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View Full Version : Stereo Question - it's a yes or no



JJLuke
09-26-2002, 12:15 AM
OK guys,

Setting up a JL 500/1 with 2 12w3 subs, 4 awg wiring into a 1990 Honda Accord EX-R (American EX) coupe which will be powered by either a Sony M series or Panasonic graphical deck...

Should I get a cap for it?

Let me know your thoughts!

Madspinner
09-26-2002, 01:19 AM
No you would not need one .

redline_13000
09-26-2002, 08:49 AM
no

sexualbanana
09-26-2002, 09:00 AM
what does a cap do?? feroz keeps trying to sell me one saying i need one, but i don't even know what it does and if i really need it

kevie88
09-26-2002, 10:01 AM
You don't NEED it , but it will make your alternator last longer. I got a .5 ferad cap and I don't notice my headlights dimming when the bass hits now, so it seems a little nicer to the electrical system now.

James
09-26-2002, 04:33 PM
Originally posted by kevie88
You don't NEED it , but it will make your alternator last longer. I got a .5 ferad cap and I don't notice my headlights dimming when the bass hits now, so it seems a little nicer to the electrical system now.

Exactly, i Had one in My MR2,( 10' Pioneer IMPP sub, and Rockford 100.a2 amp) didnt really NEED it at all, but i had such bad luck with my Stereo draining my Electrical system in my Passat, that i just wanted to be safe.

D'z Nutz
09-26-2002, 08:27 PM
Originally posted by sexualbanana
what does a cap do?? feroz keeps trying to sell me one saying i need one, but i don't even know what it does and if i really need it

You're buying your stuff rom Feroz?? :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: Does he call you "brother" a lot? Hahaha! I bought my deck from him and he gave me a very good deal. I dunno if I'd buy from him again though.

Anyways, to answer your question, a cap holds a small charge, so whenever your sub hits a low note, it quickly draws power from the cap, which then gets recharged for the next draw.

D'z Nutz
09-26-2002, 08:34 PM
Originally posted by kevie88
You don't NEED it , but it will make your alternator last longer. I got a .5 ferad cap and I don't notice my headlights dimming when the bass hits now, so it seems a little nicer to the electrical system now.

No, actually it doesn't make your alternator last longer. A cap is just a short term substitution for a long term problem. Adding a cap is just another load for your alternator to handle.

One solution might actually to get a larger gauge of wiring for your car (ie: power and ground from your alternator), although this can be very costly if you're getting someone else to do it since you basically have to rerun new wiring throughout parts of your car. Another solution is to get your alternator rebushed to handle more amps.

sexualbanana
09-26-2002, 11:23 PM
Originally posted by D'z Nutz


You're buying your stuff rom Feroz?? :rofl: :rofl: :rofl: Does he call you "brother" a lot? Hahaha! I bought my deck from him and he gave me a very good deal. I dunno if I'd buy from him again though.

Anyways, to answer your question, a cap holds a small charge, so whenever your sub hits a low note, it quickly draws power from the cap, which then gets recharged for the next draw.

he does, but at the same time he still remembers my name. which is what's so great about the guy. he see like hundreds of guys looking for stereo shit every week, and he still manages to know everyone's name

Impreza
09-27-2002, 12:07 AM
where does this guy work?

sexualbanana
09-27-2002, 08:33 AM
soundsaround macleod

Madspinner
09-27-2002, 10:51 AM
Yeah ,hes a cool guy ,But he gets me the greatest deal then every one else.

ninspeed
09-27-2002, 05:33 PM
Hey hey brother.. what u looking for today? how you doing brother? stupid drunk driver.. he almost wrote off his car drinking and driving.. sorry i will not deal with any person who is stupid to call me a brother cuas i am white (other than my sister)..and drives under the influence

ps ill sell you a 1.0 farad rockford cap for 100$ (includes new ground wire and wire from cap to amp)

tegdream
09-27-2002, 11:59 PM
and what are u basing this on?

theken
10-06-2002, 08:33 PM
Caps are a very good idea, they don't really drain from your alternator because they are basically a batery with a 12 v current which keeps your amp happy. And with a JL 500/1 you will need a cap because the amp requires constant power which is why it it called constant power amplifier, go to soundsaround and get one of them to turn the board on with the 500/1 and it will shut down the board. I have a 500/1 and a w7 and a cap, which i need, and so will you :thumbsup:

Ben
10-07-2002, 12:36 AM
is this guy you guys talk about a bit of an older guy, maybe 5"9, 160lbs. dark hair with grey streaks?

