DYNATEK ARC-2 User Manual
Installation Guide- 1
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Parts List
ARC-2 module
Decals
Power Cable
Fuse
WARNING: DO NOT INSTALL THIS ON A VEHICLE ALREADY EQUIPPED WITH A CAPACITIVE DISCHARGE IGNI-
TION.
NOTE : YOU MUST ALSO PURCHASE AN INSTALL KIT. THERE ARE MODEL SPECIFIC KITS FOR CERTAIN VE-
HICLES, OR GENERIC INSTALL KITS. FOR EASIEST INSTALL, USE A MODEL SPECIFIC KIT, AS THIS WILL HAVE
BEEN TESTED ON YOUR VEHICLE, AND INCLUDE BRACKETS, HARNESSES, SETUP INSTRUCTIONS, AND
OTHER ITEMS TO MAKE INSTALL AS TROUBLE FREE AS POSSIBLE. GENERIC KITS INCLUDE A STANDARD
HARNESS, AND MAY REQUIRE BRACKET FABRICATION, AS WELL AS SPLICING THE HARNESS INTO THE VE-
HICLES STOCK HARNESS.
NOTE: SOME VEHICLES HAVE IGNITION COILS THAT ARE NOT COMPATIBLE WITH CDI STYLE IGNITIONS.
Specifications
Operating Voltage: 8-20V
Operating Current: 7A@10,000 RPM
Max Operating RPM: 18,000 RPM
Ambient Temp range:
Min: Below -40C
Max: +90 C
Ignition inputs: 2, rising or falling edge selectable
Ignition outputs: 2 independent channels capable of
asynchronous operation
Ignition output energy: 189+ mJ per channel
Ignition output Voltage: 500+ Volts
Asynchronous Restriking CDI – 2 channel
Restrike window: 25 degrees, up to 3500 RPM
Max number of sparks
per sequence: 5
Launch limiter range: 3000-11900 RPM
Launch limiter input: Single wire, ground to activate
Timing Retard: 10 degrees user activated
Timing Retard input: Single wire, ground to activate
Tach output: 0-12V square wave, 50% duty cycle,
Standard 4 cylinder configuration,
Recommended power fuse: 30A ATC Blade
Dimensions: 4.1”x4.6”x1.5”
Weight: 1.5 lbs
Dynatek 164 S. Valencia St. Glendora CA, 91741 www.dynaonline.com
ARC-2 Asynchronous Restriking CDI - 2
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Introduction
Thank you for purchasing the Dynatek ARC-2 Ignition. Please take a few moments and read through all of the installation
information before attempting to install this. If this is being installed on a vehicle which we make a plug in harness for, we highly
suggest you use that harness. Consult the Installation Guide included with that harness for vehicle specific installations. If you
have any more questions, please consult your Dynatek dealer before installation.
The ARC-2 ignition was designed with several key technologies that enable it to optimize your vehicles ignition system, and
realizing the performance potential of your vehicles engine. The design features that help to do this were how the ARC-2 was
named – Asynchronously Restriking CDI – 2 channel.
The Asynchronous firing allows you to run the 2 channels independently. Each channel has its own storage capacitor. This
allows the ARC to fire the 2 channels simultaneously, or nearly simultaneously. This is necessary in applications where there
are leading and trailing spark plugs firing close together.
The Restriking fires off lean mixtures at idle and low RPMs. Restriking will fire the spark plug multiple times at low RPMS,
so that if the mixture did not light the first time, it will be ignited the second time, ensuring that the combustion occurs. The
ARC uses ISP (Intelligent Spark Profiling) to speed up the second and later sparks. This ensures that the second spark on
the ARC occurs sooner than would otherwise be possible.
The Capacitive Discharge Ignition design produces a short duration high intensity spark, with a profile designed to ignite
under the most severe conditions. This high voltage and intensity makes the spark more likely to ignite on high power applications like high compression, turbocharged, and/or nitrous equipped vehicles.
