Copper Combat: Impedance Testing the Top 1/0 AWG Wire Brands!
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- Опубліковано 6 жов 2024
- I've seen a lot of folks cutting open various brands of wire and weighing the copper, but not all copper is created equally. Even a .05% impurity in copper wire (arsenic, phosphor) can reduce its ability to carry current by over 15%.
In this video I test the impedance of several of the most popular brands of 1/0 (and one 2/0) and graph out an estimate of what that means for your voltage when you're feeding high-wattage amplifiers.
1. KnuKonceptz Kolossus Fleks 1/0 Tinned OFC
2. Sky High 1/0 Tinned OFC
3. Down4Sound 1/0 Tinned OFC
4. EB Flex 1/0 OFC - Welding
5. EB Flex 2/0 OFC - Welding
6. Windy Nation 1/0 OFC - Welding
7. KnuKonceptz Basik 1/0 CCA
8. KnuKonceptz KCA 1/0 CCA
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Thanks for the 101! I wpuld ha e loved to see TemCo in that test as well. Maybe next time.
You're not the first person to say that - so I went and bought some. I'll be posting a third copper combat video soon with updated results including Temco 1/0 awg welding wire.
7 years using the EB Flex 2/0 and still good as day 1
I've been using it for quite a bit, too!
Super interesting. Cool tests. Great visualization. Well done.
Thank you!
good information, thank you for taking the time and posting the results
Glad it was helpful!
It is really difficult to measure accurately the resistance of high current cables of short length. The minimum length even for automotive applications testing (battery cable) is around 6 feet. To do a good comparison you need to terminate each cable with a crimped lug (hydraulic crimper with long barrel lug with a triple crimp). Then you need to have a high current low resistance measurement device, like a Megger DLRO10HD Digital Low-Resistance Ohmmeter which has a 10 Amp range, which for 1/0 wire is on the low side, but will work (you might want to move to a 100A tester).
The tester is connected to test blocks (make sure the blocks (tinned copper bus bar) and lugs are clean) to which the cable under test lugs are screwed to (A torque wrench is used to tighten the bolts usually 3/8 inch bolt, but could be 1/2 inch). You also have a very short thick cross section shorting bar to see what the resistance is of the test setup. You usually have the test setup rigidly mounted to a wood or plastic base so it cannot move when you swap in and out the different cables. It would be good to have two of each cable type to confirm consistency of the crimpsl
Testing cable should be done at the circuit rated voltage and current (which at times is very hard to simulate) and the type of signal waveform, momentarily applied as to not allow the cable to heat up, and then resistance measured.
A huge variable in the test in the video is your Allen screw connection block. These connection blocks are very poor at consistent low ohm connections the are not very repeatable, you could try using a ferrule to get a slightly better connection. You should always use a screw connection crimped lug for large sized stranded wire, with the lug being crimped to specification with the proper matching hydraulic tool and die. If you use a general purpose hydraulic crimper you should cut the crimps open to reveal the crimp cross sectional profile in relation to the copper strands for inspection. Hex crimps will work just fine, but round crimps are really the best type. However, the crimper and dies are rather expensive.
A distinguishing factor between the larger 1/0 cables is the number of strands, the quality of the copper used, the performance of the jacket and if the individual copper strands are tin plated.
I just got a new tool specifically for this, and will be uploading the new test video shortly. Can measure down to .00001 ohms DC resistance now and it's amazing.
Great video that explains a lot and it’s just what I assume the answer would come out to be 2/0 EB flex is great for car audio. Thank you.
EB 2/0 is what I use personally.
Awesome test!
Thank you!
thanks for sharing bro, this is going to be shared a bunch!
Awesome thank you!
Cool vid
🫡
Seth, can you post a link to that meter? Also, recommend a lead setup so one could measure resistance maybe 25' apart? We could always wing it, but input would probably help the viewers.
I use 3 runs 4/0 EB flex 💪🏽 positive. 3 negative runs. Best bang for the money
For sure.
I enjoyed the video and learned something from your teaching method. Do you have a way to do a voltage drop test using a car battery an amplifier playing a test tone, using a voltmeter?
This wouldn't be too difficult -- you would just need to measure the voltage at the battery terminal, and use a second dmm (that's calibrated with the first) at the inputs of the amplifier itself.
Just wondering if there was a purpose to stripping all those wires and tightening them into the blocks to read the resistance couldn’t you have just stuffed the probes in to the ends of the unstripped wire?? Not busting balls just wondering if there was something else to that
Kelvin clips aren’t going to attach well to wire this thick.
