Welcome! I’ve worked hard to create what I think is the best speaker Ohms calculator on the internet for you.
My speaker Ohms calculator will let you:
- Find the total speaker Ohms for almost any series, parallel, or series-parallel speaker wiring.
- Find the total power your amp or stereo will output (or warn you when it can’t produce that amount of power).
- See the power supplied to each speaker for your wiring configuration.
- Find out if your speaker setup could cause amp or stereo damage before you try it out.
Note: Javascript must be enabled in your browser to see or use the tool.
Contents
SPEAKER OHMS CALCULATOR
HOW TO USE THE SPEAKER OHMS CALCULATOR
Choose your speaker configuration/wiring:
- Series connected speakers
- Parallel connected speakers
- Series-parallel speakers: up to 4 “strings” of 1-4 series speakers, all series strings in parallel. (*Using 1 speaker in each string will effectively be the same as the Parallel speaker option)
- Parallel-series: up to 4 speakers in parallel which are then in series with 1 or more speakers.
Input your speaker Ohms and power values:
- Speaker impedance (Ohms): Fill in the speaker Ohms value for as many or as few speakers as you’d like.
- OPTIONALAmp/stereo power & min. Ohms rating: Input the amplifier or stereo’s power (RMS or continuous) power rating and the min. specified speaker Ohms. This will allow the calculator to determine power to each speaker in any configuration.
You can use whole numbers (2, 5, etc.) or decimal values (6.3Ω, etc.) for Ohms as needed. If using the power option, use the RMS or continuous power rating in whole Watts for your amplifier or stereo. “Peak” or “maximum” ratings are misleading and will give the wrong results.
The speaker Ohms calculator will output:
- Total speaker Ohms: This is the total speaker load the amp or radio will see based on the speaker Ohms you’ve entered.
- [Optional] Total power draw from the amp or stereo: This shows the total amount of power the calculated speaker Ohms load will draw from the amp or stereo.
- NOTE! If the total speaker load would draw excess current (exceed the power rating you specified), this means an unsafe condition would happen and you’ll see “–” to indicate an error/invalid power amount.
- [Series-parallel option] String (“Strx“) ohms: The series Ohms value for each string of speakers, 1 to 4 speakers each.
- Power to each speaker (“Sx“): Power, in Watts, each speaker will receive.
How to calculate series, parallel, or series-parallel speaker Ohms (DIAGRAM and examples)
Figuring out the total Ohms speaker load for nearly any wiring configuration isn’t as hard as it may seem. As you can see from my diagram above, there are 3 main ways to do this:
- Find the total series speaker Ohms.
- Find the total parallel speaker Ohms.
- Using a combination of #1 & #2 for more complicated speaker systems.
1. How to find the total series speaker Ohms value
These are the simplest to deal with. To find the total speaker resistance (impedance) for series speakers, simply add them all together.
For example, let’s say we have 3 speakers we’d like to use: two 8 ohm and one 16 ohm.
We’d just add these together like so: 8Ω + 8 234 + 16Ω = 32Ω
When speakers are connected in series, they share the same electrical current. The amplifier, radio, or stereo’s power will be divided among them. Note that if the total speaker load is higher than the maximum power output Ohms rating for your amp or stereo, the total power you can get will be lower.
(I’ll go into more detail about this in another section below)
2. How to calculate the total Ohms load for parallel speakers.
When it come to finding the total speaker impedance for parallel wiring, there are two ways to do this:
- If the speaker Ohm ratings are all the same, you can just divide by the number of speakers used.
- For parallel speakers of the same or different values, you can use the universal parallel speaker formula below. You can call this the “inverse sum of the reciprocals”, which just means we add up all the inverse (1/x) values then take one final inverse function to get the result. (I’ll explain how to do this.)
Example #1: Let’s say we have three 4 ohms speakers wired in parallel. We can use simple division to find the total speaker load:
Rparallel = 4Ω/3 = 1.33Ω
Example #2: In this example, we have four speakers of different values: two 8 ohm and two 16 ohm speakers, all wired in parallel. What is the total speaker load?
Rparallel = 1/(1/8 + 1/8 + 1/16 + 1/16)
= 1/(.125 + .125 + .0625 + .0625)
= 1/(0.375) = 2.67Ω
3. Series-parallel and other wiring types
For anything other than just series or parallel speaker wiring, we can just break it down into a few of same calculations and then add them all together.
Example #3: We have four “strings” of four 8 ohm speakers each. All four series strings are wired in parallel. We can solve this pretty easily!
(a.) Finding the series speaker Ohms: each string of four speakers is 8Ω + 8Ω + 8Ω + 8Ω or 8Ω x 4. This is 32Ω total for each series string.
(b.) Find the total parallel speaker Ohms: we have four strings, so this is 1/(1/32 + 1/32 + 1/32 1/32) or just 32Ω/4 since they’re all the same value.
So the total is 32Ω [each series string] / 4 strings = 8Ω total in series-parallel
How to find parallel speaker ohms (inverse sum of reciprocals) on a calculator
Many calculators (especially scientific ones, although that’s not a requirement) have an inverse function.
An inverse key (inverse function, or reciprocal function) is simply dividing one by some number. Having a button handy makes it much faster and less likely you’ll make a mistake, too.
Let’s take example #2 from earlier to show how you can easily find any parallel speaker load using a calculator. I’ll show where I’m using the buttons you’d use on a real calculator.
(Example #2: We have four speakers of different values: two 8 ohm and two 16 ohm speakers, all wired in parallel.)
(a.) You would enter on your calculator:
8 1/x + 8 1/x + 16 1/x + 16 1/x
which will give 0.125 + 0.125 + 0.0625 + 0.0625 = 0.375
(b.) Then we’ll take the reciprocal (inverse) of this to get our result:
0.375 1/x = 2.67 Ω (rounded from 2.66666… as we don’t need that much precision).
You might find it helpful to use a scientific “pretty print” calculator as they display the math you’re entering just like you’d write it on paper. This helps you be sure of what you’re entering as you go.
Amplifier power vs the speaker Ohms load
The total speaker load you end up with can have a very big impact on the power you can use. That’s because home or car stereos, amplifiers, and radios can only produce up to a certain output voltage to deliver power to speakers. If the speaker load (Ohm value) is higher, they can’t deliver as much electrical current, resulting in a lower total power provided.
