How do i hook a toogle switch up to one of my amps???

Question

I want to put an amp on all my speakers i have on the outside of my car. Thats no problem...the problem is i dont know how to put a toggle switch on the amp so i can turn it on and off. How do you hook up a toggle switch to an amp??

Answer 1

Place the toggle switch inline with the REMOTE wire from the headunit to the amp. This way the headunit needs to be turned on AND the switch needs to be turned on. If the car is shut off, the amp will turn off automatically, and if you don't want those speakers working, simply flip the switch to off, and the amp will turn off.

The REMOTE wire is an extremely low current supply to the amp, there is almost no load (less than 200ma), and you will find that the remote wire is usually a 16-20ga wire. No need for use of an interposing relay, and any toggle switch I've ever seen that you could purchase at the local autoparts store was rated for at least 10A.

Answer 2

Depending upon the current draw of the amplifier, you may also require an additional device to power the amplifier on. This is important! There are a number of factors that would make connecting power to an amplifier with just a switch inherently dangerous. So, check the power requirments for the amplifier, this should be on the box, or on a dataplate on the amp itself. You should see something like 12-15 VDC @20 amperes (just an example). Most toggle switches are rated at 15 amps, or less. Check the switch rating. If the rating on the switch is higher for example 20 amp. @ 24 VDC, it would be ok to use this switch. However you also need to match the supply wire gauge to the current draw requirements. This information is readily available at Wiki for example. Using a small gauge wire on a high draw component is a extreme fire hazard.

My recomendation would be to use a relay, in conjunction with a toggle switch, again check all the ratings for safety. But you can use a very low rated switch to operate a very high current capacity relay. In the end a much less expensive alternative to turning your car into a flaming ball due to underated components bursting into flame, or damaging equipment by not letting it draw enough current to operate properly.

Cheers, and good luck.

Answer 3

+12V to fuse, fuse to toggle, toggle to device, device to ground.