AudiogoN
Search Buy Sell Learn MyPage
 Learn > Forums > Amps Preamps > 1264598707  Start New Thread | Log In | Bookmark This
  Running 4 speakers from a 2-channel amp
I love the sound of 4 speakers playing at once around me. I've got a simple old SS amp, Luxman L507 (mid-1970's) that runs 4 speakers at once. I'm running a pair of Yamaha NS-1000x (6 Ohm) as mains, and a tweaked set of B&W 805Ns (8 Ohm) as B's.

I'm talking here about 2-channel sound, 4 speakers, not 4-channel surround sound.

I've been looking for a higher-end amp, but find almost all are two-channels only, with ports for only two speakers.

Some great old Luxman tube amps offer 4 channels, but only one pair at a time is available on the selector ("A or B," not "A and B"). One shop told me they could have one modified for me to be able to play 4 speakers, at only a small cost.

Another shop told me that playing 4 speakers at once, even on my current old Luxman, which has the "A and B" option, overburdens the amp and shortens it's life.

I wonder - can't we wire-up 4 speakers, say two on each side in parallel, like in so many car stereo setups?

Am I really limited to only 2 speakers with a 2-channel amp?
Jimthewebguy  (Threads | Answers | This Thread)

01-27-10
  Responses (1-27 of 27)
Click title to read one, or click date to read all below it.

01-27-10   With those two speakers running paralleled,the combined resi ...   Hifitime

01-27-10   There are a number of speaker selectors (niles comes to mind ...   Loomisjohnson

01-27-10   I found this on the net.one last thing,0 ohms is a direct sh ...   Hifitime

01-27-10   A much better solution would be to get a second power-amp or ...   Kirkus

01-28-10   Hifitime - yes, in parallel that looks bad. i suppose that ...   Jimthewebguy

01-28-10   Heat does shorten transistors life.running two 8 ohm speaker ...   Hifitime

02-01-10   Thank you all for the facts n ideas. it sure cut out a lot o ...   Jimthewebguy

02-04-10   I am running 18 separate speakers, that are "passive&qu ...   Bjpd57a1

02-05-10   Find a used david hafler dh-200, dh-220 or dh-500. all can ...   Rodman99999

02-05-10   Re connecting speakers in series: 1)to the extent that the ...   Almarg

02-05-10   Besides what almarg mentioned about running speakers in seri ...   Hifitime

02-05-10   with much respect, hifitime, i don't think that is true. i ...   Almarg

02-05-10   Re: series connection- anytime components are added to a si ...   Rodman99999

02-05-10   Re;series ...   Hifitime

02-05-10   Hello mr h- the highs that pass through the inductor of a s ...   Rodman99999

02-06-10   Hmm, actually hifitime's statement about highs passing throu ...   Almarg

02-12-10   Thanks all you ppl for this insightful thread. i had initial ...   Jimthewebguy

02-14-10   The bottom line: 1.respect ohms law! 2.use a "real&qu ...   Bjpd57a1

02-15-10   Jimthewebguy - only very high-end integrated amps offer tw ...   Renjy651

03-16-10   Thank you renjy651 for that last comment. i can't agree more ...   Jimthewebguy

04-16-10   Just an update in case anyone is interested i listened to th ...   Jimthewebguy

04-16-10   Al - i would never connect speakers in series but i believe ...   Kijanki

04-16-10   Jim -- thanks for the update. enjoy! kijanki -- that's an ...   Almarg

04-18-10   Thanks kijanki . . . a good explanitation of why it can be a ...   Kirkus

04-19-10: Kijanki
Kirkus - I remember seeing large bass guitar stacks that had a lot of small (about 10") speakers (10-12). They must have been connected serial/parallel to obtain any drivable impedance.

I've read on this forum that before SS popularity speakers/drivers had very high impedance (16 or even 32ohm). Maybe it was to match better with tube gear but it could be for other reasons. Lower impedance allows to squeeze more power from SS amps.

Kijanki  (System | Threads | Answers | This Thread)


04-19-10   actually, just about every instrument cabinet i can think of ...   Kirkus

05-08-10   I have had fantastic success in running speakers in series. ...   Astralography


  Post your response
Subject


Your response

No html, but you may use markup tags


Username
Members only

Password