F55C6

Any thoughts on the merits of a capacitor? I have a Rockford Fosgate T400 amp powering 6 RF mids, and a RF Punch 300 amp for a single 12" RF woofer. I had a RF 2 fared capacitor installed when I had the system installed and my new optima battery has drained 2-3 times in the past few months. I've done the draw test ect..., and it's apparently an intermittent problem because it was only drawing 2 mil amps at the time. I disconnected the main power fuse for the system and did an audible draw test on the disconnected positive battery cable and had a draw. I then disconnected the capacitor and the draw was gone. However, I don't understand how it could have pulled a draw when the main in-line fuse was pulled. I'm thinking the capacitor is the problem and somehow is responsible for the battery drain. I'm thinking of taking the capacitor out. So back to my question, does the capacitor really help that much? Any thoughts on the power draw? The amps appear to be turning off, as does the capacitor. The voltage readout for the capacitor goes out at around 12.8 V. After the car sits a few days the capacitor will read out around 11.6 V after opening the hatch and activating the readout. The battery also reads out 11.6 V when I do a voltage test before starting the vehicle. I personally can't hear the difference with or without the capacitor.

WhiteBird00

iTrader: (4)

A capacitor really does nothing. Some people swear that it resolves their charging problems but they are just trying to justify the expenditure to themselves. You can prove mathematically that a capacitor provides no benefit to your system.

stewaj11

iTrader: (5)

Dont waste your money on a capacitor... Get a Kinetic battery instead, that will fix your problem for sure and they arent any more expensive.

Blackfly

iTrader: (13)

Uhhh... A capacitor is used to keep the amps at full potential. It also helps keep strain off the battery and alternator. So actually, it has its significance in a car stereo system. It is a burst of clean voltage to the amps every time the amp demands a pulse. It has to be charged first.

""Capacitors are used in several different ways in electronic circuits:
Sometimes, capacitors are used to store charge for high-speed use. That's what a flash does. Big lasers use this technique as well to get very bright, instantaneous flashes.
Capacitors can also eliminate ripples. If a line carrying DC voltage has ripples or spikes in it, a big capacitor can even out the voltage by absorbing the peaks and filling in the valleys.
A capacitor can block DC voltage. If you hook a small capacitor to a battery, then no current will flow between the poles of the battery once the capacitor charges. However, any alternating current (AC) signal flows through a capacitor unimpeded. That's because the capacitor will charge and discharge as the alternating current fluctuates, making it appear that the alternating current is flowing.""



Maybe your CAP is charging and then discharging causing your battery to drain. Check your connections after the CAP...double check that your remote wires and power wires are connected right. You could have crossed a wire somewhere.

What about behind your head unit? Double check you have the remote wire running to the back and not a battery wire.

A capacitor will only discharge itself when something is demanding some voltage. Its purpose is to store power. That is why even when you pull the battery wire off (or pull the fuse out) it still has draw...something after the CAP is pulling voltage.

SS02G

your right BUT

So is he!


If your subs/speakers are wired correctly to the amp see the correct load ie 1ohm 2ohm 4ohm ect. then there is no purpose for caps. because the total system should never draw alot of current (example 14v/2ohm=7amps) which is not alot cosidering what the alternator is capable of. most people use them when they try to wire loads that make wierd impeadences like 1.5ohms or 3ohms which most amps hate and try to pull more amps to try and set signaling correctly with out clipping so.

hope that makes sence its getting late lol

WhiteBird00

iTrader: (4)

Sorry, but the impedance of the speakers has nothing to do with the power draw of the amp and therefore nothing to do with power capacitors. You have the right idea but you're using the wrong numbers so the results are incorrect.

Current draw in a DC electical system is calculated as power (in watts) divided by voltage. A 1000 watt amp at 14.5 volts (average charging system voltage) draws about 69 amps of current - a lot more than any other electrical circuit in the car except maybe the starter.

The reason a capacitor is not useful for sustaining power that the charging system can't provide (a common reason people install them) is because they discharge much faster than the transient current requirement ends and they take a certain amount of time to recharge. If you have a marginal charging system and if you listen to music that has transient high demand followed by periods of relative quiet then a capacitor might work for you. But most music has sequences of high demand (particularly bass) that exceed the discharge time of the capacitor and don't allow it to recharge - basically eliminating any benefit.

Capacitors used to filter power for noise transients are quite effective but that isn't the reason most people install them. You are far better off upgrading your electrical system (big 3, high output alternator, etc.) than trying to use a capacitor as a bandaid.