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Too Large of wiring, Possible?


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bestbuy207 
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Posted: April 03, 2006 at 12:40 PM / IP Logged  
I had a question that was brought up to me that I thought was a no brainer but as I thought about it..I wanted to know more:
is it possible to have too LARGE of power/ground wiring for any amp? Example: Putting a 1/0 awg wire (with the appropriate fuse size for the amp) on a 200w amp...is that anything but just overkill? Is it ACTUALLY harmful/potentially hazardous? I would never do this but just in general, is it possible to go too LARGE on wire size? Please let me know if so..and most importantly, WHY?
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arrow12 
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Posted: April 03, 2006 at 1:00 PM / IP Logged  

I don't believe you can go too large on wire size.  The amplifier only draws what it needs so larger wire would make it a lot easier on the amplifier.  If the wire has the capability to carry more amps than what the amplifier needs, then the amplifier will only pull what it needs and not the extra.  I hope that wasn't confusing.

That's my opinion. Take it, leave it, or correct me.
Big Dog 
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Posted: April 03, 2006 at 1:04 PM / IP Logged  

There is no such thing as overkill when it comes to car audio!!!! However, there is a logical limit where adding an extra strand or thousand strands to a certain gauge no longer makes a noticable difference or practical sense. Don't forget to beef up the OEM grounds to match the B+ harness - an unfortunate oversite by many.

Re-read your MECP studies where they explain voltage drop and relationships between conductor diameter/length/resistance.

Prepare your future. It wasn't the lack of stones that killed the stone age.
electrostatic 
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Posted: April 03, 2006 at 1:10 PM / IP Logged  
more expensive for sure! but certainly not harmful.
Prove your connections, use a meter!
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bestbuy207 
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excellent, thank you guys
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firstrax 
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Posted: April 03, 2006 at 2:52 PM / IP Logged  

The only instance I can think of where wire guage can be too big is high frequency signals. Higher than you will ever see in car audio.

dwarren 
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Posted: April 03, 2006 at 3:24 PM / IP Logged  
firstrax wrote:

The only instance I can think of where wire guage can be too big is high frequency signals. Higher than you will ever see in car audio.

What are you talking about?

electrostatic 
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Posted: April 03, 2006 at 3:55 PM / IP Logged  
[QUOTE=firstrax]

The only instance I can think of where wire guage can be too big is high frequency signals. Higher than you will ever see in car audio.

please, explain.

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dstang24 
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Posted: April 03, 2006 at 6:16 PM / IP Logged  
He's probably talking about wires such as those used in High speed data communication.  i.e. CAT V.
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firstrax 
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Posted: April 03, 2006 at 7:16 PM / IP Logged  
electrostatic wrote:
firstrax wrote:

The only instance I can think of where wire Guage can be too big is high frequency signals. Higher than you will ever see in car audio.

please, explain.

When the cross section of the conductor is significantly larger than the wavelength the signal can travel back and forth across the wire and double back on itself causing attenuation. Like standing waves in an enclosure but with much smaller wiggles. But you have to get into the gigahertz to get that effect.

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