He tried to sell me the store when I was in there friday...

2000impreza
10-07-2002, 12:39 AM
imo caps are pretty useless. if you are playing constant bass the cap drains out with a few seconds and puts more of a strain on your alternator because it needs power to charge up.

Thor
10-08-2002, 02:54 AM
Originally posted by theken
Caps are a very good idea, they don't really drain from your alternator because they are basically a batery with a 12 v current which keeps your amp happy. And with a JL 500/1 you will need a cap because the amp requires constant power which is why it it called constant power amplifier, go to soundsaround and get one of them to turn the board on with the 500/1 and it will shut down the board. I have a 500/1 and a w7 and a cap, which i need, and so will you :thumbsup:


:bullshit:

dude... it's a constant power amplifier because it is able to maintain 500 watts of continuous power output anywhere from a 4 to 1.5 ohm load

all a cap is is a small battery with a very very quick discharge rate. once it is drained it needs to be recharged just like a battery so it is just putting ANOTHER strain on your alternator

I will say this and stand by it for my life... if you have voltage issues, yes caps work. Are they a solution? NO!!! They are a band-aid to cover a bigger problem. If you have a voltage issue, you upgrade your wiring... ALL OF IT... from alt to battery, battery to ground, battery to amp, and amp to ground.
Then, you upgrade your alternator and battery... most stock alts are only able to do maybe 60-100 amps. if you are running a system of large proportion, it just ain't enough.
I had a 100 amp alt in my old car and a Zapco AG 350 on it and I had dimming problems, mind you I was running it bridged to two ohms so I had quite a bit of current draw.

Oh, and if Soundsaround's board shuts off when they turn on the 500/1, they too have some serious issues... not even the board at A&B sound here in S'toon does that!!! :clap:

and as Nitz once said... "Ranting makes me sleepy"

Ben
10-17-2002, 07:25 PM
Originally posted by sexualbanana
what does a cap do?? feroz keeps trying to sell me one saying i need one, but i don't even know what it does and if i really need it

I bought my Amp off him, gave me a Smokin deal!

JJLuke
10-18-2002, 12:15 AM
At Soundsaround, you can get a killer deal IFF you know how to talk to them...

When I say killer I dont mean cost, but I mean ebay prices (but you get warranty)

before I got my setup used, talked a guy at the Sunridge location - made me a deal for jl 500/1, 2 10 w3v2's and a ported box for $1250... when I calculate everything if I got it from ebay, it would have saved me at most $100-150..

$350US amp shipped
$250US subs shipped
$100US box shipped
$70-80CN GST
$20-30CN duty
= ~$1200 CDN landed

As far as the cap goes, I'd only be pulling the 60amps needed for the jl 500/1... wont spend my left nut on one, but I'm gonna get a 1/2 farad and do a personal test and post you guys on it

theken... props to you on your decision to get a w7... my friend had 2 10w3's in his car before he upgraded to a 10w7... the w3's would crap out and he replaced them like twice, he got a w7 and it literally sounds like he has 3 10's in there... dynamically, it did not hit harder, but cleaner and was comparable to 2 18w6's :)

-J

Thor
10-18-2002, 03:12 AM
JJ, ever dealt with duty before? If you have then you got a smokin deal compared to the bendover I got from duty and customs... I had an amp shipped to me (POS fuckin rockford... bad trade... different story) and the guy who shipped it to me declared the value to be 300 american...

this wound me up with a 50 dollar fee for duty. unless you manage to do something different, for your gear you probobally net you about a 100 dollar fee.



Just out of curiosity, how are you going to test it? What tests are you going to preform and what exactly are you looking for?

JJLuke
10-18-2002, 05:22 PM
Thor,

I've done business on ebay since '97. The "duty" you claim you paid was actually the GST of 7%... duty is really 1-2%.

That's why it seems so high b/c they convert it to canadian dollars, ie $300US = $480CDN, then they tax you on it. It's a pain in the ass, and NEVER ever get them to ship UPS - they charge a $20cdn customs brokerage fee, even if the thing you're getting is worth $5!

-----

Got a 500/1 and 2 12w3's, so I wanna see if the headlights dim, car has "speaker rev" etc. first with and then without the 1/2 farad cap

Thor
10-19-2002, 04:03 AM
well lah de motherfuckin dah... :banghead:

thanks for clearing that up JJ... apparently I have to have a word with that boy now...