What are the Amplifier Limitations due to Hybrid Technology?

[drewsker]

Hello all,

 

Thanks in advance for any responses. I'm in the process of trying to figure out how to upgrade the sound on my 2018 Ford Fusion. It has the 11-speaker system that comes with the Tech package. The speakers are quite substandard.

 

My difficulty comes in figuring out what are the limitations in adding an amplifier. Specifically, I need two questions addressed:

 

1) Will adding an amplifier lead to sound distortion due to microphone placement and/or noise cancellation technology?

 

2) What are the limitations in choosing an amplifier with regards to power, current, fuses, etc.? I've heard of people installing amplifiers in hybrid vehicles, only to have their hybrid batteries blown out. So this is a very serious issue, and frankly I'm a bit dissapointed that Ford does not make this information readily available.

 

Thanks.

[murphy]

If you add an amplifier you will have to disable the active noise cancellation because the amplifier will unbalance it. It is usually done by disconnecting all three microphones.

 

The car does not have an alternator. When the car is on the 12 volt power for all of the cabin systems comes from a DC to DC converter that converts the HVB 350 volts DC to 12 volts DC. If that converter is overloaded it may die. You also can't connect directly to the 12 volt battery terminals since that will bypass the circuitry the car uses to monitor the charge level in the 12 volt battery.

[drewsker]

Thanks for the information, Murphy. A little bit of a follow up on the active noise cancellation: if these three microphones are disconnected, what features other than active noise cancellation are disabled?

 

I have placed a call in to my dealer's technicians with hopes that they can answer my questions. Somehow, Ford figured out how to put a Sony amplifier in to power their 12-speaker premium system. I am highly disappointed that this is not offerred as a stand-alone upgrade given how difficult it's been to upgrade the sound of my car.

[murphy]

None that I am aware of. I have not done it, only read about what other people have done.

 

The Sony amplifier is part of the balanced ANC system.

 

Have you considered finding a wrecked car and removing the parts that you need from it?

[Justblan1984]

I have a 2500w Power Acoustik Razor RZR1-2500D (650w RMS @ 2ohms) Mono Block Amplifier connected straight to the 12v battery with a SCOSCHE 500k MicroFarad Capacitor running 1 12” Pheonix Gold Ti312D4 Dual 4ohm Subwoofer (600w RMS). Have had the car for about 4 months and have had the system in the car for about 3 months now without a single issue. I had the Kicker 12” Sub (43CWR122) & Enclosure combo being pushed by a MTX Terminator TN250/1 Amp, upgraded to the Razor Amp and it blew through 3 Kicker Subs so bought the Pheonix Gold Sub put it in the kicker enclosure and it’s been bumpin ever since.

 

My car car has the 4” Radio with SYNC no navigation no stock amplifier, I disconnected the 3 ANC mics just because but so not sure if the different systems get different results.

 

Kicker Sub site https://www.bestbuy.com//site/kicker-compr-12-dual-voice-coil-2-ohm-loaded-subwoofer-enclosure-black/4969000.p?skuId=4969000

MTX Amplifier site https://www.crutchfield.com/S-IlWaIubNU4i/p_236TN2501/MTX-Terminator-TN250-1.html

 

 

My Budget friendly build

Amplifier site http://www.walmart.com/ip/Power-Acoustik-2-Ohm-2-500-Watt-Max-Subwoofer-Amplifier-5-pc-Box/52626243

Capacitor site http://www.walmart.com/ip/Scosche-500K-Micro-Farad-Capacitor/46997835

Pheonix Sub site https://phoenixgold.com/catalog/subwoofers/ti3-series-12-600w-dual-2-ohm-subwoofer

Edited August 1, 2018 by Justblan1984

[Darkside]

And I have added 1000 watts to my 2014. I added a second battery that is charged from the 12v. I have the Sony head. Look for my writing on it. It's in this section.

[Intensesense]

And I have added 1000 watts to my 2014. I added a second battery that is charged from the 12v. I have the Sony head. Look for my writing on it. It's in this section.

 

 

I have read through your thread, and it has been extremely insightful. Thank you! I have a question about your setup though. Is the second battery totally necessary? I just purchased a JL Audio VX1000/5i amplifier, do you think I will be alright wiring directly to the 12v battery maybe using a capacitor? It is supposedly a very efficient amp and easy on electrical systems.

[murphy]

Do not wire directly to the battery. You will bypass the computer circuit that allows the battery SOC to be monitored.

[Darkside]

I added the second battery for the fact the 12v battery is pretty small. I have not replaced my original battery yet and it is a 2014. I suspect soon, but zero problems with my setup.

