Lights Dimming, could it be the wires?
06-17-2002, 05:40 PM
#1
Lights Dimming, could it be the wires?
Whats up everyone, heres the deal. I got a 760 Watt pioneer amp powering 2 12" Pioneer DVC's 
. Anyways, I hooked up everything and of course I had lots of dimming. Today I got my capacitor so I figured the lights would stop dimming. The capacitor works fine, but the lights are still dimming, a little less than before but still noticeable. This is what I think, I have 4 gauge positive wire going from battery to capacitor, then from capacitor to amp. But, I have 8 gauge ground wire going to capacitor, then from capacitor to amp. Could that 8 gauge wire be the problem? Should I get 4 gauge for the ground wires also? Liek I sadi the capacitor works, its digital and everything lights up and reads normal. ANy info or advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance. 
. Anyways, I hooked up everything and of course I had lots of dimming. Today I got my capacitor so I figured the lights would stop dimming. The capacitor works fine, but the lights are still dimming, a little less than before but still noticeable. This is what I think, I have 4 gauge positive wire going from battery to capacitor, then from capacitor to amp. But, I have 8 gauge ground wire going to capacitor, then from capacitor to amp. Could that 8 gauge wire be the problem? Should I get 4 gauge for the ground wires also? Liek I sadi the capacitor works, its digital and everything lights up and reads normal. ANy info or advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.
06-17-2002, 08:12 PM
#2
I tend to get a bit irritable
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Re: Lights Dimming, could it be the wires?
Originally posted by D1NOnly34
Whats up everyone, heres the deal. I got a 760 Watt pioneer amp powering 2 12" Pioneer DVC's . Anyways, I hooked up everything and of course I had lots of dimming. Today I got my capacitor so I figured the lights would stop dimming. The capacitor works fine, but the lights are still dimming, a little less than before but still noticeable. This is what I think, I have 4 gauge positive wire going from battery to capacitor, then from capacitor to amp. But, I have 8 gauge ground wire going to capacitor, then from capacitor to amp. Could that 8 gauge wire be the problem? Should I get 4 gauge for the ground wires also? Liek I sadi the capacitor works, its digital and everything lights up and reads normal. ANy info or advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Whats up everyone, heres the deal. I got a 760 Watt pioneer amp powering 2 12" Pioneer DVC's
. Anyways, I hooked up everything and of course I had lots of dimming. Today I got my capacitor so I figured the lights would stop dimming. The capacitor works fine, but the lights are still dimming, a little less than before but still noticeable. This is what I think, I have 4 gauge positive wire going from battery to capacitor, then from capacitor to amp. But, I have 8 gauge ground wire going to capacitor, then from capacitor to amp. Could that 8 gauge wire be the problem? Should I get 4 gauge for the ground wires also? Liek I sadi the capacitor works, its digital and everything lights up and reads normal. ANy info or advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.
06-17-2002, 08:51 PM
#3
Re: Re: Lights Dimming, could it be the wires?
Originally posted by Pearl96Max
Well first of all....your power wire must ALWAYS be the same. What goes in, must come out the same. Your amp/cap is only a bridge in completing a circuit through your car. Battery to amp to ground to battery,etc...Its all one big loop. Second of all...because the meter on your cap reads voltage doesnt mean the cap is good, it simply means the meter is good. Disconnect the cap from the battery/ground and read it with a multimeter like that.
Well first of all....your power wire must ALWAYS be the same. What goes in, must come out the same. Your amp/cap is only a bridge in completing a circuit through your car. Battery to amp to ground to battery,etc...Its all one big loop. Second of all...because the meter on your cap reads voltage doesnt mean the cap is good, it simply means the meter is good. Disconnect the cap from the battery/ground and read it with a multimeter like that.
My power wire is the same...4 gauge all around. It's my ground wire that is different, its smaller (8 gauge). Like I said, I'm pretty sure it works cause the car doesnt' dim as much as before, but still dims. I have a Farad 1.0 digital cap. The only thing I can think of is that teh Ground wire is not big enough like the amp wire is.
