voltage regulator
Printed From: the12volt.com
Forum Name: Car Audio
Forum Discription: Car Stereos, Amplifiers, Crossovers, Processors, Speakers, Subwoofers, etc.
URL: https://www.the12volt.com/installbay/forum_posts.asp?tid=76511
Printed Date: June 17, 2025 at 1:52 PM
Topic: voltage regulator
Posted By: eljay8619
Subject: voltage regulator
Date Posted: April 20, 2006 at 10:44 AM
can anyone explain what this is to me? i bought a 130 amp alt and the guy who i bought it from was explainin it to me said that it has a voltage regulator in it....he said it tells the alt when to kick in with 130 amps? can anyone clear this up for me
Replies:
Posted By: haemphyst
Date Posted: April 20, 2006 at 10:54 AM
No, a voltage regulator does just what the name says it does - regulates voltage. It does this by monitoring the output voltage of the alternator, and adjusting the power fed to the excitor field, by increasing or reducing the voltage fed to the excitor. It can also turn off the excitor field, if there happens to be an overvoltage situation, or if the battery is fully charged.
It has nothing to do with "telling the alternator where to kick in". An alternator will ALWAYS make power, but if the regulator dies, there is no field in the excitor, so no output. I have also seen, on the reverse side, regulators "stick" and they allow the alternator to "run away", overvolting the system and frying other very expensive components in the car... I think this is a fairly rare situation today, though...
An alternator can only make a certain amount of current, and the amount of current produced cannot exceed it's design capabilities. it is perfectly capable of making only one amp, and it can do that forever, but your alternator cannot make MORE than 130A and still be able to maintain 14.4 volts. And if you pull more than 130A from it, it will likely fail in very short order.
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It all reminds me of something that Molière once said to Guy de Maupassant at a café in Vienna: "That's nice. You should write it down."
Posted By: eljay8619
Date Posted: April 20, 2006 at 11:05 AM
aight thanx for the info
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