i have an audiobahn amp i just bou ght its running 400 watts RMS bridged which is how im gonna hve it set up. now my question is will i need a cap for this or should i be ok .....

 

naw... you should be fine...

its always good practice to get a capacitor.. but its not needed if you only running that somewhat small amp...

 

i shuld mention this isant going into my tC its going into my daily driver its a 95 ford taurus 3.8L

 

you should be fine if not better off... the ford more then likely has a larger amp alternator then the tc..

so like i said before... you will be aight..

 

right on thanks buddy peace

 

Most people misuse caps anyway... they have very little usefullness...

 

Stiffening caps work great if you know how to use them. They reservoirs power and gives you current when needed. It also can clean up some weak systems.I was always told it takes power to make power.

 

most people think that a cap will keep you lights from dimming when you're cranking your system... but that's not true.... they're supposed to be used for slight transient peaks during low/normal listening levels... If you have dimming lights with hard bass hits, a cap won't help..in that case you need to upgrade the big 3, get a better battery, then maybe see about a H.O. alternator.....caps are like covering a hole in a wall with a poster... the problem is still there, you just can't see it....

 

and that is true. the big three is the best thing to do be a cap will stable out your voltage and help will help when your amp is pulling current from your eletrical system. A cap will recover faster then a normal battery. with changing your alternator on a daily diver you will cause more problem then you want. a High output alternator is not always the best thing. plus a 400 watts RMS bridged audiobahn amp will not need a cap anyway. and what the ford taurus have a 130 amp alt. with a 525cc battery 400mrs is no problem

 

^^ most definitely.... I generally won't even post in topics involving caps because sooo many people are hellbent on them just cause their "installer" told them that it will do something it won't (namely prevent dimming lights / voltage drops)....

 

capacitors... still in my opinion have done nothing... not enough current is still not enough current.. i have tried to explain this to numerous people that come into my store...

i hate the people that say... "yeah i have a optima under the hood and one in the trunk and my lights dont dim... " yeah for now... your just prolonging the problem... once that the optima in the back is deep cycled... might as well be a paper wait... those batteries are junk.. IMO... for as nice as they are supposed to be.. one drop below 11volts... they are done..

the best wasy to go about it is still the HO alternator... better battery... and caution when wiring...

 

^^ a lot of people misuse them thinking they'll keep current / voltage up.... all they'll do is keep it stable.. not prevent it from dropping.... besides, if voltage drops, you've got some fairly hard issues that need taken care of...

 

ok so my ford has enough power to keep my headlights from diming thast al i canre about is my head lights if my interor lights dim owell but my headlights are the real key i dont want them diming because... duh i wanna se at night lol well thanks for all the useful help guys

 

all that is true. This is the eternal battle to Cap or not to cap, to and a extra battery or not to add a extra battery. True alot of peoples installer have told them that a cap and a battery will prevent dimming lights an/or voltage drops. at my shop I always used to just upgrade the eletrical wires to get a better current flow. In a everyday system a cap wouldn't do a damn thing for you, but in a high power setup a cap will help with your current and keep you stable . all caps do is store current and release current that's it. I would still stay away from High output alternator on a daily driver. It caused me to many problems. The best fix is a great battery and upgraded wiring.

 

Unless it's a 4kW + DD...then the alt is a good idea.

Other than that, x300000423

 

"installer" told them that it will do something it won't (namely prevent dimming lights / voltage drops)....
Hey wait a second you know as well as I do that it is the Sales geek sell'n people caps I as an installer would perfer 0 guage and a second batt. lol

 

^^ that's why I said "installer".... people who are more interested in making a buck rather than giving someone a quality installation

 

i just remvered i got 2 more questions. 1 where do i plug in the remote wire? and the second one is what gauge wire shoudl i use for power and ground?

 

anyone... dont be shy now

 

If you have an aftermarket HU, there should be a blue wire on it that says "amp turn-on" or something to that effect.... on the amp it goes in the "rem" terminal (should be beside the power and ground inputs)...


the + and - could be 8 ga. but I'd use 4ga. just in case you decide to upgrade later on... besides, can't have too big of wiring (as long as the connections are solid)