Audio upgrade Yamaha AR250

[LukeDames]

I got the 2nd house battery installed tonight. I played it full blast in the drive for about 30 mins and the Volts stayed stable at 12.2-3. The test will be this weekend at the lake.

Do you have an onboard battery charger ? An extra battery and the charger were the first things I upgraded when I got the boat.

 

[MillsyMO]

Do you have an onboard battery charger ? An extra battery and the charger were the first things I upgraded when I got the boat.

No I just plug the maintainer on it periodically. Which that has me worried bc I noticed water/acid on the side of both factory batteries and in the tray when I was installing this battery. I hope I’m not doing something wrong. I just clamp the maintainer on one of the batteries and then flip the switch to bridge them so they’ll both maintain.

 

[tdonoughue]

Maintainer may not get it fully charged, but won't hurt it. Also won't keep it optimal, tho (desulfating, etc.). I did that for quite a while before I got my real charger. Had the stock batteries for ... 7 years? So you are fine. Consider an intelligent charger as an upgrade in the future (which will desulfate, quickly charge to keep at optimum levels faster, etc.).

 

[MillsyMO]

Maintainer may not get it fully charged, but won't hurt it. Also won't keep it optimal, tho (desulfating, etc.). I did that for quite a while before I got my real charger. Had the stock batteries for ... 7 years? So you are fine. Consider an intelligent charger as an upgrade in the future (which will desulfate, quickly charge to keep at optimum levels faster, etc.).

It’s a charger maintainer.

https://www.oreillyauto.com/detail/c/schumacher-electric/tools---equipment/battery---electrical-tools/battery-chargers/f796498a3a1f/schumacher-15-amp-6-12-volt-battery-charger/shu0/sc1304?q=battery+charger&pos=11

 

[tdonoughue]

Yeah. You're fine. Not as convenient and won't do the optimal maintenance scheme, but will work just fine.

 

[usmanager]

Guys, thanks for all the info. I just decided to upgrade my sound on my 2022 AR250 and I am following you all. I am assuming that the RCA's in the earlier pictures are jacks for the sounds? please confirm. I bought Boss Tower speakers and look at adding more speakers and bass. Got the LED's on them also as wife and kids thought that would be a nice adder. So my work is starting soon. I got a 2000W Bluetooth Amp I used before on my previous boat that was awesome. Now its all about hook ups. I appreciate any wiring diagram that you all made to follow. that would be awesome.

 

[MillsyMO]

I don’t have a wiring diagram but RCA’s you see are not from the stereo that is an input into the stereo from your audio jack on the helm. You have to buy a speaker wire to RCA converter like I linked before. Then connect that to your amp via RCA cable.

I just bought 4 8” tower cans and loading them with 8” kicker speakers. My boat is at Yamaha still getting work done since Oct. when I get it back I’ll update that install as well.

 

[smogden]

I don’t have a wiring diagram but RCA’s you see are not from the stereo that is an input into the stereo from your audio jack on the helm. You have to buy a speaker wire to RCA converter like I linked before. Then connect that to your amp via RCA cable.

I just bought 4 8” tower cans and loading them with 8” kicker speakers. My boat is at Yamaha still getting work done since Oct. when I get it back I’ll update that install as well.

following… just got my 2023 222SE and will be doing my audio upgrade for this season. Going to be a full upgrade.
how long do you get running your sound on the 2 batteries without the engines running? What size battery did you add. I believe my current house battery is a group 24. I know with the system I’m going to add it will just drain it super quick. Last boat was an I/O and could start it up at the sandbar and charge it up. But I don’t think there is much of an option to do that with jet drives.

 

[MillsyMO]

following… just got my 2023 222SE and will be doing my audio upgrade for this season. Going to be a full upgrade.
how long do you get running your sound on the 2 batteries without the engines running? What size battery did you add. I believe my current house battery is a group 24. I know with the system I’m going to add it will just drain it super quick. Last boat was an I/O and could start it up at the sandbar and charge it up. But I don’t think there is much of an option to do that with jet drives.

