Speaker ohms - how many am I using?

[vaio-fx]

Thanks for the help. I tried just playing each set by themselves on volume 15/30 and comparing what I heard. The ProSound Speakers were noticeably louder at this volume, after plugging both sets in together, it wasn't really any louder (altho definately wasn't quieter) but I then got the bass (The Sony Speakers have subwoofers, prosound do not). So I'm using 8 ohms resistance which is fine? I think that even if I used one set on this amp they would still be underpowered as I think its only 100W per channel, sony speakers are 105W each and the Prosound ones just say "200W" on the back of them, but once again I don't know if this is per set of individually, on the website it says thats the 12 Inch prosound speakers are 400W, these are 12inch but have a different model number. I would happily just use the prosound ones but then I loose all the bass, thats why I can't use just one set.

 

[root]

who has the degree in Electronics here?

Me, thats who.

And me...


let's have a look at what you said.

2 8Ohm speakers in parallel give a total (nominal) impedance of 4Ohms. (FACT)

This is too little to get the full sound (ASSUMPTION -not necessarily fact).
that'd rather depend on the amplifier. if his amplifier is designed to drive a 4 ohm load then it'll work best when the load is 4 ohms (1 4 ohm speaker, 2 8 ohm speakers, 4 16 ohm speakers etc).. if it's designed to drive 8 ohms then it'll work best at 8 ohms as you asserted above.

Sorry I know you have all explained this to me before but I still don't understand. Ok, the current speaker situation is 3x 8 Ohm surround speakers connected to my amp's 3 surround sockets (these can be ignored for now), but then my 2 Sony XB80AV speakers and my 2 ProSound 200W speakers. These 4 larger speakers are connected to the amplifier's stereo sockets (2 speakers per socket). I know this is overloaded but I can't afford a new amp. Each speaker says on the back of it that it is 8 Ohms but I have no idea is this is per speaker or per set of 2. The amplifer says it can take 8-16ohms in these sockets and doesnt appear to be getting hot even at full volume, but I think the speakers are greatly underpowered, I'm sure the amp is only 100W per channel. So I was wondering if anyone could help me work out the resistance and how badly underpowered the speakers are? Thanks

the rated impedance is per enclosure written on the back.

if the speaker says 8 ohms, then that cabinet/box is 8 ohms, whether that's 2 16 ohm speakers in parallel, or 2 4 ohm speakers in series, of even 2 8 ohm speakers wired through a cross over to split up the frequencies so that the apparent impedance to a given frequency is 8 ohms.

if it says 8 ohms on the back of a box, that box is 8 ohms, when it's wired as the manufacturer first wired it with the original speaker, (if you've changed the internals about then it'll be as you;re re-wired it), but we'll assume that you haven't.

I'd suggest that if your amp can drive 8 - 16 ohms that you either only wire one of the set of speakers into the sockets on the back.

OR

you wire the two 8 ohm speakers in series to make 16 ohms rather than in parallel to give 4 ohms.

the amp might not get hot, there might be some thermal protection circuits working and limiting the output and that might be why it's not as loud as you expect it to be.


does the amp sound better with only 2 speakers, rather than loading it with 4 speakers wired up to give a 4 ohm load?

 

[vaio-fx]

It definately sounds better with all 4 speakers. Also the amp does get hot, but only after a very long time of blasting full volume on a very bassy song, which by the time it get's to that sort of heat, I would have usually stopped anyway. So the sony speakers add up to 16ohms, but I'm not sure about the prosound ones, only one has a sticker stating its impedance on the back, it could have fallen off the other one, i have no idea. Don't get me wrong, these are very loud, but my friend seems to think that they should be a lot louder and i think he may be right as they are crisp clear on the amp's max, which would suggest they have more in them (I'm talking more about the Prosound ones here, I think the Sony ones are close to their max)

 

[Half Evil]

This thread is full of lol.

 

[01001010]

Those ratings are used to cover peaks. They're not continuous. Most speakers are pretty loud when they have one watt delivered to them.

on the website it says thats the 12 Inch prosound speakers are 400W, these are 12inch but have a different model number. I would happily just use the prosound ones but then I loose all the bass, thats why I can't use just one set.

I'll tell you this again - those speakers will probably fail at 200 watts, let alone 400 watts. That isn't a reputable brand, and those aren't reputable speakers.

(The Sony Speakers have subwoofers, prosound do not)

A tower with a built in subwoofer is very different than an independent subwoofer. I suggest you buy a powered subwoofer to take the load off your receiver.

 

[vaio-fx]

Ok, fair enough if they fail at 200W, I was just expressing the fact that I'm unsure of their wattage and I have little to work with. I had a look at subwoofers earlier actually as I think they may be a good route.

 

[root]

maximum power rating means the maximum amount of power they can handle, not what they should be driven at....


that's like saying that your car is capable of 150 MPH, it doesn't mean that you should drive everywhere at 150... aside from the fact that'd be dangerous, the handling would be shit, the ride comfort would be shit and the car really wouldn't last that long...


get your 200w speakers, and drive then at a full 200w all the time then they'll sound pretty shit, and it won't be long before they give out.

I'm not trying to sound really high and mighty here, but really if you want the stereo system to sound good, you might actually have to get some good compoments, and set it up as it's meant to be set up, (Like one 8ohm speaker at the 8ohm speaker post not lots all tied together).

as it is you've got an amplifier, that you already said in previous threads wasn't all that, with a bunch of speakers, that you've already said isn't all that. hooked up in a configuration that really doesn't suit the amplifier and is loading it.

you surely aren't expecting studio reference amp/speaker type sound quality,
and surely you're not expecting stadium filling amounts of sound and loudness?
if you are then you'll always be sadly disappointed.

I'm not saying that you need to go out and spend thousands, but you should probably start by hooking up what you've got correctly in the first place...


really, if you want the set-up to sound loud you're probably going to find it's the amplifier that's the problem here, not your vast array of speakers.