Please help durango boy stereo question
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 967
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Please help durango boy stereo question
Ill be getting a bunch of used stereo stuff from my cousin that i want to install in my corvette. The sub has two sets of terminals. 
What is that all about? How do i wire up a subwoofer that has two paris of those terminal things and why are there two instead of one? Thanks and sorry to call you out like this i just know you know your stereo stuff and i need the help fast before my cousin sells it all to someone else.
What is that all about? How do i wire up a subwoofer that has two paris of those terminal things and why are there two instead of one? Thanks and sorry to call you out like this i just know you know your stereo stuff and i need the help fast before my cousin sells it all to someone else.
Team Owner
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 24,125
Likes: 15
From: Columbia Missouri
No problem. I don't mind helping at all.
A sub that has two sets of terminals is just a sub with two voice coils. These can play to your advantage or they can work against you. basically they each have their own impedance rating. You'll need to know if your sub is a dual 2 OHM or dual 4 OHM.
If you have a good mono amp that's stable down to 2 or even 1 OHM, you can use a dual voice coil speaker to your advantage.
Dual 4 OHM voice coil wired in parallel will essentially give you a 2 OHM sub with the total wattage. If wired in series, the speaker will become an 8 OHM half power sub.
Dual 2 OHM voice coil wired in parallel will essentially give you a 1 OHM sub with the total wattage. If wired in series, the speaker will become a 4 OHM half power sub.
You'll need an amp that is stable at those low impedance ratings.
Just so you know, if you have two dual 4 OHM subs wired in series, and paralleled with another sub just like it you have a pair of 8 OHM subs operating at 4 OHMs. That's why they do that.
Parallel - Pos to Pos and Neg to Neg
Series - Pos to Neg and Pos to Neg
A sub that has two sets of terminals is just a sub with two voice coils. These can play to your advantage or they can work against you. basically they each have their own impedance rating. You'll need to know if your sub is a dual 2 OHM or dual 4 OHM.
If you have a good mono amp that's stable down to 2 or even 1 OHM, you can use a dual voice coil speaker to your advantage.
Dual 4 OHM voice coil wired in parallel will essentially give you a 2 OHM sub with the total wattage. If wired in series, the speaker will become an 8 OHM half power sub.
Dual 2 OHM voice coil wired in parallel will essentially give you a 1 OHM sub with the total wattage. If wired in series, the speaker will become a 4 OHM half power sub.
You'll need an amp that is stable at those low impedance ratings.
Just so you know, if you have two dual 4 OHM subs wired in series, and paralleled with another sub just like it you have a pair of 8 OHM subs operating at 4 OHMs. That's why they do that.
Parallel - Pos to Pos and Neg to Neg
Series - Pos to Neg and Pos to Neg
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Sep 2006
Posts: 967
Likes: 0
Sorry for the wrong forum i get confused sometimes about what should go where. I thought it was a technical question that had to do with a corvette. Im sorry.
Man thanks durango thats a lot to try to take in. I do understand a little bit but i dont know what the sub is or what the amp is. What happens if the amp isnt stable at that low ohm? Will it not play right?
Man thanks durango thats a lot to try to take in. I do understand a little bit but i dont know what the sub is or what the amp is. What happens if the amp isnt stable at that low ohm? Will it not play right?
Team Owner
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 24,125
Likes: 15
From: Columbia Missouri
No worries about the wrong forum...it's close enough to technical and it's on topic.
A 2 OHM sub running off of an amp that's only rated to be stable at 4 OHMs is not good for either the speaker or the amp.
This applies to all speakers and all amps...not just subs and sub amps.
Most likely the amp will shut down. It will over heat very quickly if running a sub at a lower impedance than it's rated for. The thermal protection circuit...better hope it has one...will shut the amp down.
If it doesn't have the circuit you run the risk of an electrical fire when the amp burns up. The speaker will take less damage than the amp but it's not good for it either.
Last edited by Durango_Boy; Feb 22, 2007 at 12:34 PM.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2002
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From: Silver City NM
St. Jude Donor '05-'07
Internal Engine | External Engine | Tech Topics Only | Performance Results
Since there is a SPECIFIC forum for Audio/Electronics, THAT is where it belongs. Let's try and clean up the C3 Tech/Performance section and get it back to questions it's supposed to be addressing.
Dep
Team Owner
Joined: Aug 2006
Posts: 24,125
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From: Columbia Missouri
Should we all go to basic training first? Will we get our own cool little dog tags? We can all get up every morning at 5am and run five miles too. It'll be fun. I'm all for it.
What's he supposed to do? Move it? Right.
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Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 5,714
Likes: 6
From: Silver City NM
St. Jude Donor '05-'07
He can't move it. But it's already been reported to the mods. They can and probably will. Just READ the forum instructions like you were supposed to do BEFORE posting ANYTHING.
Dep
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Sep 2006
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Im really sorry then for all the trouble. To tell you the truth DJDEP you could say it a little nicer. I would not be surprised if a few new guys up and leave because of the cold way you just jumped in here and barked at me for accidentally posting in the wrong section. Im sorry man and ill try to do right next time.
Thanks a lot durango boy for your help. If i have any other questions i will make sure to post them in the right place. You really seem to love helping new guys like me. Ive seen you get bashed a few times by other guys and i just wanted to say how much you have helped and i see all the times you have helped other new guys.
Keep it up.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 5,714
Likes: 6
From: Silver City NM
St. Jude Donor '05-'07
Im really sorry then for all the trouble. To tell you the truth DJDEP you could say it a little nicer. I would not be surprised if a few new guys up and leave because of the cold way you just jumped in here and barked at me for accidentally posting in the wrong section. Im sorry man and ill try to do right next time.
Thanks a lot durango boy for your help. If i have any other questions i will make sure to post them in the right place. You really seem to love helping new guys like me. Ive seen you get bashed a few times by other guys and i just wanted to say how much you have helped and i see all the times you have helped other new guys.
Keep it up.
Thanks a lot durango boy for your help. If i have any other questions i will make sure to post them in the right place. You really seem to love helping new guys like me. Ive seen you get bashed a few times by other guys and i just wanted to say how much you have helped and i see all the times you have helped other new guys.
Keep it up.
First off NONE of my comments were aimed at you, other than the initial one that the post was started in the wrong section. Did you need a hugg and kiss to make you feel better? Sorry...not my thing.
Just read the forum instructions BEFORE posting. There are PLENTY of knowledgeable people in the appropriate sections (like audio/electronics) that can answer this question. Durangoboy isn't the sole source of info on the forum. We need to police up this tech section and think about the people who have APPROPRIATE questions that need answering. Learn from your mistakes. And don't be so sensitive.
Dep
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