gauge of speaker wire needed for power?

[Jfs]

Does anyone have information on the size (gauge) of wire needed
compared to power and length of cable used. Will a bigger power
amp need a bigger size cable. I will not need anything over 200
watts?

Thanks

 

[highfigh]

Does anyone have information on the size (gauge) of wire needed
compared to power and length of cable used. Will a bigger power
amp need a bigger size cable. I will not need anything over 200
watts?

Thanks

The gauge is more dependent on how much current it needs to conduct without cause voltage drop. How far are you going with it? If it's less than 50', 14ga is fine for most applications. Larger won't hurt anything.

 

[Rickster71]

Does anyone have information on the size (gauge) of wire needed
compared to power and length of cable used. Will a bigger power
amp need a bigger size cable. I will not need anything over 200
watts?

Thanks

There are three things to consider, you've only mentioned two. The third is Load, or the Ohm rating of your speakers. (Usually the true Ohm rating is lower than what is printed on the speaker)

This chart lays it out simply:
http://www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm#wiretable
Just match up the speaker impedance column with the wire length.

here is another from Audioholics:
http://www.audioholics.com/education/cables/speaker-cable-gauge

 

[Jfs]

As far as I see these charts mention impedance and wire length. How much would the watts output be a consideration?

Thanks

 

[highfigh]

As far as I see these charts mention impedance and wire length. How much would the watts output be a consideration?

Thanks

Not much, really. Wire needs to conduct current, which is like water flow rate. Voltage is like water pressure. If you have a thin wire, you'll have all kinds of pressure and it won't flow many gallons/hour. A longer wire will compound the problem and that's why long runs need heavier cable.

FYI- with an 8 Ohm load, 100W will show 28.3VAC and 200W won't be much more. That comes to only a few Amperes (I=P/E). Here's a link to the Ohm's Law chart:
http://hvacwebtech.com/images/pie.gif

Here'a a link for all kinds of other info:
http://www.roger-russell.com/wire/wire.htm