2 Ohm Vs 4 Ohm Subwoofers – Which Is Better?

Got questions about 2 ohm and 4 ohms speakers & subwoofers? You’re in the right place!

Dig in as there’s a ton of great info and clear & helpful diagrams, too!

Which is best – 2 ohm or 4 ohm subwoofers?

which is better 2 ohm vs 4 ohm subwoofers

The basic answer is that you should use the subwoofer impedance best matched to your amplifier when possible. An amplifier will produce the most power it is capable of at the correct Ohm load it’s designed for.

The end result is you’ll get the most power for your money when matching the minimum impedance to the amp.

  • For a 2 ohm amp with its maximum power at 2 ohms, use a 2 ohm subwoofer or 2 ohm total speaker load when using multiple speakers.
  • For a 4 ohm amp with maximum power at 4 ohms, use a 4 ohm subwoofer or 4 ohm total speaker load with several speakers.

With the same power delivered to each, a 4 ohm speaker and identical 2 ohm speaker will produce the same amount of volume. The problem is that each one will affect how much power you’ll get.

2 ohm and 4 ohm speakers aren’t really “better” than one another – it depends on how they’re used, the amplifier, and some other details I’ll cover as we go.

**Note: It is true that a low impedance speaker will draw twice the electrical current of one with a higher impedance but there’s a good reason for that as I’ll explain.

(Note that the Ohm symbol (Ω) is commonly used to represent units of resistance or impedance.)

What is the difference between a 2 ohm and a 4 ohm subwoofer?

difference between 2 ohm and 4 ohm subs diagram

2 ohm and 4 ohm subwoofers are the same but use a different impedance (total resistance) voice coil or pair of coils.

There are 2 ways to get high power in a vehicle with a +12V electrical system:

  1. Increase the voltage used to deliver power to the electrical load: a car amplifier uses a step-up internal power supply to create higher voltages than the vehicle has in order to deliver more power.
  2. Lower the resistance of the load (speaker impedance). 2 ohm voice coils make this possible when an amplifier can’t provide as much power to a 4 ohm coil subwoofer.

In the case of dual voice coil (DVC) subwoofers, a pair of 2Ω coils allow you to get a 4Ω speaker load if needed as they can be connected in series with speaker wire.

They’re really handy when changing amplifiers, bridging an amp, or using more speakers together as you’ll have flexibility in the wiring option.

2 ohm vs 4 ohm load amplifier power comparison

DIAGRAM – 4 ohm vs 2 ohm subwoofer amp power

2 ohm vs 4 ohm subwoofer amp power diagram

The reason why you get the best results with a 2 ohm or 4 ohm subwoofer matched to your amp is due to the relationship between voltage, power, current, and resistance.

If you’re not familiar with Ohm’s Law or Watt’s Law, they’re simple ways to remember the relationship between the electrical resistance, voltage, and current. When combined and re-arranged we have a simple formula we can use to calculate power to an electrical resistive load like a speaker.

Formula for power voltage an resistance with speaker power

Why the right subwoofer Ohm load is important for amplifier power

Car audio stereos or amps and home stereos create power to a speaker by boosting (amplifying) the tiny musical source signal to a higher voltage that can overcome the speaker’s resistance.

For your home audio system it’s not much of problem powering an 8 ohm speaker, however, cars & trucks don’t a high voltage available to make that possible.

Voltage, power, and speakers

The more voltage that can be output, the more current that be sent and therefore more power and louder sound. The issue is that each device (radio, amplifier, etc.) has a limit to how much it can put out.

This means that a higher speaker Ohms load will decrease the current, and just as you would expect, this means less power can be delivered to a speaker.

To get the most power your amplifier can provide it’s important to match the subwoofer Ohm load to the amp’s min. Ohms rating specified. There’s nothing “wrong” with using a higher speaker impedance, but you’re not going to get the power you paid for.

How do I know what my amp’s minimum speaker Ohm rating is?

example of car amp minimum Ohms specification and max RMS power specification

An amp’s power specifications should be provided by the manufacturer, retailer, and so forth. It’s normally listed both on the package and in the owner’s manual.

Here are some important things to pay attention to:

  • The maximum power rating to use is the RMS, continuous, or CEA-2006 power rating provided. “peak power” or “maximum” or not what you’re looking for.
  • Unfortunately, many manufacturers still list outrageous and misleading power numbers for their products. RMS is the power spec based on what an amp can produce reliably and continually.
  • The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) created the CEA-2006 standard to help buyers know a product lives up to its advertised specs. Look for that as it’s a reliable set of specs, usually from the better manufacturers.
  • The minimum Ohms rating an amp can handle, also called the Ohms it’s “stable to”, is the smallest number listed per channel. This also depends on the channel mode (stereo, bridged, etc.).

Important note about bridging an amp for subwoofer use

Diagram showing a 4 channel car amplifier bridged to 2 channels

One thing to bear in mind before buying subwoofers is that nearly all bridgeable 2 channel or 4 channel amps require a minimum of 4 ohms in bridged mode.

