Buying new speakers

[whitegoldaudio]

And have got a choice between 4 ohmn and 8 ohmn speakers whats the difference?

[TonyB]

And have got a choice between 4 ohmn and 8 ohmn speakers whats the difference?

Erm, it depends on your amp to a certain extent. 4 ohm have a lower impedance than 8 ohm. So if your amp puts out 400 watts at 4 ohms then it will only probably put out around 250watts at 8 ohms so in theory the 4ohm ones should be a bit louder.

The downside is that you can only usually connect one 4ohm speaker to each channel of the amp. If you later wanted to add say a bass bin, you couldn't do it if your existing speaker was 4 ohms. If the existing speaker was 8 ohms, then adding a second 8 ohm speaker would give a combined impedance of 4 ohms so would be okay (trust me, 8 ohms + 8 ohms connected in parallel = 4 Ohms).

Some amps will go down to 2 ohms which will allow you to run 2 X 4 ohms speakers per channel but unless it was a good amp, I wouldn't recommend it as it works the amp very hard.

[Excalibur]

Erm, it depends on your amp to a certain extent. 4 ohm have a lower impedance than 8 ohm. So if your amp puts out 400 watts at 4 ohms then it will only probably put out around 250watts at 8 ohms so in theory the 4ohm ones should be a bit louder.

The downside is that you can only usually connect one 4ohm speaker to each channel of the amp. If you later wanted to add say a bass bin, you couldn't do it if your existing speaker was 4 ohms. If the existing speaker was 8 ohms, then adding a second 8 ohm speaker would give a combined impedance of 4 ohms so would be okay (trust me, 8 ohms + 8 ohms connected in parallel = 4 Ohms).

Some amps will go down to 2 ohms which will allow you to run 2 X 4 ohms speakers per channel but unless it was a good amp, I wouldn't recommend it as it works the amp very hard.


Having recently asked this question, I have been informed ( by the speaker manufacturers ) and had it confirmed elsewhere that IF CONNECTED BY THE SUB CROSSOVER (as opposed to in parallel, such as daisy chaining two pairs of tops ) the resulting impedance will be that of the sub, just as if you were considering a two or three way single enclosure, which would have various impedances connected by the crossover.

Basically 4ohm subs plus 4 ohm tops = 4 ohm system.
Hope this helps.

[TonyB]

Having recently asked this question, I have been informed ( by the speaker manufacturers ) and had it confirmed elsewhere that IF CONNECTED BY THE SUB CROSSOVER (as opposed to in parallel, such as daisy chaining two pairs of tops ) the resulting impedance will be that of the sub, just as if you were considering a two or three way single enclosure, which would have various impedances connected by the crossover.

Basically 4ohm subs plus 4 ohm tops = 4 ohm system.
Hope this helps.

That depends on how the sub is wired up! If it has a crossover and the highpass is connected to the output for the tops then yes that is correct. If it just has a low pass filter for the sub and the connection is straight through for the tops then the 8 + 8 = 4 rule would apply.

Basically if the jacks are marked input and output then what you say is correct. If you can plug the inputs and outputs into either jack then its not.

Unfortunately speaker manufacturers don't tend to say how they are wired up in the literature that comes with them and they call a low pass filter a crossover so sometimes the only way to find out is open up the cab and have a look.

You tend to find expensive subs will have a crossover but budget ones are more likely to just have a low pass filter

[Excalibur]

Basically if the jacks are marked input and output then what you say is correct. If you can plug the inputs and outputs into either jack then its not.


Totally agree, foolishly I had assumed subs with dedicated inputs and outputs.

[soundmaster mobile disco]

:attn: hi guys i currently have peavey speakers.i want to buy another 2 soundlab speakers,will any 8 ohm speakers go with the following peavey.i currently have the kam kxr 600 amp.will any speakers do or do i have to match peavey to peavey.

2-way trapezoidal sound reinforcement enclosure
400 watts program, 800 watts peak
8 ohms
One 15 inch premium, 2 3/8 inch voice coil woofer
RX14™ compression driver with a 1.4 inch titanium diaphragm 1 inch exit
90° x 40° constant directivity horn
Tweeter protection
Heavy-duty crossover
35mm speaker stand top hat insert built in
Heavy-duty metal grill
2 x 6.3mm (1/4") female jack speaker input sockets in parallel
Dimensions H x W x D: 31.75" x 18.38" front (11.25" rear) 14.25" (Unboxed)
34.12" x 21.38 x 16.12 (Boxed)
Weight: 52.7 lbs. (Unboxed)
64

[gillo]

:attn: hi guys i currently have peavey speakers.i want to buy another 2 soundlab speakers,will any 8 ohm speakers go with the following peavey.i currently have the kam kxr 600 amp.will any speakers do or do i have to match peavey to peavey.

2-way trapezoidal sound reinforcement enclosure
400 watts program, 800 watts peak
8 ohms
One 15 inch premium, 2 3/8 inch voice coil woofer
RX14™ compression driver with a 1.4 inch titanium diaphragm 1 inch exit
90° x 40° constant directivity horn
Tweeter protection
Heavy-duty crossover
35mm speaker stand top hat insert built in
Heavy-duty metal grill
2 x 6.3mm (1/4") female jack speaker input sockets in parallel
Dimensions H x W x D: 31.75" x 18.38" front (11.25" rear) 14.25" (Unboxed)
34.12" x 21.38 x 16.12 (Boxed)
Weight: 52.7 lbs. (Unboxed)
64

that will be fine linking themin parraelel with the peaveys will bring the impedance down to 4 ohms which im sure the kam amp will have a minimum impedance of 4ohms per channel i doubt the soundlabs will be as effecient though so the speakers will be at two levels the peaverys louder overall hope this helps;)