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3 Wiring Questions

S

Sebbass69

New Member
Hi guys,
I have 3 questions about wiring speakers:

1) Do tweeters and 8" midranges need to have the same resistance if they are in the same speaker? Like if I wire them to the same positive and negative terminals on the back of the speaker should they be the same resistance?

2) Is it safe to wire 2 different channels of amplifier with different speakers that have different wattages and resistances?

3) What's the difference between buying an 8" midrange and an 8" subwoofer? Will one work in place of the other?

Thanks for the help,
~Sebastian
 
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1.) No, but they can. But I need to ask...are you wiring the raw drivers (tweeter, for example) directly to the terminals on the back of the speaker enclosure?

2.) It depends on the particular amplifier and speakers involved. Doing this incorrectly can shorten the life of both speakers and amplifiers. What impedence figures (in ohms) are called out on the backs of your amp and speakers?

3.) As far as raw drivers, 8" is large for a midrange; 8" puts you in woofer territory. But I wouldn't substitute an 8" subwoofer for a 8" woofer or midrange.
 
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You need to explain what you are trying to do. Directly wiring woofers and tweeters to the same amp output without a crossover is a bad idea.

8" is too large for a midrange and inadequate for a subwoofer. 8" is ideal for a woofer in a moderately sized loudspeaker system.

Whether a driver will work in place of another is a matter of specs. Read about Thiele/Small parameters to understand what is involved. Try a freeware program like WinISD and feed the T/S parameters for each to understand how each driver will perform. While it is pretty possible to find a raplacement driver with close enough specs to become a drop in replacement, the diameter is hardly the deciding factor.

Wiring two different speakers to the two channels of a stereo amplifier will work, i.e. you will get sound, but not a stereo sound necessarily. If the amp can deliver output to 4~16Ohm speakers, wiring a 4Ohm speaker to one channel and 8Ohm speaker to the other will be safe but strain the one channel driving the 4Ohm system.
 
I'm just trying to replace a pair of blown speakers:

I have a pair of Acoutstic Research B speakers, and they are pretty old (like 15 - 20 years old) and the speakers are starting to break. In lieu of this, I was going to replace each part of them. They have an internal crossover (or some equivalent) so that it sorts out the high and low notes and sends them to the appropriate speaker. I was just going to buy a pair of tweeters and a pair of 8" cones and swap them out - but I guess I need to research which 8" cones would be the best replacement?
 
Please.....Move Cautiously........

Howdy, Sebbass69.....your questions are good ones, and I think we understand what you are trying to do......BUT....It's just not that simple.....(sorry)

Blindly swapping out parts, and changing the wiring scheme is NOT a good idea.....you may just blow up your replacement parts, and waste money.....that's a bad thing....

with more specific info, and maybe some pictures, we could help you resurrect these speaks........OR tell you not to waste your time....and money...

Speakers systems are carefully designed, and require specific matching procedures........we can help.....just take your time............willhowl:thmbsp:
 
Thanks willhowl,
The tweeters do not have any information on them - I unscrewed them and checked the magnets and they don't say anything. I unscrewed the 8" drivers and they are actually from radio shack. They have 8 Ohms of resistance and are rated at 50 watts RMS, 100 watts maximum. What other types of information would you need? And can I post pictures in a thread like this?
 
Pictures are a good thing. You can post pics using the "manage attachments" button in "Additional Options" box below the text editor box.

Sounds like the woofers (at least) were already replaced once.
 
Sebbass69 said:
So I just tried to upload pictures but they were all roughly 10X the file size limit...
Any way around this?
Click to expand...

If you're running Microsoft OS, download and install the PowerToys Image Resizer. It's a small, free utility that lets you make quality downsized copies of your pic instantly by just right-clicking on it and selecting "resize pictures" from the menu.

HERE is the link to the Windows XP version.

And THIS one works for Vista, Windows 7, and I believe W2K.
 
Sebbass69 said:
I'm just trying to replace a pair of blown speakers:

I have a pair of Acoutstic Research B speakers, and they are pretty old (like 15 - 20 years old) and the speakers are starting to break. In lieu of this, I was going to replace each part of them. They have an internal crossover (or some equivalent) so that it sorts out the high and low notes and sends them to the appropriate speaker. I was just going to buy a pair of tweeters and a pair of 8" cones and swap them out - but I guess I need to research which 8" cones would be the best replacement?
Click to expand...

I Don't know AR B's? Is there a missing number in there?

15-20 yrs is umm well less than the average age of my speakers :D

By "starting to break" what do you mean. Do you mean the foams are starting to rot? If so just replace the foams. It's cheap, easy, and rewarding. If you mean something else by "starting to break" let us know. If the tweets are starting to loose their luster it could be time to replace a capacitor or two. Also not a big deal.
 
They are 18B's - I forgot to include the number
I'm not sure what's totally wrong with the speakers, but I get a vibrating noise when the volume is loud. It's probably just the dust cover over the vocal coil moving because I think the glue is starting to fail. I think the tweeters are fine, but I'm not sure.
If they need to be replaced, is there any way to get speakers that would be able to go louder than these? I imagine speakers with a higher wattage would be louder, but I'm not sure...
 
Vibrating noise at volume could easily be loose cone, surrounds blown, loose screws securing the driver, or something loose inside the cab. Most of those are easy to check. Is it possible you've turned the volue up on the amp to the point the amp is clipping?

If you've got a loose dust cover just glue it down. White glue like elmers will do in a pinch. Check the foam surrounds for holes or cracks. If you can pinch them and they crack, crumble, get gooey, or don't go right back into shape those are not good signs.

Re loudness. It's not the speakers "wattage" number that gives a since of how loud they will be but the speakers's "efficiency" (actually "sensitivity"). Those ARs are not very efficient and probably do best with a good deal of power available to them. I think they are about 84db/1w/1m. There are many speakers that are more sensitive. Numbers in the mid 90s and over would be considered high effeciency / high sensitivity. Hooked up to the same amp with the volume at the same setting they will be louder.
 
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