Looking for a relay

**HyperZulu** · 02-07-2007, 05:26 PM

Hi, I've been trying to track down what I would need for my installation. I am basically trying to get around an issue that I've been having with my audio/carpc setup. It seems that I have too many components wired through the ACC of my car and I keep blowing fuses. Everything is fine until I hook up components to that line, so it seems like an issue with current draw rather than a short somewhere. -- meaning, the car behaves normally with no fuses blowing if no other components are run from this line. As soon as I start adding components, fuse blows (I've even rerun my remote wires to eliminate the possibility of a cut wire somewhere)

So, what I am thinking is to just use something that feeds off a 12v source, but is tripped by the ACC. So, instead of the remote leads drawing power from the ACC line, it draws power from the 12v line, but the circuit is closed by the ACC going high.

I need to know what I'm looking for. A relay of some sort, I imagine.

**Wiredwrx** · 02-07-2007, 05:30 PM

Originally Posted by HyperZulu

Hi, I've been trying to track down what I would need for my installation. I am basically trying to get around an issue that I've been having with my audio/carpc setup. It seems that I have too many components wired through the ACC of my car and I keep blowing fuses. Everything is fine until I hook up components to that line, so it seems like an issue with current draw rather than a short somewhere. -- meaning, the car behaves normally with no fuses blowing if no other components are run from this line. As soon as I start adding components, fuse blows (I've even rerun my remote wires to eliminate the possibility of a cut wire somewhere)

So, what I am thinking is to just use something that feeds off a 12v source, but is tripped by the ACC. So, instead of the remote leads drawing power from the ACC line, it draws power from the 12v line, but the circuit is closed by the ACC going high.

I need to know what I'm looking for. A relay of some sort, I imagine.

Here you go.

http://www.allelectronics.com/cgi-bi...VE_RELAY_.html

Michael

**HyperZulu** · 02-07-2007, 05:34 PM

Thanks. I never use relays. But this can be found anywhere... radio shack, fry's, etc? I appreciate it.

**2k1Toaster** · 02-07-2007, 05:43 PM

Yes. Just make sure you get one that has a contact rating higher than the total of amps you will ever pull off of it. And tripped by 12v, not 5v.

**HyperZulu** · 02-07-2007, 06:09 PM

A should be able to tell how many amps are pulled using a voltmeter, right? I haven't even bothered to check that yet. I'll look into that before going out to buy a relay.

**HyperZulu** · 02-07-2007, 06:10 PM

On another note, this was never a problem when I had my head unit and amps, just after I put a PC in the mix. Could the DSATX be pulling more off the remote line than the rest of these components?

**Wiredwrx** · 02-07-2007, 06:13 PM

Originally Posted by HyperZulu

A should be able to tell how many amps are pulled using a voltmeter, right? I haven't even bothered to check that yet. I'll look into that before going out to buy a relay.

Nope, voltmeter won't help.

Look at http://www.the12volt.com/relays/relays.asp

Basically, the wire that is insufficient now, will go to the relay to "energize it"

ANOTHER heavy gauge wire, directly from the battery and fused, will go to the relay (usually to pin 30) and will then go out from 87 to the devices.

Your current wire has 12 volts, and will have sufficient amperage to energize the relay (it only needs about 200 milliamps)

Michael

**Wiredwrx** · 02-07-2007, 06:14 PM

Originally Posted by HyperZulu

On another note, this was never a problem when I had my head unit and amps, just after I put a PC in the mix. Could the DSATX be pulling more off the remote line than the rest of these components?

With out more information about your setup and wiring, it is impossible to say.

Michael

**0-0-7** · 02-07-2007, 09:14 PM

pepboys has 30amp relays for $2.80 or something. I got few of them a while ago.

**HyperZulu** · 02-07-2007, 09:23 PM

Well, there's nothing special about my setup. I have two amplifiers... one elemental design 9.4 and an Alpine mrd-605, then a pc that is using a good chunk of its available power (about 180w at max... other amps total around 800w together at max). I don't know that the amount of power the amplifiers pull is significant here since it's the remote wire that's at fault. In any case, I had three components before (two amps and head unit) and three now (no head unit, but PC). The remote wires are daisychained, but does this work the same way as other eletronics circuits? it's not like they can be wired any other way... there's no ground circuit to share, just the positive line. Right? Don't know...