Farad Capacitator

[ChuteBoxe515 10+ year member]

What are these things all about...gimmie some info as I might need one for my system. What do they do, and when would someone need one?

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[LBX2G 10+ year member]

U remember off road the arcade game. It was like u were racing the baja off road race. They give u the notro boost. U kno kinda short and quick. THat is all they do.

 

[JimJ 5,000+ posts]

I kicked ass in that game. One day I was at the arcade, and I got all the high scores...

oh yeah.

 

[Expy2000]

Batcap 100!

 

[DBfan187 5,000+ posts]

band-aids...

 

[ChuteBoxe515 10+ year member]

ok, so what does it do?

 

[stangsounds 10+ year member]

it softens the blow of sudden, high-current draws from your car's electrical system, its like a buffer for your alternator.....but its a band-aid add-on and is no replacement for an upgraded electrical system(hi output alternator), but a cap and a hi-amp alternator is a very good thing....

 

[hoss 5,000+ posts]

ok, so what does it do?

they hinder your charging system and cause more problems than they "cure". they are purely band aids and are used to ignore the real problem.

 

[Scarenius 10+ year member]

Milenko515, you've struck a nerve. You see, noone can really tell you about these things, because frankly we don't know. They are somewhere between miracle alternator savior, and snake oil.

I have a capacitor, and the difference between having it installed, and having it NOT installed is close enough to nothing to make no difference.

I would recommend the big 3, if you think you need a capacitor. Check the wiring forum for insight on that. It's cheaper, and will have a much more noticable payoff. Things like brighter lights, less dimming, brighter dash, and possibly louder music.

 

[xSomeguyx 10+ year member]

When two conductors are placed near eachother, with an insulator, an effect called 'capacitance' is created. This capacitor (a piece of equipment with a certain degree of capacitance, measured in farads) will 'pass' AC signals (meaning you will read an AC voltage on it), and also blocks DC voltage (since the two conductors are seperated, they don't conduct electricity, and the DC voltage is blocked). However, they also have a unique ability to store a charge, and discharge it when needed. They're used in timing circuits, as well as crossovers, and high/low pass filters.

Why would you want (or need) one? Well, since it stores a charge, people use it to compensate for a poor electrical system in a car audio situation. If you play a deep bass note, your amp may use more current than your electrical system can provide, causing your lights to dim. A cap (or capacitor) will release whatever it can to make up for the lack of current, seemingly soliving problem. However, the capacitor also causes a load on the electrical sysem, which can be detrimental to the overall system. In this situation, there are better solutions, like the Big 3, or a high output alternator. These are true solutions, as opposed to the 'band-aid' remarks that you hear.

Does this mean they're useless? Not at all. Even in a performance audio situation, one may use a cap for power conditioning. Like I said before, it compensates for a loss of current. What if you crank on your AC? Well the cap would help keep the power to your amp consistant, incase the power will fluctuate. The real question is whether or not you need one... and the answer is almost certainly: not really.

 

[Jayhawkk 10+ year member]

Man i remember 10 years ago when people swore by them. If you ran over 1k watts and didn't have one people looked at you like you were riding 20's on a yugo.

 

[Exaran 10+ year member]

using it to fight light dimming or for bass is using it as a bandaid.

They supposedly DO help most with transient responce (rapid changes in the music, highs, mids, AND lows)

 

[themainman 10+ year member]

I like them.//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/handclap.gif.0c301076f534e244f0460706894f19e0.gif

 

[clarity413 10+ year member]

using it to fight light dimming or for bass is using it as a bandaid.
They supposedly DO help most with transient responce (rapid changes in the music, highs, mids, AND lows)

Yah, I have a couple caps and I was going to use them to help with dynamics but I never installed it because I didn't have enough room. I doubt they would of made too much of a difference because small voltage drops doesn't lower the output of amps too much

 

[themainman 10+ year member]

Yah, I have a couple caps and I was going to use them to help with dynamics but I never installed it because I didn't have enough room. I doubt they would of made too much of a difference because small voltage drops doesn't lower the output of amps too much

What kind of caps were they?