Choosing a car battery can be a daunting task. Last week I wrote a blog on understanding car batteries. It would appear that you folks want an instructional on how to choose a battery as well. Look no further. We are here to feed your blog cravings and put a rest to all the confusion! If you have an audio system that is roughly 800 watts or more, than you will most likely need a battery. Sit back, relax and get ready to receive some priceless knowledge to your cranium!
Watts
The RMS wattage of your system is capable of will determine how big of a battery you will require. All you need to do is take the CA (Cranking Amps) and match it to at least the amount of total watts your system is pushing. For example, if you have a 1400 watt system, you will need at least 1400 cranking amps. It doesn’t hurt to go a little above to say 1800 cranking amps. Simple right? The Kinetic HC1400 would be the perfect choice for said system.
Dimensions
You might at first be hesitant to choose a battery because you are not sure if it will fit in the stock location under the hood. There are two steps to ensure the dimensions are compatible with your vehicle. First, measure the overall height including the posts of your current battery. You want to make sure that your replacement battery does not protrude or surpass the battery posts of the stock battery. In some cases, the aftermarket battery posts can be taller than the stock battery and still fit in the location. Also, keep into consideration the post configuration to ensure you do not incorrectly connect the positive and negative terminals. You must really use your own discretion because every vehicle is going to be different. Second, check the length and width of the aftermarket battery to make sure it fits in the stock battery housing. Once these two steps are completed, then you can compare your dimensions to the dimensions listed on our website.
Starter Versus Secondary Battery
A lot of people are under the misconception that just adding a secondary battery instead of replacing the starter battery is the best way to go. If you add a secondary battery but keep the stock starter battery, than you will still have an inefficient lead-acid battery eating up all your alternator power. There are a lot of advantages to replacing the starter battery first. Your vehicles entire electrical system will be more efficient, your headlights be brighter, and you won’t have to deal with corrosion. The typical reasons for which you should add a secondary battery are if your system is extremely high wattage, or if you are a pretty serious SPL competitor. If you must add a second battery, then a battery isolator will only be necessary if you want to run your system with your vehicle off for extended periods of time. The isolator will ensure that the secondary battery is the dedicated battery for your audio system and will make sure that the starter battery is not drained. It would be wise to choose a deep cycle battery for your secondary battery, if you’re using an isloator, as it will possibly be drained multiple times. It never hurts to do the big 3 upgrade, too! Attached is a knowledge base article to show you how: “Big 3 Upgrade“
There you have it. Hopefully this clears up a lot of questions and has set you on the right path to choosing a battery that is right for you. Upgrading your battery will cause your sound system to be great success, very nice!