This is due to how bridging works. While many of today’s amps can handle down to 2Ω per channel, bridging works but using 2 channels together in a push-pull fashion to deliver more power.

For that reason, the 4Ω requirement is due to the total of both channels’ min. Ohms load.

Using multiple subwoofers in series vs parallel

DIAGRAM – Series vs parallel subwoofer power comparison

diagram showing how power is shared between subwoofers series vs parallel

When hooking up multiple speakers you can’t get free power – connecting two speakers or more speakers to one output channel means they will have to share the available power.

The way you go about doing that, and the total impedance, is very important.

Remember these basics:

  • Parallel speakers share the output power for the total speaker load. For example, connecting two 4Ω speakers in parallel means a total of 2 ohms. Each speaker would then get 1/2 of the amp’s rated power output at 2 ohms.
  • Series connected speakers receive less power overall because the total power to all is lower than parallel speakers. For example, two 4 ohm speakers in series add to an 8 ohm total load. Power output at 8 ohms is 1/2 that of 4 ohms, with each speaker having 1/2 of that.

When connecting 2 or more speakers to one output channel it’s a compromise you have to live with. A car amplifier is often designed with one or two speakers per channel in mind.

I get a lot of questions and comments from readers who are trying to use speakers that can’t be wired well to get the most power from their amp.

Take my advice: plan ahead and work out the speaker ohms and single voice coil or DVC details before you but the speakers and/or the amp.

What about dual voice coil subwoofers?

how to wire a dual coil coil speaker diagram

Dual voice coil subwoofers are also an option. They’re also handy in case you change your audio system later or want to switch things up.

To get the best results you’ll want to remember a few things:

  • When possible, buy or use DVC subwoofer impedance that will allow you to wire all coils in parallel to their channel. This will allow you to get a lower impedance to match the amp’s min. Ohms load.
  • DVC subwoofers can be used with only one voice coil when necessary but it’s not ideal. Their parameters are not quite they same and they cannot handle the same amount of heat or power as they can if both are used.
  • Mixing different Ohms rating DVC subwoofers rarely works out well. Most of the time you can’t get the right overall impedance. It’s often too high or too low to be optimal and in many cases some voice coils won’t be used.
  • You can use one amp channel per voice coil if necessary. However, ideally you’ll use a mono (non-stereo) input to both of the amp’s RCA inputs. This is so both channels have the same signal and avoids any differrences that can cause sound cancellation.

As long as you’ve correctly bought (or have on hand) the correct ones you can get a 4 ohm load, 2 ohm load, or even 1 ohm load as needed. When using a mono amp this can be a bit trickier if you’ve got more than 2 subwoofers.

**Note: many car stereos or signal processors provide a mono signal from the subwoofer RCA outputs, making it easy to drive one voice coil per channel.

4 ohm vs 2 ohm car speakers

2 ohm vs 4 ohm car speakers section image

There are some 3 ohm and even 2 ohm coaxial, woofer, and component speaker sets available one the market. While it may be tempting to buy those instead of a standard 4Ω car speaker for full range music, here are some considerations to consider:

  • You won’t be able to bridge amp channels (4Ω min.) in order to get more power. I recently had a reader contact me and unfortunately he’s stuck without a way to avoid this aside from using a higher impedance speaker set.
  • You won’t be able to use tweeters or another set of speakers in parallel. If you’re tight on space, money, or need to wait on buying a second amp this can be a roadblock. Many people use a 2Ω min. amp to drive two speakers in parallel, such as tweeters and coaxial speakers. Buying a lower impedance means that’s not going work.

If your amp offers more power per channel at 2Ω to your main speakers, go for it. But remember you’ll need a dedicated channel for each speaker.

Marty

About the author

Marty is an experienced electrical, electronics, and embedded firmware design engineer passionate about audio and DIY. He worked professionally as an MECP-certified mobile installer for years before moving into the engineering field. Read more »

Your comments are welcome.
  1. Hi hope all is well. I ran a 200w rms max 4ohm dvc sub at 4ohm (300watts from amp)using only one -&+ coil. I had gain turned up 3/4 on the amp. I’m now running the same sub at 2ohms(500watts from amp). The gain is now down 3/4. Will the load/toll on the amp be about the same at 2ohms vs 4ohms since the gain is turned down for the same volume? The amp is a Kenwood Excelon x802-5.
    Thanks

    Reply
    • Hi there Antoine. Running the subwoofer at 2 Ohms means the amp is delivering twice as much current which is fine as long as it’s rated for that. Amps that support a 2 Ohm load normally can produce at least twice as much power as for a 4 Ohm load anyway.

      The gain basically controls the output signal level based on the input level. As long as the amp & subwoofer aren’t driven to clipping it’s fine.

      Reply
  2. looking to replace the factory sub in my console of my 2006 jeep tj. most replacement subs that fit console are dual voice coil. my amp is a five channel at 4ohm per channel. do i need a 2 ohm or 4 ohm dual voice coil replacement sub?

    thanks,
    bryan

    Reply
    • Hi Bryan. If the amp’s subwoofer channel is 4Ω minimum, use a dual 2Ω wired in series for 4 Ohms. If it’s 2Ω min., you can use a 4Ω wired in paralle for 2 Ohms. Best regards!

