Juba310 Posted June 7, 2005 Share Posted June 7, 2005 I'm going to be running an Orion XTR 2150 amp at 600watts x 1 @4ohms into a RE SX12 sub that is rated at 1000watts RMS @ 2ohms. I'm going to wire it in series in order to get the 4ohm load I need. What gauge speaker wire should I use for the amp to the box/sub? Is 12 gauge good, overkill, or still not enough? I trust the opinions on this board over any car audio forum Thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael hurd Posted June 7, 2005 Share Posted June 7, 2005 From the initial post, this driver has 2 4ohm coils, wiring them in series will get you a single 8 ohm load, wire them in parallel will net you a 2 ohm load. If you intend to run the amp as a single bridged channel, that is a bad idea, as a 2 ohm load in bridged configuration will run the risk of shutdown or damage. A single 8 ohm load will not get the most out of the amp, I would hang one voice coil off of each channel of the amp, and leave it configured as a 2 channel amp. 14 gauge will be fine, however 12 gauge is not really that much more expensive, so unless termination is very difficult, I'd use 12 gauge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jay481985 Posted June 8, 2005 Share Posted June 8, 2005 michael hurd what would you recommend for something running about 2000+ watts at 8 ohms? since it will use the standard 15 amp standard plug and not some 20 amp plugs some amps require, would 12 gauge suffice? I assume so since it is recommended even for a 20 amp standard plug to use just 12 gauge copper wire or 10 gauge aluminium. I doubt there would be any benefit using a 10 gauge copper speaker wire to internally wire the speakers when in fact my direct current from the outlet uses a 12 gauge copper wire? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juba310 Posted June 8, 2005 Author Share Posted June 8, 2005 As my luck turns out, they accidently sent me an RE SX sub, which is the next line up. This thing runs a DVC @ 2ohms, so running in series should give me a 4ohm load, perfect for my amp. I ordered 12gauge, as it was literally 2 dollars more for a 50 foot spool. Had to get the spool, nothing else was as cost efficient. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael hurd Posted June 8, 2005 Share Posted June 8, 2005 You should be able to buy 12 gauge wire in bulk from a retailer for around 75 cents a foot, in U.S funds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael hurd Posted June 8, 2005 Share Posted June 8, 2005 Jay, it really depends on the length of the wire and the impedance of the loudspeaker. Up to 60 feet ( 8 ohm nominal load ) is fine, any more than that, you will need 14 gauge. So, unless you are running 150 foot cable across a sound stage, to a 4 ohm subwoofer and are trying to put 2kw through it, 12 gauge should suffice quite fine. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juba310 Posted June 8, 2005 Author Share Posted June 8, 2005 I bought a 50' spool off parts express for just under 23 dollars. Also got a 4 gauge amp kit and 17' rca cable from them. SO much cheaper than buying from bestbuy, circuitcity, or radio shack. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frzninvt Posted June 8, 2005 Share Posted June 8, 2005 You don't have to wire the coils in series if you don't want to the XTR-2150 will deliver a minimum of 300W into a 2 ohm load stereo so that is a minimum of 600W total. So it is really the same as if you bridge the amp into a 4 ohm load which is 600W but divided by the two coils is 300W each. Keep in mind these ratings are at 12V, most vehicles run at about 13.8V so that amp is going to be putting out around 700-750W, hope you have a strong battery and good alternator. I was always told that wiring coils in series could make the sub sound a little boomy. If you need help configuring the jumpers in that amp for stereo or mono please let me know it can be tricky especially if you don't have the user manual. Is you deck going to be providing the crossover point or are you going to use the SLF-1 in the XTR-2150? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juba310 Posted June 8, 2005 Author Share Posted June 8, 2005 I don't see a xover dial anywhere on the XTR 2150, so I assume I will be using the headunit in its place. I'll post some pics of the amp so you can see what I mean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juba310 Posted June 8, 2005 Author Share Posted June 8, 2005 Heres the speaker and power side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juba310 Posted June 8, 2005 Author Share Posted June 8, 2005 Heres the RCA input side, gain, and DIN cable. What is the DIN cable's function? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frzninvt Posted June 8, 2005 Share Posted June 8, 2005 The crossover if it has one is under the cover plate. There should be an SLF-1 (crossover) and a bypass board in there. The SLF-1 has to be manually configured by arranging the jumper pins on them to configure the desired frequency. There are also some jumper pins just to the rear of where the SLF-1 & Bypass board reside that have to be correctly set for Stereo or Mono operation. If you intend on using the crossover in your deck you need to put the bypass board in the other slot. The reason for two slots is that amp can be used to slave another amp off the Aux outputs. The DIN plug was design to work with Orion crossovers and processors, it also provides the power to them so no additional wiring other than the 5-pin DIN plug is necessary. I'll PM you my phone # if you need to chat. I am currently using an XTR-2150 and XTR-450 in my system, mine are all beat up as they survived a vehicle rollover at about 90 MPH, they got smashed into the pavement since they were mounted to the sub box. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juba310 Posted June 8, 2005 Author Share Posted June 8, 2005 Thatd be great if you could PM me your number since I have no idea how to configure the jumpers for my needs (I see them though, under the pannel). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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