So I've hooked my amp up to two batteries so far, but after the amp is hooked up it drains the battery and then the battery no longer starts the car unless boosted even when the amp is not connected. I'm not sure if it has to do with the amp but all my connections are good, it just kills the battery in such a way that even when the amp isn't hooked up the battery still won't work unless boosted. Does anyone have any advice or know what's going on?
Welcome to diyAudio 
Car audio isn't my thing I'm afraid, but in any case you are going to have to provide a lot more info for anyone to help, such as,
The amplifier make and model... or if DIY the design used.
How long does it take to flatten the battery... hours, days... a week ?
And have you done any basic measurements such as determining what the current draw of the amp is under quiescent conditions. It needs to be (or should be) well under a hundred milliamps if left permanently drawing current. 100ma might not sound much for a car battery but long term it will discharge it over a few days.
Car audio isn't my thing I'm afraid, but in any case you are going to have to provide a lot more info for anyone to help, such as,
The amplifier make and model... or if DIY the design used.
How long does it take to flatten the battery... hours, days... a week ?
And have you done any basic measurements such as determining what the current draw of the amp is under quiescent conditions. It needs to be (or should be) well under a hundred milliamps if left permanently drawing current. 100ma might not sound much for a car battery but long term it will discharge it over a few days.
I'd expect to measure much less than 100 mA from an amp that isn't enabled through the "remote on" input. One amp I have was only about 100 mA when on (with no signal). Off should be near enough to zero mA.
It's useful to have a digital voltmeter on the dash to keep an eye on the health of the charging system. I have one that plugs into the lighter jack, and it let me know when the alternator field lead broke off because instead of 13 to 14 volts, it was only about 12. A healthy alternator should keep the bbattery at 13.8 to 14.4 volts. Much lower and the battery simply will not take a charge.
It's useful to have a digital voltmeter on the dash to keep an eye on the health of the charging system. I have one that plugs into the lighter jack, and it let me know when the alternator field lead broke off because instead of 13 to 14 volts, it was only about 12. A healthy alternator should keep the bbattery at 13.8 to 14.4 volts. Much lower and the battery simply will not take a charge.
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