I have jl w6v2 in my car every time it hits my light dims does this mean i need a bigger amp?? right now i have RF 500a2

 

maybe you need a capacitor.

 

you need a bigger alternator. all a capacitor does is smooth out the voltage drops to the amps. more or less its just a bandaide. what kind of amp (s) are you running?

 

just one rockford 500, i am upgrading to the jl 500/1 soon...how much is a bigger alternator and how hard is it to istall??

 

I just put my 10" W7 in my TSX with my JL 500/1 and nothing dims in my car when it hits, just letting ya know because I know nothing about electronics ha

 

It's like a power drain when your amp requires a large amount of draw due to the subs large draw of power.
I had the prob once when I tested my subs peak. I set my lows smooth!
I did as a "Because I could" bought a Optima 34/78 (red top).
And it's all good..

 

Couple of reasons it could be doing that. Most common I see is that too small of a power wire is rum to the amp. I try to always run a 4-ga line for bass, especially anything over 250-300 watts. Can also be a stock battery that is wearing down adn replacing it will solve the problem. The stock alternator should be able to handle one amp with out any problem, it is usually the last thing I would ever try to replace unless you are running a large system. I've done it on my cars before but I was also running systems which were rated over 1000 watts RMS for competition, not your every day needs. Adding a capacitor helps quite often as it will act as a small reserve power sorce for the amp. Best thing I've found over time is actually replacing the factory power and ground lines in the engine compartment. You can order 'grounding kits' to do the ground side, as this is usually the weakest between the two from the factory, but I like to replace all of both. It's a pain and takes at least half a day if you want to keep everything looking stock but it has really solved many power supply problems for me when I start adding a lot of electrical drain to the car. I've also found on cars that are notorious for electrical problems that they don't system to have or get them afterwards.

 

I would first recommend use of a 1-farad capacitor. I agree with MSdosP1MP that an upgraded alternator would be better, but adding a capacitor is a cost effective way of helping out the dimming problem. Also, if you're running the stock battery, Try upgrading that. Optima is very good brand of battery, and Die-hards aren't bad. Replacing your stock alternator with a high-performance one is quite expensive. those alternators can run you 800+ dollars, as opposed to a $110 cap and/or a 100 dollar battery. hopefully this was a help.

 

Buy a deep cycle battery first & see if that solves your problem. If not buy a hybrid cap.