CCA vs 100% Copper

[chawski 10+ year member]

Hey guys, quick wiring question...

Im installing a small subwoofer amplifier (kenwood kfc not sure entire model number). Installation manual says 8g wire is fine. I want to run a 4g to make the option of upgrading down the road should I decide to a little easier. Ive been shopping around for some amp install kits and have seen a number of cheaper Copper Clad Aluminum kits at around 1/2 the price of pure copper wiring.

I realize that pure copper is going to be the ideal material for a high power system, but for something small (400watt area, I want to say 40amp fuse) would cca do the trick or should I really just go for the pure copper wire? I dont mind spending the extra for cheap insurance, but just want to check if its anything Id ever notice. For comparison, I had previously ran 8g (not sure if cca or pure copper) on my old car for around 8 years with the same amp and never had any issues that I could tell.

Click to read more...

 

[Kangaroux 5,000+ posts]

Just go with the OFC 4g it's really not that much more expensive

 

[n2audio 5,000+ posts]

In spite of what a lot of the brain dead sheep are going to try to tell you -- CCA is a PERFECTLY good conductor.

Be aware though that a lot of cheap brands will make wild power claims that are nowhere near realistic -- a lot like amps.

So, like amps, you can look at the fuse to determine what the wire is actually capable of handling.

If you want something close to 4 awg quality you should see at a minimum an 80A fuse. A good 4 awg equivalent cca kit should include a 100A mini/anl fuse.

 

[Boomsday 10+ year member]

not really gonna notice any difference with either as long as it is true to spec.

 

[Neily_OB_24]

Cca is fine for what you want if price is a problem but like he said ofc is better and better for your car. But cca will work fine with such low wattage also I would use 4ga or 0 anything smaller is a waste of money.

 

[Dmac1991]

True Full 4 AWG GA Gauge Complete Amp Amplifier Fused Blue Wire Wiring Kit | eBay

and for 400 rms, IDC what anyone says, you will see 0 performance difference between OFC and CCA

 

[chawski 10+ year member]

great! thanks guys

^Gonna get the one from that link!

 

[mrpep]

We use copper clad aluminum here at work and I have met the engineers that work at the factory where CCA is made and one thing that I do know is that CCA is 30% less conductive compared to solid copper. This was told to me directly from the mouth of the CCA engineers. Not sure if it will affect your system enough to notice but I personally would not use it.

 

[chawski 10+ year member]

yea but I think even at 30% loss, going to 4awg from the recommended 8 should still be more than sufficient. we shall see...