Do I need a capacitor?

[jayson_waltz]

I got a question for all u hardcore audio guys on here. When I've got my system cranked, my lights dim some. It's not horrible, but i've already went through an alternator and my interest got sparked when i heard someone saying that if your lights dim, your system is running off the alternator and it will wear out faster. I can get a 1 farad cap for about 40 bucks, should I be getting it or is it just a waste of time and money to get it?

[adam337]

cap should fix it

[alerored04]

for $40 i would buy it. Otherwise i would suggest a second battery in the trunk since a full price cap generally comes close to an optima red top in price. 1 farad should take care of it for you though.

[sound_xtreme]

caps suck. waste of money, plain and simple

[FrankTheTank]

Originally Posted by sound_xtreme

caps suck. waste of money, plain and simple

that is da truth. just get a second battery.

[AGT]

or better alternator

[FrankTheTank]

Originally Posted by AGT

or better alternator

also da truth, but a 2nd battery should be cheaper. but a h.o. alt wont take up any extra space...but either option will work. a cap is a joke though.

[racin4JC]

Caps are a waste of money all they do is store extra current (amps) that your battery isn't holding, but your stereo will easily use up this excess current simply bypassing the cap once it does so. So in the end all your doing is putting more load on your alternator. If you want to get really serious buy an isolator and a second battery. The isolater hooks into your alternator and then splits the loading between the two batteries it switches between them when ever it senses one battery is low it automatically switches to that and has your alternator charge it so this occurs hundreds of times a minute. So then you can have one battery that runs the car and the other run all added accesories meanwhile your alternator has no extra pull on it.

[lonnie]

Actually all you need is a optima in the first place and you won't need a second batt. or a capacitor. Those batteries are made for deep cycling so you shouldn't have a problem running everything. My question is how loud are you playing your stereo, because mine only dims when I blast it, and then it's to loud to even sit in the car?

[Ryan from Ohio]

Heres the problem laid out simple.

Your alternator produces over 12Volts current, thats why it charges your battery which should read 12.6 Volts.

Your lights are dimming as when your bass hits, the excess current/amperage from the alternator is being sucked dry. Thus your voltage sags down to battery level, 12.6 Making a difference in brightness.

If your battery is weak, it can be worse. Have it tested.

Now there is some steps you can take to help this out. The biggest is doing a BIG 3 Upgrade. Start there. You will be surprised how small the wire is coming off that alternator.

Use 4 Ga.

That right there will probably fix your problem!

[jayson_waltz]

i've got a brand new 800ca battery. But that wire upgrade sounds like a really good idea. Is there kits to get the right wire lengths, or do i have to just go and buy some cable? I'm using 4 gauge from by battey to my sub already, and for ground to my sub.

[lonnie]

They make prewired battery cables, don't know if they make a 4 gauge kit though.

[doubleN0alero]

Originally Posted by lonnie

Actually all you need is a optima in the first place and you won't need a second batt. or a capacitor. Those batteries are made for deep cycling so you shouldn't have a problem running everything.

Been there, tried that....I had dimming even WITH the optima

[lonnie]

Originally Posted by doubleN0alero

Been there, tried that....I had dimming even WITH the optima

What were you pushing? Did you play moderate or heavy bass? What I mean by that is enough to hear in the car, or enough to hear down the block.

[tonkpils]

i have an optima yellowtop, big 3 with 4ga and 1/0, and a 2 farad cap,,lights still dim but not that bad

[lonnie]

Originally Posted by tonkpils

i have an optima yellowtop, big 3 with 4ga and 1/0, and a 2 farad cap,,lights still dim but not that bad

Now you need a new alternator.....250amp lol

[Ryan from Ohio]

Well your lights dim simply because the voltage was high before a nice beat hit and sucked the alternator dry.

People who continue like this kill alternators...

Brushes begin to burn at 120% of rated output...

As far as kits theres only one place that has a Big 3 kit I know of. I sure as hell wont recommend them or say the name as they are a bunch of clowns.

Im sure someone somewhere has identified the amount of wire and connectors needed on here.

If not just take a tape measure out and get a good estimate.

[jayson_waltz]

i found info on how to do the big three myself online. But i don't have to worry about any of that of a cap for a while now b\c my sub bit the dust. soooo, now i have to decide what i wanna do to replace it. probably won't do anything till next summer. sux.

[tonkpils]

Originally Posted by Ryan from Ohio

Well your lights dim simply because the voltage was high before a nice beat hit and sucked the alternator dry.

People who continue like this kill alternators...

Brushes begin to burn at 120% of rated output...

so you saying im killing my alternator even after taking all those steps?

[Ryan from Ohio]

Probably a slow death.

Music is transient, so for brief periods you put your alternator into the toilet.

Some people run way to big of amps and just keep going until they kill an alt...