When are capacitors useful in car audio?

Question

I see numerous questions on here regarding caps. I heard they take longer to recharge than most batteries and i always see that people should do the big 3 instead. If that is all that is needed then why are caps made. In what applcations will they be useful?

I am currently running 2 10" JL W6v2 , 4pioneer 6.5 door speakers on a JL AUDIO E6450 CAR AMPLIFIER. Will an cap help me with this setup?

I also plan on adding an Jl 1000/1 amp to the setup as well as upgrading the subs to 12W6v2.

Answer 1

they are actually more useful on high powered tweeters than subs because they charge up fast and discharge fast- a sub will hit a long deep bass note and the cap will have already discharged before the note is done and still make your lights dim (most sounds from the tweeters are loud and quick)

your best bet is to start with the (Big 3) charging system wires- upgrade to at least 4gauge

if that does not rectify the problem then you need to look into a high output alternator, and if your lights still dim/ RPMs drop

then you need to look into a high current car audio power cell (kinitik makes the best ones), they are better than caps and batteries

Answer 2

Caps are good when you have high watt amp and you play music with lots of thumping.  If you see your headlight dimming with the thumping, then it is time for some caps.

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That is NOT the only thing to do.  But it is cheap place to start.

Good Luck..

Answer 3

Check these sites out...it is a good reference.

http://www.bcae1.com/

http://www.termpro.com/articles/articles...

If your headlight dims with the bass notes, this might work.  If not an H.O. alternator will be needed, or else be prepared to pour a lot of $$$ for batteries.

This site explains the "BIG 3" upgrades.

http://www.sounddomain.com/ubbthreads.ph...

http://kinetikpower.com/

List of items:

Head Unit: DVA - 9861

Processor(s):

- EpiCenter (by: Audio Control)                        

- Apex (by: Kove Audio)

Amp: MTX 405 (5 ch. amp)

Cap:  One Rockford Fosgate1 farad Cap

Front: Boston Acoustics Components Pro 60

           (Changing to 3 way MB Quart soon.)

Rear: Boston Acoustics (6x9) SX65

Sub: 1 Eclipse 12" Alum. Dual 4 ohm VC

Battery: Kinetik HC1400 Power Cell

Alternator: Load Boss 180amps

Using Rockford Fosgate 4 ga power/ground wire

1/0 ga wire to D-block

Using a dual fused D-block in the engine bay

- ANL 150 amp fuse (used for H.O. Alternator)

- ANL 100 amp fuse (used as power wire to amp)

- I added the "BIG 3" using 4 ga cables

- Added 3 Rockford Fosgate ground loop isolators (front, rear, and sub)

Answer 4

Caps are made because upgrading the big three can become expensive. Capacitors will help you store power and let it out when you need it. Its a cheap way to get short sustained(hard hitting) bass to your subs. However if you dont upgrade the big 3 a capacitor is just another device to drain your battery. All in all, a cap is a cheap, effective SHORT TERM solution.

Answer 5

A cap will help when a large amount of power is needed all at once; like bass hits.  Large subs require a lot of power. Not only because of their physical size but because they are reproducing low frequencies (under 200 Hz) that demands much more power.  A sub's power demand isn't constant. It only draws a lot when the volume is turned up and listening to songs with a lot of bass.  During these times the audio system demands much more power than usual.  You'll often see headlights dim during these times.  A cap stores electricity and discharges it very quickly on demand.  So when the system needs more power, the capacitor provides it without extra demand on the cars electrical system.  It also dramatically improves the sound quality and volume of the sub's output because it is receiving the power it needs.  And no more dim headlights or fried alternators.

Answer 6

Caps store voltage for quick discharge and can be quickly recharged again also.  But they cannot supply the amperage necessary to support continuous current draws required by a beefy audio system.  You need a high output alternator to supply the audio system the required amperage needed by the stereo system.

Caps became popular many years ago when high output alternators cost an arm and a leg and there weren't any high quality betteries that were affordable either.  Since then the cost of alternators is well within reach as is a high quality battery.  You don't see too many competitors using capacitors anymore.  But since people keep buying them, companies keep selling them.  On day people will catch on and you'll see less and less capacitors being sold.  

You need to assume your car is going to use about 40% or so of your factory alternator.  So lets say you've got a 70 amp alternator.  You can assume your car will use about 30 amps or so itself, leaving about 40 amps for any car stereo upgrades you're looking to do.  A rough way to determine how many watts your system will support is to multiply your volts (14.4) by your available amperage (40).  That equals 576.  So, if you're alternator can supply 40 amps of current to your stereo at 14.4 volts, it would be capable of supporting about 576 watts.  However, since amps are not 100% efficient you'll also need to take that into consideration.  To add a cap without increasing your amperage output really just adds another device that draws on your alternator.  As long as you're not taxing your system beyond the capabilities of your current system, a cap can help smooth the peaks in demand, however, if you're running 1,200 watts of sound system and trying to pull every bit of it you can from an alternator that can only support half of that, your cap is never really going to have a chance to recharge and therefore becomes an additional drain all by itself.  Hence the high output alternator.  Once you have the alternator, now you've got the output, however, due to technologies these days, you'll be better served by one of the many high quality batteries designed for the automotive electronic environment rather then a cap.  Caps are move of a novelty item these days.  People buy them more for the bling factor rather then functionality.

I hope this helps.