How to calculate amp and speaker power for different speaker loads
Example #1: How to estimate total amplifier power at different speaker Ohm loads
For example, let’s use an example of a guitar amplifier that can provide 50 watts RMS continuous per channel into a min. of 8 ohms. As power is related to voltage and resistance, we can rearrange the formula for power to help us:
(a.) Power (P) = (Voltage (V))^2 / Resistance (R)
We can rearrange this to find voltage: Voltage (V) = square root(Power x R)
(b.) Doing a little bit of math, that means the output voltage at full power into an 8 ohm speaker would be:
V = square root(50 x 8) = √(400) = 20V(Max. output)
What happens if we connect two 8Ω woofers in series? How much power can we expect?
This would be (20V)^2 / 16Ω = 400/16 = 25 Watts
This makes sense! After all, the electrical current decreases as the resistance increases. Therefore, the amp can’t deliver as much power at 16Ω as it can at its 8Ω specification. There’s nothing wrong with using a higher impedance speaker load, but you’ll have to live with the compromise and less overall power.
Example #2: Estimating power to each speaker vs the total power delivered
Using example #1 above, we have 25W delivered in total to our 16Ω speaker load. For speakers in series, you can find the power each speaker will get even if they have different Ohm ratings.
In this case, we can use: Pspeaker = Ptotal (total power) x Speaker1/(Speaker1 + Speaker2)
This gives us: P1 (power to speaker one) = 25W*8/(16) = 25W*0.5 = 12.5W
So each speaker will receive 12.5W in this case which is 1/4 of what a single 8 ohm speaker would receive for this amplifier.
What speaker Ohm load should I use for the best power?
When using multiple speakers the best Ohms load for power is the lowest acceptable total speaker load the stereo or amplifier is rated to handle at maximum power output.
This is because many amplifiers (and some radios and stereos etc.) have their maximum power output possible at the minimum Ohms rating specification. This is sometimes called the Ohm rating they are “stable to.”
For example, a 2Ω stable car subwoofer amplifier may be rated like this:
- 250W x 1 @ 4 ohms
- 500 W x 1 @ 2 ohms
The specifications tell us:
- This amplifier is designed to handle as low as 2 ohms minimum
- It will produce maximum power output (maximum current) safely at a total speaker load of 2 ohms
This means to get all the power we paid for, we’ll ideally have a total speaker load that adds up to 2Ω. The problem is that when using multiple speakers it can be difficult to get match the min. speaker Ohm rating.
You’ll have to match at least the min. acceptable Ohms rating specified. Too low of a rating (say 1Ω in this case) and the amplifier can shut off, overheat, or suffer permanent damage.
Using dual voice coil speakers may help as they offer multiple speaker ohms configurations. However, it’s very common (especially if you’ve already bought speakers) to not be able to get the “perfect” total speaker Ohms load.
You’ll have to live with some compromises which may mean less total power available.
My math isn’t mathing. Looking for some help on wiring 6, 4ohm dvc subs. I’d like to get close to a 2ohm final load. Can you assist in this? A simple wiring diagram would be a huge help. Thanks.
Hello Greg. It will be a bit tricky to get close to 2 Ohms since we have 6 subwoofers instead of a number that’s a multiple of 2 (ex: 2, 4, 8..). However, here’s the way thats the best compromise and will meet your needs assuming you need a min. of 2 Ohms total:
This will give a total of 1Ω + 1Ω + 1Ω = 3 Ohms. It will also distribute the power evenly between each subwoofer which is what we want for equal power & volume. Here’s a link to the diagram I’ve created for you.
Best regards.
Thanks perfect. Thanks so much!!
Looking to do a 4 channel amp. Run 2- 6 1/2 n 4 6x9s.
Was going to run 2 channels directly from amp 4ohm. My question is how can I do the 6x̌9s to stay at 4ohms with the other 2 channels. Series would lower ohms n parallel lower power. Series parallel?
Hi William. I assume this is a car amplifier, correct? As many sold today can handle down to 2Ω per channel.
If the amp is 2 Ohm capable, you’d be better off wiring one pair per channel (front) and one speaker per channel (rear). If the amp is not 2 Ohm capable, There’s not a great way to do this, although you can do this by add a 4 Ohm power resistor in series each speaker in the parallel pair, then wire in parallel for 4 Ohms total.
Either way, the power to the paired speakers will be reduced versus using a 2 Ohm capable. Best regards!
Hi Marty, and thanks for such an in depth tutorial on speaker ohms.
I just purchased a Marantz PM-52 amplifier for my home set up, but I’m not sure how to use your method to calculate the speaker impedance.
https://www.hifiengine.com/manual_library/marantz/pm-52.shtml
This amp has 4 channels output, and it specifically says 8 to 16 ohms if using only 2 channels, and 16 ohms if using the 4 channels.
I’m going to use an individual speaker for each output/channel; two of the speakers are 8 ohms , while the other two are 4 ohms.
How to make this calculation?
Thank you in advance,
Jose
Hi Jose. Ok, so with amplifiers or receivers with these types of Ohm ratings, they’re essentially like a 2-channel stereo output. With all 4 speakers connected, that means the amp sees two speakers connected in parallel per channel (hence why you can use 4x 16Ω and get a safe 8Ω load on each side).
If you want to use one 8 Ohm and one 4 Ohm per side, that would be 1/(1/8 + 1/4) = about 2.67Ω. In this case there’s not an easy way to solve this problem without big compromises.
The best all-around advice I have is this:
• For the 8 Ohm speakers, connect them to one pair of output channels normally.
• For the 4 Ohm speakers, use an affordable speaker impedance adapter built into a speaker volume control like this one set to the 1:2 option. Connect it to the second pair of outputs.
This allow you to drive all 4 speakers with full power safely, and will deliver equal power to all 4 speakers. You can also add more speakers to the volume control/imp. adapter later if you like (it has more speaker pair settings available).
Best regards!
Hi Marty,
Great, thank you! So what should each speaker Ohm rating be, in order to connect/use all o/p channels? Having all four speakers with 16Ω?
You mention 8Ω to be a safe load for each side, is there a right or correct load value for this amplifier? Or higher the better? Just so I understand which speakers I should to get for it.
Thank you once again,
Best regards!
Hello again, Jose.
> “Having all four speakers with 16Ω?”
Yes, unless you use the device I recommended. It will let you multiple speaker pairs or even lower impedance speakers than can normally be used.
> “You mention 8Ω to be a safe load for each side, is there a right or correct load value for this amplifier? Or higher the better?”
Based on the amp’s specs, as long as it’s at least 8 Ohms, it’s fine. If you use two speakers per channel (example: in this case, four 16Ω speakers wired to all four speaker output connections) that’s fine, because the total power output will be whatever the amp’s rated power output is at 8 Ohms.
However, if you increase the speaker impedance, the amp will deliver less total power. For example (just as an example), if we connected four 32Ω speakers, the total Ohms load per side would be 16 Ohms of course.
