Cap or no Cap?

[AccordTypeR 10+ year member]

I recently bought a 500x2 amp for my 3 10" phoenix Gold XS. My friend told me to invest in a cap. I was wondering if it was necessary.

plz help!//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/confused.gif.e820e0216602db4765798ac39d28caa9.gif

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[longstreet 10+ year member]

Is that the only amp your running?

If so, then you should be fine. If your headlights dim, however, you might want to get one.

Ive run my 800 watt amp for a while with no cap and i have no problems.

 

[Larrydehp920r]

Just because your headlights aren't dimming doesn't mean you don't need a capacitor. If you are using the amp for subs then I would strongly recommend it. An amp that pushes subs is a very power hungry amplifier....and though maybe your headlights aren't dimming, if your amp isn't getting the power it needs your bass will not be tight...it will tend to be loose (muddy). So if your bass feels tight enough then you may not need one. You will be the one to spend the money so you be the one to decide.

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[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

i would get your alt rewound another 20 amps and get a cap just to be safe

 

[jtmoney 10+ year member]

i never ever ever ever use or have used a power cap myself - waste of f****** $$$ and will never be a replacement for a bigger battery and a rewound, larger alternator. get a big system and leave electrics standard and fit some caps = not as loud as a same system with 2 batteries (something like that, depends on precise requirements) and a BIG alternator. but thats my personal preference.

 

[ss3079 5,000+ posts]

Get a cap and get your alt rewound...eventually maybe look into getting an Optima battery or something just to run your system.

 

[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

caps are more of a sq upgrade than anything and not always is it heard...

 

[khi 10+ year member]

i dont think you relly need one..

 

[jtmoney 10+ year member]

big system+me+standard alt+standard batt+powercap=//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/furious.gif.fc81ca146dbff91fede3ed290dbc4f4c.gif

big system+bigger alt+some new batteries (stinger-expensive like hell but arent they as small as f888 & look **** good too???)+NO POWER CAP+me=//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif

 

[Larrydehp920r]

You're just a cap hater aren't you.?? Why you hate capacitors is YOUR business. Not everyone can afford to have their alt rewound and not everyone has the room to add a second battery. Capacitors are easier to find room for and a hell of alot cheaper than an over-priced Stinger battery. Also, if capacitors are soooo bad then why do sooo many people have them....including people who compete in USAC and IASCA? Answer that Mr. know-it-all.

 

[Phatillusion 5,000+ posts]

Sometimes it is cheaper to get your altenator rewound as opposed to buying a cap.

 

[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

Originally posted by Larrydehp920r You're just a cap hater aren't you.?? Why you hate capacitors is YOUR business. Not everyone can afford to have their alt rewound and not everyone has the room to add a second battery. Capacitors are easier to find room for and a hell of alot cheaper than an over-priced Stinger battery. Also, if capacitors are soooo bad then why do sooo many people have them....including people who compete in USAC and IASCA? Answer that Mr. know-it-all.

 

simply put when caps are correctly used they are not fixxes for what you are calling for. they are high speed VOLTAGE bridges. where in the laws of power there are 2 things needed the other is current. voltage * current=power. alternators produce both and if your alt gets to much stress it burns up...caps ADD stress btw

 

[gibasscarguy 10+ year member]

Quite the discussion about caps here. I personally dont use a cap but thats only because I run a 600Watt amp and its just not needed. Now if I ran 1000watts or more I would probly invest in a cap. Then again I would probly get the alt rewound and all that crap too. If no other reason then to increase SQ and power.

 

[audiolife 5,000+ posts]

Originally posted by gibasscarguy Quite the discussion about caps here. I personally dont use a cap but thats only because I run a 600Watt amp and its just not needed. Now if I ran 1000watts or more I would probly invest in a cap. Then again I would probly get the alt rewound and all that crap too. If no other reason then to increase SQ and power.

you are correct you cant get top performance from your cap/s with a crappy alt

 

[Phatillusion 5,000+ posts]

Okay, here is my opinion on the cap situation, every system could use a cap. No matter how strong your altenator is, there is going to be a brief instance where it cannot supply the demand of power fast enough. Am I saying you will be able to hear a difference? No, I'm simply stating that your altenator cannot always completely keep up with the demand of power, that does not necessarily mean your lights will dim, it could mean that it is just a fraction of an amp(power). So to sum it up, there really is no right or wrong, to use a cap or not, if you think it benefits you, then by all means get it, if you don't think it will benefit you, then don't get it. Chances are, if your system is not sounding up to par, your gonna need to have the altenator rewound, a cap can only do so much, and I seriously doubt that you would be able to hear much of a difference if any at all.