Stereo System Correct Wiring?

[Wellcraft170]

hey guys, just hooked up a new stereo on my seville...curious though, the yellow "battery" wire and the red "Accessories" wire are hooked up together to the main wire coming from the battery. With the ignition off, the stereo is also off but still shows the time. Does that mean its still drawing from the battery?

 

[jbcurt00]

Yes

 

[GA_Boater]

The yellow wire is the "memory" power. It should be always be hot or a constant 12 volt source to keep time, station presets. etc.

The red "accessory" wire should be switched. meaning controlled by the key or a master power switch.

Connecting both the red and yellow to a constant 12 volts means the radio is never turned off, so the time is displayed. With the correct connections, time will not be displayed unless the radio is on thru the key or master power. It will be just like a car.

 

[Wellcraft170]

So how do i go about fixing that

 

[bruceb58]

Best way is to just hook the radio(both wires) up to a switch that you turn on when you want to use it.

 

[GA_Boater]

Put the switch on the red wire if you want to keep the clock and presets active.

 

[bruceb58]

Put the switch on the red wire if you want to keep the clock and presets active.

Of course once you turn off the main battery switch you lose the presets anyway.

 

[GA_Boater]

Of course once you turn off the main battery switch you lose the presets anyway.

Never been mentioned by the OP. He did say the feed is the main feed from the battery. Battery switch or not?

 

[bruceb58]

Never been mentioned by the OP. He did say the feed is the main feed from the battery. Battery switch or not?

Hopefully, he has a main battery switch. The presets yellow wire still draws power. Its enough to discharge a battery left over winter if the battery is not disconnected. There are radios out there that don't need or have that yellow wire as all storage is done in non volatile memory in the radio. I have a radio like that on my boat.

 

[Wellcraft170]

Well basically i also wanted to know if the clock on the stereo will draw enough juice from the battery to kill it? If so how long would it take to completely drain the battery?

 

[bruceb58]

If so how long would it take to completely drain the battery?

What is the model of your stereo? The manual will have the spec for the current draw for the standby power.

You use a battery switch to disconnect your battery when you are not using your boat?

 

[GA_Boater]

If the clock is displaying, the stereo is not turned completely off. The stereo in your car doesn't show the clock when the key is off. That's why the red power wire needs a way of breaking the 12 volt feed.

 

[sam am I]

completely drain the battery?

Completely? To Zero volts?

Using a 150 amp-hour battery for a typical example and 5 milliamps for memory backup for a typical example........

**150 amp-hour/.005 amp = 30000 hour (amp cancel) = 1250 days = 3.42 yrs**

**This assumes constant 5 milliamp load over time and a perfect linear discharge curve of a battery to which we all know both doesn't exists in most of the known world. Perhaps N. Korea has ideal devices but of course we don't here in the States. Kim can shoot a perfect game of golf ya know

This link might help if ya want a bit tighter numbers

https://www.*****************/kb/tool...-run-time.html

where *************** = b a t t e r y s t u f f . c o m

 

[bruceb58]

Of course most batteries are closer to 70AHrs and the draw will be closer to 100mA which would be 30 days.

 

[sam am I]

of course Bluce

 

[NicoPags]

You use a battery switch to disconnect your battery when you are not using your boat?

Sounds like OP has red and yellow connected right to the battery. Even assuming the battery switch is there, its ineffective on his radio so long as that red remains.

GA is correct, your Red and yellow are tied together, right to the battery. It never shuts off with that setup you have to break free the red wire, and connect it too the key switch or something that only turns on with the ignition. The yellow one you can leave alone, but move that red wire to the key switch and problem solved.

 

[Wellcraft170]

Sounds like OP has red and yellow connected right to the battery. Even assuming the battery switch is there, its ineffective on his radio so long as that red remains.

GA is correct, your Red and yellow are tied together, right to the battery. It never shuts off with that setup you have to break free the red wire, and connect it too the key switch or something that only turns on with the ignition. The yellow one you can leave alone, but move that red wire to the key switch and problem solved.

gotcha. makes sense now. so basically just attach the red wire to the ignition...i would need an extension wire though for it to reach across from the stereo to the dash where the ignition is.. what kind of wiring should i use for that?

 

[bruceb58]

No...you need the red hooked up to a switch. You do want to run your radio with the engine stopped right?

Do you have a main battery switch to disconnect your battery?

 

[bruceb58]

Do not connect the red wire to the ignition switch.

 

[NicoPags]

ok not to the ignition switch, but the point is just put a switch on the red wire so you can control when the head unit has power. As Bruceb58 said you can listen to tunes that way without running the motor. You don't have to extend your line, just interrupt the line you already have, or do a more formal install and run the switch into the console and label it "Radio"