That’s perfectly safe for the amp since we’ve met the minimum of 8 Ohms. However, the total output power would 1/2 that of using 4x 16Ω speakers. That’s because a 16 Ohm load allows 1/2 the electrical current to flow versus 8 Ohms. This means 1/2 power of its power rated for 8 Ohms can be delivered to the speakers.
If you want to use more speakers, mix speaker impedances, or use 4 Ohm speakers, etc., a speaker impedance adapter allows the amp to “see” a safe total Ohms load and also deliver the most power it can. Otherwise, you’ll need to get the correct impedance speakers – but 16Ω speakers aren’t very common.
Hopefully that makes sense and helps a bit! :)
Hello again Marty,
Wow, thank you! That was indeed an in depth tutorial… =)
I double checked the speaker cabinets I have, and just got a bit more confused now…
The 4Ω speakers are in reality 4 ~ 8Ω (meaning they can be driven at 8Ω as well I believe); but the speakers I thought they were 8Ω have a strange 80 HMS impedance rating… Is 80 HMS the same as 8Ω?
If so it means all speaker can run at 8Ω.
Will I still need the impedance adapter? Shall I still use the 1:2 option?
Sorry for so many questions, but don’t want to bother you longer, hopefully I’ll get it solved with your next reply… =)
And 16Ω speaker cabinets aren’t very common as you say, so I’ll just keep this ones.
Thank you once again,
Jose
Hello Jose and sorry for the delay in replying. I took “80 HMS” to be a misprint of “8 OHMS”, so yes that sounds like they’re actually (supposedly) 8 Ohms.
If at all possible, I would check with a test meter set to measure resistance (Ohms) to be sure the speakers don’t read near 4 Ohms. At any rate, if you want to use multiple 8 Ohm (or lower) speakers, then yes you’ll need an impedance adapter unfortunately.
Hi Marty,
I’m looking to run a total of 8 subs that are all 4ohms, and I need the final load to my amp to be between 2 – 3 ohms. Could you figure that combo out for me please?
Thanks, and thanks for all the great info on your site!
Mike
Hi Mike. Here’s what you can do:
1. Wire four pairs of subwoofers in series for a toal of 8Ω each series pair.
2. Wire all 4 sets of series pairs in parallel.
This will give you 8Ω/4 = 2Ω total for your parallel-series setup. Thanks for your comment and best regards!
Thank you Marty, no need for any apologies, your help is truly appreciated.
Impedance matching device is the way to go then… =)
Great website, keep the good work!
Greetings from sunny Portugal **
Hello Marty,
While double checking on the amplifier’s manual (and although in the back of the amplifier it states 8 to 16 ohms if using only 2 channels/speakers, and 16 ohms if using the 4 channels), the manual clearly mentions that:
“If two speaker systems are to be connected to the unit, each of the speakers should have an impedance of 8 ohms or more. If speakers with an impedance of less than 8 ohms are connected, the protection circuitry may be activated during play, making normal stereo playback impossible.”
As mentioned on a previous message, one of the speaker systems I have is 8 ohms, while the other is 4~8 ohms; are these last ones seen as 8 ohms by the amplifier, or 4 ohms? If 8 ohms, no extra device should be needed, correct?
Thank you once again,
Jose
Yes, but that will only be ok if you’re 100% sure they’re 8 Ohms and not actually around 4 Ohms. If they’re 4 Ohms the receiver will likely get very hot because of the extra current it has to supply.
One way to find out for sure is to use a test meter set to measure resistance and measure the voice coil DC resistance of the woofer in one of the “4-8 Ohm” speakers. If it’s somewhere around 6+ Ohms then it’s safe (an 8 Ohm speaker will measure about 6-7 Ohms or so DC resistance).
If the speakers have crossovers inside (which normally they would), you’d need to disconnect at least one wire to the woofer before measuring to get the correct reading.
I hope that helps a bit!
Hey boss I have a mono amp 1100 at 2ohm I have 2 svc in a box and 1 dvc in a box how do I bring them down to 2 ohms? I can’t find a diagram since I’m mixing diff voice coils thanks for all the help
Hi, what are the impedances (Ohms) of the speakers? I need to know that in order to help you. Best regards.
They are all 4 ohms thanks for any help
Hi Joe. Unfortunately there’s not a great way to wire an odd number of mixed-type speakers. Especially near 2 Ohms total.
If the amp is only stable to 2 Ohms, Unfortunately the best you can do is to wire the DVC model for 8 Ohms total, then wire it in parallel with the 4 Ohm SVC model. That will be 2.67Ω.
Bear in mind that the power the DVC model will have at 8 Ohms total will be 1/2 of its 4 Ohm power but otherwise it’ll work fine.
Hello, I have a question about wiring my subwoofers. I have two dual voice coil (DVC) subwoofers that I want to connect to a 1-ohm stable amplifier. One of the subwoofers is a 1-ohm DVC, and the other is a 4-ohm DVC. I tried wiring one in series and the other in parallel, and I think I also tried the opposite, but I keep getting a reading of 0.2 ohms when I add them together at the amplifier after testing with a multimeter. I can’t figure out what I’m doing wrong. I would greatly appreciate your help with this. Thank you for your time and consideration.
Hi David. What you can do is:
– Wire the 1Ω DVC in series for 2 Ohms.
– Wire the 4Ω DVC model in parallel for 2 Ohms.
– Wire both of these in parallel for 1 Ohm total.
There shouldn’t be any issue unless there’s a wiring problem or maybe a problem with the speakers themselves. If you measured 0.2 Ohms, that’s virtually a short circuit.
I would be sure to disconnect the speaker wiring at the amp before measuring resistance across both speakers once you have them wired as they should be. Many mono amps have dual speaker terminals which are actually connected internally, so if your amp does & if you measured across the terminals that could be one reason you measured 0.2.
Best regards!
Hi,
I have two 4 ohm speakers, which if I wire together in parallel, would give me 2 ohm load, which would too few ohms for my amp (it only likes 4 and above ohms).
So I wondered, if I could work out how to add a 3rd speaker in series, call it 3 ohms (just so it shows up in the maths!) between the two 4 ohm speakers, will this raise my ohms number? And if so, how do I connect the poles such that I do indeed end up with parallel-series to calculate.
Thanks in advance
Wayne
Hi Wayne. If you want to connect 3 speakers in such a way for the purpose of maintaining a minimum Ohms load (i.e., a parallel-series setup like you mentioned), it would be:
R_total = R_parallel + R_series. For R_parallel, you can find any parallel Ohms load with this equation: 1/(1/R1 + 1/R2). For example: 1/(1/4Ω + 1/4Ω) = 1/(.25 + .25) = 2Ω
Then just add the series Ohms value.
