Amp Wiring/fuse question Options

[djrob90]

Right, I’ve got 4 amps, 4 10” subs and 2 powercaps. The intention is to run the amps off of a FUSED distribution block (1 into 4) and another distribution block for the caps (1 into 2) My old setup of 2 amps required a 30amp fuse and 40amp fuse on the block and there was a 70amp fuse on the main 4 gauge cable really close to the battery. My question is that now, aside from these 2 amps, I’ve got a further 2 amps that require a 40amp fuse and a 60amp fuse, this takes the total amps upto 170 and will obviously blow the 70amp fuse in the main cable. I’ve never seen any AGU fuses rated this high and I was wondering, am I being overkill with the fuse in the battery splice (as everything else is individually fused) or should I not be pulling this sort of amperage from one piece of 4 gauge and should I run another piece instead?

[Scarrell]

why do you need 4 gauge or 2 gauge? you dont need that big of wire....up to 14 gauge is fine for all your audio wiring needs.... Speaker wire isn't as vital as power and ground, because you're dealing with high voltage, low current AC voltage for speakers, much like wall outlets in a house, as opposed to high current DC voltage for power and ground.
Generally, this is my rule of thumb:
for component speakers (midbass, midrange, or tweeters) 18-16AWG is fine.
For subwoofers, 14-12AWG is plenty.
Anything you choose to use of a larger gauge will really only be for looks, as there will be no electrical advantage to larger wire.

This post has been edited by Scarrell: Dec 31, 2004 - 3:20 PM