tarche2 0 Posted February 23, 2006 Hi guys, I have a 4 channell JBL amp which will soon be powering 2 infinity 6x9's and 1 10" jbl sub. The amp is 4x104watts rms. I have just bought a amp wiring kit but I am not sure if this will be powerfull enough as the cable is only 10guage! It does have a 30amp inline fuse but dont want to melt the cable. Do you think I need to get a lower guage (more powerful cable_ or do u think it will be ok. If I am running 5 metres of say 4 guage power cable into my fused splitter box, then 10guage for 1/2 a metre to the amp will I need to run better earth cable than 10guage even tho its only 1 metre long. Help please. Thanks Tony Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stevemac 0 Posted February 23, 2006 As the power cable will be permanently connected to the battery, I would imagine that 10 gauge will be too thin. AFAIK - amp wiring kits for such a powerful amp are not freely available - or they weren't a couple of years ago when I fitted mine. I went to Maplins & bought all the cables & gold plated terminals seperately. For power/earth cables, I wouldn't use any thinner than 6 gauge wiring. If the cable melts - goodbye car !! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tarche2 0 Posted February 23, 2006 what if i was to double up the cable! run 2 10guage cables from the battery to the amp??? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stevemac 0 Posted February 23, 2006 Makes no difference - use thicker cable would be my advice. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bcstudent 0 Posted February 23, 2006 Makes no difference Yeah it does! However, I'd agree that a single 6 gauge cable would be the ideal choice. You could use 8 gauge but that would be the absolute minimum, and I prefer to over-rate cable myself. I = P / V = (4 * 104) / 12 = 416 / 12 = 35A 10 gauge cable (5.25 sq. mm) is rated at 30A 8 gauge cable (8.37 sq. mm) is rated at 40A 6 gauge cable (13.3 sq. mm) is rated at 55A * with 60 degree C insulation Wikipedia AWG Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tarche2 0 Posted February 23, 2006 so will 4 guage do the trick as my m8 has offered me 5 metres of 4 guage cable for cheap and its good quality gear! Will 5 m be long enough???? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bcstudent 0 Posted February 23, 2006 Good for 70A, so 'yes'...as long as the amplifier terminals are big enough for 21 sq. mm cable. Five metres will be plenty. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kevin Bacon 5 Posted February 23, 2006 4 guage minimum should be run to amps to minimise voltage drop. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bcstudent 0 Posted February 23, 2006 lol...I won't tell you that I'm using 6 sq. mm tri-rated cable I found in the stores at a previous place of work. Oh bugger. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
selbekk 0 Posted February 24, 2006 4 gauge is more than enough for most amps. if you are thinking of going for a more powerful system with several amps later, 2 gauge might be useful. 10 gauge is waay too small for a power cable. Use quality gear when you do the power cable, as it is a pain to re-do. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
stevemac 0 Posted February 24, 2006 AFAIK - Blue_Joe used 0 gauge cable when he fitted his system . :shock: Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
selbekk 0 Posted February 25, 2006 stevemac, sure looks cool, but isn't really worth it imo. Perhaps if you were to move the battery to the back. you get 0000 cable, if you really want to get jiggy with it. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