I purchased 2 122ah marine batteries from Walmart. I will install them on the starboard side opposite of the factory batteries. I’m hoping to get 4-5 hrs of use out of them. The factory house battery would only last about 45 mins before it dropped below 12v and started having audio issues.

 

[smogden]

I purchased 2 122ah marine batteries from Walmart. I will install them on the starboard side opposite of the factory batteries. I’m hoping to get 4-5 hrs of use out of them. The factory house battery would only last about 45 mins before it dropped below 12v and started having audio issues.

Ahhh so you didn’t keep the OEM house battery at all or you are adding to the factory OEM house battery? I want to utilize both sides as well due to weight and balance of the boat.

 

[MillsyMO]

Ahhh so you didn’t keep the OEM house battery at all or you are adding to the factory OEM house battery? I want to utilize both sides as well due to weight and balance of the boat.

I’m adding them in addition to the 2 factory batteries. Balance the boat and extra power. The problem I’m running into is last year when I only had 1 extra battery, when I drain it and the house battery low and then start the boat, the charger charges the starter battery first and then switches to all batteries to charge the house battery. I noticed when that happens it connects the starter battery to the low house batteries and drains it bc they all equalize together at that point. If that makes sense. I can see it happen on the volt meter on the helm.
Ex. House batteries go down to around 12v and starter battery is at 12.7ish, I start the boat and take off. The starter battery charged up to say 13.7v (guesstimate) and then the smart charger kicks over to the house battery to charge it and both V meters drop to roughly 12.2V (guesstimate) and the alternator/stator doesn’t put out enough V to charge the batteries while I’m playing the music. If I shut down the stereo system it slowly starts to charge.
I’m thinking about disconnecting all house batteries from the charging system so this doesn’t happen anymore and I’ll just charge the house batteries with my charger at home/camp.

 

[smogden]

I’m adding them in addition to the 2 factory batteries. Balance the boat and extra power. The problem I’m running into is last year when I only had 1 extra battery, when I drain it and the house battery low and then start the boat, the charger charges the starter battery first and then switches to all batteries to charge the house battery. I noticed when that happens it connects the starter battery to the low house batteries and drains it bc they all equalize together at that point. If that makes sense. I can see it happen on the volt meter on the helm.
Ex. House batteries go down to around 12v and starter battery is at 12.7ish, I start the boat and take off. The starter battery charged up to say 13.7v (guesstimate) and then the smart charger kicks over to the house battery to charge it and both V meters drop to roughly 12.2V (guesstimate) and the alternator/stator doesn’t put out enough V to charge the batteries while I’m playing the music. If I shut down the stereo system it slowly starts to charge.
I’m thinking about disconnecting all house batteries from the charging system so this doesn’t happen anymore and I’ll just charge the house batteries with my charger at home/camp.

That's actually very similar to what I want to do.
are you most worried about keeping the house charged up or the starter? me personally I would charge up the house. connect to one battery and should bring the entire house up if wired in parallel. Your starter battery "should" stay topped off for the most part. isolate at the sandbar to the house side, start battery on starter and run back on all... "should" keep everything topped off. I wish those solar chargers worked well enough to keep a big battery bank charged up while at the sand bar. lol....

I'm still torn... I may just throw 2 more 24's on the starboard side and tie into the hem house battery, or replace and put 3 27's in there.

 

[NoFla21]

That's actually very similar to what I want to do.
are you most worried about keeping the house charged up or the starter? me personally I would charge up the house. connect to one battery and should bring the entire house up if wired in parallel. Your starter battery "should" stay topped off for the most part. isolate at the sandbar to the house side, start battery on starter and run back on all... "should" keep everything topped off. I wish those solar chargers worked well enough to keep a big battery bank charged up while at the sand bar. lol....