06-17-2002, 08:55 PM
#4
I tend to get a bit irritable
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My point was that the power and ground MUST be the same, hence completing the circuit. If a 4awg goes into something, then a 4awg must come out (ground). Why kind of cap is it anyway? Something reputable? Alot of caps state 1 farad 1.5,etc... and are about half of that. Lightning is notorious for that.
06-17-2002, 08:58 PM
#5
Originally posted by Pearl96Max
My point was that the power and ground MUST be the same, hence completing the circuit. If a 4awg goes into something, then a 4awg must come out (ground). Why kind of cap is it anyway? Something reputable? Alot of caps state 1 farad 1.5,etc... and are about half of that. Lightning is notorious for that.
My point was that the power and ground MUST be the same, hence completing the circuit. If a 4awg goes into something, then a 4awg must come out (ground). Why kind of cap is it anyway? Something reputable? Alot of caps state 1 farad 1.5,etc... and are about half of that. Lightning is notorious for that.
06-17-2002, 09:02 PM
#6
I tend to get a bit irritable
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Exactly! Thats what I mean by completing....If 4awg is your power going into something it must be 4awg coming out. The way that it works is as follows...Your battery goes into your cap, then into your amp,then out of your amp into your cap and then finally to ground. The battery is also grounded to the chassis as well, thus completing a circuit. It does not matter what you hook up, or how many things you hook up, the power and ground wires MUST be the same. I hope this helps.....
--Don
--Don
06-17-2002, 09:04 PM
#7
Originally posted by Pearl96Max
Exactly! Thats what I mean by completing....If 4awg is your power going into something it must be 4awg coming out. The way that it works is as follows...Your battery goes into your cap, then into your amp,then out of your amp into your cap and then finally to ground. The battery is also grounded to the chassis as well, thus completing a circuit. It does not matter what you hook up, or how many things you hook up, the power and ground wires MUST be the same. I hope this helps.....
--Don
Exactly! Thats what I mean by completing....If 4awg is your power going into something it must be 4awg coming out. The way that it works is as follows...Your battery goes into your cap, then into your amp,then out of your amp into your cap and then finally to ground. The battery is also grounded to the chassis as well, thus completing a circuit. It does not matter what you hook up, or how many things you hook up, the power and ground wires MUST be the same. I hope this helps.....
--Don
06-18-2002, 03:27 AM
#8
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2001
Posts: 1,771
With such a difference in ground wire size, I'm surprised you aren't getting any noise (alternator, spark plugs, ect) in your system. Also make sure your ground wire is WELL grounded. To BARE metal, and make sure it's a primary piece of metal (floor, seat mount, etc) and not some flimsy mounting screw or something. Grind away the paint if need be.
Tony
Tony
06-18-2002, 07:40 AM
#9
You're lucky you're not pushing enough power to witness the extreme negative consequences of mismatching ground & power wire like I did way back in the day...that was my first install, I had a sub for about 5 minutes before it cut out. Of course, I didn't check the fuse and just powered up again.
The next time it cut out, I had ground wire soup in my trunk. The whole wire burnt up and melted the shielding. Not to mention a dead sub.
The next time it cut out, I had ground wire soup in my trunk. The whole wire burnt up and melted the shielding. Not to mention a dead sub.
06-18-2002, 02:42 PM
#11
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2002
Posts: 159
Re: Lights Dimming, could it be the wires?
Originally posted by D1NOnly34
Whats up everyone, heres the deal. I got a 760 Watt pioneer amp powering 2 12" Pioneer DVC's . Anyways, I hooked up everything and of course I had lots of dimming. Today I got my capacitor so I figured the lights would stop dimming. The capacitor works fine, but the lights are still dimming, a little less than before but still noticeable. This is what I think, I have 4 gauge positive wire going from battery to capacitor, then from capacitor to amp. But, I have 8 gauge ground wire going to capacitor, then from capacitor to amp. Could that 8 gauge wire be the problem? Should I get 4 gauge for the ground wires also? Liek I sadi the capacitor works, its digital and everything lights up and reads normal. ANy info or advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.
