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I will ask my installer tomorrow for some tips for you. He will know better as to what he did for my car. My initial reaction is that a single 4 gauge wire might not be enough for 1800 watts.
P = I x E (1800 W = 150 amps X 12 volts)
Normal ampacity for 4 gauge is near 100 amps but that's on AC and a higher voltage. Realistically, the wire will take it and can deliver 250-300 before it starts getting warm because of the safety factor that the NEC requires.
Ask the installer anyway. I am curious what is required for powering automotive sound systems. My experience was in marine turbine generators and switchgear.
If we go by this, then 4 gauge is not thick enough. Looks like you need 2 gauge or bigger. I think this explains why your amp is cutting out. It's seeing a voltage drop due to the resistance of your cable.
When they installed your system did they replace the wiring in your doors back to the factory amp? Or used all factory wiring?
We replaced all of my audio cable for my system with high-end cable from Straight Wire.
Power cables are double shielded, and the outer jacket of the positive cable is actually grounded to help prevent noise. All of the cables were custom cut for ideal length, color-coded., wrapped in tech-flex for the entire run, and heat shrunk at all ends.
Speaker cables were specifically chosen based on the t/s parameters of the speakers, and the amplifier ratings. There is a mixture of 12 AWG quad-conductor cable, and then a 12 AWG or 10AWG Octet-conductor cable for the subwoofers.
RCA cables are the Rhapsody series.
None of the wire touches any metal anywhere in the car. Anywhere that a wire needed to cross metal, we used a double-sided foam tape to prevent any noise induction.
It looks like he used the factory ground point based on these pictures. You can see the two black 4 AWG ground cables attached to the factory ground point. This also shows the main fuse block that is located within 18 inches of the battery.
Last edited by subterFUSE; 12-26-2016 at 10:00 PM.
I talked to my installer. He said you were choking your amp with only a 4 gauge power cable. That is definitely the reason the amp is seeing low voltage and cutting off. Add a second 4 gauge cable from the battery, or switch to something thicker.
12-26-2016, 07:38 PM
preping it later today
