what does a capacitor do for you

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drowndindreams

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i'm thinking of buying one.

i hear since it stores energy the subs hit cleaner and what not,

what are the advatages?

also plan on going ahead with the big 3
 

TahoeJim

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i'm thinking of buying one.

i hear since it stores energy the subs hit cleaner and what not,

what are the advatages?

also plan on going ahead with the big 3

It does just that....it charges up and dumps energy to the amps quicker (typically) than just a battery. It can "react" quicker than your battery in a sense.

Now if your system drains the capacitor too quickly and it can't recover before the next big drain is placed upon it, you're in the same boat as not having one.

Do you need one, depends on a lot of other factors including amperage draw of your amplifiers, wiring, battery and alternator capacity.

When we first started playing with them in 1988 it was out of necessity, we used commercial grade capacitors in banks. Without them, alternators/batteries of the day would simply....fail. Driving at night on the freeway, put in something like Pink Floyd "Run Like Hell" and you'd watch your headlights dim, dim, dim, and then effectively go out..and warning lights come on everywhere.
 

titanium02

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Caps are a must for anything over 500 watts total. 1-5 Farad (that's both your sub amp and your mids and highs amp if you have one)

If you're over 1000 watts.. you need over 5 farad

Over 2000 watts... get a BattCap.. it's like a spare battery meant just for your system. These are like 20+ farad
 

Rollin Thunder

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I have a batt cap and my lights still dim. I think a more powerful alternator is better.
 
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drowndindreams

drowndindreams

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ive got about a 600 rms amp, probably pushing about 500 and up,

the subs are 350 rms each,

im thinking i need it
 

Rollin Thunder

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ive got about a 600 rms amp, probably pushing about 500 and up,

the subs are 350 rms each,

im thinking i need it


IMO its just more stress on your current electrical system since it has to charge that as well as power your system. I mean I like mine, But its really just a band aid, its not a permanant fix. When I still have dimming headlights with the cap. Im not running a really HUGE system. The dudes that installed it called it thier mid model packedge (but the JL sub was extra included sub was a rockford fosgate).And I dont listen to overly base heavy music (country lol)
 
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Nickleahy23

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I used to run a optima and a cap, and it did jack shit..i was runnin 2700 watts..now with 2 optimas, i get no light dimming, unless im idling and the bass is hitting super low for more then 10 seconds..and im runnin stock alt...
 
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drowndindreams

drowndindreams

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I used to run a optima and a cap, and it did jack shit..i was runnin 2700 watts..now with 2 optimas, i get no light dimming, unless im idling and the bass is hitting super low for more then 10 seconds..and im runnin stock alt...

please continue

---------- Post added at 07:46 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:44 PM ----------

IMO its just more stress on your current electrical system since it has to charge that as well as power your system. I mean I like mine, But its really just a band aid, its not a permanant fix. When I still have dimming headlights with the cap. Im not running a really HUGE system. The dudes that installed it called it thier mid model packedge (but the JL sub was extra included sub was a rockford fosgate).And I dont listen to overly base heavy music (country lol)

lol im into rap n metal but i always have my bass super high. i dont listen to music my subs are so loud they basically drownd the music.... thats what i want
 

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