Whats up everyone, heres the deal. I got a 760 Watt pioneer amp powering 2 12" Pioneer DVC's
. Anyways, I hooked up everything and of course I had lots of dimming. Today I got my capacitor so I figured the lights would stop dimming. The capacitor works fine, but the lights are still dimming, a little less than before but still noticeable. This is what I think, I have 4 gauge positive wire going from battery to capacitor, then from capacitor to amp. But, I have 8 gauge ground wire going to capacitor, then from capacitor to amp. Could that 8 gauge wire be the problem? Should I get 4 gauge for the ground wires also? Liek I sadi the capacitor works, its digital and everything lights up and reads normal. ANy info or advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.
06-18-2002, 04:53 PM
#12
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Posts: n/a
Re: Re: Lights Dimming, could it be the wires?
Originally posted by quiksand
Dude, it's not about the capacitor. It's all about current draw. A capacitor is just a resivoir for energy. All it does is store energy and provides it to the amp when needed, so even though the cap is there the amp may still require more power than provided by the cap so it grabs it from the battery. Before starting a system you have to know how many ampres you altenator puts out. You don't want an amplifier that uses 75 ampres and your altenator only puts out 115, thats only 45 ampres left to run your a/c, electrical system, and to power your battery. If its feasible for you just buy a digital amp that draws little current and you'll be ok.
Dude, it's not about the capacitor. It's all about current draw. A capacitor is just a resivoir for energy. All it does is store energy and provides it to the amp when needed, so even though the cap is there the amp may still require more power than provided by the cap so it grabs it from the battery. Before starting a system you have to know how many ampres you altenator puts out. You don't want an amplifier that uses 75 ampres and your altenator only puts out 115, thats only 45 ampres left to run your a/c, electrical system, and to power your battery. If its feasible for you just buy a digital amp that draws little current and you'll be ok.
06-19-2002, 07:59 AM
#13
Senior Member
Join Date: May 2002
Posts: 159
Re: Re: Re: Lights Dimming, could it be the wires?
Originally posted by jmax
I really hate it when people think that a 1000 watt amp puts out 1000 watts all the time. When in fact the average output is probably closer to 100 watts, maybe less. This is why a capacitor works such wonders. But the wiring is more important, as has been said very well above. Another thing to consider is that lightning audio wires are about 2/3 watt(hehe) they are posted.
I really hate it when people think that a 1000 watt amp puts out 1000 watts all the time. When in fact the average output is probably closer to 100 watts, maybe less. This is why a capacitor works such wonders. But the wiring is more important, as has been said very well above. Another thing to consider is that lightning audio wires are about 2/3 watt(hehe) they are posted.
06-19-2002, 09:15 PM
#14
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Posts: n/a
Re: Re: Re: Re: Lights Dimming, could it be the wires?
Originally posted by quiksand
I was assuming he listened to his music pretty loud, if he had the voulme down the lights wouldn't dim.
I was assuming he listened to his music pretty loud, if he had the voulme down the lights wouldn't dim.
Unibomber - a bigger battery is a larger strain on the electrical system, not a benefit.
06-20-2002, 11:38 PM
#17
Senior Member
Join Date: Oct 2001
Posts: 1,771
Originally posted by jmax
Regardless, it's not the solution. Most inexperienced readers would assume a big battery helps a stereo. But the opposite is true. I figured it was better to disperse the cloud of smoke before it got a grip on anyone.
Regardless, it's not the solution. Most inexperienced readers would assume a big battery helps a stereo. But the opposite is true. I figured it was better to disperse the cloud of smoke before it got a grip on anyone.
Tony
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