Whats a caps purpose?

[hypnotiq 10+ year member]

Ive heard alot of different views on bass caps.. some say they save your alternator and some say that its helps drain it.. If someone could clear this up for me that would be great!

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[jeeper07 5,000+ posts]

if u have a weak electrical system it will not save ur problems. if its too weak it will actually make the problem worse. most use it as more of eye candy to make an install look nice. if u have a solid electrical system it could help, its for sudden drops in power and usually is a bad investment. if u need electrical upgrades id say start with ur battery and the big three. hope that clears it up a bit

 

[Bolognablake 10+ year member]

Ive heard alot of different views on bass caps.. some say they save your alternator and some say that its helps drain it.. If someone could clear this up for me that would be great!

Your alternator can't 'drain', because it doesn't store energy.

A capacitor is an electrical device that can store energy in the electric field between a pair of closely-spaced conductors (called 'plates'). When voltage is applied to the capacitor, electric charges of equal magnitude, but opposite polarity, build up on each plate.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capacitor

 

[J31Rob 5,000+ posts]

A caps purpose? To fill trash cans, IMO.

 

[hypnotiq 10+ year member]

Lol ^..

 

[jmanpc 5,000+ posts]

Use it as a power source for shocking peoples' nipples while torturing. Works every time.

 

[hypnotiq 10+ year member]

so basiclly its a waste of time & money..

 

[Famous_78]

Sometimes yes, i have a 1.2 cap right now with one l7 10 inch and my lights still dim so it can help and sometime it wont

 

[02parkave 5,000+ posts]

A caps purpose? To fill trash cans, IMO.

it has more of a purpose than that... it also lightens your wallet... kinda a weight-saving device //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

 

[regal8r 5,000+ posts]

caps only do HALF their intended job IMO. first off, the store voltage and little to no amperage. yes, your amp NEEDS voltage, but without that current flow its pretty much worthless.

conclusion:extra battery=less money AND more effective than a cap

/thread

 

[Imshirazy 10+ year member]

I don't agree with some of the responses here... so I'll say my own thing.

Bass systems drain a lot of current, but of course most often with large bass hits. Each time the song you're playing has a sudden bass hit, the amplifier needs a lot of current at that instantaneous point that the battery cannot deliver. This does not harm the amplifier, but it does harm the battery. It's not as much of a battery drain as that the battery is not meant to put out that high of a current in such a short time.

A capacitor will help you in this case...when the amplifier needs that sudden spike in energy, the capacitor can send out the large instantaneous amount of current that the battery cannot deliver, and in between bass hits (or large current spikes) the capacitor recharges itself.

You could also get a much stronger alternator/battery combo, but to me it's best to get a good capacitor than to add batteries to make up for what the amp needs. That's why your car lights dim on each bass hit, it can't put out all the energy required in that really really short millisecond.

 

[docutech 10+ year member]

You could also get a much stronger alternator/battery combo, but to me it's best to get a good capacitor than to add batteries to make up for what the amp needs. That's why your car lights dim on each bass hit, it can't put out all the energy required in that really really short millisecond.

Just for how long (seconds or minutes or hours) do you think the cap will supply that extra needed power to the amp at loud volumes playing lets say...Young Jeezy's Hypnotize?

Try it on at night, on a rainy day, with wipers, defroster and AC all turned on.

Better yet, just try it with nothing turned on at loud volumes for an extended period of time. I am willing to bet a couple of good batteries will do a MUCH better job than a cap will.

I have a cap. I hate it. It has been over a year when I got into this hobby and the person helping me out on the install insisted that I get a cap. I wish I hadn't installed it. It does absolutely nothing for my system. But then again, I dont go around flexin windows at Wal-Mart either.

 

[WhoSayWho? 5,000+ posts]

I don't agree with some of the responses here... so I'll say my own thing.
Bass systems drain a lot of current, but of course most often with large bass hits. Each time the song you're playing has a sudden bass hit, the amplifier needs a lot of current at that instantaneous point that the battery cannot deliver. This does not harm the amplifier, but it does harm the battery. It's not as much of a battery drain as that the battery is not meant to put out that high of a current in such a short time.

A capacitor will help you in this case...when the amplifier needs that sudden spike in energy, the capacitor can send out the large instantaneous amount of current that the battery cannot deliver, and in between bass hits (or large current spikes) the capacitor recharges itself.

You could also get a much stronger alternator/battery combo, but to me it's best to get a good capacitor than to add batteries to make up for what the amp needs. That's why your car lights dim on each bass hit, it can't put out all the energy required in that really really short millisecond.

Wow, that's pretty impressive. Can you recall everything that the guys down at CC told you?

 

[spljunkiems 10+ year member]

on a dd system..........to each his own.........i think caps are completely worthless.......but on an spl settup........all i have to ask is how many of the meca,db drag, usac, iasca,etc........champs do you see using caps...nuf said

 

[bikinpunk 10+ year member]

Just for how long (seconds or minutes or hours) do you think the cap will supply that extra needed power to the amp at loud volumes playing lets say...Young Jeezy's Hypnotize?
Try it on at night, on a rainy day, with wipers, defroster and AC all turned on.

Better yet, just try it with nothing turned on at loud volumes for an extended period of time. I am willing to bet a couple of good batteries will do a MUCH better job than a cap will.

I have a cap. I hate it. It has been over a year when I got into this hobby and the person helping me out on the install insisted that I get a cap. I wish I hadn't installed it. It does absolutely nothing for my system. But then again, I dont go around flexin windows at Wal-Mart either.

I just used that quote in another forum to give some info on caps. I personally won't run them, but a guy was wanting to buy a 2nd since his first didn't help. FWIW, he hasn't done the big 3, or upgraded any electrical devices (alt or battery).

Thanks for that quote.