few hours, heres the measurements...my battery is over 1 year old.

12.37v

12.6v right after shutdown

14.3v idle charge

14.27v with system on at moderate/low volume

in my opinion, if it's ever at 12.5v or lower, the battery needed more time to charge back up before shutting it down because u were jamming on it to loud for too long.

Actually i listen to it at at volume 30-33 out of 100..i'd say moderate for about 10-12 minutes, the time it takes me to get to and from work.

Any other time i drive, usually my wife is with me and i'm forced to keep it no higher than maybe 20.......either way, its usually quick drives, rarely full blast but sometimes i do. Overall, with both my amps, i'd say atm i'm around 1400 actual watts, 1200 if i just use 1 sub.

Soooo, no doubt i know i could stand a larger altenator. But my car always starts up just fine, i also listen to my music at low volume on battery alone when i arrive at work in the morning for at least 10-20 minutes....so that may have something to do with my decreased in voltage too, i dunno. but really, i rarely crank it. So not sure where this leaves me other than maybe get a new battery and keep the bass toned down.

If its not full blast, i'm not really sucking down all that wattage am i? I guess its a matter of how many amps my stuff is drawing, i don't think i have an amperage setting on my MM but i never blew that 100 amp fuse i have powering it all either.

Do you ever go close to 100/100? The way you put it you never get to half volume, so dimming wouldn't happen reguardless.

no i never make it to 50, however i have a line driver (10volt) so my input to the amps is pretty high. 30 is moderate for highway driving.

I would say that level 50 is probably the normal 100 if i did not have a line driver.

however i am thinking about only keeping the MTX amp and taking everything else out and run my 6.5's off my HU or maybe my 100 watt Alpine amp. ....so i'm hoping that since my lights don't dim most of the time, that i would be ok, at least till i get the car paid off so i can trade it in.

i also listen to my music at low volume on battery alone when i arrive at work in the morning for at least 10-20 minutes....

IF u want to do that, keep the car on or the bass completely off.

I remember workin on my car before with 180ah of XS batts fully charged. I would have the stereo on vol 7 (vol 31 is my burp level)

I would have the bass barely on so i wasnt annoying anybody. After about 1hr of constantly playing, my voltage level would be at 12.2-12.3v from 13.1v!

So not keeping the batts charged while in use isn't a good idea.

I'm not sayin Oh No, ur battery is dying... but do this-

The next day you drive, drive your normal runs like u normally would, WITHOUT the stereo on ever...

Come back and tell us what the battery reads before u start it up the next day. Testing it as soon as u shut it off is a pointless reading because as long as your alt is working which it clearly shows it is, the surface charge on the batt will be present exhibiting a level on the batt that isn't really there in terms of comparing current charged level. You must wait several hrs for it to go away to get an actual reading.. Either that, or put a load on the battery to kill the surface charge... but better to just measure it before u drive again(the next day)

Something else to check is if your model has an ELD (Electronic Load Detector). That is known to actually turn the alternator off to improve fuel mileage. I know in my 02 Civic I have one. Still debating on doing the ELD Bypass.

Just out of idle curiosity, where in the great Hoosier state are you? Close or not I'd be more than happy to help you out with what I can.

Like everyone else has mentioned, the only way to know for sure is to monitor the voltage. Easiest way to do so would be to purchase something like this Stinger LED Volt Display. Then you can monitor the voltage continuously.