Power wire and fuses

[Sanitarium]

If you got 2 amps that need 100 amps of fusing, you need a 200 amp fuse up front and wire that can handle that.

[ptcary]

If you got 2 amps that need 100 amps of fusing, you need a 200 amp fuse up front and wire that can handle that.

Thanks Sanitarium,

I was just confused as others are saying that these amps would draw on average 60 amps each, so we were hoping he could stay with all 4 gauge and fuse a little less. I guess if RF says 100amps each, there is a reason.

[Superjay]

you are off...OFC true 4 gauge ampacity is 125 amps

[Superjay]

use 2 gauge or 1/0 for the main run, or you will overpower the wire.

[ptcary]

use 2 gauge or 1/0 for the main run, or you will overpower the wire.

Thanks Jay, I recommended 1/0 to him as I have never readily seen 2 gauge for sale.

[fullofpurple]

use 2 gauge or 1/0 for the main run, or you will overpower the wire.

Thanks Jay, I recommended 1/0 to him as I have never readily seen 2 gauge for sale.

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-Rockford-Fosgate-CP2POS-2-Gauge-Amp-Kit-1800W-RMS-/380161907719?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item58836a5c07

ebay, rockford fosgate 2gauge,good wire have it and had their 4gauge of it before,thick jacket flexible

The 2gauge can handle max a 250A anl fuse but with the 2gauge kit get a 200A anl fuse so replace the 100A

anl fuse it comes with on the kit,run 2 4gauge wires 2 the amp with the best amp fuse around there amp size.

i have this wire currently and 4gauge wire the 2gauge is like 1/0, 4gauge wouldnt be bad thow about 20.00 cheaper

[Alex K]

BUY YOUR WIRE HERE!!! CLICKY. I'd run 1 strand of 1/0 gauge>300A fuse>Dist block>4 gauge>140A fuse> amp. That 4 gauge is reccommended at 140a for a reason. Sure you can run more than that, but it'll be funny once you burn right through the jacket and short on your chassis

edit: dammit im tired keep hitting wrong keys >={

Edited December 24, 2010 by Alex K

[fullofpurple]

BUY YOUR WIRE HERE!!! CLICKY. I'd run 1 strand of 1/0 gauge>300A fuse>Dist block>4 gauge>150A fuse> amp. That 4 gauge is reccommended at 140a for a reason. Sure you can run more than that, but it'll be funny once you burn right through the jacket and short on your chassis

i hooked up my friends chevycaprice with the 135A ex cop car alt,big 3,extra batt in the trunk and 4gauge power wire with 150A

anl fuses,2 fosgate 800a2 amps and a cheap orange powerbank amp. we had a cap installed and it says around

200amps somtimes.

i believe it because it has a optima in the trunk and a auto zone yelow top batter under the hood the fuse

hasnt blew yet?

[dereileak]

This is for all the people who do not understand fusing.

As of now, ignore what your amps need for a fuse, you need to have a fuse up by the battery that is designed for the wire that is carrying the load back to the amp. If the amp takes 500 amps of power to run, but the wire is only Capable of 125 amps, you DO NOT PUT A 500 AMP Fuse up by the battery (if you can find a fuse that big). You would put a ~120 amp fuse, the fuse in the front is designed so you do not end up with a pile of ash as your car has now burned to the ground. If your amps need more power then your wire, then you need to either do one of 2 things

1. Upgrade the wire to take the load, go to 1/0 gauge wire from 4 gauge

or

2. Play your music at a lower volume so you do not blow the fuse.

As you increase the amount of amperage through the wire, the wire will naturally heat up and this also brings causes the resistance to go up slightly as the wire is pushing more current through it. If the wire is to small the wire will melt the casing, then short out the battery, and cause 1000+ amps to push through the wire, if you have the fuse in the front you will only damage the wire before the fuse, and nothing else as long as the fuse was the right size and the fuse popped before the wire started to melt the casing.

Now the fuses that the amps have in them are for protecting them. This is a decent way to figure out what size wire you need. If your amp has a 100 amp fuse, and you have another amp with a 150 amp fuse, then you need a wire that can allow 250 amps of power at its maximum. You would then buy 1/0 gauge wire, fuse it to what it is rated, and you will have the limitation removed. Now it is up to the cars battery and alternator to supply the current and that depends on your setup and whether you will even be able to get enough current to the amps.

Battery+++++++Fuse+++++++++++++++++++(Amp Fuse)+++Amp-----------Ground

|_XS_POWER|-------[120]--------------------------------------------[100][KICKER ZX ]--------[]O

Also something else to think about, depending on what brand of wire, you have to fuse accordingly, if you have some KNU Kolossal 4 gauge wire then you fuse it at 120 amps, if you have some cheap off brand crap wire that comes with a 60 amp fuse, but claims to be 4 gauge, you fuse it at 60 amps, as it is underspec, and you got cheap wire. It is not hard.

FOR THOSE WITH NO FUSE IN FRONT - Go out to your car now, and disconnect your power wire to your amp right NOW! All it takes is that wire to short, which means the end of it hitting a ground, or the wire casing getting cut into and shorting somewhere else. I would hate to see you on the news because your car blew up like a bomb, it is not pretty.

Anyways, those are my 2 cents for the night. There is even more I can cover on this, such as grounds and that. Electricity is known to have a flow with the electrons moving, which happens to be from ground back to positive. Many people think of it as positive to negative, and there are 2 theories on this, but the most accepted and recent one is negative to positive, as the electrons flow. So in that mannor, always have your ground wire the same if not bigger then the positive, and please for the love of God remove the paint before you ground it. I could ramble on more about grounding spots, but i'll save that for anther time. Car audio is about learning and having fun while doing it. But i dont think learning about fusing after the fact (Car burns down) would be much fun

Edited January 4, 2011 by dereileak

[Autruche]

Thanks Jay, I recommended 1/0 to him as I have never readily seen 2 gauge for sale.

It is readily available, it's called "the install bay" "0 gauge" on ebay, lol.

But seriously, you just need to run wire that can take the power those amps need, I'd go with real 0 gauge, fuse accordingly at 200-250 amps by the battery, and use a distribution block to bring it down to 4 gauge for both of the amps, and fuse them accordingly.

Also, while you're at getting the right wire and fuses and fuse blocks, get an extra fuse and block and some extra wire and do the big three.

These are good fuse blocks, I use them all the time, cheap and combined shipping ftw: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=300417204547&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT#shId

Need some cheap ass terminals too? check here: http://impulse-electronics.com/terminals_splices.aspx?sub_key=&id=91&cat_nm=10&key=Eyelet%20Terminals