noobie question about zaph speaker

[barada83]

I have 3 speakers that are rated at 6ohms each and I am going to build the zaph audio hiviw5/vifa D27sg15 for some surrounds. http://www.zaphaudio.com/audio-speaker19.htmlhttp://www.zaphaudio.com/audio-speaker19.html
I am wondering if there will be any issues with the impedence differences between my 6ohm speakers and these. I'm not positive of the impedence of these speakers but I don't think it is 6ohms. Of course I can't remember how to calculate it anymore. If there is a difference, could I add a resistor to add impedence to the lower impedence speakers to correct the difference or would that cause even more problems? Thanks for your help.

[Spasticteapot]

Originally posted by barada83
I have 3 speakers that are rated at 6ohms each and I am going to build the zaph audio hiviw5/vifa D27sg15 for some surrounds. http://www.zaphaudio.com/audio-speaker19.htmlhttp://www.zaphaudio.com/audio-speaker19.html
I am wondering if there will be any issues with the impedence differences between my 6ohm speakers and these. I'm not positive of the impedence of these speakers but I don't think it is 6ohms. Of course I can't remember how to calculate it anymore. If there is a difference, could I add a resistor to add impedence to the lower impedence speakers to correct the difference or would that cause even more problems? Thanks for your help.

Are you using these in a 5.1 setup?

If so, then you should be able to adjust the individual volume levels for each speaker on your reciever.

All but the cheapest of recievers can drive a 6-ohm speaker just fine. If your reciever goes boom with 6-ohm speakers, odds are that you'd want to replace it anyway.

[barada83]

I will be using these in a 5.1 setup and possibly a sort of A + B type design using the two ways for stereo music and the other speakers for the rest of the surround. According to the calculations of parallel circuits, I think these are 4 ohm speakers. There are 2-8 ohm channels wired in parallel which using the equation 1/ (1/8 + 1/8) = 4. Is this correct based on the crossover design listed on zaph's site? I have a yamaha 5960 receiver and can choose 6 or 8 ohm resistance. Which setting would I choose if all I had to do was adjust the volumes of each of the individual speakers assuming this 2 ohm difference won't kill my amp and doesn't need to be corrected with added resistance? Thanks for your help.

[Spasticteapot]

Originally posted by barada83
I will be using these in a 5.1 setup and possibly a sort of A + B type design using the two ways for stereo music and the other speakers for the rest of the surround. According to the calculations of parallel circuits, I think these are 4 ohm speakers. There are 2-8 ohm channels wired in parallel which using the equation 1/ (1/8 + 1/8) = 4. Is this correct based on the crossover design listed on zaph's site? I have a yamaha 5960 receiver and can choose 6 or 8 ohm resistance. Which setting would I choose if all I had to do was adjust the volumes of each of the individual speakers assuming this 2 ohm difference won't kill my amp and doesn't need to be corrected with added resistance? Thanks for your help.

First, the ZaphAudio speakers, if built properly, will be superior to almost all commercial speakers less than $500/pair. You may as well use them as your mains.

The impeadance curve has some funny peaks in it, but never dips below 6 ohms - most of the time, it's effectively an 8-ohm speaker. I'd switch the reciever to 6-ohm mode just to be safe - your 8-ohm speakers should have no trouble, although they may not be quite as loud.

[barada83]

How do you tell the impedence from a graph? Is this the way it is normally done to determine impedence or is it a mathematical calculation?
Thanks for all your patience and help so far.

[Spasticteapot]

Originally posted by barada83
How do you tell the impedence from a graph? Is this the way it is normally done to determine impedence or is it a mathematical calculation?
Thanks for all your patience and help so far.

The impeadance curve just tells you the impeadance at various frequencies. It never is lower than 6 ohms, but it's often much higher.

[barada83]

I think I see that now on the impedence graph. Thanks for your help. One more question:
If the speakers that I want to use together are disproportionate in volume together, would an easy fix be to add an L-Pad to the louder speakers without a huge negative effect on sound quality?

[Spasticteapot]

Originally posted by barada83
I think I see that now on the impedence graph. Thanks for your help. One more question:
If the speakers that I want to use together are disproportionate in volume together, would an easy fix be to add an L-Pad to the louder speakers without a huge negative effect on sound quality?

Most recievers have an option for adjusting volume on each individual channel.

That said, for music, you're better off just going 2-channel with the Zaph speakers.