I screwed up

smokey · 12-08-2015, 04:18 PM

Ordered 2 ohms speakers by mistake, the rep at crutchfield said they should work fine but I would like some feedback from the collective please, I order the kicker PS250 instead of the ps2504, should I be concerned? if there could be a problem can I get by with just soldering a 2 ohm resistor in the positive line connected to the speaker, or should I just go as is. These are for the rear of the voyager.

OhioVoyager · 12-08-2015, 04:34 PM

I'm not an expert. I always think of ohm load as a speed limit. If you are feeding at a 4ohm load and pushing that into a 2ohm speaker you will heat up the amp as it can't force the load. This is a simplistic way of looking at it but that helps me, lol!!

I don't see how using a 2ohm resister would help because the amp is still trying to push 4ohms through it. In a car if the speaker is really far away from the amp the resistance in the wire will sometimes help and you can "get away with it". The bike wiring is just too short. Most amps are not stable delivering to speakers with a load that is lower than they are produced for. 2ohm is more efficient and, therefore, louder with the same amount of power but if the amp can't handle it...

If you had multiple speakers you could run them in a series which would double the impedence (ohm load) but would reduce the power rating by half (IIRC - it's been years). It'd be a trade off.

I would send them back - especially if their rep gave you the wrong data!

smokey · 12-08-2015, 04:51 PM

It was my fault, I am running the power pucks by cycle sound and they are rated at 2 and 4 ohm, so I am thinking I should be okay as I will not be driving them to full capacity. They have said no problem if I return them, just have to pay the return postage though.

BobBear · 12-09-2015, 03:41 PM

Hey Smokey, I think the Crutchfield rep is giving you the straight skinny. I went over to the power pucks web site and looked at the specs for those amps and they claim that they work with 2 or 4 ohm speakers and systems.

So, according to the manufacturer the power puck is designed to drive a 2 ohm speaker so no worries there. If they are to be believed and the system is designed for 2 or 4 ohm then, they are capable of being driven from a 4 ohm output amp. There are gain controls on the pucks to compensate for gain differences as well as the volume control on the amp. The impedance figures for amps and speakers aren't gnats rear so, amps are designed to drive loads in that range. These are mostly inductive loads so putting a resistor in series would change the frequency characteristics of the load which you don't want to do.

I would give the guys at cycle sound a shout just to make sure but, I think you're ok with that hookup.

VulcanE · 12-09-2015, 03:52 PM

I don't think you'll have a problem, but if your pushing 4 ohm into a 2 ohm speaker, the speaker will be louder than a 4 ohm speaker. The 2 ohm speaker has less resistance than a 4 ohm, so the power will flow faster.

smokey · 12-09-2015, 05:16 PM

I did get hold of the cycle sound folks and they said the same, no problems. Installed them today and they seem to be working fine

12-08-2015, 04:18 PM	#1
smokey Sr. Member Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Orleans, ON, Canada Posts: 1,162	I screwed up Ordered 2 ohms speakers by mistake, the rep at crutchfield said they should work fine but I would like some feedback from the collective please, I order the kicker PS250 instead of the ps2504, should I be concerned? if there could be a problem can I get by with just soldering a 2 ohm resistor in the positive line connected to the speaker, or should I just go as is. These are for the rear of the voyager. __________________ Smokey Capt(retd) Canadian Forces National President CVFR (Canadian Veteran Freedom Riders) 2010 VN1700 Voyager, ABS www.cvfr.ca VBA #02220 Login or Register to Remove Ads
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12-08-2015, 04:51 PM	#3
smokey Sr. Member Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Orleans, ON, Canada Posts: 1,162	It was my fault, I am running the power pucks by cycle sound and they are rated at 2 and 4 ohm, so I am thinking I should be okay as I will not be driving them to full capacity. They have said no problem if I return them, just have to pay the return postage though. __________________ Smokey Capt(retd) Canadian Forces National President CVFR (Canadian Veteran Freedom Riders) 2010 VN1700 Voyager, ABS www.cvfr.ca VBA #02220
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12-09-2015, 03:52 PM	#5
VulcanE Sr. Member Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Cartersville, Georgia Posts: 4,838	I don't think you'll have a problem, but if your pushing 4 ohm into a 2 ohm speaker, the speaker will be louder than a 4 ohm speaker. The 2 ohm speaker has less resistance than a 4 ohm, so the power will flow faster. __________________ Cliff "VulcanE" Evans 2005 Blue & Silver 1600 Nomad VBA # 320 VROC # 20381 Login or Register to Remove Ads
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12-09-2015, 05:16 PM	#6
smokey Sr. Member Join Date: Mar 2012 Location: Orleans, ON, Canada Posts: 1,162	I did get hold of the cycle sound folks and they said the same, no problems. Installed them today and they seem to be working fine __________________ Smokey Capt(retd) Canadian Forces National President CVFR (Canadian Veteran Freedom Riders) 2010 VN1700 Voyager, ABS www.cvfr.ca VBA #02220
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12-08-2015, 04:34 PM	#2
OhioVoyager Member Join Date: Feb 2014 Posts: 80	I'm not an expert. I always think of ohm load as a speed limit. If you are feeding at a 4ohm load and pushing that into a 2ohm speaker you will heat up the amp as it can't force the load. This is a simplistic way of looking at it but that helps me, lol!! I don't see how using a 2ohm resister would help because the amp is still trying to push 4ohms through it. In a car if the speaker is really far away from the amp the resistance in the wire will sometimes help and you can "get away with it". The bike wiring is just too short. Most amps are not stable delivering to speakers with a load that is lower than they are produced for. 2ohm is more efficient and, therefore, louder with the same amount of power but if the amp can't handle it... If you had multiple speakers you could run them in a series which would double the impedence (ohm load) but would reduce the power rating by half (IIRC - it's been years). It'd be a trade off. I would send them back - especially if their rep gave you the wrong data!
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12-09-2015, 03:41 PM	#4
BobBear Member Join Date: Dec 2015 Location: Florida Posts: 86	Hey Smokey, I think the Crutchfield rep is giving you the straight skinny. I went over to the power pucks web site and looked at the specs for those amps and they claim that they work with 2 or 4 ohm speakers and systems. So, according to the manufacturer the power puck is designed to drive a 2 ohm speaker so no worries there. If they are to be believed and the system is designed for 2 or 4 ohm then, they are capable of being driven from a 4 ohm output amp. There are gain controls on the pucks to compensate for gain differences as well as the volume control on the amp. The impedance figures for amps and speakers aren't gnats rear so, amps are designed to drive loads in that range. These are mostly inductive loads so putting a resistor in series would change the frequency characteristics of the load which you don't want to do. I would give the guys at cycle sound a shout just to make sure but, I think you're ok with that hookup.
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