8 gauge big enough?

[wErd 5,000+ posts]

i already have an 8 guage wire in my car that leads from the battery, will it be big enough for a 1000 watt amp powering 4 re8s? or will i absolutly have to go with a 4 gauge? what are the downsides to running a smaller wire than needed?

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[supa_c 5,000+ posts]

smaller wire= less current= less power

 

[mattj 5,000+ posts]

8 guage will not work. You are trying to pull current that wont be allowed and it causes resistance. We all know that resistance = heat. Theres always that small possibilty of a fire.

 

[DBfan187 5,000+ posts]

All depends on the length of the wire, amount of current drawn.

What amp?

 

[supa_c 5,000+ posts]

prob 16-20 ft of wire. not enough juice.

 

[JimJ 5,000+ posts]

another downside of running small wire is the hassle of re-routing all that cable when you inevitably upgrade down the road; save your time, overbuild the first time.

 

[supa_c 5,000+ posts]

http://www.the12volt.com/info/recwirsz.asp here is a good diagram

 

[wErd 5,000+ posts]

hifonics bx1000d most likely will be the amp of choice. so what gauge should i reroute with? 4 or 2?

 

[supa_c 5,000+ posts]

4 since 2 dosent fit.

 

[wErd 5,000+ posts]

**** now i gotta reroute this shit, btw, i didnt put in 8 gauge the previos owner of the car did. am i gonna need a new battery terminal connection?

 

[mattj 5,000+ posts]

Probably wouldnt hurt.

 

[Slody4Futbol 10+ year member]

depends on what they used 2 connect it... if there's a terminal type one where u stick the wire in and there's not a free 4 gauge hole then use... or just use a 4 gauge ring terminal and put it on there... and it's really not hard running the 4 gauge in that car i did one a few weeks ago... there's a huge rubber grommet in the firewall... the door sills and kick panel comes out really easily... just run it under the carpet and pull out the bottoms of the rear seats and stick ur hand under the carpet and grab the wire

 

[sumone 10+ year member]

lol on overbuilding the first time...

this is going to be the third time I running new power wire...

first was 8ga for only one amp

then it was 4ga main, 8ga distributed

now it's gonna be either: 2ga main, 4ga & 8ga distributed OR 4ga to amp1, 8ga to amp2 if I'm lazy

 

[supa_c 5,000+ posts]

sheesh 3 different gauges.

 

[Norcalracer283 10+ year member]

The 4 will do you fine....2 would be good, but i am sure 4's enough. My friends got 0....that was a pain in the *** to run