Best Amp Wiring Kit of 2024, Tested and Reviewed

Like any other car audio equipment, you need a few wires to install a car amp.

It includes power wire, ground wire, turn-on wire, RCA cables, and speaker wire.

Each of these wires serves a different purpose. The power wire connects the amp to the battery. The turn-on wire turns the amp on when you start the car.

Similarly, the RCA cables connect a 3rd-party head unit to your new amp. And the speaker wires connect the amp to the speakers/sub.

Lastly, we have the ground wire. This wire is used for protection against electrical overload and to stabilize the voltage levels.

None of them comes with an aftermarket car amplifier, and you’ll have to buy them yourself.

But picking them one by one is tedious – especially when you have to consider their gauges too.

So, if you’re short on time and have no idea about these wires/connectors, you can go for an amp wiring kit.

An amp wiring kit is sort of a one-stop solution that contains all the wires/connectors you’ll need when installing a car amplifier.

With that said, you’ll still have to arrange some additional generic tools, such as wire strippers, wire cutters, and wire crimpers, by yourself.

BOSS Audio Systems KIT2 – Best 8 Gauge Amp Wiring Kit

The BOSS KIT2 is a budget amp wiring kit that can be used with entry-level amps (500W, 600W, and 800W).

This kit includes:

• One 20-ft. long 8-ga CCA power cable with a fuse holder
• One 3-ft. long 8-ga ground cable
• One 30-ft. long 16-ga speaker wire
• One 20-ft. long 2-channel RCA cable
• One 6-ft. long split loom tubing
• One 18-ft. long turn-on wire
• Three Rubber grommets, Twenty zip ties, with 5/16″ and 1/4″ ring terminals.

The biggest surprise for me in this kit is the inclusion of split loom tubing. It protects the power wire against different types of physical damage.

The only downside, in my opinion, is that the power/ground wires are CCA, not the OFC. But this is not a dealbreaker as BOSS Audio has tried to keep the overall costs down. As you’ll learn later in this post, OFC wires perform slightly better but come with a premium price tag.

KnuKonceptz Kolossus KOL-AK4 – Best 4 Gauge Amp Wiring Kit

The KOL-AK4 is a medium-priced wiring kit suitable for 1000-1200W amps.

To be specific, you get:

• One 18-ft. long 4-ga OFC power cable
• One 3ft. long 4-ga OFC ground cable
• One 20-ft. long 12-ga speaker wire
• One 16.5-ft. long 2-channel shielded RCA cable
• One 16-ft. long 18-ga OFC remote wire
• One mini-ANL fuse holder with a 120A fuse
• Two gold-plated 4-ga ring terminals
• Two gold-plated 4-ga spade terminals

If we talk about the power wire, 18-ft is a distance long enough for most vehicles. But if you have a super-long car you may have to adjust your amp location to shorten the distance.

The same goes for ground wire since you can easily find a good grounding location (or make one by yourself) within 3ft. of your amp. With that said, you should cut the excessive wire if you find a grounding point closer to the amp.

The speaker wire will go from your head unit/active line-out converter to the amp. If you manage to connect these devices with less distance, don’t be afraid to remove the excess wire.

You get a 2-channel RCA cable as well, but this is only suitable for a 2-channel amp. In case you’re using a 4-channel amp, you’ll need another such 2-channel channel. Or a new 4-channel RCA cable altogether.

The single minor downside I found in this kit is the grommet. It’s not as sturdy as I would have liked and can get broken when you apply some force.

Other than that, it’s a perfect 4-gauge amp wiring kit.

SKAR Audio SKAR0ANL-OFC – Best 0 Gauge Amp Wiring Kit

The SKAR0ANL-OFC is a premium wiring kit and is suitable if you’re installing a 1500 Watt, 2000 Watt, or 3000 Watt amp in your car.

