Socapex AWG

M

Marc Hayes

Freshman
Jan 12, 2011
59
0
6
Quad Cities, IL/IA
www.tnprod.com
Im working to simplify my lighting rig in terms of power distribution and want to move to adding Socapex to the rig. Question is, can I get away with 16awg/18cond or is it preferred to stick with 12awg/14cond? Longest run I'd ever be running would be 175'. I run mainly 500w Pars that would be two-fered, so 1000w per channel. For the non-dimming channel usage, we run mainly LED moving heads and Mac750's. According to ampacity charts, I'm right at that 10amp cut off for 16awg wire. Then factor in the 175' run and I'm concerned we're on the brink of the 16/18. Am I right??

I wont be using this Soca for audio at all. Audio has its own trunk of Soca, so I dont need to worry about maintaining 18 conductors.

Thoughts?

Thanks!!
 
Re: Socapex AWG

Bite the bullet and get the 12ga.

First, for anything over a few feet, I really suggest you go with 12ga. Cable loss plays a big role, especially over 50 feet. Second, soca is assumed to be 12ga most of the time. Third, (though I'm not read on this one - someone who knows better, please chime in) if it's only rated as 10a, then you probably shouldn't have any connector rated for higher than 10a attached to it per code. Two and Three combined mean that from a safety perspective, it's not advisable.

There are more reasons and more articulate responses, but for power you really should go with 12 ga.

EDIT: Also, I've always preferred 12/18, except when carrying it.
 
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