Power factor of Speakers series/parallel combination?

[johnnyb60]

Hi everybody, Newbie here searching for some answers to my speaker questions. I don’t see anything specific to my questions so I decided to ask. I’ve been working on a few different problems, but I’ll limit myself to my current question.

Anyway many years ago I installed a couple of KLH 130w outdoor speakers on my patio for my Spa. I got rid of the spa a few years ago and now I just use my patio for projects. I have the speakers connected to my Yamaha RX V650 Receiver “B” terminals inside the house.

They are ok for what I’m using them for, but I’d like to add more speakers to better cover the area without blasting out my neighbors. So I was thinking about using four 6 ohm speakers in series to spread them out over my 12ft x 30ft patio, but I’m having second thoughts because I would like to utilize the two KLH 8 ohm speakers I already have since they’re still working just fine.

My question is how will it affect my Yamaha RX V650 Receiver and would one method be better than the other? Other words would it be work my receiver harder with four 6Ω in series or maybe a combination of that using the 8Ω in series/parallel?

Oh I'm sorry if I posted in the wrong fourm. I just could not decide where to ask my question.

 

[JonSnell Electronic]

I think if you only want back ground for the 6Ώ speakers, in series will be ideal.

 

[johnnyb60]

Well, I just looked at the specks for my receiver and I guess I'm limited to 8 ohm output.

I just bought a Sony receiver for my garage that has a variable output of 8 to 16 ohms so I was able to use 6 ohm speakers in series for 12 ohm, but it look like I can't do that with the Yamaha.

Oh well, I guess I'll have to figure out something else.

 

[cT equals piD]

Usually load impedance specified for an amp is what the manufacturer considers would be the normal load. With such amps, usually you can go as low as 4 Ohm, and go as high as you want greater than 8 Ohm.

The only possible difficulty with loading (one channel?) of the amp with four six Ohm speaker drivers in series is that the maximum voltage that the amp can achieve short of clipping might not be producing a loud enough sound.

 

[johnnyb60]

Usually load impedance specified for an amp is what the manufacturer considers would be the normal load. With such amps, usually you can go as low as 4 Ohm, and go as high as you want greater than 8 Ohm.

The only possible difficulty with loading (one channel?) of the amp with four six Ohm speaker drivers in series is that the maximum voltage that the amp can achieve short of clipping might not be producing a loud enough sound.

Thanks, that is some help. I’m not an engineer and I just don’t know what will happen. I only know that I recently bought a Sony FM receiver in my garage/shop and I just happened to have four matched 6 ohm speakers that I salvaged from my kids stereos when they were teens. I hooked them up in series and I’m so happy with the way they sound that I wanted to do the same in the patio.

My goal is to spread the speakers around the patio so I can hear them at a low volume no matter where I happen to be on the patio. Right now with only the two speakers and I turn up the volume to where I can hear them while not bothering my neighbors. My neighbors can hear it if they listen real hard, but only when they are outside near the property line. The only problem is that I can barely hear them when I move to the other end of the patio.

I may have to buy better outdoor speakers and put one on each end of the patio and crank it up, but then I will not be able to use them in the evening or early morning.