Farad Cap ?

[CALDWELL]

Hey boys !

Im just curious if it would benefit me to buy a Cap for my current system ?

Im running a ( Kenwood Excelon XR-4S ) which is powering my door speakers. Im also running a ( Kenwood Excelon XR-1S ) which is powering my ( RE SXX10D2 ) @ 2ohms.

I dont notice my headlights dimming, but when i turn on my interior lights and have the stereo on, you can see them flicker...

any thoughts if this would be worth it to looking into ?

 

[lynchy wa]

Hey mate, I saw this thing on eb you hook up to your battery to maintain an even current. Just had a quick look and couldnt find it. Its made in japan maybe that might help? I'll be f***** if I can remember what its called but it looks like a large silver sausage with wires coming out of it maybe that would help with the voltage probs and I'm pretty sure it wasn't called viagra.


this is the sort of thing i saw

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/GUN-...ptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories

actually I'm not really sure what a cap is unless it goes on your radiator or your head! just thought it might help

 

[Track3r]

That thing is a scam... they have something like it on a few other sites I goto and its mostly a couple wires hooked to an led and thats it [i.e. no power gain more of a power suck]

If you dont have headlight dimming and just interior lights dimming then you dont need anything major but a cap will always help. Not only with the dimming but also with battery and alternator strain. Thus extending the life of them!

I would suggest something like this...

http://www.amazon.com/Power-Acousti..._2?s=automotive&ie=UTF8&qid=1290865636&sr=1-2

Its what I use and it makes a huge difference. [But I can also kill my headlights all together with out the cap I probably still need a bigger cap ]

 

[92Explorer4.0]

i have a x.. 1.2 cap with digital read out and i never had a problem with any lights flicker or anything like that with the cap. i hade 2 12 L7s with a 2000 watt amp my lights would flicker like crazy then i got the cap and wouldnt flicker after that.

 

[Infinity08]

A cap will not help you AT ALL. Think about it: Your electrical system is already underpowered. If you add another component to it that does not create energy, how can that electrical system keep up? I high output alternator and/or additional battery would be the proper solution. Except under very specific circumstances, caps are a scam.

Have you done the Big 3 upgrade? Start with it first, and focus heavily on the main grounds.

 

[lynchy wa]

Well I'm living and learning, at least I know what a farad cap is now

 

[CALDWELL]

I havent done the " Big 3 mod " nor do I know what it is...

i personally dont think i really need one. i dont have any headlight dimming, and i dont drive with my interior lights on anyway lol. I would prefer not to add anything else to my stereo other than dynamat, but figured i would just ask to see if its something i should consider since im running 2 Amps, and pulling more power than i used to...

 

[Track3r]

A cap will not help you AT ALL. Think about it: Your electrical system is already underpowered. If you add another component to it that does not create energy, how can that electrical system keep up? I high output alternator and/or additional battery would be the proper solution. Except under very specific circumstances, caps are a scam.

Have you done the Big 3 upgrade? Start with it first, and focus heavily on the main grounds.

What your saying is not fully correct.

While the big 3 is a great way to make more power a capacitor is also a good way to help even out the voltage and amps in the truck. I would add a cap before a 2nd battery

 

[corkey]

i had 5 amps running in my old truck, and usually they were working pretty hard, i found a cap helped me a bunch, the sound does get better when amps have steady power, that is why they all have big capacitors inside of them,,

 

[Infinity08]

What your saying is not fully correct.

While the big 3 is a great way to make more power a capacitor is also a good way to help even out the voltage and amps in the truck. I would add a cap before a 2nd battery

Power would even out, if it were available to begin with. A capacitor needs to be charged, drawing amperage just like the amplifiers. If the charging systems capacity is surpassed already, where is the power for the capacitor coming from? It isn't a battery.

 

[corkey]

capacitors store energy for a short term release , they take time to charge, listen to a camera flash, that whistling sound is not the gas going into it, it's the capacitor charging
a capacitor charges best with ac ripple as well as dc voltage, the alternator provides the ac ripple that is what charges the battery , the battery is dc,,

 

[ford freak]

caps are a beginner mistake. They are not needed and are completely worthless.

 

[Turdle]

Power would even out, if it were available to begin with. A capacitor needs to be charged, drawing amperage just like the amplifiers. If the charging systems capacity is surpassed already, where is the power for the capacitor coming from? It isn't a battery.

Wrong
Take a look inside top end home power amps.

The larger the cap(s) the better the amp.

Most car audio product these days count on the battery to do what those caps are doing for the home audio power supply. There is abundant power coming from the wall, so explain this please.


edit -I quoted the incorrect post--fixed

 

[ford freak]

Wrong
Take a look inside top end home power amps.

The larger the cap(s) the better the amp.

Most car audio product these days count on the battery to do what those caps are doing for the home audio power supply. There is abundant power coming from the wall, so explain this please.


edit -I quoted the incorrect post--fixed

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/no-question-dumb-forum/75271-capacitors.html

 

[ford freak]

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/no-question-dumb-forum/72139-capacitors.html

 

[ford freak]

How much more info do you want? The internet is a great thing.

 

[Turdle]

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum/no-question-dumb-forum/75271-capacitors.html

Just another thread that turned out like this. Opinions with no fact

 

[ford freak]

Tell ya what I'll give you Steve Mantz's number give him a call. He can tell you the truth. Caps are marketing bs for fools. I have been installing and owning some of the all time greats in car audio for nearly 30 yrs and I will never use or sell someone a damm cap. Marketing geniuses thought of them. They thought of them to sell to fools......How many do you own?

 

[Turdle]

Tell ya what I'll give you Steve Mantz's number give him a call. He can tell you the truth. Caps are marketing bs for fools. I have been installing and owning some of the all time greats in car audio for nearly 30 yrs and I will never use or sell someone a damm cap. Marketing geniuses thought of them. They thought of them to sell to fools......How many do you own?

Just once I would like to hear from someone who actually even knows what a cap does.

Owning a system is not a requirement for knowledge of electronics.

I asked a question in an earlier post.

Prove to me a cap is useless. Show me data, not another marketing opinion please.

What I can offer is this. Truth. And the fact an audio system does not draw power at a constant frequency or rate.Up until now all I have heard was references to a steady draw of power. If this was the case, then your argument would be true as the cap would never be able to replentish it's potential.
But we are talking power draws all over the spectrum (frequency's) of our hearing. This is not a steady draw of power from the battery.


This is what caps are used for. They also "filter" unwanted harmonics.

What we are talking is very minute charge rate differences, however it does help the charging system to see a more constant draw of power if the cap is in the circuit. A battery just cannot release and restore the energy at the rate a capacitor can.


So you can have your opinion, I will have mine.

 

[jtbuck92]

Capacitors are a waste of money. Save up for the big 3, an extra batt, or a bigger alternator.