http://www.honda-tech.com/zerothread?id=1344468

Recently, I.ve been receiving a lot pm.s about the C.O.P (coil on plug) conversion on my car. I haven.t seen a post here on Honda-Tech about how to set it up, so I decided to make one. I.ve done this setup on quite and few vehicles including CompressionFed.s All-Motor race car, and never had a problem. 
Let start with the basics. 

Q>What is a C.O.P conversion?

A> C.O.P is using one (1) ignition coil per cylinder. There are two (2) types of C.O.P.; direct fire and wasted spark. The following descriptions of direct fire and wasted spark were taken from AEM EFI BASICS V1.3. 
.Wasted Spark 
Wasted spark systems employ one coil for two cylinders. The term .wasted spark. comes from the fact that each plug fires every engine revolution. On a 4-cycle engine, the piston is at Top Dead Center (TDC) two times for every cycle; once for firing and again during the overlap phase. The wasted spark coil fires one plug Before Top Dead center (BTDC) and another plug just before the overlap phase (at the latest part of the exhaust stroke before the exhaust valve closes). Wasted spark systems have a higher potential for spark intensity because the duty of charging and discharging is split between the coils, which allows for more charge time per coil. Additionally, wasted spark systems build up less heat in the coil, making it more reliable. Wasted spark systems have been in use since the mid 80.s on GM cars and on motorcycles for considerably longer than that. There are no moving parts, no complicated relationships with a cap and rotor to maintain, and they deliver very accurate spark timing. Furthermore, multi-channel 
spark amplification systems to enhance spark duration or intensity are available for wasted spark ignition systems. 



Direct Fire 
Direct fire systems employ one coil on each spark plug and is the most reliable system used today, (this type of system is used on most modern cars). Each coil fires sequentially in the cylinder firing order. The charge time for each coil is twice as long as those of a wasted spark system, which allows direct-fire, coil manufacturers to build compact, lightweight coils that retain sufficient spark energy. There are no moving parts to wear out and no HT leads that will deteriorate. The lack of HT leads in direct fire systems is a major advantage for an EFI-equipped car because there is a very low incidence of noise due to leaking or improperly routed wires. There have been incidences of the terminal from a direct-fire coil (that attaches to the spark plug) cracking and subsequently causing Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) or .noise. to the ECU. This will cause engine operation problems, but it should be noted that these cases are extremely rare..




Now that we know what the 2 types of C.O.P. are, we can discuss what parts are required to do the conversion.

Parts List:
-Engine Management System (AEM, MoTec, or any other EMS with multiple coil outputs.)
-Ignition Amplifier (AEM C2Di, MSD DIS 2, MSD DIS 4, etc)
-Coils (MSD Blaster Coils, Honda Motorcycle Coils, LS1 Coils, Marine Coils, etc)

I.m going to walk you though setting up a direct fire system using the AEM 1010 box, AEM C2DI and 4 Honda 954 coil sticks. *Please note, setting up a wasted spark configuration is similar to direct fire. Please see schematic for wiring differences.

Install the AEM EMS into the car. The AEM box you are using will determine whether you run direct fire or wasted spark. Some AEM boxes have 2 coil outputs and others with 4. I.m using a 30-1010 box. It has 4 coil outputs. You can find out how many coil outputs you have by going to your hard drive (C:/program files/aem/aempro/instructions After the AEM software is installed in the car you need to decided where you.re going to mount the ignition amplifier and the coils. Once the ignition amplifier and the coils are mounted you can start wiring up the system. For simplicity I just matched the EMS coil outputs and coils to the engine cylinder number. Coil# 1 goes to cylinder #1 and so on and so fourth. Wire the four coil outputs of the EMS to the 4 inputs of the ignition amplifier. Then wire the 4 outputs of the ignition amplifier to the negative side of the coils. Be sure when wiring up your system you soldier all connections and use heat shrink. This ensures good connectivity.


F.A.Q.s

Q>Why would you use a C.O.P. conversion?
A>Hotter Spark, More Accuracy, Eliminate Misfires. Honda distributors are not very accurate past 9,000 rpm.s. Many of todays race cars see 10,000-11,000 rpms regularly. 


Q> Can this be setup on Hondata?
A> No. Hondata only uses one (1) coil output

Q>Is this setup for Honda/Acura.s only?
A> No. This can be setup on any vehicle as long as you select the appropriate coils.

Q> Is this reliable?
A>Yes. Most modern cars are set-up using one of these two methods (K-series motors use coil on plug, DSM.s use wasted spark, these are just two examples

Q>Will I see a HP gain?
A> Possibly. Results will vary but I have noticed 2-5whp throughout the power band on several vehicles.

Q> Do I still need my distributor if I do this conversion?
A> Yes. You still utilize the Cam Angle Sensor, and TDC sensor inside the distributor.

C> Can I get rid of the stock distributor?
A> Yes. Several people make Hall-Effect sensors to monitor cam angle. Contact Tony1 or JDogg for setup info.


**Disclaimer**
I am an electronics technician and have been working with electronics for 9 years. You MUST have basic automotive knowledge, understand 12 volt electronics, and understand how to read schematics. D-Tuned will not be held responsible for any damages due to improper install. 


EDIT: Pics added. 

I want to thank Jay"compressionfed" for all his help with the write up.

Also as I get more questions I will add them to the FAQ's with answers

Modified by D-tuned at 11:41 PM 8/19/2005