However, bear in mind that the power will not be distributed evenly between all 3 speakers, but at least it will work. Also, if your speakers are using crossovers, adding one or more in series can affect the sound because it will change the load the crossover component(s) sees. But generally, it’ll be ok for basic stuff.
Another easy way to solve this problem is just to use power resistors in series with each parallel speaker to get a safe total Ohms load for your amp. For example:
4Ω/10W resistor + 4Ω speaker = 8 Ohms total. Do this for each speaker then wire those in parallel to get 4 Ohms total.
Let me know if the math I wrote above isn’t clear or what you were looking for. Best regards!
Sorry….and just to follow fro the above, could you let me know the calculations involved so I can apply to other 3 speaker systems in future… and so on.
Many thanks
Wayne
Sorry yet again – in my example I meant keep the two 4 ohm speakers in parallel but add the third 3 ohm speaker between them, if you see what I mean! Reason for sake of argument, – trying to bump up the numbers whilst reducing the poor sound which can allegedly come from wiring all in series….or it’s an exam question….or something. 🤪
Hi, I posted my first reply before I saw this comment of yours. If you meant adding a 3rd speaker in parallel to increase the total Ohms load, it won’t work.
When resistance/speakers are in parallel, the total Ohms value is always less than the smallest value. It would only go down, not up.
Thanks Marty. Yup – got it I think. I intended to wire the 3rd speaker in series to bump up the Ohms. I’ll have a look at the speakers’ wattage too cf amp.
It never occurred to me just to buy the resistor itself! Doh! That’s a great idea. However, as a guitarist, it’s much more fun to have a speaker “stack”, whilst I pretend I can afford a real Marshall stack! 😀
Thanks again, I really appreciate your help and advice.
All the best
Wayne
Oh I completely understand about trying to work with the stuff you already have, Wayne. Have a good weekend!
Hi Marty!
I have a PA “the t.amp E-1500” (Power: 2 x 1220 W at 4 ohm, 2 x 850 W at 8 ohm, 1 x 2440W at 8 ohm bridged), two 8 ohm speakers JB Systems TSX 15 (with 2 speakon connectors and the usual binding posts). I intend to get a subwoofer “the box PA 18 ECO MKII” and somehow connect all these to that same amp. The subwoofer has 3 speakon connectors: Input, Thru and TOP (this one I understand is for connecting another speaker with low cut). I was thinking to connect on one channel the subwoofer and one of the JB Systems to it’s TOP connector, both being 8 ohm i’d suspect will translate into 4 ohms and for the other channel connect the remaining JB Systems speaker. It seems that i also have to get a crossover “Behringer SX3040 V2” to cut any highs going to the sub (wouldn’t this cut the highs from TOP connector also?!). What’s your take on this? Is it do-able ?
Thank you!
Viorel
Hello Viorel.
• Connect one JB Systems speaker to each output channel on the E-1500
• Connnect the bridged output connection of the E-1500 to the Input connector on the subwoofer.
The subwoofer shows that it should have a crossover already built in. Also, because this amplifier is 4Ω capable, in principle you should be able to connect the subwoofer in bridged mode on the amplifier alongside the stereo speakers.
I cannot guarantee 100% that will work, but it should. This is called “Tri mode” wiring in which you have stereo speakers connected in parallel with a speaker connected to the bridged mode outputs at the same time.
My advice is to try it this way first and see how the subwoofer sounds. You shouldn’t need an additional crossover unless the crossove in the PA 18 isn’t good and allow vocals/midrange/highs to pass through to the subwoofer.
Best regards.
Hi Marty, thank you for your reply. I’m not sure if “tri mode” will work on this amp, mainly because it has a switch on the back that sets the amp mode: Bridge – Stereo – Parallel. About the crossover in the PA 18, i’ve seen a demo on youtube and it seems that, if another speaker is connected on the TOP speakon connector, it cuts vocals/midrange from woofer and redirects them to that. As soon as the TOP speaker is disconnected, mids start playing on the woofer. If all this is true, perhaps the only way to connect these would be channel A: 1 JB Systems 8ohm, channel B: PA 18 8ohm and the second JB Systems on the woofers TOP speakon connector. Not sure if this would translate into channel A 8 ohm and channel B 4 ohm or channel B is still 8 ohm ?
Kind regards,
Viorel
Hi again Viorel. My apology for the oversight with the speaker mode switch on your amplifier. I deleted my original reply and looked over the manual for the PA18 to give you a more accurate answer.
Unfortunately the PA 18’s manual isn’t as helpful as it should be. But based on what I see at this point:
– I believe the PA 18 will work with stereo speakers similar to a Bose AcoustiMass system: in that design, the subwoofer is derived, i.e. “bridged” (sort of), from the stereo speaker channels.
– I belive the amp will see close to 8Ω on each stereo channel, but realistically it’s likely less. It depends on how the crossover in the PA 18 is designed and if a stereo-to-mono transformer is used.
– You should be able to, in principle do either of the following, whichever you prefer:
a. Connect both the JB Systems speakers and the PA 18 in stereo mode to the amp.
b. Connect the JB Systems speakers to the TOP output on the PA 18 and the PA18 to the amp’s stereo outputs if you want high-pass crossovers on the JB speakers.
The PA 18 lists its low-pass crossover frequency at 250Hz, which is fairly high – 100Hz and lower is typical. Also, 250Hz is around the lower midrange area of sound frequencies.
If you hear midrange with no speakers connectd to the PA 18 my first assumption is that it’s because of the high cutoff frequency. The PA 18 appears to be more like a woofer, not a subwoofer.
It’s difficult to say with any certainty because of the lack of info I have about the PA 18, so unfortunately you may have to test it with trial and error. At best I can only offer what I think is *probably* the case because I don’t have all the facts.
Best regards!
Hello Marty:
This site is so cool and helpful. It’s bookmarked indeed.
I want to play games with studio monitors so see what happens when I try this or that. I am not familiar with how to incorporate thought into cabinet wiring and the addition of crossovers into the process.
My old standby Yorkville YSM-1, 70W, two-way monitors state: “6 Ohms Nominal, 4 Ohms minimum.” I know the Woofers are 4 Ohms so would that indicate the tweeter is 8 ohms and it is hooked up in parallel? Would I also now use two speakers in any calculations?
I just bought a second pair of JBL Control One 50W bookshelf speakers, rated 8 ohms. If my above deduction is correct, I am at a loss to know if they those are two 16 ohm speakers in parallel or two 4 ohm speakers in series. It seems most (if not all) two way speakers would be wired parallel (if not for ease alone).
