what guage power wire?

[horford 10+ year member]

What's the recommended guage of wire to connect a RF 250 D class amp to the battery? The instructions don't specify. I've got some 16 guage, i think left over from my old kenwood woox powered sub i had many years ago.

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[gckless 5,000+ posts]

Definitely not 16ga. That's 2x50W? What size are the fuses on it? I think 8ga would probably be fine though.

 

[Popwarhomie 5,000+ posts]

I would use 8 gauge.

 

[sjv13 10+ year member]

yeah, 8. Or go for 4, in case you want to upgrade. I did that, and was really happy I did. Made installing a second amp a breeze, since I didnt have to run a new power wire all the way from the battery to the back of my wagon.

As a rule of thumb, 4ga can handle up to 1000wrms.

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

I don't know if your Rockford amp is like mine, but it was a PITA to get 4ga into the terminal cups of my amp. I'd say go for 8 unless you have adapters to go into the amp itself. You won't benefit at all going with 4 unless, like sj said, you can just upgrade the amp without running new wire.

 

[horford 10+ year member]

rated power: 125x1 @ 4 ohms / 250x1 @ 2 ohms

battery fuse rating: 25A

fuse on the amp: 30A

so 8 guage is the way to go?

and stupid question, but the ground wire size isn't as crucial, right?

 

[sjv13 10+ year member]

rated power: 125x1 @ 4 ohms / 250x1 @ 2 ohmsbattery fuse rating: 25A

fuse on the amp: 30A

so 8 guage is the way to go?

and stupid question, but the ground wire size isn't as crucial, right?

ground should be the same size as the power. It's a flow...

power --> amp --> ground

 

[sjv13 10+ year member]

rated power: 125x1 @ 4 ohms / 250x1 @ 2 ohmsbattery fuse rating: 25A

fuse on the amp: 30A

so 8 guage is the way to go?

and stupid question, but the ground wire size isn't as crucial, right?

ground should be the same size as the power. It's a flow...

power --> amp --> ground

 

[gckless 5,000+ posts]

ground should be the same size as the power. It's a flow...
power --> amp --> ground

This. Go with 8ga, both power and ground, and fuse the power wire.

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

Ground should be as big or larger than power. You NEVER want a smaller gauge ground wire than power. It's a recipe for disaster.

 

[horford 10+ year member]

eh ****; i guess i gotta blow some more money...but i'm glad i asked; i want to do it right...thanks guys

 

---------- Post added at 08:53 PM ---------- Previous post was at 08:53 PM ----------

 

what about the switched power wire that i plan on running to the stereo wiring harness? that's not part of the flow?

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

It's all good. Get your kit from @cthedinger ; or Amp Installation Kits, HDMI Cables. Way cheaper than what you'll find locally.

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

what about the switched power wire that i plan on running to the stereo wiring harness? that's not part of the flow?

No it's not. Knu has a set of RCAs that includes a remote turn-on lead. I've had good luck with mine and, at 7 bucks, super cheap.

 

[horford 10+ year member]

thanks man

 

[neo_styles 10+ year member]

thanks man

No problem.

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