Yes, I know the two are interrelated, but without knowing the length I cannot calculate the size. I'm going to be running wire from the battery to behind the rear seat back of a 1998 Scab. What length of wire does this require?

Here are the amps I'll be using:

MTX Thunder 1004 (90W RMS x 4)

MTX Thunder 251D (160W RMS x 1)

Any advice on wire size, fuse sizes, etc, is appreciated. Once I know the length, though, I can use the calculator on BCAE.com.

Additional questions:

1. I have an EQ that has one set of RCAs in (R, L), and seperate RCAs out for two amps. The connection from EQ to amps is obvious, but my HU has 2 sets of RCAs out (Right and left for both front and rear). Would it be OK to just cap one set and not use them, and connect the other set to the EQ, or do I need to do something else with that second set of RCAs? As I have an EQ, I'm not particularly annoyed by losing balance and fade control on the HU.

2. While I'm running power wire, I also want to add a power inverter to the truck. From a noise perspective, is there any problem with adding the inverter to the line coming off of the battery that I run to power the amps? Or would I be better off running it to the power point, or someplace else?

Thanks,
Mike

 

I would just take a piece of string and run it from the battery to the amp locations as you would a power wire, then measure the string. When you go buy the power wire, add a few feet for safe measure. Fuse sizes will be dependent on the wire gauge you use. BCAE has a table showing this. Hope this helps.

 

yeah, I just know that others on this board have mounted amps there before, so they should know how many feet of wire it will take.

Thanks, Mike

 

bttt

 

To answer your other questions...

Yes, cap off a set of RCA's on your deck, don't try hooking both sets to your EQ. Just note any features that may be different on the deck with front/rears like sub controls or eq changes - like pioneers have that front soundstage thing built in for example.

Running your inverter from the amp wires (ie. from a d-block) shouldn't cause any extra interference. No matter how you hook it up - the wires are gonna be still connected to the positive terminal of the battery. Just make sure you get yourself a good ground.

PS... Take into consideration the "typical" output when you will actually be running your inverter along with your amp total output, and add a few more watts "say 20%" cuz these things are not 100% efficient

 

I forgot another thing...

I wouldn't use the power point if your inverter is going to run more than 100 watts. I would hardwire it to the battery, amp distribution, or ignition wiring near the steering column.

 

Frostby-

Thanks. I'm not really sure what Nakamichi does as far as differences between front and rear, but I'll probably cap the rears and run the front to the EQ, unless I find out from them that they advise something different.

I'll run the inverter off the D-Block. There is a nice space where I can mount the inverter nearby.

Now, the 64 Million Dollar Question:

How many feet of wire from Battery to rear wall of the SuperCab? Anyone know? Anyone? Anyone? Bueller?

Mike

 

I'd just go with 15 feet of 4Ga wire and call it a day.

Tony

 

Mike,

I purchased 25' of 4 guage power cable, ran it along the passenger side frame into the cab, and ultimately terminated the power run under the middle portion of the front seat. I then used part of the several feet of spare as grounding cable. I suggest buying 25-30 feet of cable for your application. If you want to buy more, go for it. It never hurts to have too much cable/wire - and it's relatively inexpensive.

 

This is a good chart for power calculations involving 12 volts and copper wire...