The math tells me it would be safe to wire the two cabinets in series, which I think would make it a combination parallel and series calculation. The thought of hooking them up parallel seems like it might ohm out too low and be dangerous for my amp. I have an Alesis RA-100 rated 100W at 4 ohm and 75W at 8 ohm.
Thanks for carrying out your passion.
Tom
Trying to get a .66 or 1 ohm load on either 8 dvc 2ohm or 12 dvc 2 ohm. I know with dvc 2 I can get 1 ohm. Just trying to stat above .5 pretty sure I can get that with the 8 dvc2. Thanks in advance
Hi Randy. Here are two approaches:
[8 speakers]
1. Wire each 2Ω DVC subwoofer in parallel for 1Ω. For each series set, wire two of these speakers in series for 2Ω total.
2. Wire all four series sets in parallel. This will give you 0.5Ω total. (If that’s alright for you.)
[12 speakers]
1. Wire each 2Ω DVC subwoofer in parallel for 1Ω. For each series set, wire THREE of these speakers in series for 3Ω total.
2. Wire all four series sets in parallel. This will give you 0.75Ω total.
Unfortunately you can’t get 0.66 or 1Ω this way – at least not without some speakers not receiving an equal amount of power as the others unlike the two approaches I mentioned above.
Best regards!
Thank you
I’m trying to get 16 4ohm speakers running through 4 channels that all individually run at min. of 2 ohms or 4 ohms bridged. I can’t figure it out
Hi Hunter. For sixteen 4Ω speakers, you can do this:
– Wire up 4 sets of speakers: each set uses 4 speakers in parallel. Each parallel set will be 4Ω/4 = 1Ω.
– Wire all 4 parallel sets in series which then gives 4Ω total.
Unfortunately you cannot get 2 Ohms using for 4Ω speakers per channel with a 4 ch. amplifier (if you meant 4 speakers per channel…I’m not 100% clear if that’s what you meant there). Best regards.
I want to get 16 4ohm speakers on a DS18 G4000.5D that is 2/4 ohm stable
I can either bridge fronts and rears (8 4ohm speakers) for 4 ohms or I need to have all 16 4 ohm speakers split between all 4 channels that work at 2 ohms
Wire 4 speakers per channel: 2 speakers in parallel; these are in series with another 2 speakers in parallel, giving 2Ω + 2Ω = 4Ω.
Hello,
Could you help me with the following?
I have 10 ceiling loudspeakers 8 Ohms each already wired in 6 channels and in parallel connection (whichever channel has more than 2 speakers connected). Specifically the red/black wiring goes from speaker to speaker. I know that one channel only has 3 speakers in parallel so I assume the 6 channels are divided into sets of 3+2+2+1+1+1 speakers.
I have a 6 output channel amplifier rated at 4-16 Ohms. According to my calculations, only the channel with the 3 speakers in parallel might cause an issue because of it giving a total of 2.67 Ohms impedance. By my calculations, if I keep the parallel connection on this channel for the 1st speaker and change the wiring for the 2nd and 3rd (at the 2nd’s speaker connector) to a series one and continuing in parallel from the 1st speaker, that would give me:
From the amplifier…
1st speaker (starting in parallel) = 8 Ohms
2nd + 3rd (in series together) = 8+8 = 16 Ohms
In total: 1st + (2nd + 3rd) = 5.33 Ohms (parallel connection from 1st speaker to the set of two)
Am I correct with the calculation? Can you suggest anything else?
Also, and I apologise if the question might sound to you stupid, is it different if the 1st speaker starting from the amplifier is connected in parallel with the set of 2nd and 3rd (being in series), as opposed to having the series connection first (1st and 2nd speaker) connected to the 3rd in parallel. I’m asking because of the power droppage that might occur since the wiring goes from speaker to speaker.
Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.
The speakers are Bosch LBC3951/12 and the amplifier is the Power Dynamics PV260BT.
Thanks in advance.
Hell Petros.
With 3 speakers in parallel/series like you mentioned, yes you’ll have 1/(1/8 + 1/16) = 5.33Ω. A helpful rule of thumb to remember is that when you put speakers in parallel, the total Ohms value will always be less than the smallest speaker.
The power will divided between them. However, when you add speakers in series, you limit the amount of current the amplifier can supply to that series connection, meaning the total power to those will be less than a single speaker.
For example, let’s say the amp has 50W per channel power available. The single speaker can receive 25W. However, the series speakers (16Ω total) can receive a total of 12.5W . This is shared between them, which means each speaker could get about 6.25W.
Honestly, if you have a 6 channel amplifier, if at all possible it would be best to wire one speaker per channel for 4 channels then 2 per channel for 2 channels. Is it possible for you to rewire the speaker connections?
Best regards.
Thank you Marty for your reply,
Unfortuntely, the speakers have already been installed and the rewiring could be tricky since the whole installation is about an office renovation which has been completed and for which the owner has changed his mind multiple times regarding the number of the ceiling speakers and how autonomous these will be.
Your suggestion requires 8 speakers in total but there are 10 installed altogether. I thought of rewiring but I do not think this is possible at least not without shedding a tear. That’s why I thought of making changes to the connector of the 2nd speaker to making it in series with the 3rd (as I said the parallel wiring passes through each speaker before continuing to the next one). But if I have power losses to that extend, that is no good, I think.
These particular speakers are rated at 6W each. Will that make any difference since, by your calculation, each speaker of the set of three could get 6.25W?
Thanks in advance?
Hi, ok in that case you may be stuck with wiring them as they are. The 6.25W I mentioned should be fine for the 6W speakers.
Yes, I wouldn’t add a 3rd speaker in series as that will cut the power down even further. Best regards!
Would it be possible to achieve full power of 1700w @ 4 Ohm. Using 4 -12″ 4 0hm DVC (8 -12″ in reality) sub-woofers & 2-4 Ohm component systems?
Hi, you could get get a 4Ω load for the subwoofers by 1) wiring each subwoofer’s voice coils in parallel (8 Ohms), then 2) wire those in parallel (4 Ohms total).
Regarding the other speakers, what type of amplifiier(s) do you have and how many component speaker pairs? That will make a difference.
Best regards.
It’s a Behringer NX6000D. I was hoping to separate the 12s and component system into 2 separate cabinets. Each cabinet would have 2-12s & a component system. Then tie them together for one channel. Do the same with the other channel.
Did you mean series for the 8ohm load. Parallel would give 2 ohms.
Hmm, ok, I see it’s a 2-channel amplifier. It sounds to me like you’re wanting to use the speakers as a 3-way system on each channel. You can do that.
