Underpowering Subs

[1990RANGER 10+ year member]

Everyones is always talking about how underpowering your subs damages them. But would coming up a 100 watts (rms) short of juice really damage a 750 watt rms kicker? Cause the EDNINe.1 amp I'm looking at can give me 600rms x 2 at 1 ohm.

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[T9X 10+ year member]

Underpower does not damage your speakers in any way. If that myth was true, you'd be blowing subs left and right just from adjusting your volume.

 

[ntense702 10+ year member]

overpowering your subs/speakers damages them, underpowering them just irritates them

 

[squeak9798 5,000+ posts]

Everyones is always talking about how underpowering your subs damages them.

Those people are ignorant fools.

But would coming up a 100 watts (rms) short of juice really damage a 750 watt rms kicker?

Not unless you had your box so big that 650w caused the subwoofer to bottom out. Thermally, it is physically impossible to blow a driver from underpowering it. Mechanically, it is actually possible to damage a sub with less than rated RMS power...but that's because of the box (very efficient enclosure), and not because you actually used to little power. If the enclosure allows the subwoofer the mechanically handle the power; you will not damage the sub by underpowering it

Long story short; actually underpowering a driver will NEVER damage it.

 

[audioholic 5,000+ posts]

No speaker in the history of speakers was ever damaged from too little power.

 

[JimJ 5,000+ posts]

underpowering them just irritates them

No...not unless the amp is clipping.

 

[Crown_amps]

ya thats silly to say that they are getting hurt in anyway from too little power...thus not much x max ....so the coil is not going F@#$ up nor will it over heat i have underpowerd speakers for years and they are just like new.