Its main highlights are:

• One 17-ft, long 1/0-ga OFC power cable
• One 3ft. long 1/0-ga OFC ground cable
• One 20-ft. long 12-ga speaker wire
• One 17-ft. long 2-channel RCA cable
• One 17-ft. long OFC remote wire
• One 3-ft. long wire loom
• One ANL fuse holder with a 300A fuse
• Ring terminals
• Ground terminals
• Vinyl cable ties

The lack of extra grommets and 2-channel RCA cables were the only issues I could think of in this kit. On the other hand, I liked the addition of wire loom and butt connector.

Also, since both power and ground wires are of 1/0-ga, you can cut the extra wire and use it for the big 3 upgrade.

Rockford Fosgate RFK4D – Best Dual Amp Wiring Kit

The installation process gets a little complicated if you’re dealing with two amplifiers. In such a situation, you need a dual amp wiring kit, such as the Rockford RFK4D.

This kit includes:

• A 17-ft. long power cable (4-ga) with built-in inline fuse
• A 3-ft. long ground cable (4-ga)
• A 6-ft. long power cable (8-ga)
• A 6-ft. long ground cable (8-ga)
• Two fuse distribution blocks (One 4-ga in/three 8-ga out)
• Two 16-ft. RCA cables
• A 30-ft. long speaker wire (16-ga)
• A 20-ft. long remote turn-on wire
• Other accessories: cable ties, 100A MAXI fuse, plastic grommet, butt connectors, spade connectors, etc.

All in all, you should go for this kit if you have two 800W-1000W amps.

Things to Look For in an Amp Wiring Kit

Now that we’ve covered the best amp wiring kits, let’s talk about the features you should look for when buying such a kit.

Types of wires: OFC vs. CCA

The first thing you should look for in an amp kit is the type of power and ground wires.

The first type is the OFC (Oxygen-Free Copper) wires. These wires are made up of 100% copper. Usually, they have a corrosion-resistant layer on top of the strands for extra durability.

The second type is the CCA (Copper-Clad Aluminum) wires. These wires are lighter than the OFC wires. It is because CCA wires consist of 90% aluminum and only 10% copper.

The main thing that goes in the favor of CCA wires is the price. Since aluminum is cheaper than copper, CCA wires are not as expensive. And it makes them a favorite among budget car audio systems.

As far as the performance goes, the difference between these two types is not huge. But the CCA wires don’t allow much current to pass through when they overheat.

Wire Gauge

Like wire type, the gauge is also specific to the power and ground wires. You can think of wire gauge as its size/thickness. The lower gauge wires (4-ga) will be thicker than the high-gauge wires (8-ga) and deliver more current. Choosing the wrong gauge for these wires can affect the power delivery of your amp.

What gauge wires you need will depend on your car audio system’s current consumption.

In-line Fuse

Since the car amp is connected to the battery, a power surge due to any reason (maybe a short circuit) can damage the power wire and can even make it catch fire.

To avoid such a hazardous situation, you need an in-line fuse on your power wire. The fuse should be located as close to the battery as possible. So that less wire is damaged in such an accident.

But before installing the fuse, we’ll have to choose its correct size aka. fuse rating.

The rating of your in-line fuse should be the sum of all the Amplifier’s built-in fuses’ ratings you have installed. For example, if you have two amps installed in your car using 90A and 30A fuses, you’ll need a 120A in-line fuse on the power wire.

You can check out our post on finding the correct size for an amp fuse if you’re more interested.

Other Accessories

Apart from fuses and wires, there are some other accessories you’ll need while installing an amplifier.

These accessories include zip ties, butt connectors, grommets, etc. While seemingly trivial, each of them has a well-defined purpose.

For example, the zip-ties prevent the power wire from touching the vehicle body (as it can cause short-circuiting).

Similarly, butt connectors secure the remote wire connections. And the grommets come in handy if you’re making a new hole in your vehicle’s firewall to pass the power wire from the engine bay to the main compartment.

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