copper vs copper clad aluminum
04-17-2010, 02:27 AM
#12
A pure copper cable and a CCA cable were measured and proved to be "full-spec" 4-gauge as determined by the American Wire Gauge chart. The second pure copper cable is sold as 4-gauge but is about 10 percent under spec in strand count and diameter. It's also less expensive than the full-spec copper, so that may be an indication for the buyer to pay attention.
If you're reading CA&E, you probably already know that resistance in a conductor causes a loss of power in that conductor, in terms of voltage and/or current. It also can become a source of heat if the resistance and amount of power delivered arehigh enough. A quick Ohm's law refresher reminds us that E*I = P or, for those not familiar with the symbols, voltage multiplied by current equals power. So if we want to maximize the ability of our amplifier to make power, we need to maximize the voltage and current that supplies it. Any amount of resistance in the conductor delivering that voltage and current becomes a limiting factor to maximumpower delivery
Each cable was exactly 20' in length and the heating test involved passing 100A of current through it for a 30-minute duration. This is a severe condition but not impossible to duplicate in large systems. The ambient temperature and the start temp of each cable was 76F (see measurements below).
ConclusionAt this point you might be thinking that CCA wire is bad and shouldn't be used, but that's not the case. We've done extensive testing on CCA wire for several manufacturers and our results show that it can work very well for all but the highest current applications. Because of the additional resistance you simply can't substitute the same gauge CCA wire for the traditional gauge copper wire. Our strong recommendation would be to simply use one gauge larger size of the CCA cable than the copper cable.
That being said, if you compensate for the increased resistance in the CCA cable by going to the next larger gauge size, you'll probably end up with equal or maybe even less resistance than the smaller gauge pure copper. But along with an increase in cable size comes an increase in price. This could mean little difference in bottom line prices between comparable copper and a +1-gauge in CCA, so be aware of whatyou're buying.
WIRE SPEC POWER DEVELOPED @ CLIPPING FULL SPEC - 4-GAUGE PURE COPPER 1,783 watts BELOW SPEC - 4-GAUGE PURE COPPER 1,705 watts FULL SPEC - 4-GAUGE CCA WIRE 1,631 watts
stole that from caraudiomag.com
my vote goes to CCA
If you're reading CA&E, you probably already know that resistance in a conductor causes a loss of power in that conductor, in terms of voltage and/or current. It also can become a source of heat if the resistance and amount of power delivered arehigh enough. A quick Ohm's law refresher reminds us that E*I = P or, for those not familiar with the symbols, voltage multiplied by current equals power. So if we want to maximize the ability of our amplifier to make power, we need to maximize the voltage and current that supplies it. Any amount of resistance in the conductor delivering that voltage and current becomes a limiting factor to maximumpower delivery
Each cable was exactly 20' in length and the heating test involved passing 100A of current through it for a 30-minute duration. This is a severe condition but not impossible to duplicate in large systems. The ambient temperature and the start temp of each cable was 76F (see measurements below).
ConclusionAt this point you might be thinking that CCA wire is bad and shouldn't be used, but that's not the case. We've done extensive testing on CCA wire for several manufacturers and our results show that it can work very well for all but the highest current applications. Because of the additional resistance you simply can't substitute the same gauge CCA wire for the traditional gauge copper wire. Our strong recommendation would be to simply use one gauge larger size of the CCA cable than the copper cable.
That being said, if you compensate for the increased resistance in the CCA cable by going to the next larger gauge size, you'll probably end up with equal or maybe even less resistance than the smaller gauge pure copper. But along with an increase in cable size comes an increase in price. This could mean little difference in bottom line prices between comparable copper and a +1-gauge in CCA, so be aware of whatyou're buying.
WIRE SPEC POWER DEVELOPED @ CLIPPING FULL SPEC - 4-GAUGE PURE COPPER 1,783 watts BELOW SPEC - 4-GAUGE PURE COPPER 1,705 watts FULL SPEC - 4-GAUGE CCA WIRE 1,631 watts
stole that from caraudiomag.com
my vote goes to CCA
04-17-2010, 03:42 AM
#13
0 Watt CAFz'r
Join Date: Sep 2008
Posts: 9
The stranding of wire is for flexibility yes, but also for something calling "Skin effect" where-as electricity doesn't travel THROUGH a wire (In this case a single strand of wire) it travels around the outside layer. Think of it like a skate boarder riding a rail down a set of stairs. Thus, the more strands you have, the more surface area the electricity has to move over, which at the end of the day (wire?) means less resistance!!
04-17-2010, 10:58 AM
#16
A pure copper cable and a CCA cable were measured and proved to be "full-spec" 4-gauge as determined by the American Wire Gauge chart. The second pure copper cable is sold as 4-gauge but is about 10 percent under spec in strand count and diameter. It's also less expensive than the full-spec copper, so that may be an indication for the buyer to pay attention.