Using a low-pass passive speaker crossover for the subwoofers will work – alongside the crossovers of the 2-way component speakers. However, be aware that it’s hard to find very high-power low-pass subwoofer passive crossovers.
You’d be much better off adding another 2-channel amplifier and driving the subwoofers with that usign the built-in low-pass crossover. In either case, you can have 2 subwoofers per channel wired for 4Ω as I previously described.
Best regards.
I think that’s what im gonna do, 2 separate amplifiers.
Thanks
Hi, I learned a lot from this page!!! Thanks!!! I have a question, if you can help me.. sorry for my Google translated English…In one room I have an amplifier connected to a pair of passive JVC speakers and everything works fine.
In another room I would like to put two passive Technics speakers and connect them to the same amplifier, so that I can listen to music simultaneously from all four speakers in both rooms.
The JVC speakers have a simple red and black connection cable while the Technics have three inputs, one LF for the bass, one MF for the mids and one HF for the highs. Inside the Tech speaker there is a crossover for the highs, while the lows and mids have no filters.
The fact that the Techs have three different inputs confuses me a bit because I can’t figure out what is, if there is one, the best way to connect them to the amplifier.
Amplifier: bluetooth based on tpa3116 2 channels – 4-8-ohm currently powered with 12V 2A, so 24Watt.
JVC MX-J35R speakers: Passive speakers 100 Watt 6 Ohm
TECHNICS SC-EH560 speakers: Passive speakers High 40 W – Mid 40 W – Low 70 W – 6 Ohm
I did these tests:
1) in series JVC to Tech Bass: JVK sound ok, Technics dark,
2) in series JVC to Tech Bass to Tech Mid: JVC sound ok, Technics discrete, but the highs are missing.
3) in series JVC to Tech Bass to Tech Mid to Tech highs: JVC and Tech only the highs are heard.
Do you think there is a correct way to connect these two types of speakers at the same time to this amplifier?
Hello, Albert. This is kind of an odd situation ecause of the speakers being 6 Ohms as well as the odd Technics speakers, but it can be done.
1. Add a single 2 Ohm power resistor in series with each midrange and woofer to get an 8Ω load.
2. Use 2-way 8Ω crossovers for the woofers and midrange (6Ω crossovers are generally not available). Alternatively, you can use 3-way crossovers and just use woofer & midrange output, or you can also disconnet the tweeter crossover in the speaker, add a 2Ω resistor, and then connect to the 3-way tweeter output.
3. If using 2-way crossovers, connect each tweeter in parallel with the input side of each crossover.
4. Add a single 2 Ohm power resistor in series with each JVC speaker.
5. Wire both sets of speakers in parallel, which will give around 4Ω total.
This will resolve the problem with the Technics speakers so you have a standard pair of speaker lead inputs, as well as should present a safe total Ohms loaad to the amplifier.
This is the “budget” way of doing it, but it will get it done and the power loss across the resistors won’t be very bad. The best way to do it would be using an impedance adapter built into a speaker volume control but those are around $25 USD and may not be available wherever you’re located at (they’re available in the USA).
You can buy 2Ω, 10W (or higher) resistors for a fairly cheap price in multi-piece packages in many places online that sell electronic parts. You’ll need 6 total at least.
Best regards.
im currently running 8 8ohms on a 10500 1 ohm stestom amp but i want to add 8 more 8 ohms speakers how can i do this
Hi, if want to add another eight 8Ω speakers you can do this and get a total of 2 Ohms at best.
Wire the speakers in series pairs for 16Ω each pair, then wire all 8 series pairs in parallel for 2 Ohms total.
Have a good day.
I’m buying four 8 ohm, 200W max 8 inch speakers to make a 4×8 speaker cab with two 4 ohm inputs (each input will lead to a pair of speakers wired in parallel), for a 150W guitar amplifier with either a mono 150W 8 ohm output or two 4 ohm 75W outputs. I should have MEGA headroom with respect to wattage, correct?
Hi there! Yes you would, since each speaker will get 1/2 of the available power. That’ll put each speaker’s power well below the 200W rating.
(Note: I’m assuming that’s the RMS/continuous power rating, not “peak” or etc.)
Best regards!
hi im from guyana,i would like to run 12 8ohms speakers on my stestom 1 ohm amp plz advice me on the best way to do this n get great out pout from the amp
Hello Terrence. I believe the best way would be using them in series-parallel like this:
1. Wire the 8Ω speakers in series, 2 each. This will give you 6 series “strings” (6 pairs in series). This is 16Ω per pair.
2. Wire these series speakers all in parallel. (Wire the positive ends all together, negative ends all together.)
This will give you 16Ω / 6 = 2.67 ohms which is about the best you can get with 12 speakers. Also, this way each speaker receives an equal amount of power.
Best regards.
What would be the outcome of a 13 ohm sub and a 6 ohm sub both single voice coil wired in parallel but then hooked up to the source positive to the positive of one sub and the negative to the negative of the other sub? I believe the sub out on the sound bar is 4ohms at 40w…. And would the power distribution of the amps load be affected by which sub the positive was connected to? Basically wouldn’t I want to have whichever sub can handle more power be the sub the positive is connected to? I know this wiring method is uncommon because I’ve looked and looked and looked and none of them offer a calculation for this method let alone mention it or have it as an option. But point is, I tried parallel and series and obviously I felt it sounded better in parallel but it still seemed off so one day I decided to try this split wiring method and it was immediately noticeable the difference in power, low frequency wave and mid-low frequency thump, overall louder volume but cleaner audio coming through… So I knew/know its how I need to have it but I’d like an explanation as to what’s happening in this particular method to balance out all of my odd ball pieces so well, im sure I could do the math but I dont have the time nor the patience for all that formula solving and it still wouldn’t be the same as a break down explanation. Could you please help me out here…
Hello, Mitchell. I am missing some info here but I’ll try to answer based on what I think you meant.
So it sounds like you’re describing having two subwoofers, one on each subwoofer output. Then you wired your other speakers across the positive & negative terminals of both pairs of subwoofer outputs. If that’s the case. it is possible that it’s acting similar to a bridged pair of outputs.
Bridged outputs on amps (usually found on car amplifiers) can provide more power when they’re connected that way, but it depends on the particular design.
I’m not 100% sure what setup you’re describing (because it’s not clear to me exactly what you meant) but hopefully I’m close. Best regards.
Hello! How can I calculate the RMS power of an acoustic enclosure with 2 speakers in parallel of 70W each and a Tweeter at 80W (4 ohm)? Woofer 8/2 = 4 ohm. Thanks
Hello, Christian. Since you mentioned woofers *and* a tweeter, I’m going to assume this is a 2-way speaker.