I'm still torn... I may just throw 2 more 24's on the starboard side and tie into the hem house battery, or replace and put 3 27's in there.

For my setup, I took it to the sandbar the other weekend. I was there for 3 hours and used the stereo the whole time. Keep in mind, the battery drain is contingent on how you listen to the music. You crank it up high=battery will drain faster. I'm not that guy at the sandbar where I want everyone to hear my music, so I listen to it at a moderate level. When I started the boat back up, it was showing 12.4v, so it didn't drop too terribly much.

I am going to put in another battery and parallel it to the house battery. That should give me more than enough time on the water without it going dead.

 

[MillsyMO]

That's actually very similar to what I want to do.
are you most worried about keeping the house charged up or the starter? me personally I would charge up the house. connect to one battery and should bring the entire house up if wired in parallel. Your starter battery "should" stay topped off for the most part. isolate at the sandbar to the house side, start battery on starter and run back on all... "should" keep everything topped off. I wish those solar chargers worked well enough to keep a big battery bank charged up while at the sand bar. lol....

I'm still torn... I may just throw 2 more 24's on the starboard side and tie into the hem house battery, or replace and put 3 27's in there.

The starter battery is automatically isolated from the house batteries when the motors are off. Once you start the motor and the smart charger charges the starter battery to full capacity it automatically switches to all batteries. That’s when you run into the issue of the starter battery draining to equalize with the lower drained house batteries. I don’t want that to happen bc the starter battery needs to be fresh and charged ready to start the boat at all times. I don’t care if my house batteries go dead bc I can still get home without them. That’s why I’m probably going to disconnect the house batteries completely away from the charging system bc it doesn’t charge anywhere close to enough amps to charge batteries and run the stereo. I ran my boat for 45 mins at roughly 30mph with stereo on and it doesn’t bring up the battery bank up even .1v. If I turn off the stereo it charges the batteries but very very slowly bc it’s too big of a bank of batteries than it was designed to charge. I will just throw my charger on it when I get home/camp to charge house batteries back up for the next day.
To go even further, if the 2 new batteries aren’t enough I’ll have to add a third (4 total house) and then I’ll seperate all of it and use 2 house batteries for my sub amp and tower amp and 2 batteries for my house and stereo speaker amp. I’ll separate them so I can throw 2 chargers on them at the house/camp to make sure they’re fully charged and ready to go the next day.

 

[MillsyMO]

For my setup, I took it to the sandbar the other weekend. I was there for 3 hours and used the stereo the whole time. Keep in mind, the battery drain is contingent on how you listen to the music. You crank it up high=battery will drain faster. I'm not that guy at the sandbar where I want everyone to hear my music, so I listen to it at a moderate level. When I started the boat back up, it was showing 12.4v, so it didn't drop too terribly much.

I am going to put in another battery and parallel it to the house battery. That should give me more than enough time on the water without it going dead.

Is your setup factory or aftermarket amps? I only got 45 mins out of my factory battery with 2 aftermarket amps. I could play all day long with factory setup.

 

[smogden]

I have a friend that brings a quiet generator out with him on the boat. never loses charge. lol. I know... when he told me he did that I looked at him crazy too... but it works for him. If we ran pontoon boats, probably wouldn't be a bad idea.

The starter battery is automatically isolated from the house batteries when the motors are off. Once you start the motor and the smart charger charges the starter battery to full capacity it automatically switches to all batteries. That’s when you run into the issue of the starter battery draining to equalize with the lower drained house batteries. I don’t want that to happen bc the starter battery needs to be fresh and charged ready to start the boat at all times. I don’t care if my house batteries go dead bc I can still get home without them. That’s why I’m probably going to disconnect the house batteries completely away from the charging system bc it doesn’t charge anywhere close to enough amps to charge batteries and run the stereo. I ran my boat for 45 mins at roughly 30mph with stereo on and it doesn’t bring up the battery bank up even .1v. If I turn off the stereo it charges the batteries but very very slowly bc it’s too big of a bank of batteries than it was designed to charge. I will just throw my charger on it when I get home/camp to charge house batteries back up for the next day.
To go even further, if the 2 new batteries aren’t enough I’ll have to add a third (4 total house) and then I’ll seperate all of it and use 2 house batteries for my sub amp and tower amp and 2 batteries for my house and stereo speaker amp. I’ll separate them so I can throw 2 chargers on them at the house/camp to make sure they’re fully charged and ready to go the next day.

