Speaker ohms ratings...

[festing11]

Does anybody know what ohms setting i should have my amp on when powering my bose dual cubes?

Can't find a answer online.

Its set at 8ohms at the moment and sounds good, but i don't want to cause any damage to my amp.

 

[Anonymous]

If it's the acoustimass 10 or 15 the manual states suitable for AV receivers 4 to 8 ohms, so I would leave it as it is, as this wilhe suit the AVR better.

 

[aliEnRIK]

What informations on the back of the cubes?

 

[festing11]

Says nothing on the back, which is first place i looked. To be honest i'm going to replace all the speakers at some point. Just don't want to damage the amp in the meantime.

 

[Anonymous]

festing11:Says nothing on the back, which is first place i looked. To be honest i'm going to replace all the speakers at some point. Just don't want to damage the amp in the meantime.

Defo says 4 to 8 ohms on the bose manual, used to have these myself.

Your likely to do more harm if you set it to 4 rather than 8, as it will be working harder and getting hotter quickly I would have thought, if your gonna change your speakers anyway, your best sticking to the setting that suits the AVR best, not the speakers.

 

[aliEnRIK]

Unless im missunderstanding this, I disagree with marks advice

The amp should be set to 4ohm. If its kept at 8 ohm theres a good chance the amp will cutout as its not enough power to drive the speakers at certain frequencies

 

[Anonymous]

aliEnRIK:
Unless im missunderstanding this, I disagree with festings advice

The amp should be set to 4ohm. If its kept at 8 ohm theres a good chance the amp will cutout as its not enough power to drive the speakers at certain frequencies

Bose speakers run better at 8ohms, their literature states they are suitable for 4 or 8, my understanding is that 4 ohm speakers are harder to drive than 8 ohm speakers.

Yamaha 667 spec states;
Dynamic Power/Channel (8/6/4/2 ohms) 125/160/190/230 W

Which I would read as harder to drive, maybe I am wrong, maxflinn maybe able to shed a little light on the subject as he has just been through all this with his new speakers and amp.

 

[strapped for cash]

Yes, but didn't Max nearly blow his receiver by driving his system at -10db?

I wouldn't panic with small speakers like Bose. You can select a lower impedance setting as a safety precaution, but it's more of an issue if you're driving 'big-box' 4 ohm rated speakers, since lower frequencies require greater current (which is what would make your receiver "run hot"). Assuming you're running a sub with the crossover set relatively high (at least 100Hz, or upwards thereof), and you're not pushing your system to ridiculous volumes, I can't see you having a problem...

Beyond that, see how your receiver responds during normal use. If you could fry an egg on it, it's time to consider the lower impedance setting.

EDIT: I should have said, "with a relatively high crossover frequency set on your receiver, not on the sub itself."

 

[Anonymous]

markjaspi:aliEnRIK:
Unless im missunderstanding this, I disagree with festings advice

The amp should be set to 4ohm. If its kept at 8 ohm theres a good chance the amp will cutout as its not enough power to drive the speakers at certain frequencies

Bose speakers run better at 8ohms, their literature states they are suitable for 4 or 8, my understanding is that 4 ohm speakers are harder to drive than 8 ohm speakers.

Yamaha 667 spec states;
Dynamic Power/Channel (8/6/4/2 ohms) 125/160/190/230 W

Which I would read as harder to drive, maybe I am wrong, maxflinn maybe able to shed a little light on the subject as he has just been through all this with his new speakers and amp.hi mark, rick has suggested to me to set my as-500 to 8ohms for the time being and only change it to 4ohms if i see any sign that the amp is struggling, as ive just said in another thread i think this advice may be more relative to my current setrup and the minor issues that ive had and not general advice re. 4 ohm speakers. so as far as the op is concerned i'm not sure i can be of any help...

and strapped, -10 is nothing

 

[strapped for cash]

"-10 is nothing"

I'll refer the officer to your post when my equipment's seized to combat noise pollution, then...

 

[Anonymous]

strapped for cash:
"-10 is nothing"

I'll refer the officer to your post when my equipment's seized to combat noise pollution, then...

Not telling you were I live then, -20 with the kids, -10 watching movie with the mrs and 0 when I'm watching a blu ray.

 

[strapped for cash]

I think you've deafened yourselves through constant exposure to alarmingly high volume levels... On that note, if you want to move into the flat beneath me I could crank the volume up to my heart's content!

 

[aliEnRIK]

markjaspi:aliEnRIK:
Unless im missunderstanding this, I disagree with festings advice

The amp should be set to 4ohm. If its kept at 8 ohm theres a good chance the amp will cutout as its not enough power to drive the speakers at certain frequencies

Bose speakers run better at 8ohms, their literature states they are suitable for 4 or 8, my understanding is that 4 ohm speakers are harder to drive than 8 ohm speakers.

Yamaha 667 spec states;
Dynamic Power/Channel (8/6/4/2 ohms) 125/160/190/230 W

Which I would read as harder to drive, maybe I am wrong, maxflinn maybe able to shed a little light on the subject as he has just been through all this with his new speakers and amp.

Strange of bose to say both 4ohm and 8ohm amps are fine

If thats the case then keeping it at 8ohm 'should' be ok (Doesnt really tell us what the speakers are though)

 

[steve_1979]

After reading this thread last night I was having similar worries about my 6 Ohm Q Acoustics 1010i speakers which I've been running at 8 Ohms for the last 6 months.

I spent a couple of hours last night reading about this subject and asking questions at various forums. It should be quite safe to keep running them at 8 Ohms so long as their used sensibly. Never run them too close too their full volume or make them clip and check the receiver never gets too hot.

Bare in ming that I'm a AV noob so please take this with advice with a large pinch of salt! Here's some useful information on this subject that's worth reading:

www.audioholics.com/education/amplifier-technology/impedance-selector-switch-1

www.audioholics.com/education/frequently-asked-questions/connecting-4-ohm-speakers-to-an-8-ohm-receiver-or-amplifier

 

[Frank Harvey]

Anybody with 6ohm speakers needn't worry - as far as the amp's concerned, 6 and 8 are very close - it's 4ohms that can be problematic.

 

[aliEnRIK]

FrankHarveyHiFi:Anybody with 6ohm speakers needn't worry - as far as the amp's concerned, 6 and 8 are very close - it's 4ohms that can be problematic.

There are a few 8ohm speakers that will 'dip' to 4ohm at certain frequencies though