Distribution block and wire gauges

[lilrebelranger67]

K. so check it out.

i bought a kicker cvt 12" my alpine puts out 60wattsx 2 channels rms(i think) for now i have the amp bridged to the 4 ohm kicker. its decent but i need more.

i ran 8 gauge wire for the alpine with a 40 amp agu fuse or whatever it is called (glass fuse)

i want to get a jbl gto subwoofer amp that puts out 425watts rmsx 1 channel per 4 ohms. this requires 4guage for sure.

when i buy the d-block does it have to be 2 guage since i have to combine 8 guage into 4? and what amp fuse should i have in between the battery and d-block? and what amp fuse should i have between the d-block and the subwoofer amp. i've heard that anything over 100 amps will destroy a 4 guage wire therefore supporting my thoughts in needing a 2 guage power wire for the d block.


lastly. how the hell do i fit 4 gauge wire through the rubber grommet for my hood release cable. or is that just not happening? it was tough just to get the 8 gauge to go through it.

sorry about my lack of electronics knowledge. i'm sort of new to this but learning very quickly as i go.


thanks guys for all your help

 

[LittleHorse]

4 gauge is overkill for the 425W amp. I have a 1000W RMS amp with a power terminal that's only big enough to take 4 gauge.

I don't see any reason to use anything bigger than 4 gauge for both amps, run it to a d-block and then run 4 or 6 to the sub amp and 8 to the alpine.

As for the rubber grommet, I'd find another place to put it. It's not going to hurt anything to drill a hole and get a grommet to fit it. Just make sure there's nothing on the other side of the hole you're drilling, like a brake or fuel line. There also should be plenty of existing holes with filler plugs that you could use instead.

 

[lilrebelranger67]

k. thanks. yea i thought i was thinkin crazy for a minute

 

[lilrebelranger67]

yea i was just reading the manual on the jbl sub amp. it said that 4 gauge was recommended with a minimum of 75 amp fuse. so i would think it'd be fine to use 6 gauge? am i right or would it just be worth it to put 4 gauge in it anyway since us audio nuts cant stop modifying everything!!!

or could i run 2 8 guage wires to it with 35 amp fuses on each?

 

[Loud Ranger]

2 runs of 8ga = 6ga, but id just go with 4ga so you wont have to change it up unless your pulling more than 150 amps

 

[LittleHorse]

yea i was just reading the manual on the jbl sub amp. it said that 4 gauge was recommended with a minimum of 75 amp fuse. so i would think it'd be fine to use 6 gauge? am i right or would it just be worth it to put 4 gauge in it anyway since us audio nuts cant stop modifying everything!!!

or could i run 2 8 guage wires to it with 35 amp fuses on each?

you could run 2 8 gauge wires but I would bring them back together into a single fuse close to the battery. The current handling of two 8 gauges is actually more than a single 4 gauge (it's only a coincidence that half of 8 is 4, for example two 12 ga wires can't handle as much as a single 6).

You should be able to run a single 6 for both amps if you don't plan on upgrading. If you do plan on upgrading then you could use 4 and you'd have plenty of headroom for upgrades.

 

[4x4fun]

since you all ready stated your always changin stuff... im guilt too lol i ran 2 ga
to the d block so you all ways know you can have enuff then what ever the amp calles for after the d block.

 

[rjppunk]

you can always run 4ga to the cap if you have one for funsies and then 4 ga to a distribution box that will step it down to 8ga for your amps. Of course this implies you have a cap.... everyone should but that seems to be controversial somehow.

 

[Pistons23]

heres what id do. get about 2ft of 1/0awg wire. run that to a fused distribution block. then id use the 8awg you already have and run that to your alpine. then id run a length of 4awg to jbl amp. i cant help out on the fust choice though. heres a great place to get wiring.

http://www.knukonceptz.com/

 

[4x4fun]

you can always run 4ga to the cap if you have one for funsies and then 4 ga to a distribution box that will step it down to 8ga for your amps. Of course this implies you have a cap.... everyone should but that seems to be controversial somehow.

lol finally something we disagree on. how ever i do think there a good idea but there never really set up correctly with all the other parts that are needed to run correctly making them useless thats my two cents, and it can be decused but thats another thread lol

 

[LittleHorse]

heres what id do. get about 2ft of 1/0awg wire. run that to a fused distribution block. then id use the 8awg you already have and run that to your alpine. then id run a length of 4awg to jbl amp. i cant help out on the fust choice though. heres a great place to get wiring.

http://www.knukonceptz.com/

I've been looking at that place...one thing I don't understand is why they skip 2ga? They have 4 and then the next size up is 1/0. It is my opinion that a system that truly needs bigger than 2 ga is very rare, whereas a system that needs bigger than 4 is much more common place. I'd much rather run AWG 2 than 1/0.

I wish they would differentiate their three types of cable more clearly. The same gauge of the three different types is each rated at different currents and they don't directly correspond to NEC ratings for 60°, 75°, and 90°C insulation classes, so I don't know what makes them different.

 

[Pistons23]

yeah im not sure why the kolosus and the kolosus fleks have different current ratings. they have the exact same strand count and made of the same ofc. the only difference is the outer jacket. i do know that the kolosus wire is oversized. the strand count is higher compared to other wire of similar rating.

ive been told that 8awg is good up to 400w. and that 4awg is good to 1000w. anything over 1000w will need 1/0.

 

[Loud Ranger]

http://www.sonicelectronix.com/item_3935_Kicker+PKD1.html

heres the kit i got, never need to buy any more cables.

 

[Pistons23]

you can piece a kit together at knukonceptz for half that

 

[Loud Ranger]

you can piece a kit together at knukonceptz for half that

at 3.40 a ft for the 1/0 knuflex, for 23ft (20ft power, 3ft ground) it would be over 78 for the power wire alone+plus shipping. unless the distro blocks are free i dont see that happenening