How the heck am I supposed to shove 4 gauge wire into here?!?! Crimp ring connectors?

[Jgorm]

I would be careful recommending a wire size and fuse size without knowing the details of the install. There many factors that come into play when sizing a feeder wire and no 2 installs are the same and you can easily smoke your wiring if you don't know how to size the wire. I wouldn't take anyone's recommendation on sizing your feeder wires, I would calculate it myself.

I disagree. There are amp ratings for wire gauge charts as zipper posted. The only thing that matters is aluminum or copper, the amps the wire gauge is rated at, and that the fuse is at or below that amp rating.

 

[ripler]

@Jgorm (for some reason I can't quote your message)

When said that I would calculate myself, it's because I know the variables in what I'm installing. There were suggestions on wire size based on the output of the amplifier. The class of the amplifier makes a big difference in power demand, all 600W amps aren't the same. How the wire is constructed is a huge factor, this snip from Knukonceptz proves my point, they have 3 different 8ga wire and they each have a different ampacity rating. According to the BlueSeas chart to carry 60A at 20' I would need 2/0AWG, if I used the wire below I can use a 8AWG.

 

[zipper]

@Jgorm (for some reason I can't quote your message)

... According to the BlueSeas chart to carry 60A at 20' I would need 2/0AWG, if I used the wire below I can use a 8AWG.

Per the Bluesea chart. At a 3% voltage drop, a 20' run for 60amps is 4ga. wire not 2/0.

 

[Jgorm]

@ripler the amp is irrelevant. Just the wire and rating and fuse used.

 

[ripler]

Per the Bluesea chart. At a 3% voltage drop, a 20' run for 60amps is 4ga. wire not 2/0.

View attachment 99468

My mistake, I was reading, well trying to read, that damn chart on my cell phone.

Yes according to this chart the 4ga will work as you described. But the point I was trying to get across is that all wire is not the same and that the Bluesea chart calculations are based off of a certain type of wire. The chart I attached above is a different type of wire that has more and finer strands and can carry more amperage than the wire used in Bluesea's calculator.

@ripler the amp is irrelevant. Just the wire and rating and fuse used.

I'm not sure why you are saying that the amp is irrelevant, all amps are not created equal. You need to know the power requirements for the amplifier and they are not all created equal. Someone stated above that they would not run more than 2 amplifiers off one 4ga wire, just because this worked in his case it may not be adequate in someone else's.

Here's are 2 amps from the same manufacture, both 4 channel and rated to put out 600W and they both have different power requirements.

 

[zipper]

The Bluesea chart is a "rip off" from this ABYC- American Boat & Yacht council E-11 AC & DC Electrical systems on Boats chart.



Part or all of the higher current rating/ga. on the Knuconcepts wire could be a higher insulation temperature rating.