      Reply
  3. Hello, is there ny difference in sound quality when deciding on parallel or series for a single 2 ohm dvc sub connection to a mono amp? The 15″ sub (2 ohm dvc) ranges from 2,000-4,000 watts and the amp can produce 3,000 watts at 4 ohms
    If I was to wire the sub in series, delivering 3,000 watts to the sub wouldn’t that be ideal opposed to wiring it to 1 ohm in parallel?
    Aside from power, would there be any benefit in audio quality when deciding on which way to wire the sub?

    Thank you

    Reply
    • Hello Shane. Generally for subwoofers, no, not really – there wouldn’t ordinarily be any sound quality difference you’d hear. It’s often different in the case of midrange, full-range, tweeters, and so on, especially with 2 or 3-way systems.

      If you had a 1Ω capable subwoofer amp and were wanting to get the maximum possible power (especially for powering multiple subs) that would be a reason for parallel wiring.

      The subwoofer enclosure will be the biggest factor for sound quality as that’s really important in terms of how it performs sound-wise. I would worry about that mainly and be sure it’s a decent one for good results.

      Reply
  4. Hi, please, I have a question… I have an eton ecc 500.4 amplifier and two subwoofers, one is a regular 4 ohm and the other is a dual 2 ohm, how should I connect them to use them at 2 ohms in total?

    Reply
    • Hello David. It looks to me that the amp is a 4 channel model, so you would wire the 2nd subwoofer (dual 2Ω) for 4Ω. You can then bridge the amp to power each subwoofer with 2 channels bridged.

      In bridged mode, an amplifier needs 4 Ohms minimum. Since it is a 4 channel amplfier you wouldn’t wire them for 2 Ohms total. Best regards.

      Reply
  5. Szia. Van egy hifonics dxi-1500d 1×750 watt.erösítőm , ami papiron 1 csatornás,miért van rajta 4 kimenet( ++ — ) ebben a formában.amire szeretnék rákötni egy dual subwoofert ami darabonként 400w RMS 4ohm. Milyen formában lehetséges?

    Reply
    • Szia Béla.

      • A további hangszóró csatlakozókkal ellátott monoblokk-erősítőket a kényelem érdekében úgy tervezték meg. Belül csatlakoztatva vannak, és egyszerűen egyszerűbb módot kínálnak több hangsugárzó vezeték csatlakoztatására.
      • Nem találtam “DXi-1500D” modellt, amikor online keresgéltem, de úgy gondolom, hogy a Hifonics erősítők stabilak 1Ω-ig, mint a BXi-1500D, stb. Mindegyik mélynyomót összesen 2Ω-ig kell bekábelezni, majd mindkettőt párhuzamosan be kell kötni az erősítővel. 1Ω teljes hangsugárzóterhelést biztosít.

      Üdvözlet és boldog pénteket.
      —–
      English: Hello Bela.

      • Mono block amplifiers with additional speaker terminals are designed that way for convenience. They are internally connected and simply provide an easier way to connect more speaker wiring.
      • I did not find a model “DXi-1500D” when searching online, but I believe Hifonics amps are stable to 1Ω like the BXi-1500D, etc. You will wire each subwoofer for 2Ω total, then wire both in parallel to the amp, giving 1Ω total speaker load.

      Warm greetings & happy Friday.

      Reply
  6. Marty,

    Having a very hard time finding a 2 ohm DVC 5.25 in subwoofer for a replacement in my 2000 BMW Z3 sub box. I wanted to find a sub that I could use the factory harness. Do you have any suggestions on speaker company’s that would make such a replacement? If I can’t find a 2 ohm DVC replacement what would be my options for a 5.25 in size sub?

    I am not a big bass enthusiast but I think the car needs some bass. Was maybe thinking about a DVC mid range/bass speaker as an option. Again I would want to use the factory harness so I would need a DVC option.

    Would appreciate any help and guidance you could provide.

    Thanks,

    Glenn

    Reply
    • Hi Glenn. Yes unfortunately specialty subwoofers are hard to deal with. Here are some possible ideas:

      1. If the original subwoofer still works but the speaker surround foam is dry-rotted and fell apart, you may be able to use a reconing/repair service or do it yourself. I saw kits online for this woofer, I think.
      2. You could use a standard 2Ω 5.25″ woofer and then use a stereo to mono adapter like this one. This one is rated for 30 watts.
      3. You could use a small 2-channel amplifier in bridged mode and connect it to the factory subwoofer wiring (via a speaker level to line level adapter). Then you can power a standard 4Ω woofer of your choice. In bridged mode the output will be L + R channels combined, so you won’t lose part of the audio signal versus connecting a single voice coil directly to the factory wiring.

      I did find a Dayton Audio 4Ω DVC 5.25 subwoofer (this one here) but unfortunately the magnet structure is far too large I think.

      Another good idea would be to search the BMW / Z3 owner’s forums, as you may find some posts showing what other vehicle owners did in the same situation. Hopefully this helps a bit!

      Reply
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