Subscribe now and choose from over 30 free gifts worth up to £49 - Plus get £25 to spend in our shop
Looking to upgrade my Panasonic home cinema,but I'd like to keep the rear speakers,problem is the proposed Onkyo uses 6ohm speakers and the pannys are 3ohms, the wattage output is similar from each amp, but what difference will the ohms make?
They may be louder, they will also draw more current and so will make the amp clip sooner - I've no idea whether this will create any issues.
I was always taught that output impedence from an amplifier should be equal to input impedence of the speaker, this was a long time ago and things may have changed a bit since.
As a rule the impedance of the speakers should be equal to or greater than the output impedance of the amp, never less than.
If speakers of lower impedance are used the amp will be forced to work harder, will get hot and could fail. If speakers of a greater impedance are used the output power will decrease but the amp will not be damaged. The greater the speaker's impedance the easier it is for the amp to drive but the lower the output power will be.
I was always taught that output impedence from an amplifier should be equal to input impedence of the speaker, this was a long time ago and things may have changed a bit since.
Maximum power transfer occurs when the impedance of the load matches the source. It will still work with a difference in impedances, just not as efficient.
If the drive impedance is lower then the amp runs out of Volts first (at a lower power). If the drive impedance is higher the amp runs out of current (at a lower power).