4 channel amplifier

If I use speaker level inputs and I turn the amp off with a switch on the remote wire, will the headunit still power the speakers through the amp? (as in pass-through) (I some times listen to the radio with the car off and won't want the amp drawing power then.)

No. Where do you think the deck gets *its* power from? Perhaps the same battery? If listening to the system at the same volume, (i.e. the same power output) with amp on or with amp off, and deck powering your speakers directly, the current draw from the battery will be nearly identical. Think about it... Let's just say 20 watts out, total power from the deck, and 20 watts out, total power from the amplifier... Won't those same 20 watts out demand nearly the same 20 watts in from the power supply of the car? It's possible even, that the amplifier might draw LESS power than the deck. Far too much to go into right now, but if it's a small 4-channel, the real-world reality is that at LOW listening levels, the amp could draw less...It all reminds me of something that Molière once said to Guy de Maupassant at a café in Vienna: "That's nice. You should write it down."

well first lets clear this up. you cant have the deck and an external amp hooked to the same speakers, so its either or. if you turn off the amp then you should hear no sound at all unless you have the radio driving a set of different speakers in the car.

klw1452 wrote: If I use speaker level inputs and I turn the amp off with a switch on the remote wire, will the headunit still power the speakers through the amp? (as in pass-through)

He wasn't asking about having two amps hooked to the same speaker leads... He was asking if the amplifier would pass the speaker level signal from the deck on to the speakers, unamplified, if the amplifier was simply off. The answer to that, is still no.It all reminds me of something that Molière once said to Guy de Maupassant at a café in Vienna: "That's nice. You should write it down."