To calculate power, we’d need to know the power/Ohms rating for your amplifier. In this case I’ll assume it’s 4 Ohms min.
Ok, assuming the speaker power ratings are fairly accurate (i.e., they are correct RMS/continuous power ratings):
– The power handling of the woofers will be up to 140W, as each will receive 1/2 of the power applied.
– For a 4Ω rated amplifier, and we already have a 4Ω total woofer load (8Ω/2), we can simply divide whatever power they receive between them.
– However, the power handling of the speaker system will be limited to 80W which is due to the tweeter.
NOTE: As this appears to be 2-way speaker system (woofer/tweeter) I’m assuming you’re using a 2-way crossver which makes this simple.
Hopefully this answers your question. :)
Thanks for the answer. I thought the power is shared between all the speakers. But I would like to know what power it supports the whole bass+treble system. The amplifier has an rms power of 120W 4 ohm (due to the small power supply).
Audio filter at 3KHz Linkwitz Riley 12dB.
Dayton Audio DS175-8 X 2 woofer. 2x70W
Dayton Audio RST28F-4 X1 Tweeter. 1x80W.
Thanks!
Hi, the answer I wrote earlier addresses that already. In this case the maximum power the speaker can handle is 80W, limited by the power rating of the tweeter.
If you want the bass + treble system (more properly called a 2-way speaker) to handle more power, you can just add an L-pad or resistor attenuation network to the tweeter.
With as low as 3dB attenuation, the tweeter will receive 1/2 power but lose only 3dB volume. That way the 2-way speaker system can handle the full 120W amp power, assuming the speaker power specifications are accurate.
Best regards.
I understand. Thanks! I should theoretically reduce it by about 5dB. Woofer is 87.7dB, Tweeter 93.5db.
Great to hear that it helps.
Yep, sounds like that should be around 5dB. You can use -6dB if you’d rather (to make it easier for picking the parts; Ex.: for -6dB, you’d need 4Ω in series, 8Ω in parallel to the 4Ω resistor + 4Ω tweeter).
1dB is a very small difference, but sometimes it takes some trial and error to find what sounds best & makes you happy. Best regards!
Hi,
First of all, thank you very much for the information you shared with us.
I have a question that I cannot find a solution.
I have a small amplifier with 4 ohm 2x20w output. I want to make a small sound bar with some small speakers from my old bluetooth speakers.
The speakers I have are as follows:
– 4 x 2 ohm
– 6 x 4 ohm
How should I configure the speakers I have for each output? Thank you in advance for your help in this matter.
Hello Theo. There’s not a ‘perfect’ solution in this case, but here’s a pretty reasonable way to do what you’re after.
You can do this (for each channel):
1. Connect two 2Ω speakers in series. Wire three of the 4Ω speakers in parallel.
2. Connect all of these in series: series 2Ω speakers in series with the 3x 4Ω parallel speakers.
You’ll get a total of ~5.33Ω per channel, which is about the best you’re going to get without other more complicated solutions. The power available with a 5.3 Ohm load per channel will be a bit below the rated 20W, but not very much.
(2Ω + 2Ω + 4Ω/3 = 5.33Ω)
Best regards!
Dear Marty,
Thanks a lot!
Best regards!
You’re welcome. :)
Hi Marty: this is my first time reading your article. I have been searching on the web on how to wire 4 12″ 100w 16 ohm speakers together safely without causing any damage to either speakers or amp.
I have a Fender Champion 100w 8 ohm two channel solid state amp that houses two 12″ 100wat 16 ohm speakers wired in parallel. I wish to connect a cab I have built with two additional 12″ 100w 16 ohm speakers without blowing the speaker or burning out my amp.
It seems everything I see either underpowers (which I understand will happen because I now have 4 speakers) by too much, or I will have too much impedance for the amp.
Is there any wire configuration you can recommend I can use without blowing the speakers or burning out my amp.
Thank you for any help you can give.
George
Hi George.
The safe way to do this would be to wire the internal speakers in series (32 Ohms total), the external speaker cab in series (32 Ohms total also), then both of those in parallel for 16 Ohms.
The drawback is that while the amp will be safe, the power it can produce at 16 Ohms will be 1/2 that of its 8 Ohm rating of 100W. The speakers would then get 1/4 of that each, which means only about 50W/4 to each (about 12.5 watts).
A work-around that would allow you to use ONLY those four speakers *and* still get 100W power would be to use the impedance matching feature (one channel) of a speaker volume control like this one, set to 2x. Then wire all four 16 Ohm speakers in parallel for 4Ω.
The amp will then ‘see’ an 8 Ohm load and can drive all four with its rated power output, 100W, and 25W to each speaker. The alternative would be adding more speaekrs in series-parallel, so this is an easier way to handle that.
Best regards and I hope this helps a bit!
Hi Marty, thanks for the info. After I submitted my question to you, I kept searching on the web for more info. I gave AI a shot and it came up with a solution similar to yours (see below) but, it suggests that (if I am understanding it correctly) I keep the 2 amplifier speakers in parallel (at 8 ohm total) then wire the other two 16 Ohm cab speakers in series for 32 ohm then, wire the cab to the amp speakers which are at 8 ohm in parallel stating it will give me close to an 8 ohm set in total for the 4 speakers. which will give me more power and still be safe operating at around 8 ohm. is this correct? Here is what AI gave me.
To safely wire additional speakers to your Fender Champion 100 amplifier without damaging the speakers or the amp, you need to carefully consider the total impedance (measured in ohms) of the speaker setup. Here’s a breakdown:
[edited for length][..]
4. Recommended Solution: To maintain an 8-ohm load:
o Wire the two additional speakers in series with each other (resulting in 32 ohms).
o Then wire this pair in parallel with the existing pair (resulting in a total impedance close to 8 ohms).
[..]
If you’re unsure or uncomfortable with the wiring, consulting a professional technician is the safest option. Let me know if you’d like further clarification!
I assume that having all the speakers wired to achieve 8 ohms or close to that would give me the best possible results for power output for volume and safest running conditions for my amp?
You’re absolutely correct! Matching the total impedance of your speaker setup to the amplifier’s specified impedance, in this case 8 ohms, is ideal for achieving the best performance in terms of power output, volume, and safety for your amp. When the impedance aligns properly:
[edited for length][..].
Hi George. The information you posted that from the generated response was not correct. My solutions I replied with earlier are what you’re best off using.
• In the solution reply you got (wiring a 32 Ohm series wired pair in parallel with the current 8 Ohm total pair), you’d end up with around 5 Ohms (~5.33). For most amps rated for 8 Ohms that’s a problem.
