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| JL Audio - MHD600/4-24V Owner’s Manual
Power and turn-on connections
Before installing the amplifier, disconnect the
negative (ground) wire from the vessel’s battery.
This will prevent accidental damage to the system,
the vessel and your body during installation.
+24V battery connection
You will need to connect a power wire to
the vessel’s positive battery terminal, using an
appropriate power ring or specialized battery
terminal connector, such as the JL Audio
XB-BTU. This connection must be tight and
corrosion-free to ensure proper connectivity. This
wire MUST be fused appropriately for safety. Any
positive power wires run through metal, wood or
fiberglass barriers, must be protected with a high
quality insulating grommet to prevent damage
to the insulation of the wire. Failure to do so may
result in a dangerous short circuit.
Power wire requirements
The MHD600/4-24V’s “+24 VDC” and
“Ground” connections are designed to accept
8 to 4 AWG power wire. 8 AWG pure copper
wire is the minimum recommended wire size
for this amplifier. Use of smaller gauge wire
(including cheap wire that is fraudulently sold
as 8 AWG wire) can create a fire hazard.
If you are installing the MDH600/4-24V with
other amplifiers and wish to use a single main
power wire, use 4 AWG, 2 AWG or 1/0 AWG pure
copper wire as a main power wire. This larger
power wire should terminate into a distribution
block mounted as close to the amplifiers as
possible and should connect to the MDH600/4-
24V with 8 AWG pure copper power wire, with
each smaller wire fused appropriately for each
amplifier or other electronics in the system.
Please note that lower AWG numbers mean
bigger wire and vice-versa (1/0 AWG is the largest,
2 AWG is smaller, then 4 AWG, then 8 AWG, etc.).
We do not recommend the use of “copper-clad
aluminum wire” or “CCA” wire because this
wire is significantly less conductive than pure
copper wire. Only use pure copper power wire,
such as JL Audio Premium Power Wire. Tinned
copper wire (silver color) is desirable as the tin-
plating is only a very minor component of the
wire and provides corrosion resistance.
Fuse requirements
The installation of a fuse on the main power
wire, within 18 wire inches (45 cm) of the positive
battery terminal is vital to protect the wire and
the vehicle from fire in the event of a collision
or short-circuit. The fuse value at each power
wire should be just high enough for all of the
equipment being run from that power wire. Do
not use a fuse with a value that far exceeds the
total fuse rating of the electronics connected to
the wire.
If only the MHD600/4-24V is being run
from that power wire, we recommend a
25A fuse be used. AGU (big glass fuse). AFS
(small blade fuse) or MaxiFuse™ (big plastic-
body fuse) types are recommended.
If other amplifiers are also being powered from
a main power wire and exceed 80 amps in total
fuse rating, we recommend the use of an ANL
(large-blade) fuse and holder to protect the main
wire and a fused distribution block to protect the
individual power wires feeding the amplifiers.
Please consult with your JL Audio
dealer to make sure that the wire, fuse
holder and fuse ratings are appropriate
for your system’s needs. The safety of
your installation depends on appropriate
power connections and fuse protection.
ground connection
The ground connection should be made using
the same gauge wire as the power connection.
It is common for the alternator to be grounded
through its chassis. If the alternator is not
grounded through its chassis and instead employs
a small (10 AWG - 6 AWG) wire to connect to
ground, this wire should also be upgraded to 4
AWG when installing amplifier systems with main
fuse ratings above 60A.
Summary of Contents for MHD600/4-24V
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