Upgrading wire for max watts

[darron016 10+ year member]

Is this the only way I can get the peak out of my amp?

I have a maxi fuse holder 80a

My AMP is supposed to do 1300 RMS I set my gains right to do 1300.

But my inline(80a) didn't blow, is it supposed to blow when 1300 is coming through?

A buddy said I need to get 0 gauge to get full power, i'm running 4 gauge..

Is my amp seeing 1300?

Click to read more...

 

[trumpet 5,000+ posts]

The fuse is to protect the car from burning up if the power gets shorted. It's NOT supposed to blow during normal operation, otherwise we'd all have glove boxes full of spare fuses for whenever we run our systems hard.

If your amplifier really put out 1,300 Watts when you set the gain then you don't need to upgrade your power cable. How did you set the gain?

 

[05trailblazer 10+ year member]

its most likely you have it at a lower impedance that the amp is asking for, or could also be the lack of voltage, power wire being 8guage, umm and you gains would also be causing it to blow the fuses from all other things i listed.

 

[n8skow 10+ year member]

What amp are you using exactly? Is an 80 amp fuse what the manufacturer recommends?

4-gauge power wire will be plenty for a 1300 watt amp (though if the manufacturer says to use 80-amps in fusing, it's not capable of 1300 watts RMS power anyways).

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

I'll chime in since I've been helping him over the phone. He's getting 1300W by DMM on an Infinity 1211a. His real concern is if he's OK to stay with his current wire and the 80a maxi fuse or if he should upgrade. I've said upgrade just to be sure, but he's asking for additional opinions.

 

[Timmy13091 10+ year member]

I'd say upgrade to atleast ofc 4 gauge and a 120 amp under the hood if he's pushing over 1k ..

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

I'd say upgrade to atleast ofc 4 gauge and a 120 amp under the hood if he's pushing over 1k ..

I recommended that or 0ga AT/Knu CCA with a 250A ANL

 

[Timmy13091 10+ year member]

I recommended that or 0ga AT/Knu CCA with a 250A ANL

Ya this^^^ if. U plan to upgrade but for now that's overkill .. His amp prolly won't fit 0 direct either..

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

Ya this^^^ if. U plan to upgrade but for now that's overkill .. His amp prolly won't fit 0 direct either..

It won't. He'll need gauge reducers if he goes that way, but the 0ga would afford him to use a distro and then 4ga to each amp which is the best route IMO. His speakers aren't amped yet.

 

[n8skow 10+ year member]

That amp has 3 built in 40 amps fuses, go with a 150-amp ANL fuse at the battery.

 

[darron016 10+ year member]

yes my amp is stable to 2ohms.. i set the dmm using dmm i turned my rca input level to.one third and set gain to.75% witch.read a 50 on dmm.. i dont wanna upgrade wire unless abs have to.. my amp takes 4g... i just thought 1300 going through.a 80a would pop it. sorry for grammar im on phone.

 

[n8skow 10+ year member]

A fuse does not just blow once you hit the rated power (in this case, 80 amps) - in short bursts, the fuse can actually pass much more than the rated power.

There are many variables at play here though, and the impedance the amp see's will ultimately dictate how much output is created, and consequently how much current is drawn from your battery/alternator. Playing music - your power output and amperage draw will be all over the place - but it's quite possible on certain notes and at certain power levels (on sustained notes) - your going to blow that 80-amp fuse.

 

[darron016 10+ year member]

okay anl 150 should i do a big 3?

 

[n8skow 10+ year member]

Over 1000 watts - yah, you may benefit a tiny bit from upgrading the big 3.

Less than 1000 watts probably unnecessary expense.

 

[trumpet 5,000+ posts]

That amp has 3 built in 40 amps fuses, go with a 150-amp ANL fuse at the battery.

The fuse at the battery is to be sized for the wire, NOT the load.