After all this time I still love the sound in my car.

[CourtesyDP]

I know this is an old topic. I had the same questions on adding an amplifier. I spoke to Crutchfield and a professional stereo shop on this. You can wire directly to the battery and it will not cause any harm to the system depending on the amplifier and the power of the amp. To be on the same side it is recommended to not use any amp with a fuse rating that is higher than 30 amps. This was the advice given from Crutchfield and after research the strongest amp that I found on 30 amps was 350 watts RMS.

 

The local stereo shop said that that number is to be on the safe side but from their calculations on the amperage of the overall car, there is room to do 50 amps total but nothing more is recommended. I have looked into this and I had to decide if i was going to do a 2 amplifiers using a four channel for the interior speakers and a mono for a sub or 1 amp strictly for subs. I decided that I would just upgrade the interior speakers and add an amp for the subs to get as much as I can to add a little bass.

 

If you use a line out converter and tap into the speakers in the rear deck, you should have 0 issues with the noise cancellation feature. This is because the rear speakers are technically considered as subs for the car.

 

I have a 500 watt RMS amp stable at 2 ohms that has a set of two 25 amp fuses totalling 50 amps and I have a two 250 watt RMS 8 inch subwoofers connected with 0 issues with this setup. If you plan on doing more than 50 amps, I would advise to consult with a professional to see what your options are to be safe. I can see why adding an extra battery to be on the safe side would help though.

[906lane]

Hello, 

 

So I just wanted to make sure I understand this correctly. I have 2014 Ford Fusion hybrid Titanium and wanted to a new system in wife's car since all speakers are blown. This is my setup. So I can just add a second battery to the factory battery and disconnect the active noise system and everything will work ok right. The car also has the factory Sony system with navigation. 

 

Custom subwoofer box 

2 Sundown SA-8v3 500 rms each

2 set of 6 1/2 components from CDT Audio CRM-6iS for front and rear doors

6x9 CDT Audio CL-69S rear deck

dynamat for doors and rear deck

Sony XM-ZR704 4 channel 75x4 rms

Sony XM-D9001GTR Mono 1200 rms

Kinetik HC600-BLU extra battery

Pac Audio AP4-FD21 with speaker harness APH-FD01

 

 

 

[Thespazardman]

I installed an alpine mono sub amp and two 10s in my 2016 fusion hybrid, using the rear speaker signals as the input to the amp. The amp senses the high level input and uses it to trigger the amp to turn on instead of using a remote wire. 
 

It sounds great, however, when the electric motor kicks in under acceleration, there is a HUGE amount of interference. It sounds like the subs are farting at an incredible volume.  It’s amazingly annoying. I’ve heard inference from engines before which usually take the form of a whine that increases in frequency with RPM, but this is completely different. FAAAAARRRRRRTTTTTT.  

 

It’s ALMOST funny to describe, but it’s not as funny when I’m driving.

 

Any thoughts?

[MeeLee]

On 2/27/2024 at 11:17 PM, Thespazardman said:

I installed an alpine mono sub amp and two 10s in my 2016 fusion hybrid, using the rear speaker signals as the input to the amp. The amp senses the high level input and uses it to trigger the amp to turn on instead of using a remote wire. 
 

It sounds great, however, when the electric motor kicks in under acceleration, there is a HUGE amount of interference. It sounds like the subs are farting at an incredible volume.  It’s amazingly annoying. I’ve heard inference from engines before which usually take the form of a whine that increases in frequency with RPM, but this is completely different. FAAAAARRRRRRTTTTTT.  

 

It’s ALMOST funny to describe, but it’s not as funny when I’m driving.

 

Any thoughts?

 

I know the main electric wires from the motor run below the center console and come out the back under the rear bench, driver side.

 

I can assume it's magnetic interference with the high voltage lines.

I would recommend using a shielded wire to go from the radio console via the passenger side under the carpet, away from the high voltage wires.

 

I would also recommend you to ground the amp to the body, in case the negative terminal of the battery isn't grounded well.

 

Third, in would recommend installing a 1 to 3 Farad capacitor for any amp of 500W or more subwoofer, or just wire a second 12V battery to the stock battery. A 500W system should draw roughly 100-150W continuous (or 10 amps).

 

My vehicle draws 250W over the 12V circuit, or 12A, but I have led lights. The stock SE version might draw closer to 15A. The stock battery handles up to 50Ah continuous. It does get help from the DC to DC converter, which charges it up with up to about 10A.