MattT516

OK, I purchased two 12'' Rockford Fosgate subwoofers and one 900-watt Rockford Fosgate amplifier two weeks ago in an enclosed box in my trunk without an extra source of energy. Despite warnings from people in the shop I bought the equipment from, my sister's fiancee doesn't believe I need a capacitor because it isn't that much extra power that I'm running from my system. What do you guys think? Should I opt for the capacitor or should I just leave it? Has anyone ever put in a system without an capacitor, and has their alternator went in due time?

I don't really know if I should get one (if it's necessary) and I'm just wondering if anyone has ever went a long time without having a capacitor. I just have the 2 subs and the 1 amp that I hooked up, is that too much to be putting on one battery on my TL-S? thanks in advance guys

Got_3.2?

iTrader: (2)

i heard its better to get a cap with an aftermarket battery like an optima yellow. if u use the stock battery i heard it will take to much power from the stock battery and drain it since its taking the power and storing it in the cap.

donno if this is rite but its wut i heard since i was gonna run a cap.

I'm Batman

Buy the cap. You really don't need it, but it will improve the performance of the amp and in turn give you better bass.

tlguy99

You do not NEED a cap. Would it be bad idea to get one? Definatly not. It can't really hurt to have one. Most people describe it as a bandaid though. It's something to get you through untill you can upgrade you electrical system.

shawhite

what is happening to make you think you need a cap.. are you lights dimming.. is your bass notes dropping out or clipping.. or are you just worried that some other person thinks you need a cap... a cap will do nothing for dimming lights.. however it will regulate the input voltage to your amp which will inturn keep the output from clipping on deep bass notes.. but if your system sounds good and you are not having any problems then i would say forget the cap... but a rule of thumb is 1 farad per every 1000watts..

tlguy99

Shaw, you are partly correct, it actually will do something for dimming lights as long as you are not way over the capacity of your electrical system. The dimming lights are due to a lack of available power. This results in a voltage drop. Think of the cap as a quick source of energy. Your battery is not designed to provide energy quickly. It is too far from the amps and it's internal chemistry is not designed for that. The capacitor provides a large amount of energy very quickly, but only can sustain it for a very short period of time. So durring large bass "hits" it provides its power, recharges during the lulls in the music, and becomes ready for the next large draw. Shaw was correct in saying that it regulates the input voltage. It does that by supplimenting your power supply.

ou sig

From a person who has one....

You dont need the cap. Mine reads out the voltage and with the AC, heated seats and stereo blasting...it never gets below 13 volts. But, I still think it looks cool and doesnt hurt a thing.

I also have around 1100 Watts RMS
here is a picture of it.