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I'm going to be putting a 2400 watt system into a 2004 US Honda Civic Coupe. My question is this. I'm pretty sure I'm not going to be able to keep a stock electrical system, also, due to my lovely Honda ELD I'm pretty sure I can not upgrade my stock alternator (though if anyone has a solution that I don't know about to fit a HO alternator or something else on to a civic without running into problems with the ELD, then by all means, I'm more then willing to see the light). What can I do before I start putting this system in to make sure I've got enough power and I'm not "starving my amps"...? (Also, can I damage my system or amps by running them "starving" before I upgrade the electrical? Or should I make all the necessary upgrades before I put it all in?)
(if you need it, my amps are 1 Alpine PDX 4.100 and 2 Alpine PDX 1.1000, all really efficient amps.)

 
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What a waste of money. You will regret it in a few years. god i sound old.

 
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Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. I've envied putting together a system like this for years, and now I'm finally in a place where I can without tapping into my savings. Trying to have a lot of money is really after a certain point only about trying to have a better quality of life. I've worked and saved and planned, and now (except for this blasted ELD which I only just found out about, grrrrr...) I'm ready to realize one of my dreams. So, if you will, allow me to rephrase my question. Does anyone have an answer to my question to help me finally realize a dream?

 
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You'll be fine. I've been running about the same power for a few years with no probs. Stock alternator. Upgraded battery.

meh

 
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Awesome, that's what I needed to hear. May I ask, what battery do you have? How do you like it?

 
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Optima Yellow Top. I've had it for about 5 years. Only problem is it needs a slight tender from a battery charger once every couple of weeks. I often work on my car so everytime I do I just make sure to throw a charger on the batt. The Yellow Top has been somewhat controversial in these vehicles but I've had nothing but success with it...

YMMV

 
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Another option. I just found out I have the ability to make my 2400 watt system a mere 1400 watt system, but make a good deal of moola in the process.
Would I still be needing to make the same upgrades to my electrical if I put in a 1400 watt system instead?
(I'm not ruling out the 2400 watt system yet, just going over all of my options.)

 
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...bump?

 
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I'm using a Kinetik 1400 under the hood and a Batcap 400 backing up my amps on a stock alternator for 4 yrs. with no problems. the Optimas blow dog imo and are completely unreliable. not to mention how huge they are

the Kinetiks are designed for car audio and totally worth the cost. GL
BTW- I'm pushing around 1500wts total.

 
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There's no two ways about it, after talking with my installer we've decided to put in only one amp and one sub, which leads me to the question, what kind of upgrades do I need to make when running only a 1400watt system?

I've been reading up on the Kinetiks, and so far I like them. I still have one question about them though, that stems from me not knowing what I'm talking about. If I put in one of these Kinetik "dry cell" batteries and take out my stock "wet cell" battery, will anything change for the worse with the rest of my car?

Also, I keep reading that "caps are good, no caps arn't good, caps are great!, wtf don't waste your money on caps..." ect. ect. ect. From the opinion of someone who has them, do they really help?

 
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Also, any idea of I would run into any problems running a 1700watt system?

 
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you wont have any electrical problems replacing your old battery with a Kinetik. the 1400 fits perfectly in a 7th gen civic but it is taller. if using the factory hold down, you'll have to flatten it out straight and flip it over for it to fit. works perfect.

most civic alternators put out 60-80 amps depending on rpm. although the ELD does limit your voltage, the Kinetik makes up for it when your system demands the extra power, keeping everything at a steady 12 volts. anything over 1000wts. is going to make your lights dim and starve your amps of power.most caps are garbage and do nothing but take up space. however, the batcap 400 is a 200 farad battery/capacitor that helps eliminate those problems and will stiffen up your sub and improve overall sound quality. they are a little pricey, but you can get them on ebay for much less. I've had great success with these products and use them in all my cars. if you decide to run anything over 1500wts. you need to use multiple batteries and caps, depending on efficiency of your amps. I would'nt recommend it considering all the added weight.

GL !

 
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Then 1400watts it is still. I was looking at the batcaps, would putting in a bigger batcap like the 800 or the 2000 have any real benefits for me then?

 
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waste of money and you don't need it with a 1500wts or less system. don't complicate things by thinking you need more of this or more of that to make things work better.

 
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Okay, if you're running 1500w or less, the only thing a capacitor will do is keep your lights from dimming when the subs hit. Anything more than that, like the 2400w you're talking about, and a capacitor is the way to go, and it'll help your battery in the long run. Either way, once you get subs, you'll never enjoy a car ride without them. Good Luck

 
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I'm only running 640 watts system stock battery and my lights dim when the subs hit in my 7th gen. By dim I mean they dim, even when cruising at 4000rpms on the highway. I'm not going to upgrade until something dies, but my subs are already 4 years old so I'm not overly concerned about them or the amp blowing up. A good start I hear is upgrading the grounding system under the hood. It's about as cheap of an upgrade as you can do and it makes a difference.

Oh yes, and I love having subs in the car, it really makes the drive more enjoyable for everyone and everything but my ear drums. If you do install the 2400 watt system, don't forget to re tighten all the nuts and bolts that you rattle loose about once a week haha. Just to be on the safe side. I hope your going to soundproof the car a lot, otherwise this could all be a waste.