Im conFUSED about FUSES

[Qwerty 10+ year member]

I am installing an Alpine MRP-M200 and a Zed Audio Gladius, each with a fuse rating of 25A. I have decided to run a 4AWG power wire about 10 feet to the back of my vehicle, at which point it meets a fused distribution block. Two 8AWG wires will then travel to my amps, which are only a few feet away. My question then becomes, which size fuse should I use just after the battery and at the distribution block?

I might add that Zed Audio specifically states that the Gladius, or any other amplifier for that matter, should not be over fused. My logic tells me to use a 50A fuse after the battery and two 25A fuses at the distribution block. Can someone explain?

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[jsloan10 10+ year member]

50 and 2 25s sounds good to me, overfusing to an amp that has no internal fuses can allow the amp to draw current well above what it can handle and possibly start a fire, most amps have fuses built right in so its usually something you don't need to worry about.

 

[Qwerty 10+ year member]

so if my amps have internal fuses, it is okay to overfuse w/o risking any damage or starting a fire. However I am not sure if the Zed Audio Gladius has any fuses on it. If so I think I should stick with the 25 amp fuse rating explicitly stated on their website.

 

[n2audio 5,000+ posts]

if you err, do it on the small side (40, 20/20) rather than on the high. A fuse can pass a lot more current than its rated for if it's only for a short period of time (such as music dynamics). Playing it safe isn't going to hurt anything, and COULD save an amp some where along the line.

 

[tRiGgEr 5,000+ posts]

Really only one fuse is needed up by the battery. No need for one at the distro block. And 40-50amp fuse should set you straight.