KL 203P install, first timer

[ND88]

So I finally decided on the amp I'm getting and I'm ready to order it. Just had a few questions first...

I plan to just stick my KL 203P under the seat. Does anyone know how long the power cord is on this amp? I am hoping it is long enough to run it straight to the battery. What all will I need to do this in addition to ordering the amp?
if the cord isn't long enough can I run the power to the fuse panel like I did my radio?

I already have a 3ft jumper coax cable that i bought for my swr meter that i will be using to hook the radio to the amp.

thanks, please give me suggestions on what to buy with my amp, like if i will need extra wiring, cable, etc.

 

[tba02]

The power cord is about 6 inches, EDIT - 14 gauge wire - EDIT

Under heavy modulation it draws very close to 10 amps.

You will want 10/12/14 gauge wire that is appropriate for the length of the run and appropriate connectors.

Run as short a ground wire as possible. Some will say feed direct from the battery, others will say they have no problems running from the fuse box. Knowing it does draw 10 amps, I would not consider any cigarette lighter configuration unless you know it has been wired for the load (and even then).

If I had an open slot that I know could handle 20+ amps I'd consider that depending on the vehicle.

The amp has an internal fuse but I have added an external 15a ATO/ATC inline on the positive side.

Add a PC style muffin fan (switched if you wish) as any longer conversations generate a good deal of heat within the amp.
M42Duster and others have used drywall anchors to attach a fan with success.

ETA - corrected wire gauge from amp from 12 to 14

 

[9C1Driver]

Once you have this done run the KL203 correctly. The RM amplifier are very much low drive light duty units. For AM a dead key of 1 watt with a 8-14 watts peak works well. And on SSB again, 8-14 watts PEP will be plenty. Make sure the heat sink has proper air circulation and you might end up adding a fan in the near future.

I think the KL203 is some good bang for the buck. Unfortunatly too many people overdrive them and burn em up. At that point it's a throw away amp, or sell it on e-bay as fix-n-repair for 20 bucks. Have fun.

 

[ND88]

I'll be running a stock galaxy 959 with it. I can adjust the deadkey down to 1 watt with the rf powe knob. Thanks for the suggestion, this amp should pair well with my radio.

Also, I'm not sure what the proper connectors are. This is all new to me.

Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk 2

 

[Lil'Yeshua]

Wire Size Calculator
I would run mine straight to the battery. My car's service manual says to run any electrical ad ons straight to the battery and not to the fuse box. I wouldn't depend too much on trying to tap in to the fuse box unless there maybe a auxiliary position to tap into.

P.S. You don't want to melt any wires in the car's wiring harness. They could short over to a ground wire and that would be nasty.

 

[Nick23]

Go to Xforce's website. They have an amp hookup 101 guide( I think the link is on the left side of the page). Also they sell 10ga hookup kits.

 

[9C1Driver]

Wire Size Calculator
I would run mine straight to the battery. My car's service manual says to run any electrical ad ons straight to the battery and not to the fuse box. I wouldn't depend too much on trying to tap in to the fuse box unless there maybe a auxiliary position to tap into.

P.S. You don't want to melt any wires in the car's wiring harness. They could short over to a ground wire and that would be nasty.

Run the red straight to the battery........run the black to a front seat post or the fire wall. There you go.

 

[cbradiomagazine.com]

Running direct to the battery is the best way to go. Adding a fuse at the battery is a good idea as well.

I'm actually planning on doing up a couple of graphic diagrams about how to hook up equipment since it's such a common question.

The KL203P powr wires are short, you will need to buy wire. Don't go to the hardware store, they will have stiff wire. You want car stereo power wire as it is designed to be flexible for people who put stereo amplifiers in cars etc.

Go at least one gauge up from the KL203P, so if it uses 14g maybe go with 10 or 12. Larger is better.

I run my ground wire direct to the battery lead as well.

For running wire from the engine compartment to the cab of your vehicle look for a rubber boot type cover that has a hole in it where wires go through or your hood release goes through. Most new cars will have a hole with this rubber piece covering it. It's made of tough rubber so I will usually tape the wires to something (such as a pen) and then shove the pen into the hole so the wires go with it.

