Bicycle Stereo Battery

[pearlbeer]

Hi.

I've built a Stereo for my bike, using 3 4" speakers and a 12v/18v stereo card. This one:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003XRCY38/?tag=cpf0b6-20

I bought a crappy rechargeable battery off of DealExtreme, but after a year or so of usage, it is dead. It sucked anyway.

Can anyone recommend a good rechargable battery that has 12 to 18v output? Of course, I'd like something small, but I would also like to get 4+ hrs of usage out of it.

 

[AVService]

Any SLA battery will do the job,the size and capacity will obviously determine the runtime and output you can expect.
I have used various sizes many times with that same board and with Ham Radio gear to get mobile like you are too.

7ah is a standard size Alarm or Exit Light battery and would be a place to start.

What size pack have you been using?

 

[khrystyan27]

Use Li-Po, they're lighter... You won't like any extra weight on your bike.

A 4S2P pack will give you a nice run time, at a decent price, with a good weight/power ratio.

 

[AVService]

Use Li-Po, they're lighter... You won't like any extra weight on your bike.

A 4S2P pack will give you a nice run time, at a decent price, with a good weight/power ratio.

What is a "Decent Price"?

You can get an SLA pack like I mention for under $20 and up to 18ah for under $40 usually,I have ridden with both and it is not that big a deal.

 

[find_bruce]

SLA is cheaper, Li-po or li-ion are lighter. Your choice.

As for the capacity, which crappy DX battery did you use & how long did it last ?

 

[AVService]

SLA is cheaper, Li-po or li-ion are lighter. Your choice.

As for the capacity, which crappy DX battery did you use & how long did it last ?

I usually buy Yuasa or Powersonic are these crappy enough for you?

In the Alarm world at distributors they are a whole lot cheaper than retail and depending on usage and charging I get 5 or more years out of them.

I mainly either float the with Solar or alarm power supply/chargers or use Xantrex chargers that I have.

How about longevity of LifePo or do we not have that info yet?

I probably have 20 bigger SLA units in boxes and devices of all kinds for Ham Radio EMcomm use and they are reliable and cost effective in almost every case.

Also I have no idea what a DX Battery is?

 

[pearlbeer]

So, here is the Deal Extreme (DX) Battery I have been using (or something similar)
*link removed

It suck because:
1) Hard to tell when it is charging because there is a weird series of lights and no english instructions
2) Life is pretty bad after fairly light use
3) Battery shuts off when the draw is significant (I can't turn my stereo up all the way....only about 75%)

I'm not very familiar with Batteries. So..I don't know what SLA, etc are.

Can you guys post some links to batteries for purchase? Not sure the best place to buy these things. I would prefer to avoid DX....

Finally, my stereo is housed in a small cooler (about the size of a six pack). I'm not super concerned about weight. I just want something that works!

Oh yeah...stereo amp is 12-18v

 

[Kurt_Woloch]

Could you tell us how many Ah your old battery had, approximately? And how long were you able to operate your radio on one charge? By giving these figures, we could better determine what capacity would be needed.

 

[pearlbeer]

I think it was like a 8000maH battery?

I put the link from DX, but it was deleted.

 

[ChrisGarrett]

I think it was like a 8000maH battery?

I put the link from DX, but it was deleted.

What kind of bike and where do you live?

Bicycle, scooter, motorcycle?

A typical 12Ah sealed lead acid absorptive glass mat (SLA AGM) deep cycle battery will weigh about 6.6#, 3kg. A 20Ah SLA AGM weighs about 12.5#, ~5.5kg., so what you're humping can make a difference.

Your best solution, as the guy above states, is to buy one of those 12v LiFePO4 'motorcycle' batteries with the built in charging algorithm, to save on a bunch of weight.

Chris

 

[AVService]

What kind of bike and where do you live?

Bicycle, scooter, motorcycle?

A typical 12Ah sealed lead acid absorptive glass mat (SLA AGM) deep cycle battery will weigh about 6.6#, 3kg. A 20Ah SLA AGM weighs about 12.5#, ~5.5kg., so what you're humping can make a difference.

Your best solution, as the guy above states, is to buy one of those 12v LiFePO4 'motorcycle' batteries with the built in charging algorithm, to save on a bunch of weight.

Chris

This just borders on silly I think?

It is certainly 1 option but hardly the best one if price is a factor?

One way to go is cheap and reliable and the other is not nearly as cheap and somewhat uncharted tech. for this poster and his application.

I can easily peddle with the added weight of a 12ah or 18ah battery powering the little amp and speakers all mounted to the rear of a bike.
An SLA battery is simple to charge and maintain and pretty much predictable performance wise and inexpensive too compared to the newer and somewhat more obscure battery alternative suggested.

I have done this a lot ad it is just not a big deal.

Now the notion that you can't turn your Stereo up all the way indicates a whole other issue that is beyond the scope of what we discuss here really.

 

[ChrisGarrett]

This just borders on silly I think?

It is certainly 1 option but hardly the best one if price is a factor?

One way to go is cheap and reliable and the other is not nearly as cheap and somewhat uncharted tech. for this poster and his application.

I can easily peddle with the added weight of a 12ah or 18ah battery powering the little amp and speakers all mounted to the rear of a bike.
An SLA battery is simple to charge and maintain and pretty much predictable performance wise and inexpensive too compared to the newer and somewhat more obscure battery alternative suggested.

