Impedance question on specific amp

[Mynameismcgyver 10+ year member]

Buddy has a Sony Sd22x horrid amp that is good for 2 ohm stereo x2

In bridging mode it says it is only stable at 4ohm...If an amp is 2ohm stable, should it not care how its being hooked up?

For the record. Its just a temporary amp.

Thanks

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[squeak9798 5,000+ posts]

Yes, it does care.

Why?

Each channel is only stable down to 2ohms. "The amp" isn't stable to 2ohms. Each channel is stable down to 2ohms.

What happens when you bridge an amplifier ? Well, in effect, when you bridge a 2-channel amplifier each channel will "see" half the load.

So if you bridge the amplifier into a 4ohm load, each channel would effectively "see" a 2ohm load. This is fine and dandy because each channel can support a 2ohm load.

But then what happens when you bridge the amplifier to a 2ohm load ? Well, each channel would effectively see a 1ohm load. Each channel can not support a 1ohm load. It's below their stable operating range. So you now run the risk of damaging the amplifier, or if sufficient protection circuits are built into the amplifier it will likely kick into protection.

 

[azbass 5,000+ posts]

^^ and end

 

[Mynameismcgyver 10+ year member]

Ah. Makes perfect sense. Thanks.