If you're reading CA&E, you probably already know that resistance in a conductor causes a loss of power in that conductor, in terms of voltage and/or current. It also can become a source of heat if the resistance and amount of power delivered arehigh enough. A quick Ohm's law refresher reminds us that E*I = P or, for those not familiar with the symbols, voltage multiplied by current equals power. So if we want to maximize the ability of our amplifier to make power, we need to maximize the voltage and current that supplies it. Any amount of resistance in the conductor delivering that voltage and current becomes a limiting factor to maximumpower delivery
Each cable was exactly 20' in length and the heating test involved passing 100A of current through it for a 30-minute duration. This is a severe condition but not impossible to duplicate in large systems. The ambient temperature and the start temp of each cable was 76F (see measurements below).
ConclusionAt this point you might be thinking that CCA wire is bad and shouldn't be used, but that's not the case. We've done extensive testing on CCA wire for several manufacturers and our results show that it can work very well for all but the highest current applications. Because of the additional resistance you simply can't substitute the same gauge CCA wire for the traditional gauge copper wire. Our strong recommendation would be to simply use one gauge larger size of the CCA cable than the copper cable.
That being said, if you compensate for the increased resistance in the CCA cable by going to the next larger gauge size, you'll probably end up with equal or maybe even less resistance than the smaller gauge pure copper. But along with an increase in cable size comes an increase in price. This could mean little difference in bottom line prices between comparable copper and a +1-gauge in CCA, so be aware of whatyou're buying.
WIRE SPEC POWER DEVELOPED @ CLIPPING FULL SPEC - 4-GAUGE PURE COPPER 1,783 watts BELOW SPEC - 4-GAUGE PURE COPPER 1,705 watts FULL SPEC - 4-GAUGE CCA WIRE 1,631 watts
stole that from caraudiomag.com
my vote goes to CCA
If you're reading CA&E, you probably already know that resistance in a conductor causes a loss of power in that conductor, in terms of voltage and/or current. It also can become a source of heat if the resistance and amount of power delivered arehigh enough. A quick Ohm's law refresher reminds us that E*I = P or, for those not familiar with the symbols, voltage multiplied by current equals power. So if we want to maximize the ability of our amplifier to make power, we need to maximize the voltage and current that supplies it. Any amount of resistance in the conductor delivering that voltage and current becomes a limiting factor to maximumpower delivery
Each cable was exactly 20' in length and the heating test involved passing 100A of current through it for a 30-minute duration. This is a severe condition but not impossible to duplicate in large systems. The ambient temperature and the start temp of each cable was 76F (see measurements below).
ConclusionAt this point you might be thinking that CCA wire is bad and shouldn't be used, but that's not the case. We've done extensive testing on CCA wire for several manufacturers and our results show that it can work very well for all but the highest current applications. Because of the additional resistance you simply can't substitute the same gauge CCA wire for the traditional gauge copper wire. Our strong recommendation would be to simply use one gauge larger size of the CCA cable than the copper cable.
That being said, if you compensate for the increased resistance in the CCA cable by going to the next larger gauge size, you'll probably end up with equal or maybe even less resistance than the smaller gauge pure copper. But along with an increase in cable size comes an increase in price. This could mean little difference in bottom line prices between comparable copper and a +1-gauge in CCA, so be aware of whatyou're buying.
WIRE SPEC POWER DEVELOPED @ CLIPPING FULL SPEC - 4-GAUGE PURE COPPER 1,783 watts BELOW SPEC - 4-GAUGE PURE COPPER 1,705 watts FULL SPEC - 4-GAUGE CCA WIRE 1,631 watts
stole that from caraudiomag.com
my vote goes to CCA
04-17-2010, 10:23 PM
#18
Yankee
Join Date: Oct 2003
Posts: 3,599
Gents... there is a misconception in this thread (zoomer, fresh1) that copper has less resistance than aluminum... I dont think you will ever see a resistive difference in any realistic application between copper or aluminum in an automotive application
COPPER just conducts more current than aluminum, you need more aluminum cross-section to conduct as much current as copper (in other words a copper 4 gauge power cable conducts more current than an aluminum 4 gauge)
COPPER just conducts more current than aluminum, you need more aluminum cross-section to conduct as much current as copper (in other words a copper 4 gauge power cable conducts more current than an aluminum 4 gauge)
04-18-2010, 02:52 AM
#20
I didn't mean for it to look like I was misled, but I mean, breaking down the terms to their most basic meanings I would see where the idea could come about where copper has less resistance. but at the same time, I copied my post from another site, and I'm more interested in the conductive capabilities versus their resistance or "restrictive properties". just thought I'd clarify Johnny 
