Power and wire gauge, Read, use, and enjoy, Recommended wire gauge – Zapco Z-series D User Manual

Page 4: Installation guidelines

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Yes, please read this manual thoroughly. We wrote it to help ensure that you get

the most from your investment in your Zapco amplifier. If you find, after reading

the manual, that you still have questions please feel free to give us a call at

1(800)

47-FORCE, or, drop a note at

Power and Wire Gauge

The wire you use for the power and ground connections of your amplifier

is

absolutely critical. The plain simple fact is that it takes power to deliver power. If

you do not provide the proper amount of 12V power to your amplifier, you will

never reach the full power potential of your amp. Take a look at the chart below.

If you want to have any respectable amount of power for your amp, you need an

4-gauge wire to the trunk as a bare minimum. If you are running any Zapco Zseries

amp in you trunk you need at least a 4 gauge wire. If you want enough

power to drive woofers, you’re certainly going to need at least a 2-gauge wire to

the rear.

Read, Use, and Enjoy

www.zapco.com

Up to
20 A
35 A
50 A
60 A
85 A
105 A
125 A
150 A

Recommended Wire Gauge

4 Ft

14
12
10

8
4
4
4
2

7 Ft

12
10

8
8
4
4
4
2

10 Ft

12

8
8
4
4
4
4
2

13 Ft

10

8
4
4
4
2
2
2

16 Ft

10

4
4
4
2
2
2
0

19 Ft

8
4
4
4
2
2
0
0

22 Ft

8
4
4
4
2
2
0
0

28 Ft

8
4
4
2
0
0
0
0

You can certainly save money by buying cheap small gauge wire, but

remember...It will cost you in power and may even damage your car by passing

too much current and causing shorts or even fires. Protect your investment in

Zapco amplifiers by using high quality, proper gauge wire.

And remember... Current in the amplifier runs in a complete circuit from the

battery to the amp and back to the battery through the chassis and frame. The

ground wire us just as important as the power input wire. Positive and Negative

connections must always use the same gauge wire.

Installation Guidelines

Mounting your Reference Amplifier is easy. Keep in mind the following

guidelines:

The amplifier may be mounted in any direction, on wood, metal or carpet.

The metal case of the amplifier may be grounded or left isolated.

The amplifier requires adequate ventilation. Position the amplifier with

sufficient surrounding area for proper cooling. Keep fan and vent

endplates clear for proper internal cooling.

-3-

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