Speaker/Amp wire gague
 

What gague power wire should I run for 2 amps (1 sub amp 100W RMS and 1 Mid/Tweet amp 200W RMS)? My guess is 8 or 10 gague.

As well, I'm thinking of using the stock wiring for the speakers; there seems to be way too many problems mentioned here about running the wires through the door and all. Would 50 watts running through the stock wiring be too much for it to handle? How about 90w to the front alone? :D

If it helps, I have the 200.2 and 4004.4 Clarion amps to mount...

~4 RubBeR :crook:

Re: Speaker/Amp wire gague
 

I would go for 4 guage from the battery then split into 2 8 guage.

Yeah, it's a bit of an overkill, but the price difference is not that big (i'm assuming that you're trying to save some $ by using smaller guage wire). And it gives you room for upgrading in the future. However, if you don't mind re-wiring everything when you do an upgrade, then yes, 8 or 10 guage would be fine for the amps that you have right now (yeah, we always swear that we'll be satisfied at the moment) :) And bear in mind that the old wires that you had will be absolutely worthless after you upgrade.

Goto Walmart and see if they have the Scoche 4 guage wiring kit (for 2 amps). It's about $25 and it works great for me.

As for stock speaker wiring, check the other thread. It's definitely possible and a recommended upgrade, but I'm not sure if the effort is worth it if all you're running thru them is 50w. I'm using the stock wires and it sounds okay. (i'm running only 50w RMS to all the door speakers)

IMHO, i feel that with your setup, your door speakers will overpower your sub... I can't remember the ratio, but i heard that the sub amp should have more power than the front to sound good.

Sub amp go with 4 guage , then speaker around 8 guage.

I have 4 + 8 Guage running off my optima yellow top.

:rolleyes: Guilty as charged, Officer...yes, I priced the 4 gague at $2.49 cnd a foot. $1.39 for 8 gague...In the grand scheme of things, the extra $25 in savings would probably not be worth running new wire in the future...

Ok, so you are running 75 to each door...I'm runing 50...what would you suggest as a "balanced" amp for power...I've looking to go with one 12", JL or perhaps Nach...what if I switched the amps around and run 2 10" subs and 2x50w in the front alone and the deck for rear fill?

~4rubBeR

I would definitely consider swapping the amps - putting 100 watts to the front and 200 to a sub (or pair).

That should balance things out better - 100 watts to a sub isn't gonna do too much, IMO. You might even consider just a single, better sub that can handle 200 watts rather than dual 100 watt subs - there are TONS of models in this range.

Door wiring - don't bother. I've asked the same question of some very knowledgeable people, and the consensus is that until you get up in the 200+ watt range, the stock wiring will be more than adequate. I'm running 90 watts+ per door, and the stock wiring is just fine. It is a hassle to do it, too - I tried and just said "fuck it". In the end, it wouldn't have made ANY audible difference anyway.

~HH

4 rubBeR - Nice avatar, BTW. Good little pic of that heat shield!

~HH

I'm gonna let you go this time, okay? :D

Kidding aside, just don't want you to repeat the dumb things that we (I) did. And guess what, yeah, I made this mistake and now I have some 12 guage wires just sitting in a box in my storage room just collecting dust. I did use some for the sub speaker wire, but didn't need that much :)

So that 12 guage was pretty much wasted...

Quote:

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Ok, so you are running 75 to each door...I'm runing 50...what would you suggest as a "balanced" amp for power...I've looking to go with one 12", JL or perhaps Nach...what if I switched the amps around and run 2 10" subs and 2x50w in the front alone and the deck for rear fill?

~4rubBeR

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Yeah, like hihoslva mentioned, i think swapping the amps would give better results. But i'm not sure how you'll bridge that 4 ch Clarion amp to mono to drive a single sub -- so you might need 2 subs.

as with everyone here, go with 4 gauge, then split to 2 8 gauge. As with the speaker wires on the door, they are fine. I am running 75W per channel and they shound great. Re-wiring them is too much work, and not worth for improvement in sound you will get. You probably wouldn't even notice the difference.
You sub amp is a bit underpowered, but if that is what you have now, go for it. Good luck.

Thanks to everyone
 

Great input everyone!

Ok, got the message(s) loud and clear:

1. I'm gonna run 4 gague down the left side to the trunk and then split to 2x8 gague.

2. I'll reverse my amps and go for 2 10" (I don't believe I can bridge to 1 channel mono on the 400.4 and run 50wx2 through the fronts (I have some Bazooka Acoustic Series comps 6 1/2"..they sound so sweeeet :D) they are rated 70 w rms, so they should sound fairly balanced with the 2 10" in da back.


*whew* Thanks, officer...I'm running aout of cash way too fast to pay for another ticket :p

:D I was waiting for someone to recognise it. Thanks for the up's!!

I think in the future, I may get a third amp :rolleyes: and run the 400.4 to the front comps and the 200.2 to the rear doors and then a 400.2 to a 12" in the trunk...lets see:

90x2 front doors (6 1/2" comp) :D

50x2 rear doors (6 1/2") :)

380x1 (12") :eek:

:rolleyes: hope my wife doesn't read this...