Can all amps drive a 4 ohm load?


My second silly question in as many days. I'd really like to know though. Can all amps drive a 4 ohm load to some extent, or will some only work with 8 ohm speakers?

I'm using an Audio Aero Prima integrated at 40wpc, and there's no mention of the power output into 4 ohms at all. I'd like to take it over to a friend's place to try it out on his maggies, but I don't want to blow anything up.

Thanks!
lousyreeds1

Showing 1 response by tfkaudio

My pea-brained understanding of this matter is that, if your amp has tubes in it (I believe this one does?), that your amp will work harder to produce less wattage when connected to a "difficult" speaker load such as 4 ohms.
Solid state amps, on the other hand, will also have to work harder, but usually can provide more, not less, watts. With only 40 or 50 watts to work with, I think you'll want to find an efficient speaker, 89db or higher, with a simple 1st order crossover that won't slurp all your juice.

Cheers.

Cheers.