Amps and capacitors

[midNight Sun Xpress]

I have recently had a discussion about wiring a capacitor on the + lead between the battery and the amps. I therefor present the poblem on our forum:
How do you connect this capacitor (serial with the + lead or between the + and - leads)?
What is the purpose of this capacitor and what size is recommended for a 300W amp?

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Have a Honda-experience every day!

Jon
'91 NSX for summer & '97 CR-V for winter

 

[j14nsx]

I imagine the use for a capacitor in this instance is to store some power for transient use or smooth out noise from the electrical system. Therefore it should be wired in parallel across the supply to the amplifier + to +, - to -. Put it as close to the amplifier as you can, not the battery.

Do not connect + to -, and - to + as it could blow up. Capacitors block DC and pass AC so if you wire it in series, nothing useful comes out the 'other end'.

Kevin

 

[Kinan]

They're called stiffening capacitors and help supply power during bass transients, the theory being they can supply power faster than the car battery. Being placed near the amp also overcomes IR drop of the wires (voltage drop) from the battery to the amp during these transients.
Here's an explaination: http://paudio.tripod.com/capacitors.html