Why does my cap say this
12-10-2013, 01:33 AM
#7
It's a generic China made capacitor using a china made voltmeter. If it's not a malfunction, it's possibly indicating a high voltage situation. Check the running voltage with a multimeter.
12-13-2013, 11:20 PM
#13
Large caps are beneficial if you have power hungry equipment wired to the same source as the amplifier(s), in close proximity to each other, and far away from the battery. Helps to stabilize the voltage provided to the alternate equipment when the amplifiers hit.
Other than that they are mainly for show. A load is a load, and a charging capacitor will dim your lights virtually the same as an amplifier. And if that's the problem, it's time for a new battery and/or alternator.
But, to say they serve absolutely no purpose is wrong. They just don't serve much purpose for most systems, and people use them for the wrong reason.
Other than that they are mainly for show. A load is a load, and a charging capacitor will dim your lights virtually the same as an amplifier. And if that's the problem, it's time for a new battery and/or alternator.
But, to say they serve absolutely no purpose is wrong. They just don't serve much purpose for most systems, and people use them for the wrong reason.
Last edited by Hectic; 12-13-2013 at 11:30 PM.
12-13-2013, 11:41 PM
#14
I tend to get a bit irritable
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Where did I say "serves absolutely no purpose" ? I said to take it out, yes, but nothing beyond that. This was a fairly accurate assessment based just on his wiring alone. If he has something in there that would require such a thing, then he has bigger problems based on just the wiring seen.
If someone has dimming lights, then they should use a cap .. on the headlight output and not nearly that big. People Really need to learn to solve the problem and not just what some shop or the interwebz say to do ..
If someone has dimming lights, then they should use a cap .. on the headlight output and not nearly that big. People Really need to learn to solve the problem and not just what some shop or the interwebz say to do ..
12-14-2013, 06:54 AM
#15
Large caps are beneficial if you have power hungry equipment wired to the same source as the amplifier(s), in close proximity to each other, and far away from the battery. Helps to stabilize the voltage provided to the alternate equipment when the amplifiers hit.
Other than that they are mainly for show. A load is a load, and a charging capacitor will dim your lights virtually the same as an amplifier. And if that's the problem, it's time for a new battery and/or alternator.
But, to say they serve absolutely no purpose is wrong. They just don't serve much purpose for most systems, and people use them for the wrong reason.
Other than that they are mainly for show. A load is a load, and a charging capacitor will dim your lights virtually the same as an amplifier. And if that's the problem, it's time for a new battery and/or alternator.
But, to say they serve absolutely no purpose is wrong. They just don't serve much purpose for most systems, and people use them for the wrong reason.
I have a 400 watt amp wired up and running my door subs, and a cheaper Nitro 2200 watt amp running my 15" Cerwin Vega.
With the gain up more than 3/4 I notice the dash lights slightly dimming to the beat. So that calls for a capacitor correct.
The alternator charges fine at 14.2 all the time and I have a yellow top battery that's less than a year old.
12-14-2013, 12:26 PM
#16
Where did I say "serves absolutely no purpose" ? I said to take it out, yes, but nothing beyond that. This was a fairly accurate assessment based just on his wiring alone. If he has something in there that would require such a thing, then he has bigger problems based on just the wiring seen.
If someone has dimming lights, then they should use a cap .. on the headlight output and not nearly that big. People Really need to learn to solve the problem and not just what some shop or the interwebz say to do ..
If someone has dimming lights, then they should use a cap .. on the headlight output and not nearly that big. People Really need to learn to solve the problem and not just what some shop or the interwebz say to do ..
So your thought on this.
I have a 400 watt amp wired up and running my door subs, and a cheaper Nitro 2200 watt amp running my 15" Cerwin Vega.
With the gain up more than 3/4 I notice the dash lights slightly dimming to the beat. So that calls for a capacitor correct.
The alternator charges fine at 14.2 all the time and I have a yellow top battery that's less than a year old.
I have a 400 watt amp wired up and running my door subs, and a cheaper Nitro 2200 watt amp running my 15" Cerwin Vega.
With the gain up more than 3/4 I notice the dash lights slightly dimming to the beat. So that calls for a capacitor correct.
The alternator charges fine at 14.2 all the time and I have a yellow top battery that's less than a year old.
I've never had a large audio cap, though I have kind of wanted to get one for the reason I stated earlier. I'm not a fan of my sub amp robbing power from my precious equipment that is connected to the same dist. block. Anyway, I've had dimming issues before, which were completely eliminated with a new alternator. A 2nd gen alternator no less, with a lower output rating. Virtually brand new reman, found it at the junkyard, so I figured it was worth a shot. It's worked very well for a few years now. Of course my entire system only draws 350w maxed out so there's not a ton of stress on it. There is a constant 10a load though, so I don't want an overly power hungry system on top of that.
Last edited by Hectic; 12-14-2013 at 12:41 PM.
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