I have the following in my car and really haven't noticed any ill effects. I have a Kenwood KAC-X4R and KAC-X1R (bridged at 1 ohm) and I haven't had any issues yet. I ran 4 gauge wiring from the battery to a distrubition block, and 4 gauge into both amps. In all honesty, I didn't buy the car for the gas mileage (though it is a plus) and I plan on dynamating the floor, doors, rear deck lid and trunk. I will be using dynamat extreme. I AM NOT dynamting the the car for sound quality (though it will be a night and day difference) but I want to get rid of the road noise. I commute 25 miles each way (i have hov access) so I would like to have a quieter ride. I don't have a loud system, just clean and accurate. It really makes the commute that much better. I think after it's all said and done, I might have added another 50 pounds to the car.

 

Jayhawker: Do your lights dim at all? Do you have a lot of forced battery regens?

 

I really haven't noticed my lights dimming, but then again I am not pounding the system with a bunch of bass. It's rarely listened to the volume over half but it's nice to have the extra power there when I want to jam out on a song.

 

Hi ajhuntsman;

Sorry it took me a while to get a hold of your question - these Hybridfest trips can take a toll on one's schedule.

The HCH-II is an extremely poor platform to support the kinds of demands and 12V subsystem loads that a powerful audio system will call for.
To put it in the most basic of terms, the design faithfully follows the "minimal optimum" principle or "machine minimum, man maximum" Honda philosophy in that the system has barely any power headroom left for after-market devices unless you are willing to take on an ever decreasing fuel economy or you supplement the missing charge through other means.

If you live in a predominantly moderate climate and the power signature of the device is reasonable you may not have any issues at all.
If you live in a colder climate (winter time) then your 12V battery will undoubtedly have a shorter life and you may end-up experiencing IMA related malfunctions sooner or later.

The battery should be good for the occasional short lived demand of peak current. However, even a non-stop 100-200 mA is enough to bring this battery down in matter of a few weeks so it all depends on whether you operate the equipment with the engine off or not and for how long. Your commute distances also have a bearing. Shorter distances are usually worse.

The charge rate/frequency is managed by the car and the DC-DC gets its power primarily from the battery pack. On a moment's notice the DC-DC inverter can provide all the current you need but not in sustained mode.

I would avoid running more than 100 watts (approx 8 Amps) on a regular basis.

Cheers;

MSantos

 

I've recently installed a DVD-Audio 5.1 system in my 2008 HCH.

I'm running a single-DIN JVC KD-AVX33 head unit with an Alpine PDX-5 amp in the trunk (powering Alpine Type-X Refs in the front, Type-R coaxs in the back and a JL Audio 300W RMS sub). I also have a Pioneer GMT-3300 amp running a single-DIN Alpine center channel speaker.

Basically, it sounds amazing (much like the '05 Acura TL I used to have). However, I've noticed that sometimes the sound will cut out above a volume level of 30. All of the 14-gauge wire connections are secure, so my only thought is that the 12V battery under the hood just isn't powerful enough.

That said, what have you guys done to solve this problem? Does anybody know the official size of the battery under the hood? 51R? 26R?

I've been hearing that Optima yellow tops are among the best for powering car audio systems like this, but I'm seeing them only in 51R size and I'm not sure that it will fit (again, size?).

Please help.........

 

What did you end up doing in your HCH II? I have an 07 HCH II and I am recently getting the itch for better sound. I had an Accord that had a 5 channel Alpine amp with four upgraded Boston Acoustic speakers and a JBL sub. It just sounded good, even though I don't blast the music.

Concerned that I could be compromising the HCH electrical. How about running stock head unit and better speakers and maybe a powered sub?

Anyone?

Thanks,
Lansing

 

John,
Did you end up putting dynamat in your car?
I'm thinking about doing the same, the road noise is deafening in this car.

 

Hey i am looking into doing the same thing but not as big. How did it go?

 

Hey i am looking into doing the same thing but not as big. How did it go?