Capacitors YEAH AGAIN

[DBBOOM 10+ year member]

After the first discharge ( heavy bass note) isnt the cap gonna be constantly trying to regain its charge? This isnt worth a sh^t for everyday listening, maybe fine for burps, but seems like it would be adding a draw to the system by trying to regain its charge. Just puttin it out there!

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[snb778 5,000+ posts]

same concept as a deep cycle battery isnt it... but those are more of static charges, they are made to recharge immediately... I don't think it takes much to do it though, so it shouldnt have a drain on the power source.... I think its been determined they work best for noise filtering though, and not charging your system

 

[DBBOOM 10+ year member]

Ive used them before, never seen a benefit. People seem to swear by them, dont see it myself. HO alt and batteries are the only way that has worked for me.

 

[joetama 5,000+ posts]

Everyday listening is going to be a pretty randomly rhythmic signal. (AKA it isn't just a sin wave)

So, in all reality a capacitor with its quick charge and discharge rate is going to have a more effective chance to do something good under these 'random' conditions.

Side note, if you have a view understand the mechanics of what you are talking about before you make an 'educated' decision. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/fyi.gif.9f1f679348da7204ce960cfc74bca8e0.gif

 

[joetama 5,000+ posts]

Ive used them before, never seen a benefit. People seem to swear by them, dont see it myself. HO alt and batteries are the only way that has worked for me.

You should get a cookie for these brilliant scientific discoveries... //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/rolleyes.gif.c1fef805e9d1464d377451cd5bc18bfb.gif

 

[DBBOOM 10+ year member]

Sorry, for giving my personal experiences, would have given yours if i had them. Also, i am to understand that you say a capacitor has more benefit than a battery? If so, would love to see this for future reference.

 

[87linkin 10+ year member]

If its a small sq system a capacitor makes a world of difference in my opinion but not in a high power spl application. If you use them right they are great.

 

[audioholic 5,000+ posts]

After the first discharge ( heavy bass note) isnt the cap gonna be constantly trying to regain its charge? This isnt worth a sh^t for everyday listening, maybe fine for burps, but seems like it would be adding a draw to the system by trying to regain its charge. Just puttin it out there!

This is a common argument against using caps. While I generally argue against using an external cap, I disregard this argument. And I'll tell you why.
Saying a cap becomes a drain on the system after it discharges gives an incorrect implication that the cap will rob power from the stereo later, to recharge itself. This simply is not the case. A cap will follow system voltage. It will only discharge as much as system voltage drops (thereby dropping the cap's voltage, which is it 'draining'). It gives away its charge as its required... as the stereo demand raises so much that system voltage must drop. Conversely, it only recharges as system voltage increases. So if the stereo's demand is remaining high, system voltage will stay low and the cap wont try to recharge. But as the stereo's demand decreases, that drives system voltage back up and the cap will naturally recharge.

Knowing this, we can safely say that a cap will only recharge once the charging system has the ability to allow it do so without relinquishing power to the greater demands (like the stereo). The only real added strain a cap adds to the charging system is via the cap's internal resistance (ESR). How much resistance the cap will display depends on many factors, such as the cap type, its size, and if it has lights/gauges/bling added to it, etc.

Whether a cap can have a benefit to your system depends on many things. As said above, the cap type/size/etc is the first factor. If the cap has too much internal resistance to begin with, no other factors matter, it not helpful at all. Another factor is your amplifiers themselves. Did you know your amps already have an array of caps in their input stage for 'power conditioning'? And of course, if you think a cap will be a crutch for inadequacies elsewhere in your charging system, you would be mistaken.

Hope that helps.

 

[DBBOOM 10+ year member]

If its a small sq system a capacitor makes a world of difference in my opinion but not in a high power spl application. If you use them right they are great.

I was referring to their use for power, and yes they are great in SQ applications. Seems that everyone has opinions on that, but its hard to get any true evidence or proof either way on the power benefits.

 

[DBBOOM 10+ year member]

This is a common argument against using caps. While I generally argue against using an external cap, I disregard this argument. And I'll tell you why.
Saying a cap becomes a drain on the system after it discharges gives an incorrect implication that the cap will rob power from the stereo later, to recharge itself. This simply is not the case. A cap will follow system voltage. It will only discharge as much as system voltage drops (thereby dropping the cap's voltage, which is it 'draining'). It gives away its charge as its required... as the stereo demand raises so much that system voltage must drop. Conversely, it only recharges as system voltage increases. So if the stereo's demand is remaining high, system voltage will stay low and the cap wont try to recharge. But as the stereo's demand decreases, that drives system voltage back up and the cap will naturally recharge.

Knowing this, we can safely say that a cap will only recharge once the charging system has the ability to allow it do so without relinquishing power to the greater demands (like the stereo). The only real added strain a cap adds to the charging system is via the cap's internal resistance (ESR). How much resistance the cap will display depends on many factors, such as the cap type, its size, and if it has lights/gauges/bling added to it, etc.

Whether a cap can have a benefit to your system depends on many things. As said above, the cap type/size/etc is the first factor. If the cap has too much internal resistance to begin with, no other factors matter, it not helpful at all. Another factor is your amplifiers themselves. Did you know your amps already have an array of caps in their input stage for 'power conditioning'? And of course, if you think a cap will be a crutch for inadequacies elsewhere in your charging system, you would be mistaken.

Hope that helps.

Good input, but would YOU use one in a SPL setup ?

 

[audioholic 5,000+ posts]

Good input, but would YOU use one in a SPL setup ?

Burping sine waves for 30 seconds? No.

 

[DBBOOM 10+ year member]

So your saying that they dont really have any added advantage as far as power goes, same as me. Seems as though caps have been falsley marketed, they are more of way of improving quality than compensating for lack of voltage, right?

 

[MmatsDude 10+ year member]

caps are just plain gay, my friend bought a stinger cap for 300 bucks @ this local shop LOL

epic ownage at the register if u ask me ...

how does it add quality? even in an sq system? you mean quality in sound? if i wanted that type of quality i would use the cap money on a nice eq, get a nice HU and buy some high end amps.

i dont think caps have any efect on improving quality pft

 

[snb778 5,000+ posts]

why not just spend the money and get a good static/deep cycle battery... a good cap is going to cost you 150+ anyways!

 

[joetama 5,000+ posts]

Sorry, for giving my personal experiences, would have given yours if i had them. Also, i am to understand that you say a capacitor has more benefit than a battery? If so, would love to see this for future reference.

A capacitor does not have more benefit than a battery, mostly because a battery can store a lot more energy than a capacitor.

Anyway, I don't mean to be a dick about it, but the simple fact is that a capacitor is simply going to be a filter. Most setups aren't going to benefit from the slight filtering a capacitor is going to offer in comparison to the battery. But, you really need a very high precision meter or an oscilloscope to be able to honestly tell what the ripple current is doing and consequently to see if the capacitors are doing anything.

Your bass honestly won't be where you notice the change if you would notice one. Cleaner midrange and more exact high frequency would be the result of increased filtering.