Did you notice your starting battery struggle when you tried to restart? or did you not even risk it?

the struggle is real for sure. I have a friend that brings a silent gen generator on his 212S... battery never dies. lol. I probably won't do that ever unless I'm bringing the boat to the camp site.

FWIW, my last setup I had 1 group 27 deep cycle as my house battery and a very big audio set up, would usually get about 2-3 hours out of it before I had to crank the boat up. I don't think that will be feasible in the jet boat world though since once the boat is cranked there is motion on the boat. Plus I don't want to sit there sucking up sand. I'm still getting used to the jet boats. I'm only 18 hours in on my 2023 222SE.

 

[MillsyMO]

I have a friend that brings a quiet generator out with him on the boat. never loses charge. lol. I know... when he told me he did that I looked at him crazy too... but it works for him. If we ran pontoon boats, probably wouldn't be a bad idea.


Did you notice your starting battery struggle when you tried to restart? or did you not even risk it?

the struggle is real for sure. I have a friend that brings a silent gen generator on his 212S... battery never dies. lol. I probably won't do that ever unless I'm bringing the boat to the camp site.

FWIW, my last setup I had 1 group 27 deep cycle as my house battery and a very big audio set up, would usually get about 2-3 hours out of it before I had to crank the boat up. I don't think that will be feasible in the jet boat world though since once the boat is cranked there is motion on the boat. Plus I don't want to sit there sucking up sand. I'm still getting used to the jet boats. I'm only 18 hours in on my 2023 222SE.

My wife is already about to kill me, if I showed up with a generator I’m positive I’d be swimming back to the launch. ??
The starter battery hasn’t been an issue bc we haven’t shut the boat off and tried restarting after running back to the boat launch. Plus it’s above 12v even after equalizing so it shouldn’t have been a problem. I will keep an eye on my volt meter this season and determine if I need another battery or if I need to quarantine my stereo batteries. All trial and error but I error on the side of caution when it comes to starting the boat over my tunes. ?

 

[NoFla21]

Is your setup factory or aftermarket amps? I only got 45 mins out of my factory battery with 2 aftermarket amps. I could play all day long with factory setup.

Aftermarket with two JL amps.

 

[MillsyMO]

I got the boat back last weekend and finally got some time to run some more wires. I fished the wires through the wake tower using neodymium magnets. Pretty straight forward and a lot easier than I thought. I taped 1 magnet to some fishing line and poked them through the holes I drilled and then used the stack of unused magnets to slide them along the aluminum tube down to the bottom and then taped the stack to a clothes hanger and stuck them in the factory hole at the bottom of the tower and snagged the original two and pulled them right out. Only took about 10 mins.

I don’t have a photo after I added the second pod to each bracket but this is where I mounted them. There will be 2 pods on each bracket for a total of 4 8” kickers. I ran 1 speaker wire and 1 RGB wire for each brack. I’ll daisy chain the RGB wires inside the pods together and ran a separate speaker wire to pair the two speakers together parallel for a 2 ohm load.

 

[MillsyMO]

Big props to Yamaha on this install. I didn’t have to even drill a hole in the boat like I thought I was going to have to to run the wires into the compartment below the seat. I took the three Allen bolts off the the side plate on the wake tower and Yamaha had already pre drilled a hole and there is a channel that allowed me to run 2 16g speaker wires and 2 RGB wires straight down to the hole. Made this whole install clean and easy.