Will A 4/0 Gauge Main Do Anything..Or Just Look Pretty..?

[solaris=amazing]

Hey guys, i'm just wondering if i should even waste my time and money on running like a 0, 2, or even 4 gauge wire from the battery, get a dblock..and run my 3, 8 gauges from there.

Right now i got 3 amps, putting out less then 300rms EACH... Basically 2, 2channels powering 4 speakers (2 speakers per amp) 60wrmsX2-4ohm on all speakers and a dclass amp giving my 2 12's only 250rms @2ohm.

BUT, that is 3 8 gauge power wires connected to the battery with it's own seperate fuse ofcoarse. I just don't see what benefit having a dblock would do. I have a 4.6L v8 with a 130amp alt..and a brand new gold series duralast battery which is 875cca....it's not deep cycle though, so i do get MINOR dimming at stop lights, nothing major.

[solaris=amazing]

BTW, if i do run the bigger power wire, what do i have to do exactly..? I know i gotta put a big fuse on the 4 (or bigger) gauge wire.....then that goes to the dblock, NOW....do i have to fuse EVERY 8 gauge..?

Also, does it matter what order the actual power wires are connected to the battery..? Example, i have my subs power wire on first, then my rear speakers amp, then my front speakers amp.....does that mean that basically the last power wire is getting weaker signal..? Or is the power constant..?-THAT i really want to know..

[ngsm13]

Well, if you plan on ever upgrading...I'd go with 2awg or 1/0 awg...that's the most a daily driver would REALLY ever need.

If this is as large as you think you'll need 4awg will be PLENTY for under 1000rms

nG

[ponchonutty]

Actually, 4ga is plenty unless you are running more than 30' of it. My system is around 2000 watts RMS and I only run 4ga wire. Of course I am running Class d amps so amperage would be lower than most mainstream amps.

[bumpinstang77]

Yea I run 4 awg cuz its cheap.... I even run 4 awg batt to batt as long as its not too long. BUT if you want optimal performance from say 2kw plus I'd go ahead and run 1/0awg

[notladstyle@yahoo.]

since your rated output is so low your 3 separate 8ga wires are more than enough. you wouldnt get any better performance unless you ran 2 and split it to 4s with caps at hte end.

I have dual 8ga running a polk 500.1 and 350.4 with 1fa caps at the ends of each and I run per spec RMS on a meter.

[bumpinstang77]

No need for caps...... they're pretty much useless.

[notladstyle@yahoo.]

Originally Posted by bumpinstang77

No need for caps...... they're pretty much useless.

nwn....

[PaulD]

I am not sure the original poster understands that as the guage goes down, the wire size goes up. A 1/0 guage wire is like twice the size of a 2 gauge, which in turn is like twice the size of a 4 gauge. Unless you are gonna compete, 4 gauge for less than say 600-700 watts (real RMS) - 2 gauge for over 1000 watts for sure. Just remember, most of the losses in the power line are in the connectors, not the wire.

[shawnwilliams]

The moderator right i have a digital gauge and when i power my amp with 8 guage i had 14.4V when i hooked up my 2 Guage i got 14.5V. The size of wire really doesn't make a difference.

[bumpinstang77]

Its not the voltage that matters.... all wire sizess will carry the voltage..... its the amperage.... how quick can you get 150 amps through that wire...... not very on 8 awg.

[notladstyle@yahoo.]

Originally Posted by bumpinstang77

Its not the voltage that matters.... all wire sizess will carry the voltage..... its the amperage.... how quick can you get 150 amps through that wire...... not very on 8 awg.

1. Unless you are looking to power a hydrogen reactor in your trunk, 150 ampres is something you will never seen travel through your amp kit. A 1ohm load with a 1000watt RMS amplifier might pull 90-100 amps at full throttle... It would also simultaneusly combust causing a great deal of damage as well as killing the owned who was incredibly stupid to hook it up anyways... just kidding.

2. 150 ampres would melt an 8ga wire so its kinda hard to compare.

3. The resistance of a 4 ga wire versus a 2 or 0 ga is so patheticly small you would be working with numbers the size of my bank account. off hand i think 4g is something like .00034 ohms/ft and 2 ga is .00025 and o is .00019 honestly, would you change your wires out for that whopping .00015ohm boost?

4. I know you will argue, but an 8 ga wire could supply more than 40amps. a JL 500.1 running at spec pulls about 30 and has rated fuses of 40 amps

5.are you sure that 14.4 to 14.5 wasnt just your idler kicking in?