wire gauge on my new amp

[Brit rider 10+ year member]

Ok so i just got a nice new kicker kx850.4 amp.. its pushing about 110 watts per channel RMS @ 4 ohms. (215w peak)

It says in the manual that you should use 2 ga wiring.. well i have wired it with 4 gauge from the battery to a small distribution block, sending power to the head unit and the amp. i have also only used 4 ga as a ground wire.

Basically i need to know if this is totally unsafe.. or jsut "not what the book says"

everything is fused so i presume nothing major could happen before that blew.

what detrimental effects can i expect from using only 4 gauge? i can't believe there is a fire hazard here as the 4 gauge is soo thick.. will my wiring just put up a little more resistance than the 2 ga or is it a real danger? //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/uhoh.gif.c07307dd22ee7e63e22fc8e9c614d1fd.gif

Thanks in advance for any help on this one.

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[johnecon2001 5,000+ posts]

thats fine, just leave it. 4 guage is plenty for the load your putting on.

 

[Brit rider 10+ year member]

Thanks, thats great.

I had a bit of a scare when i was told this was dangerous.. i know smaller wire would be but this 4 gauge stilll seems plenty. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif

Jsut for piece of mind can anyone second this?

Thanks //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/biggrin.gif.d71a5d36fcbab170f2364c9f2e3946cb.gif

 

[vincemarq 10+ year member]

I second! 4ga is perfect for the power you're running and even more. //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/smile.gif.1ebc41e1811405b213edfc4622c41e27.gif

P.S. I'll even THIRD it if it'll make you feel better.

 

[Apoc 10+ year member]

the only thing that would be bad is if you started cranking our more power than the 4ga wire could handle, thats when things get hot and you start your car on fire.

 

[n2audio 5,000+ posts]

the only thing that would be bad is if you started cranking our more power than the 4ga wire could handle, thats when things get hot and you start your car on fire.

//content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/rolleyes.gif.c1fef805e9d1464d377451cd5bc18bfb.gif

Even a DRASTICALLY under-rated 110x4 amp isn't going to out-draw 4 ga. You could probably run it bridged and play a test tone constantly and never have a problem. And if there is some sort of amp problem where it shorts itself (yes, I've had this happen) a properly sized fuse at the battery will keep anything bad from happening.

If it were me - and I knew that was going to be my only amp - I'd have gone with 8 ga.

 

[Apoc 10+ year member]

Make sure there is a solid rubber coating around your wire and make sure that it wont get worn down anywhere...also dont run your system wihtout a fuse, that prevents most bad things. You should be good to go with the 4ga, no bigger, no smaller (in case of upgrades).

 

[Brit rider 10+ year member]

great, that really put smy mind to rest.. i thought the same but wasn't 100%

I don't get why kicker says use 2 ga.. i guess its just to cover themselves.

 

[Apoc 10+ year member]

2ga is incredibly thick wire, hard to hid in tight places which eventually wears on the wire, just make sure if you put it under your door sills that its not pinched anywhere and you dont catch it when you put the screws back in, I have a friend that did that and his blazer burnt to the ground!

 

[JimJ 5,000+ posts]

i'm running 2awg welding cable in the van now...got it for a deal, works fine.

I've got a 100A and 60A fused distribution block at the amps, and a 200A fuseholder under the hood. Think I'm adequately fused.