can my 8 gauge power 500rms amp?

i currently have 8gauge power running at 300rms on 4ohms on my Alpine MRP-M500 rated at 500rms at 2 ohms. im looking to upgrade my subwoofer to alpine type r, would my wires feed my amp enough power? it says 8 gauge wires is recommended on installation. but i am worried that 8 gauge is not big enough and i will have to rewire everything.. i was thinking about getting a farad capacitor.. would that be a better solution if i dont want to rewire my power cables?

8 Ga. wire will be fine. DO NOT WASTE your money on a capacitor.

so 8 gauge is perfectly fine for running 500rms? just want to confirm

Yep. Me? I'd go 1/0, but that's overkill...

Wha...??? Dave? Overkill? }:>

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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."

     
Power & Ground Cable Specs
Cable Size
Wire Gauge      Current Capacity
Amperage (amps)
1/0      350
2      225
4      150
8      100
10      60
12      40
14      25
16      15

Notice that the 8 Ga. wire is rated for 100 amps.

Also, what brand is the wire you are using. Many companies have Aluminum/Copper wire nowadays rather than full copper. If, in fact, it is mixed wire, I would recommend bumping it up to 4ga. Better safe than sorry.

Personally, I am currently running a 500 rms mono amp and 250 rms for the interiors on EFX 4ga full copper wire.

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Sean McAuliffe
Sales Rep.
Installation Distributors

using SCOSCHE brand are they not good?

Why not get the cable resistance and calculate total power and GND resistance, hence calculate the maximum voltage drop and decide if that is acceptable (and doesn't exceed cable specs)?    

(That's my method in reverse - I decide an acceptable voltage drop, I know my length so I can buy/use the right gauge.)

check the voltage while car is on? on the 8 gauge leads to amp? if voltage is still above 12v while bumping loud when the car is on idle then it should be fine right?i dont have a volt meter but i can borrow one from my brother. i think i can cut off extra 2 feet of power cable.. would that make a difference? and would i need the shortest ground wire as possible?

No - sorry, it has nothing to do with actual voltages (though that can influence one's voltage-drop choice).


This is merely what maximum or typical voltage drop you want due to your cable size (plus fuses, distBlocks, terminations, etc; but generally they can be ignored).

Apparently 3V is an acceptable drop (according to some automotive-electrics bodies).
I usually install/design to 0.5V max for the cabling voltage drop (ie, its resistance times the current's RMS value; V=IR).
(PS - that's for lights etc.)

The Scosche wire is usually 100% copper unless it is from their "e2" line.

Personaly, I would just head down to your local car audio shop and pick up some 4 gauge.

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Sean McAuliffe
Sales Rep.
Installation Distributors

8g is plenty for that amplifier. If you can cut off a few feet, that would be great.

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2013 Kia Rio -90a alternator
DDX470HD GTO14001 GTO1014D (x3)
Big3 in 1/0G
1/0G to GTO14001

i think ill do that. right now i am powering a rockford p1 8" rated for 150rms but my alpine mrp500 pushing 300rms at 4ohms to it. its sound good and have a nice thump , been running like a champ for 4 months . im looking to upgrade to a alpine type r 8" but my amp would be putting 500rms on 2ohms
the 8" type r is only rate for 300rms.. do u guy think it would be a good idea to push 500rms on the little type r? it ran fine on my rockford p1 with double the power recommended, is the alpine built tuff to handle more then its rate rms?

That 8" Type R will handle the 500wRMS with no problem, as long as the box isn't too big.
If it is in a ported box, you'll need to make sure the sub-sonic filter is set to at or right below the tuning frequency of the box to avoid over-excursion below port tuning.

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2013 Kia Rio -90a alternator
DDX470HD GTO14001 GTO1014D (x3)
Big3 in 1/0G
1/0G to GTO14001

Also, do yourself a favor and research the wire you're going to need, and get the right size. Out here where I live (Seattle) I have yet to find a store that doesn't misrepresent their wire sizes. So, one of the first suggestions was 0awg. The reason for that suggestion besides electrically making sense, is that you always get the last thing you'll ever need. And when you buy your wire, make sure your 0awg (example) isn't just 4awg in a big fat jacket. That would suck to have everything calculated out to .3mV just to find out that the wire you bought isn't the size you thought it was.

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Fine the employers.