I was going to upgrade eventually. I'll be throwing a 200A fuse up front and I got real cheap prices for Stinger wire around here so I think I'll be good. The question now is should I definitely get a cap...

 

Secondary audio battery

 

Lol dig up internet support? Its common sense and if you actually knew as much as you claim to, you wouldnt be saying this for any other reason but to argue which is usually the case with you.

Here we go, guys who know there stuff wouldn't opt for a trunk mounted battery because they would know it strains the electrical system. Then again guys who know their stuff also up-rate the alt at the same time to avoid this problem. Capacitors aren't useless it's just that they are used in the wrong manner in car audio. Capacitors have their use in other fields but in car audio they are misused. A cap should only be added to an already upgraded electrical system. People think that adding a cap will solve all of their problems, these people of course do not know what they are talking about.

Again, if the current is not their to begin with then a cap is useless and actually hurts your electrical system even more. You should never start with adding a capacitor, you should up-rate your battery first with one designed for high amp draws and if that is not enough then up-rate your alt.

I dont know how you will argue with this but you never disappoint

 

says who? He could easly run a 12-13 foot section of 4g, 150amp fused just fine. The only other option is that its shorting to ground some where or either he has a loose connection. the12volt.com is a good site for calculations like this.

bryanakaslim and ShocknAwe, are right. Personally ide go high cap battery. You have to understand the kind or power your amp is using and what type of power your O.E alt and maybe battery are capable of which isnt much. You think its bad now i remember the days of the old hi current Orion amp's i used to run back in the day, talk about alt and battery killers.

Get your 0 guage wiring done, and go from there.

 

Do what you want but you should really upgrade your electrical system first. You are really close to that 1000RMS threshold where your electrical system is really going to be strained. You do not want to be that guy stranded on the side of the road on a rainy day because your electrical system can not handle running your HL's and wipers in addition to your system.

 

Pffffft! all you young guys with your fancy pants metrosexual systems! i remember back in my day i had 3 batteries and a bunch of 10ga wire running my 8 Alpine 3545 amps and yes they were modfied by the Richard Clark crew so they had UNREGULATED Power supplies which let me pump 30v into them and Upgraded output converters that let them run .25 ohm.Bishes what yall know about Power/Sound? and 4 of them was used to crank 2 21" SounsStream Teckron Subs yall do understand that alone was 6000 pure watts @148Adb.and No using a deep cycle battery does not help sound or Bass this is why basically when bass hits it is a quick draw and recharge condition that is needed to keep up with the output of the system so yes CAPS do help because of their discharge/charge rate but until you understan that you need 40 frad for every 500 watts of power you not doing crap for sound or output all your doing is producing voltage drop in the system and extra draw with causes the system to crap out on you.


Furthermore dont challenge me on my numbers or statements until you completly understand the math behind it.i have played way too long in that game and can hit 160+Adb at a drop of a dime!ask yourself have you ever seen sheet metal ripple like water? i have,16hz bishes!

 

BatCap 3000

Just thought i'd mention it.

 

Quiet down Melon Master

 

I'm surprised you didn't mention BatCap yourself.

 

lol I dont doubt it but I bet those 3 batteries added about 300lbs and required stiffer springs. Get back to trying to rig up a record player in your ride and let us young folks worry about balancing SQ and SPL.

It is nice to see someone agrees adding in a cap to an already limited electrical system is simply adding in something else to charge. They have their place but time after time they are misused that is all I wanted to get out there.

 

This isn't untrue, I'll be the first to admit it.
Before you go pointing fingers though, you might want to step back and remember your not-so-humble beginnings here.
We were all good enough to 'sweep under the rug' and kindly 'forget' your ferocious threats, accusations, and so on, mostly arguments that started out about audio, oddly enough. Time and time again though, you were proven wrong, and somehow escaped a permanent ban on these forums.

Don't think we've actually forgotten any of this, SnA, we have just been good enough to accept your drastic turn-around, as it was nothing short of spectacular. I for one have went out of my way to congradulate and commend you for it on more than one occasion.

Keep those old facts in mind next time you start talking like that again, keep yourself humble here, we wouldn't want a relapse out of you.

As for the matter at hand, my 'argument' as you put it is far from that. I'm simply informing someone about things I know. You're not incorrect in all that you say, not at all, which is why us arguing would acheive nothing.
Anyone who wants to see a bunch of people argue on the internet about CAP vs. NO CAP vs. BATTERY can simply google and find millions of threads full of bickering.
I'm not planning on turning this thread into one. I'm just stating the facts I know. I emplore you not to argue, and to simply do the same. throw down some facts, offer good suggestions for the OP, that's all.

 

So the only time I should be getting a cap is after I get a new battery?

 

You do not have to drop $200 on a yellow top but if you plan on getting into audio then it is about the best base battery you can get. If you still need more power, assuming you will exceed 1000RMS, then get an uprated alt and after that your electrical system can handle auxiliary batteries and the options are limitless. All of this is simply my opinion but the last thing I want is to have my system require more power than my car can provide.

I would simply lay out a plan of what you want to achieve and stick to it because car audio is a slippery slope. Just try to get a good mix between sound pressure and sound quality. I designed my system for SQ so I spent most of my money on my amplifier and component speakers.

 

Calculations:
http://www.bcae1.com/images/swfs/wir...calculator.swf

I agree, he should get 0 AWG if he's running what he states. He should also get a Deep Cycle/Yellow top. I love my Yellow top.

Capacitor.... as much as I fear even making points about it.... You guys are right, yes, the rest of the system needs to maintain the battery, that's the purpose.
And without question all that stuff should be done first, before a cap. But that doesn't mean he shouldn't still use a cap.

