Caps

[bhults]

Ok, so after having the X for almost a year now, I'm going into withdrawl from not having a bangin' system as I did with my other ride. I've priced out a pretty slick system with components from Eclipse, JL, Boston Acoutics, and MB Quartz all coming together with custom sub enclosures, etc. Last night I was in the shop again to further finalize the deal...and we got talking about capacitors to further distribute the supply of power to the entire system. They'd like to install two caps which they claim will "make the most out of the components I'm buying." Now, the last system I had was not capped and was pretty awesome---I never experienced power problems, dimming headlights or anything like that (that car was also a Ford)---even when bumpin' it hard. So, the question is, do I really need to do it? It's gonna put me over-budget by a long shot....but if it's something that's very much worth doing, I'll just have to wait a little longer till I can start this project. Does anyone else have a setup that draws a lot of power? Do you experience power problems/etc.? A speedy reply would be great, cuz I'd like to get the ball rolling on this project soon. Thanks guys!

 

[expl0der8]

how many amps are you going to be using, and how many total watts are you going to be pushing through the enitre system?

 

[bhults]

It will have 2 amps---One JL5001 (500W) for subs, and one JL3004 (300W) for all other components.

 

[Just Startin]

With that amount of power, you might want to consider a 1 farad cap. You might not experience dimming or powerloss with the amps turned up, but the caps will overall help the output of the amps.

 

[bhults]

Would a more cost effective solution (if I were to experience dimming headlights/etc.) be to upgrade my alternator/battery set up? I only ask because the guy I'm dealing with said that if I were to go the route of the caps, they could integrate them into my custom installation and make 'em look real nice---if I do it after the fact, it'll be a ***** to tear everything apart, etc. It just seems like an awful lot of (additional) money to spend for something that helps out, but doesn't seem to justify the cost.

 

[rydinhigh]

Caps are just a band aid. With the setup you are going with you shouldn't have any problems with the lights dimming unless you are running alot of accesories at the same time. If that does happen I would upgrade the battery and alternator.

 

[expl0der8]

I would recommend getting a CAP. You should be able to pick up a 1 farad for around $100 depending on the brand you are looking at. You should need anything more than 1 farad for your system.

 

[Afboy143]

I have a 1 farad monster cable cap on my system and the ONLY reason I got it was because it was only 20$ and i like to see how many volts my amps are seeing. Other than that I wouldnt waste my money on a cap

Put the money maybe towards a yellow/red top battery or bigger alternator. As the other guy said, caps are only a bandaid but better battery/alt are a perm fix.

Once i bought my yellow top battery, i didnt have anymore dimming problems or anything. (Im running an Xtant A6001T Mono amp, lightning audio 200.2 amp, Electronic coustic X-Over, 4 cooling fans and neons).

I myself have researched the whole cap thing before because when I first bought my system I was looking into a cap. Here is a quote I remember from what another guy said

"Think of it this way, if your electrical system is already having problems charging the battery and running your amps, what is a cap that needs to be charged also going to do?"

IMO, a cap is only good if your electrical system can power all of the components you already have. Caps only store about a second of power for your amps. They charge and let go quickly.

Long story short, buy a bigger battery/alt, it will be money much better spent

 

[rydinhigh]

Originally posted by expl0der8
I would recommend getting a CAP. You should be able to pick up a 1 farad for around $100 depending on the brand you are looking at. You should need anything more than 1 farad for your system.

A cap will cost you $100 while for an extra $30 you can get a nice 130Amp alternator which will do more than the cap.

 

[bhults]

Thank you guys so much. I've been outta the car audio scene for about 2 years now, and am very much ready to be back in. Like I said in an earlier post, my old system boomed, and I never had a cap--nor did I have electrical problems or a shortage of juice....I don't know....guess you get in the store and they've got you by the balls...definately just don't want to spend cash neddlessly. More opinions welcome, of course.

 

[Cartman]

Get the system installed and then if you want or need a cap add it in later, there is no reason to get it now.

 

[BBQ_HotDogs]

Get the system installed and then if you want or need a cap add it in later

I agree with this. You would be better off spending the money on a 200 amp alternator instead of caps right now.

 

[jayhawk137]

i also think no cap is necessary. yea there's a whole debate about cap/no cap, check out caraudioforum.com, they have hundreds of these threads. basically you dont know if youre lights will dim, so whats the point of paying for one let alone 2 caps? i agree with everyone above, spend money on more effiecent things ie alternator, battery. worst comes to worst, add a cap later. i doint think your lights will dim though, plenty of people have run higher wattage systems and are still ok

 

[hydroxy]

I find it hard to believe you didn't have power problems w/ your old setup. My old setup was 3 MTX 6000s 10". 250w RMS, 500w max. Connected to a 760w max, 380RMS(bridged) pioneer amp. I got NOTICABLE dimming at idle when bumping my system.
I have a limited too, which means the 135amp alternator.

 

[mhn3773]

hydroxy- i had a pos sony knock off amp running one kicker 15 at like 150rms and my lights dimmed really noticably..now i am running 2 kicker 15s at 500rms each and my lights dont dim half as bad at the same volume...now if i run the volume to max and use all the power then my lights dim just as much as they did before

my new amp is a 2yo RF

 

[expo5.0]

i don't know what they are trying to charge you, but i know they are not payin gmore than $65 or $70 for the caps they are going to be installing in your truck.

my price on even the best digital ones is right around $75. I say add them in (they can make the install look cooler, and they do make a difference) but don't let them make a killing on them.

shops just love to charge 150 plus for a cap or two and pad their profits

 

[bhults]

Hydroxy...

...Yeah, I find it hard to believe too, but believe it. The old system ran 4 Pioneer 10" subs, MTX components up front, and JBL 6x9's in the back. 1400W total power, and I did not experience any power problems. Only if I had that thing cranked, and I mean cranked with the car parked and idling did I notice dimming---and even then it was so slight that unless you were looking for it, it was virtually non-existent. Anyway, OK, so the over vibe I'm getting here is to forget the CAP for the time being....Thats what I'll do. I absolutely agree---no sense spending money on something I'm not sure I'll need yet anyhow. Does anyone have any experience with JL W3 series 10" sub's? These are what I'm looking to purchase.

 

[97XplorerSport]

I have 2 redtops and an 1800 watt RMS amp off the stock alt, my dimming is very minimal and voltage doesn't drop below 13 when bumping hard. I would just keep the stock alt. and buy a good batt for up front. Also its a good idea to upgrade the big three, it will make a big difference. Use at least a 4 gauge to do this....

1) Batt neg. to frame
2) Batt pos. to Alt. pos
3) Engine block to frame (the alt bracket is a good place)

Don't waste your money on caps, there useless for spl. From what i've learned on termpro audio forum and the tests that have been done, there just a waste of money. However if you were building an sq system, it would be different. In an spl they just become another load. Save your money for a better battery and the wire for the big three.