theCybe
5,000+ posts
sector three
Inside a speaker is a coil - which turns into an electromagnet when you apply current to it. That electromagnet reacts against the solid magnet of the subwoofer, and moves the cone in and out.
http://www.howstuffworks.com ( search speaker )
Ohms, or an Ohm is a measure of resistance; Some speakers have only one coil, which would make it an "SVC" or Single Voice Coil speaker.
You would say, "SVC 4" or "SVC 8" referring to the resistance of that coil.
When a speaker has more than one coil (DVC), or when you have more than one speaker, you have the opportunity to get a different resistance by wiring the coils in different patterns;
One is called parallel, one is called series;
With multiple woofers, you may also wire "series-parallel".
For a visual,
http://www.rockfordfosgate.com/rftech/woofer_wizard.asp
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This rule is not concrete, but should give you a basic idea of why you might want to choose a particular coil configuration:
Scenario:
Amplifier "A" can produce 100 watts into a 4 ohm load. It is 2 ohm stable, and 1 ohm stable.
If you wire two 8 ohm coils in parallel, the amplifier will 'see' 4 ohms - it can provide 100 watts at this impedance (ohms.)
If you wire two 4 ohm coils in parallel, the amplifier will 'see' 2 ohms - it can provide more than 100 watts into this lower impedance.
If you wire four 4 ohm coils in parallel, the amplifier will 'see' 1 ohm - it can provide more power into one ohm than it can into two - and more into two than it can into four - and more into four than it can into eight.
Follow?
Not all amplifiers are one-ohm stable. Some are stable all the way down to 0.35 ohms! There is no audible difference in wiring configurations - except that generally speaking, a lower impedance will allow you to get more output from your amplifier.
http://www.howstuffworks.com ( search speaker )
Ohms, or an Ohm is a measure of resistance; Some speakers have only one coil, which would make it an "SVC" or Single Voice Coil speaker.
You would say, "SVC 4" or "SVC 8" referring to the resistance of that coil.
When a speaker has more than one coil (DVC), or when you have more than one speaker, you have the opportunity to get a different resistance by wiring the coils in different patterns;
One is called parallel, one is called series;
With multiple woofers, you may also wire "series-parallel".
For a visual,
http://www.rockfordfosgate.com/rftech/woofer_wizard.asp
---
This rule is not concrete, but should give you a basic idea of why you might want to choose a particular coil configuration:
Scenario:
Amplifier "A" can produce 100 watts into a 4 ohm load. It is 2 ohm stable, and 1 ohm stable.
If you wire two 8 ohm coils in parallel, the amplifier will 'see' 4 ohms - it can provide 100 watts at this impedance (ohms.)
If you wire two 4 ohm coils in parallel, the amplifier will 'see' 2 ohms - it can provide more than 100 watts into this lower impedance.
If you wire four 4 ohm coils in parallel, the amplifier will 'see' 1 ohm - it can provide more power into one ohm than it can into two - and more into two than it can into four - and more into four than it can into eight.
Follow?
Not all amplifiers are one-ohm stable. Some are stable all the way down to 0.35 ohms! There is no audible difference in wiring configurations - except that generally speaking, a lower impedance will allow you to get more output from your amplifier.