A cap won't help if he's pushing the subs with consistant bass, techno music, etc cranked up a lot. It won't.
But if he is listening to music like the average Joe with a nice stereo, it will help. In laymens terms, all a Cap does it supply instant Power when needed, for those quick Bass hits, etc. It doesn't create Amperage, it doesn't create power.
It just minimizes the sharp draw on the rest of the electrical system when the bass hits. This stops pulsing from the alternator, voltage ripples in the system, and prolongs overall component life of everything involved, including the amps, alternator, and battery, etc.
It can also help eliminate some of the electrical 'noise' created by alternators, etc. this is great for those picky guys with their musics clarity.

Just like the wire size, it needs to be properly calculated. A 1 Farad will work, but really you should double it for your system as a 'general rule'.
Adding another battery is one route to consider, but I wouldnt. If I was going to add a battery or 2 Farad Cap, I'd just run the bigger wire and leave it alone, it'll be fine.

But adding a 1 Farad cap like suggested will only help the system, and help ease those Amperage spikes when the amp is drawing hard on the main battery. the Cap will help ease that shock.

 

I'd side with SnA here, the yellow top is a better investment than the Capacitor. Again, not saying you should have a cap, but if you have to pick, or do it in stages, the battery should be done first.

 

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^^^ Here CJ, I had a bunch of these laying around, use them at your leisure

 

Si. The alt just can not supply the quick power necessary and that is when a capacitor comes into play but I always say uprate the bat and the alt and then throw in a cap if you need it because it is cheaper and easier than auxiliary batteries.

Yellow top or bust for car electronics. Some hate on Optima batteries but those are usually people that don't use them the way Optima intended. IE a red top designed for CCA in cold environments and big engines that need a ton of CA at once put into a car with a system wondering why it fails to start once a week. Hell even the red tops can endure a moderate system. Grant it, Optima is not what they used to be but I think they are still the best batteries out there.

 

Hey bro i used a few of those things!

 

Dont make me dig out the old Alpine Dat,8 Track and Mini Disc players you will be Owned Mr.Fancy Pants!

 

Probably true. I think I saw 3 of them.

 

Mini discs... yeah I remember that short lived epic failure

 

Hey i even have a Sony MD recorder and Alpine MD changer

 

Planning on opening up an electronics history museum one day?

 

lol mini discs. Imagine if they stuck....weird

 

optima batteries are ok, but probably not the best bang for the buck, if you want a good battery with an absolutely great warranty, goto sears and get a die hard platinum, they are made by odyssee and are AGM technology so they have VERY quick response time amp draw for heavy bass hits, also from researching, the Big3 upgrade is definatly the best thing you can do for any dimming light problems or voltage issues, 4 gauge wire is the smallest id recommend for the Big3 upgrade, 2 gauge is recommended, and 0 gauge is overkill for 99% of the audio guys out there, but its better to have overkill than not good enough, also battery's out of computer battery backup's are great for extra power sources, a 22AH battery is fairly light (20-25lbs) and will make a HUGE improvement in extra battery capacity, mount it fairly close to the amp, or tie it directly into a distribution block and it should be good.

capacitors are best used if you have line noise, if you have a humming in your audio system that changes pitch when you give the car gas, (alternator whine) then a capacitor will help with that alot, but upgrading the big3 is the first thing you should EVER do.

 

WTF are you talking about? GTFO!

 

No i have collected everything alpine.i only have one piece of sony its a xe-744 sound processor and 32 band eq

 

sent u a PM bro

 

OP's issue is prolly spiking current causing fuses to blow. Not dimming lights, etc.
He can increase the fuse to prolly 120-130 safely if it's simply spiked current draw.
A cap will help lower the spiked amperage level and save the fuses.

Fusing higher than 130 is probably not a good idea on 4 awg wire.

Upgrading to 0 awg with a larger fuse should fix all those problems though unless he's peaking really crazy Amps.

And again all the big 3, better battery, etc are all fantastic ideas, but if that system wants 150 amps in a hurry, and your fuse/wire can only handle 100-130, it will still blow. Won't matter what alternator, battery, or grounding upgrades you have.

 

A computer battery for car audio? I am not even going to go there, what I will focus on is your humming advice. Interference is usually from cheap wiring, running a huge power wire right next to cheap RCA's, or cheap components. Has nothing to do with a capacitor and that is not what we are arguing about here. We are arguing because we enjoy arguing with each other...

 

[QUOTE=ShocknAwe;8698642]A computer battery for car audio? I am not even going to go there, what I will focus on is your humming advice. Interference is usually from cheap wiring, running a huge power wire right next to cheap RCA's, or cheap components. Has nothing to do with a capacitor and that is not what we are arguing about here. We are arguing because we enjoy arguing with each other...[/QUOTE]

+1

Tuner is the New New Mr.Brett!

 

you do realize that computer back up battery "batteries" are 12 volt batterys AGM technology and also deep cycle, exact same as a kenetik, or odyssey battery you would buy for an upgraded car audio system (normally competition systems)

capacitors are just big line filters, they do hold current, they hold the highest current your alternator puts out, if your putting out 14 volts, the cap will hold 14 volts (provided its rated to), but a 1Farad cap isnt really a huge help except for quick voltage spikes, they do have very low ESR so it helps quick quick bass hits and power draw.

 

shhhhh CJ, shhhh

 

Xtatic Batcap...

Just thought I'd mention it...

 

You arsetart! You already said that,you window peekin,melon fornication octosexual freak!

 

Just thought i'd mention it again