Make sure to route wires where they won't rub on metal, and won't get in your way in the cab. Take the time to do it right.

 

[Lil'Yeshua]

Page 2 instructions:
http://www.rmitaly.com/download/instructions/KL203-Instruction_rel_usa.pdf

 

[RadioGuy772]

Run 10ga BOTH positive AND negative. Fuse the positive lead near the battery with a decent quality fuse holder to minimize voltage drop. Set the radio to about 2 watts carrier. When it is turned down this low, the modulation or "peak" AM power might suffer. You can adjust the AMC a little bit to bring it up to drive the amplifier to full potential, but don't over do it. Also, check to make sure the antenna has a good SWR BEFORE turning on the amplifier to transmit.

On a side note, make sure the amplifier is converted for use before you try to use it...depending upon where you bought it from, it may or may not be. Other than that, you are ready to go.

You can also, if you haven't done so already, run the power wires from your radio as well to the battery... but don't "double up" meaning don't use the same run for the radio AND amplifier... use a separate 12ga run both positive AND negative to the battery for that as well. You will get any noise coming from the car's electrical system out of the radio's receiver that way.

 

[sp5it]

First of it all put computer fan on top of it to keep it cool.
Mike

 

[tba02]

You may want to add an additional patch cable to your shopping list if you want to check SWR on the antenna side of the amp.

 

[9C1Driver]

I guess you will get different opinions. I always run a short ground to a seat bolt or the fire wall. And with a KL203 a 2 watt carrier is a touch too much, 1 to 1.5 is the most I would go.

 

[jazzsinger]

Running direct to the battery is the best way to go. Adding a fuse at the battery is a good idea as well.

I'm actually planning on doing up a couple of graphic diagrams about how to hook up equipment since it's such a common question.

The KL203P powr wires are short, you will need to buy wire. Don't go to the hardware store, they will have stiff wire. You want car stereo power wire as it is designed to be flexible for people who put stereo amplifiers in cars etc.

Go at least one gauge up from the KL203P, so if it uses 14g maybe go with 10 or 12. Larger is better.

I run my ground wire direct to the battery lead as well.

For running wire from the engine compartment to the cab of your vehicle look for a rubber boot type cover that has a hole in it where wires go through or your hood release goes through. Most new cars will have a hole with this rubber piece covering it. It's made of tough rubber so I will usually tape the wires to something (such as a pen) and then shove the pen into the hole so the wires go with it.

Make sure to route wires where they won't rub on metal, and won't get in your way in the cab. Take the time to do it right.

Fuses at battery are essential in my opinion, agu fuseholders for in car hifi are best way to go, you can also buy agu splitters so you can run one heavy duty wire from battery fused to handle whole load, and split it into smaller loads inside, as each item is individually fused anyway should be no problem there.

1w swinging 8-14w? whats that 500% modulation or something? Crazy man !!!

KL 203p is 10/20w input, not 4/8 like previous kl200, so 2w AM swinging 8w or 100% modulation and about 12w SSB pep is well within its limitations and RM's over expectations, expect about 60-70w out at most.

upgrading the wiring on any amp is a good idea as is fitting a fan,

putting overmodulation through it is about as foolish :angry: as it gets, it has no or precious little filtering and will amplify harmonics just as well as fundamental frequency, think about other radio users in your area and when skips running worldwide, cause your splatter could fuck someone up for a very precious contact to them, its grossly inconsiderate and if you get busted for it don't tell me, cause i won't be able to stop laughing.:laugh:

 

[KD2GOE]

1.5 watt dk swinging 10 pep max 10 watts pep ssb and it will run clean you not going to see the difference from 100 to 150 watts pushing the hell out of it. I shoot for 30 dk pep 100~110

I am running 10awg to my kl503 and it is happy with it I would stick with 10awg

Run the ground the the frame do not run it to the battery I have had and seen issues with rf equipment and stereo equipment first had running the ground wire to the frame cured the trubble.. and you save a few bucks it will allso help to just add a second ground wire from the battery to the frame if you want to go nuts..