FCar2000TA

iTrader: (7)

I am trying to figure out what the best gauge speaker wire is to run my doors at 100W RMS with the amp in the back.

Would 14 gauge Oxygen-free Copper get the job done? I feel like 14 gauge is overkill, but the price is good.

JonAdkins

14 Gauge is perfect for that. Always good to have a little head room.

WhiteBird00

iTrader: (4)

Yes, 14 gauge will give you plenty of headroom and is fine if you can get it cheap and you don't mind the stiffness and diameter for routing the wires. But 16 gauge is more than enough for 100W output. You will lose only 0.34 dB at 20 feet into a 4-ohm load... that's inaudible to the human ear (14 gauge wire will lose 0.22 dB in the same situation so the difference is minimal). Now, if you plan on upgrading to 500W at some point then going larger now will avoid future rewiring.

FCar2000TA

iTrader: (7)

When I do a sub down the road (300W RMS) I will use 12 or 10 gauge.

WhiteBird00

iTrader: (4)

That is certainly your prerogative but it's huge overkill. Assuming about 5 feet of wire (sub in the back near the amp), 300W output through 14 gauge wire would lose only 0.05 dB... not even worth calculating.

FCar2000TA

iTrader: (7)

I figured 14 was over kill, but I got 100ft of it for less than $30.

For now, I'm going to have 90W to 6.75 components in the doors, 90W to 6.75 mid-bass in the sails, and @60W to 5.25 components in the hatch (i will turn that down as needed). I know.. I am breaking the rules by putting components in the hatch, but I do not like front staging.

FCar2000TA

iTrader: (7)

OH! Maybe I will have enough of the 14 left over. I will only need a few ft for the sub.