Switches

Please 'Boom' Responsibly As most of you have noticed, the noise ordinances have become much tougher lately. Most of this is due to idiots, yes IDIOTS, who drive through residential areas with their windows down while their system is playing at full power. To make things worse, the music they listen to has all sorts of foul language that's not suitable for small children, (who may be playing outside). There are even a few people, who are even beyond idiot status, that play their systems at full power through residential areas after 10:00 PM (when many people go to bed). I don't believe that this type of behavior is good for the industry. If the fines get too stiff, people will stop buying large systems. If this happens, more people will get out of car audio (who wants a mediocre system). People get interested in things because they're exciting. A deck and four 6.5" speakers are not going to interest many of the younger car audio enthusiasts. If car audio enthusiasts keep annoying more and more people, the fines will keep getting tougher. All of this will only reduce interest in the equipment that fuels the industry. If you want to listen to your system at full volume, get out on the highway where there's little chance of bothering anyone. When you get to a red light, turn it down. If the only thing attractive about you is your 'system', you have some work to do. Bottom line... Think about what you're doing. Think about other people. It's not the end of the world if you have to turn the volume down for a little while.

Switches:

A switch is an electromechanical device which is used to open or close an electrical circuit. They are available in a number of configurations. For now, we will only discuss a simple single pole double throw switch (spdt). The number of 'poles' indicates how many completely independent circuits are controlled by the switch. The number of 'throws' indicates the number of positions that will result in an electrical connection. The diagram below shows some of the internal components of a spdt toggle switch. This is not a real switch, it is only an example.

The switch below is a double pole double throw (DPDT) slider switch. This switch has 2 independant circuits. The sliding contact connects 2 of the 3 terminals for each half of the switch. The position of the slider determines which 2 terminals are connected. This diagram is a cut away view of the slide switch.

And this is the real thing.

This diagram is a cut away view of a normally open push button switch.

The real thing.

The demo below shows a system with multiple ways to control the amplifiers and fan. The top amplifier is controlled solely by the head unit's status (on or off). The head unit's remote output controls the relay. The relay's output terminal (terminal 30 in this case) is connected to the top amplifier's remote input. When the head unit is turned on, the relay is energized and power is sent to the top amp's remote turn-on terminal. When the relay is energized, power is also sent to both of the toggle switches. If the toggle switch is in one position, the amp or fan will be off. If the switch is in the opposite position, the amp or fan will turn on/run. When the head unit is switched off, the relay is switched off and everything goes off. To toggle the switch position, click on either side of the handle.

Click HERE to make the demo fill this window.

This diagram shows the wiring for lighted rocker switches. The white wire is the supply wire from the battery. It MUST be fused at the battery. The proper fuse size is determined by the size of the supply wire. For 14g use a 15 amp fuse. For 12g wire, use a 20 amp fuse. The individual fuses for each circuit should be the minimum size possible. If the neon (or any other accessory) pulls 2 amps of current, use a 3 amp fuse. If it pulls 3-4 amps, use a 5 amp fuse. There is no advantage of using a fuse that's significantly larger than necessary. This diagram may not be correct for all rocker switches. Refer to your switch's wiring diagram for the correct wiring diagram.

In the following demo, you can open and close the switch. For the normal connection, the internal lamp (could be an LED) lights only when the external lamp is powered (when the switch is closed). For the alternate connection, the internal lamp is always powered. The external lamp is lit when the rocker switch is in the closed position.

Note:

The lighted switches in the previous diagrams were SPST models. I recently bought some lighted switches that could not be wired as shown in the 'alternate connection' above. The switch was a modified SPDT. This means that the power source would be connected to ground if connected as in the 'alternate connection'. If you're unsure about your switch, you can check it with an ohm meter. If you find that the resistance between the center terminal and the ground terminal is near zero ohms in either switch position, the switch is a SPDT and can be wired only one way (light on only when load is connected to power).

You should remember:
1.A switch is an electromechanical device used to make or break an electrical connection.

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