Is better to work at 4 ohms or 8 ohms?

Answer 1

There is really no 4 ohm or 8 ohm amplifier on the market with an output impedance of 4 or 8 ohms for power matching. You will find there 0.4 ohm or less for voltage bridging. There is really no 4 ohm or 8 ohm amplifier on the market with an output impedance of 4 or 8 ohms for power matching. You will find there 0.4 ohm or less for voltage bridging.

Answer 2

All speakers have a characteristic known as impedancewhich is measured in units called ohms. The most common values for speakers are 8 ohms and 4 ohms. A speaker with a lower ohm rating represents a more demanding load for an amplifier to drive. The impedance of a speaker has no relation to the quality of the speaker.

Why do speakers come in 8 ohm and 4 ohm versions?Many manufacturers of speakers offer a choice of impedance... 8 ohms or 4 ohms. Often, the remaining specifications are very similar (except that the lower impedance versions of the speaker usually have a smaller sensitivity value). The reason for offering two versions is for special applications. For example, in a speaker system with dual woofers, two 4 ohm woofers can be wired up to form an 8 ohm system.

Some musicians prefer the "sound" of a 4 ohm speaker as compared to an 8 ohm version. I believe that this "sound" is not so much a result of the speaker itself, but a result of the heavier loading that a 4 ohm speaker places on an amplifier.

In the car stereo market, virtually all speakers are 4 ohms. The reason is due to voltage limitations available in cars (namely the 12 volt battery). More power can be driven into a 4 ohm speaker as compared to an 8 ohm speaker (assuming the same driving signal!).

What should I know about using 4 ohm speakers?4 ohm speakers place a significantly heavier demand on power amplifiers as compared to 8 ohm speakers. Because of their lower impedance, twice as much current will flow through a 4 ohm speaker (as compared to an 8 ohm speaker) for a given volume control setting (assuming the amp can keep up). This translates to amplifiers getting significantly hotter (and heat is among the top enemies of electronic devices!).

If you use 4 ohm speakers, your speaker wiring will have to be (or should be) larger. This is because the resistance of the speaker wires becomes more significant with respect to that of the speaker. The result is that more power is "wasted" (in the form of heat) in the wires leading to the speakers! Amplifier power is relatively costly, so it does not make sense to waste that power in the lines leading to the speakers.

Answer 3

Your question makes no sense because it doesn't ask about what is important to you to define "Better". Ohms is a measure of resistance. Both 4 and 8 are small resistances. If you had a 4 Ohm load across house voltage of 120 VAC you would draw 30 Amps. If you had an 8 Ohm load it would draw 15 Amps.

Answer 4

The efficiency of a loudspeaker is generally an unimportant consideration.

In your example, the electro-acoustic efficiency could be equal with either resistance.

The actual impedance of a speaker is only that nominal value in the mid-frequency range. Near its primary resonance, (30 - 50 Hz for a 200mm speaker) the impedance will be several times the DC resistance. Above this frequency it will fall gradually in the mid range, only to rise again at higher frequencies.

The actual transducer efficiency will usually be 10% or less. For a high quality speaker, it will be even less, due to the desire to keep the voice coil within the magnet over the full extension range. Thus only 3% or so electro-acoustic efficiency.

The efficiency of a speaker is usually inconsequential as extra power is easily obtained from the electronics. The importance of the speaker surround has a greater effect.

Answer 5

Yes, 4 ohms will be louder and cleaner because they have less resistance. Make sure your stereo is rated for 4 ohms.

Answer 6

I'm not a techie but I wouldn't. Use 2 X 4 ohm speakers wired in series and you have 8 ohms. Why not just get the right speaker?

Answer 7

Yes, You can also wire up speakers to be 4 ohms

Answer 8

no, not if driven by properly matched amplifiers.