Well from what I saw he was tightening the wire down into the blocks he was using and still stabbing the probes into the wire I just thought he could have stabbed to probes directly into the unstripped wire and got the same results that why I was asking was there something else to it that made him test with the wire in the blocks
Multiple 500 Amp runs? Power levels are getting out of hand.
I sure hope you guys are very careful when the gear is fully powered up!
Cheers!
500 amps isn’t much anymore.. we have two batteries that can easily exceed 500a (and maintain it) without falling below 12v.
Check out some of our recent videos. The Glowe Voltage Series 2 is 48ah and can discharge 535a.
The Series 3 is 20ah capacity but can discharge 720 amps.
I wonder how the windy nation 2/0 or larger does. I normally use 2/0 welding wire but I also have quite a bit of the windy 2/0 I got from a warehouse deal then some 4/0 from a similar deal only 20 ft of that and havent used any of it yet.
I always figured since sky high claims theyve got 13mm of wire it wasnt actually 1/0 but Ive never gotten to measure it IRL larger than 1/0 though for sure.
Isnt pure copper wire supposed to be rated at about .3mohm per meter?
0.09827 milliohms is 1/0 awg copper wire per foot, officially.
been using sky high my whole life was hoping it would be good
Wow, that's kinda crazy.. I don't think this was the same stuff, though. This was tinned, only non-tinned is going to show the green corrosion etc.
right yeah all I use is the ofc tinned I ran cca once and the jacket started to melt from the alt to batt a wire once I put in all ofc tinned never had that issue again @@GloweIndustries
When did sky-high come out with tinned copper wire?
Sky-high also will not tell u the strained count.. I use tinned ofc from knu koncepts.. very flexible and tinned.. bought a bunch like 7-8 years ago
idk, but it's definitely listed on their website.
yeah skyhigh 1/0 ofc tinned is very flexible too all I use and all I install in my buddies vehicles
Does the Tinned Sky High 1/0 appear to be oversized? I have heard that before... I wonder if thats why it performed so well...
Yes, for sure.
Yea it's definitely oversized as is the ebflex 2/0. Knu kollosus ofc is the largest you can still fit in a normal off the self copper lug from my experience after that you have to go the 2/0
yeah I did my whole system in skyhigh and used 1/0 cable lugs and almost always gotta cut couple strands for it to even fit the 1/0 lugs
You are missing a lot of the top brands. Where is American Bass, Stinger, Kicker and Audiopipe? Just to name a few
These are the most commonly used on the FB groups I frequent, I guess.
I do have more wire now, though. I'll be testing SHCA 4/0 OFC, I already did the 4/0 cca in a newer video, too. Next will be Temco, (already obtained) and anyone else who would wants to send some for testing.
GUESS WHAT IT Doesnt matter Because Laying 400LBS of wire through your suv is Extremely Lame And New 2 piece Amplifiers Are on the way. We're the power supply goes under the hood or in kickpanel and main amp goes in trunk leaving only 2 feet of o Guage wire to supply and then only 8 Guage of high voltage wire to amp in trunk
1/0 copper wire weighs about .4 pounds a foot.
400 pounds would be.. 1000 feet of wire. That’s intense!
you can just push the meter probes into the open end of the wire.
Not and get a steady reading.. have you tried that?? I tried.
@@GloweIndustries no, i only have $6 dmm (and antiques), and coukdnt waste the $ on the scrap wiring. i would just buy welding cable from: wire and cable your way.
i'm still using *30yr old cables that have been i 3 different auto's
should of used a electric screw driver or atleast used it then tighted it with the allen wrench at the end time consuming using the Allen 😂
You're not wrong!
Appreciate the info but wouldn’t the true real world test be load till fail. The test you are doing slight change in temperature can change resistance.
We don't want to see any fail. Alot of people love to quote the nec ampacity rating but fail to mention that nec only allows use of 80% capacity of the wire. Nec needs that safety factory due to legal issues in a car things are different
Good thing they were all the same temperature then for comparative reference.
I was actually interested but your camera holds the exact same manner of quality as your beard does. Very bad quality I can't see the meter I can't see any weighting as it says your camera quality is 360. Shoot I had two people give me 4 k cameras for free. So how do you rate among people. It's kinda just all bad
This was uploaded in 720p.
If the resolution is poor, it’s on your end. 😉
Also what’s with the personal attacks? Can you show me on a doll where the internet touched you?
Great test. Horrible hoodie! Lol
Go Bucks!
Boooooo Go Canes! Y'all robbed us of one in 2002! 🤬@@GloweIndustries