It is also ideally suited for high RPM use, where the zero dwell time means it will have full power to much higher RPM than
possible with most coils.
Pre Installation
Basics of CDI vs. Inductive ignition
There are two commonly used types of ignition on the market today: Capacitive Discharge, and Inductive. They have fundamental differences not only in how they work, but also in how they are wired.
Inductive Ignitions are very common in factory applications.
They require fewer parts, and are cheaper to build. They work by
storing energy in the ignition coil. It draws 12V from the battery,
through the ignition coil on the primary side, and then to the ECU
(or to a power transistor) as shown in Figure 1(a). This current
builds up a magnetic field within the coil. To create the spark, the
current is stopped. This causes the magnetic field to collapse,
and creates the voltage spike on the secondary that starts the
spark. See Figure 1(b).
The coil resistance and inductance are very important on
Inductive Ignitions. The amount of time the coil is being charged
with current by the ECU is often referred to as the dwell time.
How much current is needed, and how quickly the current flow
rises is directly related to the coil resistance and inductance. In
an Inductive Ignition system, mismatching your coils to the dwell
time the ECU gives could result in either too weak of a signal to
create a spark, or too much current that could damage the ECU,
coils, or both. Also, the total amount of energy that can be
produced from the ignition is going to be a function of the dwell
time, and inductance of the coil. With a large inductance, the
dwell time will have to be very long, but you can store more total
energy. A small inductance allows the current and energy storage
to build very quickly, but it has much less total energy storage
capacity.
In a Capacitive Discharge Ignition System, the coil does not
store the energy prior to firing. The capacitor stores the
energy, as shown in Figure 2(a). Then when the ECU wants
to create a spark, it triggers the capacitor to fire, and all of the
energy stored in the capacitor is delivered to the coil in a very
short, high power pulse as shown in Figure 2(b). This pulse
will be several hundreds of volts. The coil then acts as a transformer, and changes that pulse into several thousand volts,
enough to create the spark.
The Capacitive Discharge Ignition requires zero dwell time
for the coils, the maximum RPM is limited by how quickly the
capacitor can be recharged. This allows CD Ignitions to hold
consistent spark energy at much higher RPM than factory
inductive ignitions. It also means that CD Ignitions can work
with a much broader range of coils than stock inductive ignitions, since dwell time no longer is a critical parameter.
Spark Restrike
CD Ignitions provide a more powerful, but very short spark.
Inductive ignitions create a spark that lasts significantly
longer. Because of how the energy is stored in a magnetic
field within the ignition coil, any time an inductive spark is
blown out, it will try to restart the spark automatically. CD Ignitions deliver most of their energy so quickly that if a spark is
blown out, it will almost never have time or energy to restart
the spark.
This matters most under light load and lean air fuel
mixtures, when it may be possible for a spark to fire, but not
have any fuel in the spark gap. The ability to restrike the spark
at that point will ensure a complete combustion, and smoother
running.
This statement needs to be repeated:Multiple sparks on a
CDI are NOT for power gains, but rather for cleaning up emissions.
Most typical CD Ignitions fire the multisparks around 1
spark per millisecond. This rate is tied to the amount of time
it takes them to recharge the capacitor. While this may seem
quick at first glance, 1 millisecond is 18 degrees later at just
3000 RPM. And many CD Ignitions stop multiple sparks in the
3000-4000 RPM range, because it just takes too long to get
that second spark. With that much timing delay, multiple
sparks are clearly not for power.
The ARC-2 improves upon this by lowering the time it takes
to get that second spark, using a proprietary technique called
Intelligent Spark Profiling, or ISP.
Ignition Coils
On vehicles equipped with inductive ignitions, there are a
wide variety of coils. Some coils have 4 outputs, some have
2, and some have 1. The 4 output coils are usually dual 2
output coils molded into 1 package. The 2 output coils are
designed to fire both spark plugs at the same time. The ARC2 can handle all of these configurations.
Installation Guide- 3
2801211
Tech Support: 1800-928-3962
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