I need to buy wires for inside of the power amp. The peak current of each channel is about 10A. I want to know what gauge to use for:
1) +/-V rail from power supply to the OPS stage.
2) Output and Ret wires from OPS output to the banana connectors?
3) 110V wall AC to power supply.
Thanks
1) +/-V rail from power supply to the OPS stage.
2) Output and Ret wires from OPS output to the banana connectors?
3) 110V wall AC to power supply.
Thanks
1) AWG 10 : solid or stranded
2) AWG 10 : stranded (156 stranded silicone if you can)
3) Your house wiring is 18AWG so I would use 18AWG
IMHO
2) AWG 10 : stranded (156 stranded silicone if you can)
3) Your house wiring is 18AWG so I would use 18AWG
IMHO
Would you say that solid core power rail wiring sound different from stranded ?
Power cords make a difference. And they are much further away from amplifier circuit.
Amy comments ?
gurevise
Power cords make a difference. And they are much further away from amplifier circuit.
Amy comments ?
gurevise
In North America the lightest circuit in a house is 15 amps and the lightest wire used in a house is 14 gauge.
10 amps requires minimum 18 gauge wire but 14 or 12 would be a good choice for rails and speakers. Mains wire should be at least 16 gauge.
Thanks guys.
I just went out to OSH to look at 10 gauge wires, they are huge!!!! so 12 gauge is good enough?
I just check my Acurus, the rails use 16 gauge, the speaker output wires look the same size!!! That's a 200W per channel amp and I don't think it's a dog.
I just went out to OSH to look at 10 gauge wires, they are huge!!!! so 12 gauge is good enough?
I just check my Acurus, the rails use 16 gauge, the speaker output wires look the same size!!! That's a 200W per channel amp and I don't think it's a dog.
Two issues with power wiring (whether speakers or mains):
1. ohmic drop - depends on length as well as size
2. heating - depends on size alone
This means that some situations involving long wires may use thicker cables than other shorter situations just to reduce the ohmic drop. You can't simply say "situation A uses cable thickness X for current J, so my situation B with the same current can use X too".
So what voltage drop can you afford? What damping factor are you trying to achieve, and how much of this can be accounted for by internal speaker wiring and external speaker wiring?
For mains wiring there are also safety issues. If something shorts, where do I want the heat to build up? In the fuse/breaker, or in the cable?
1. ohmic drop - depends on length as well as size
2. heating - depends on size alone
This means that some situations involving long wires may use thicker cables than other shorter situations just to reduce the ohmic drop. You can't simply say "situation A uses cable thickness X for current J, so my situation B with the same current can use X too".
So what voltage drop can you afford? What damping factor are you trying to achieve, and how much of this can be accounted for by internal speaker wiring and external speaker wiring?
For mains wiring there are also safety issues. If something shorts, where do I want the heat to build up? In the fuse/breaker, or in the cable?
One issue I have with a lot of light gauge mains wiring is the wimpy ground wire. It needs to carry enough current away to blow the breaker in case of a short. There was a large circuit breaker manufacturer here in North America (FPE) that produced breakers that were very hard to trip. 18 gauge mains with a 20 gauge ground would never trip them. The chassis would remain live and wire would keep smoldering.
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Should mention that although the 14 gauge wire is rated for 15 amps, it is only used in applications where the load does not exceed 12 amps continuous.
Beyond a 12 amp continuous load, then 12 gauge wiring is to be used.
Also, commercial/industrial applications have required a minimum of 12 gauge wire for many years.
CEC and NEC is a good guideline for wiring just about anything. There are many applications where 10 gauge is required for 15 amps after derating.
I automatically run 10 guage in my shop. The difference is very noticable in power tools when turn them on. The load an amplifier puts on a circuit is likely similar.
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