I have done this a lot ad it is just not a big deal.

Now the notion that you can't turn your Stereo up all the way indicates a whole other issue that is beyond the scope of what we discuss here really.

What's silly? You make it sound like LiFePO4 batteries were invented yesterday.

We don't even know what the 'bike' is and who's to say because you can peddle a bike 'somewhere,' with 12 extra pounds, that everybody else can?

What if he lives in a hilly area? How far is he humping? What are the ambient temps? Is he carrying anything else that might be heavy, like water? Is he's biking through soft terrain, which is harder? Lots of variables that you're discounting. Obviously, if it's a scooter, or motor bike, then sure, AGM/SLA away, as they say.

As far as the LiFePO4 equivalents, just look at any first rate motorcycle accessory site and you'll see quality LiFePO4 batteries that weigh a lot less than a comparable SLA/AGM.

In the interest of disclosure, I run SLA/AGM mother batteries (12Ah/22Ah) in my solar/SHTF kit, so I know what they weigh and I wouldn't want to be lugging them around if I didn't have to.

Chris

 

[Changchung]

Why anybody recomend 4 18650 in serie??? I build two projects with this config and work just fine...

 

[Changchung]

BTW to the OP. Why this amp??? Search in ebay for nano amps, I use some of them already and they are powerfull, Mura, Dual, Power accostic...

 

[ChrisGarrett]

Why anybody recomend 4 18650 in serie??? I build two projects with this config and work just fine...

'Cause the digital amp needs 12v-18v and I don't think that the OP is a whiz with a soldering iron, but I could be wrong.

Chris

 

[Changchung]

I think that is no so hard to build a battery pack with 18650, I use a plastic tube with the diameter inside of the 18650, caps, screws, springs and wires, that is all... [emoji2][emoji2] in fact, I have in mind to build a system for my bike, but I want to use a nano amp with a bluetooh bunddle. But I am not sure yet about the speakers...

 

[AVService]

What's silly? You make it sound like LiFePO4 batteries were invented yesterday.

We don't even know what the 'bike' is and who's to say because you can peddle a bike 'somewhere,' with 12 extra pounds, that everybody else can?

What if he lives in a hilly area? How far is he humping? What are the ambient temps? Is he carrying anything else that might be heavy, like water? Is he's biking through soft terrain, which is harder? Lots of variables that you're discounting. Obviously, if it's a scooter, or motor bike, then sure, AGM/SLA away, as they say.

As far as the LiFePO4 equivalents, just look at any first rate motorcycle accessory site and you'll see quality LiFePO4 batteries that weigh a lot less than a comparable SLA/AGM.

In the interest of disclosure, I run SLA/AGM mother batteries (12Ah/22Ah) in my solar/SHTF kit, so I know what they weigh and I wouldn't want to be lugging them around if I didn't have to.

Chris

Well the O.P. flat out said he does not consider the weight to be a factor,that is what I based it on.
I only assume it is a Bicycle but obviously if not then weight will not matter.

 

[ChrisGarrett]

Well the O.P. flat out said he does not consider the weight to be a factor,that is what I based it on.
I only assume it is a Bicycle but obviously if not then weight will not matter.

He doesn't even know what a SLA battery is, so he's probably thinking in smaller terms. I never did see a link to the current pack and he does say that he's housing the stereo in a 6-pack cooler, so something smaller, like a 7Ah, or maybe a 12Ah sized 12v cell might work better than my bigger 22Ah 12.5 pounder.

This link has the specs for that card, or one quite similar:

http://www.scribd.com/doc/78980019/Sure-2x100W-4-Ohm-TK2050-Class-D-Audio-Amplifier-Board#scribd

It looks like at 10v, the shutdown current is 7A, so it probably runs comfortably at less than that. Let's say 3-4A? A 12Ah SLA/AGM probably shouldn't be discharged down below 50%, so it gets 6 hours at 1A, or 2 hours at 3A, right? OP wants 4+ hours, so he's going to have to dial it down a bit.

Then you have to take in the efficiency of the class D amp, itself, but no 12v/10v rating is given, only 32v.

Anyhow...

Chris

 

[Kurt_Woloch]

Another question: How much did you use that battery, i.e. how many recharges or cycles (not bicycles) did you get out of it (during that one year)?

 

[more_vampires]

3) Battery shuts off when the draw is significant (I can't turn my stereo up all the way....only about 75%)
...
I'm not very familiar with Batteries. So..I don't know what SLA, etc are.
...
Finally, my stereo is housed in a small cooler (about the size of a six pack). I'm not super concerned about weight. I just want something that works!

A cooler insulates. If you can't get max volume on your stereo, perhaps it is overheating?

Oh yeah...stereo amp is 12-18v

Amperage is in amps. 12-18v is voltage in volts. To measure amperage, place a digital multimeter set for amps (remembering to use the amp terminal for the leads) and see what the amp draw is?

A 12v SLA automotive battery handles sizable amperage as it's needed for a vehicle starter motor. If it is a 14 amp hour battery, I highly doubt your stereo is drawing more than 1C. Something is limiting your system somewhere. Are you lugging a pair of 500 watt signal amplifiers between your signal head and speakers. Got a bunch of six by nines, is it?