• The power would also not be shared equally between the speakers unlike my previous suggestions, since they would get unequal amounts of voltage/power from the amp unlike other options.
Best regards.
(NOTE: I had an error in my previous reply, so I’ve corrected it. If you wire all 4 for 16 Ohms total, that’s 50W max, thus => ~12.5W per speaker. My apology, for some reason I was referring to 32 Ohms total originally.
Wiring them for 16 Ohms is safe & reasonable if you can live with the 50W power compromise. Otherwise, you can use one of the other 2 approaches.)
Hi Mr. Marty, I got tricked into helping my boss with his setup. Wasn’t told he threw bunch if stuff into a blender pulled out parts and decided to use them.
He has 4ch. Amp (4x300w@4ohms,
4x400w@2ohms)
2- PRV 6.5″. 4ohm mid loudspeakers (400wRMS/200wNOMINAL/800wMAX)
The part that throws me cause have not installed any or atleast have not had to.plan the layout or wire mapping. So I apologize if I describe the wrong. (They are Diamond MP694)
2- DIAMOND MP694 6X9. 4ohm coaxial horn drivers.(150wRMS/300wMAX) ……..attached tweeter is 8ohm (50wRMS/100wMAX)they do come with Hi pass filter 12dB 2nd order crossover and optional (6000Hz-4ohm resistors)
And(for some reason he also got)
2- PRV TWEETER. 4ohm (140wRMS/70wNOMINAL/280wMax)tweeters.
2-Adjustable line output converter PAC SNI-35
Again I’m kinda lost with another amp and with the coaxial speakers. Or dsp.
I suggested extra amp or dsp but he said he got this on trade so use it should be better than what he has. Like I said he is the boss, so I said yes sir. This is my thoughts but I could be upside down and inside out.
—–The 2 separate PRV tweeters power from the head unit (stock rated 50wRMS/200wMAX).
then give all the rest a channel. With crossover filter and 4ohm resistors installed on the 6×9 coaxials? Not sure how to get if that would drop the 6×9 below 4 ohms?
Or maybe I need to wire prv tweeters parallel with prv 6.5 to try to get to 2ohm?
Any advice guidance knowledge would be greatly appreciated. Thank you
Hi Josh. What is the brand & model of the 4 channel amplifier? This may make a difference somewhat in my response.
However, I can tell you the following is likely this best, as is often the case for setups like this:
1. Front channel: PRV midwoofer & tweeter on each channel, using a 2-way crossover. If the PRV tweeters have a provided high-pass crossover, you can get by using those with their crossovers and the midwoofers without one, but it’s not the best way.
2. Rear channels: Diamond Audio 6×9″, one per channel. You’d wire those the same way as the PRV speakers on the front channel (parallel), including using the included high pass crossovers for the tweeters.
3. The PAC SNI-35 is only a 2-channel line output converter, so you’ll either need 2 RCA “Y” cables for the amp, a 4-channel converter, or add a second 2-channel one. With only 2 channels there cannot be a front/rear fader.
> With crossover filter and 4ohm resistors installed on the 6×9 coaxials? Not sure how to get if that would drop the 6×9 below 4 ohms?
My understanding (at this point) is they’re used as a 2-way design but without a low-pass crossover for the woofer. The woofer likely doesn’t have much output at higher frequencies, so it may not be needed (but is always an option).
It’s a little unclear to me about the resistors – are they separate from the crossovers? If so, they’re probably included for another installation option, but I couldn’t find any info on the Diamond Audio page for the 6×9″.
At any rate, with the Diamond MP694s using the tweeters w/ high-pass crossovers and the woofer in parallel, the total Ohms load will vary but will be a little under 4Ω on the low end. That’s ok if we’re using the amp in 4-channel mode as it supports 2 Ohms/channel.
> Or maybe I need to wire prv tweeters parallel with prv 6.5 to try to get to 2ohm?
You don’t have any particular reason to try and get a 2 Ohm load, but rather to wire everything up for the best results. For example, there’s no benefit to bridging the amp and then trying to wire all speakers in 2-channel mode because the power will be the same to each speaker (or worse).
If the amp has built-in crossovers there *may* be a few more options, but to get your boss’s setup going, I would keep it simple with my recommendations #1-3.
Best regards & good luck!:)
So the amp is a db drive moto 800.4. It is a 4 channel amp and i believe it does have built in crossover i will look specs up shortly.
The install is on a motorcycle. Might be why didn’t see the Diamonds on their site. They are in motorcycle section in the MP series I think they called it.
Thanks for the time and clear fast answers. Just reading comment section with your responses I think I have learned more , for sure can follow along better than I have reading anything else .
Thank you
I’m sorry I missed read. He does have 2 of the sni-35. So (2) of the 2channel converters. Yes sir he has that.
Hi Josh. Ok then, that’s good that you have two line output converters (LOCs) to work with.
I looked at the amplifier specs and the second way to do this installation is to do this:
1. Wire both both tweeters in parallel on the front channels. Set the amp’s high-pass crossover to its maximum setting (3kHz), and don’t use the tweeters’ included crossovers.
2. Wire both woofers in parallel on the rear channels, and set the low-pass crossover for those channels to 3kHz.
The advantage of this is less distortion & a “real” 2-way setup for both sets of speakers, but the drawback is no front/rear fader. If you use this option, you’ll only need 2 RCA inputs for the amp (and RCA “Y” cables to connect to all 4 inputs).
Best regards.
Thanks for all the advice and time actually looking into it for me. Appreciate what you do. Thank you sir.
My pleasure, Josh. Have a great week! :)
Hell Marty!
Please calculate for me, (and tell me the formula please!)
I have an guitar tube amp that is 16w at 16ohms.
My internal speaker is a 16 ohm speaker and my external cab with 2 x 8ohm sp. in series is 16ohm,
so those combined, the int. and the ext. makes a sum of 8ohm total load to the amp.
My question is: how many watts each of those 3 speakers will receive?
Thank you!
Kindest regards
Vagelis
Hello, Vagelis. Can your amp support an 8Ω load? I noticed you said it’s rated 16W @ 16 Ohms.
If the amp can handle an 8 Ohm load, then the power output should be:
– 16W @ 16 Ohms
– 32W @ 8 Ohms
(This is an assumption made without more information to verify the amp’s power.)
This case isn’t hard because 1) the speaker impedances are even numbers, and 2) we have the same Ohms load on each parallel side (16Ω parallel 16Ω).
So we can use:
We can also be more confident by finding the speaker voltage at 32W, 8Ω total, using the formula for power (P = V^2 / R):
Hopefully this helps. Have a good weekend.