4 ohms vs 8 ohms

[James_227]

I have a stereo receiver that will handle 4 pair of speakers.my question is can I use 3 pair of speakers rated at 100 watts each at 8 Ohms and 1 pair of speaker rated at 100 watts at 4 ohms without damaging my receiver? fyi it's my intention to have all 8 speakers running at once. the power output on my receiver in specs is 70w RMS x 4 (8ohm) 100w RMS x4 (4ohm) . that is all greek to me I just don't want to damage the receiver.

Thanks
BOB

 

[americanaudiophile]

The make and model number of the receiver would help,
Are you sure you mean it will handle 8 loudspeakers? In general 6 is the highest and usually 4 speakers is the max.
The important thing is that the total impedance of the speakers doesn't go below the minimum rating of the receiver. This link will help you figure it out.
http/physics.bu.edu/py106/notes/Circuits.html
You will need to know if the receiver puts the speakers in series or parallel, The manual should have info on what the minimum impedance for the speakers. A more powerful receiver or amp might be needed if you don't have enough power to drive all the speakers. You may also need a speaker selector impedance matching box that would maintain a safe impedance to the receiver.

 

[James_227]

the receiver is The Sherwood rx5502 it has 8 pair of speaker terminals .. the speakers I'm using are garden speakers that look like rocks they have a max wattage of 100 each with a rating of 8ohms each I will have 8 speakers hooked to the receiver. Each speaker will have its own independent run of speaker wire going from the speaker location back the the receiver I'm using 14 gage direct burial speaker wire for the short runs and 12 Gage direct burial speaker wire for the longer runs that are in excess of 100' from the receiver . the receiver has a selector switch built into it . fyi all 8 speaker may not be on at the same time .

thank you for any further advice
Bob

 

[James_227]

The make and model number of the receiver would help,
Are you sure you mean it will handle 8 loudspeakers? In general 6 is the highest and usually 4 speakers is the max.
The important thing is that the total impedance of the speakers doesn't go below the minimum rating of the receiver. This link will help you figure it out.
http/physics.bu.edu/py106/notes/Circuits.html
You will need to know if the receiver puts the speakers in series or parallel, The manual should have info on what the minimum impedance for the speakers. A more powerful receiver or amp might be needed if you don't have enough power to drive all the speakers. You may also need a speaker selector impedance matching box that would maintain a safe impedance to the receiver.

 

[James_227]

The make and model number of the receiver would help,
Are you sure you mean it will handle 8 loudspeakers? In general 6 is the highest and usually 4 speakers is the max.
The important thing is that the total impedance of the speakers doesn't go below the minimum rating of the receiver. This link will help you figure it out.
http/physics.bu.edu/py106/notes/Circuits.html
You will need to know if the receiver puts the speakers in series or parallel, The manual should have info on what the minimum impedance for the speakers. A more powerful receiver or amp might be needed if you don't have enough power to drive all the speakers. You may also need a speaker selector impedance matching box that would maintain a safe impedance to the receiver.

The Receiver that I bought is a Sherwood RX5202, It has on the back 8 pair of speaker terminals. The speaker that I want to use are garden type rock speakers . each has a max wattage off 100 and rated at 8 ohms each. each speaker will have its own dedicated run back to the receiver.I'm using 14 gauge direct burial speaker wire for the short runs and 12 gauge direct burial speaker wire for the longer runs that are in excess of 100' from the receiver. the receiver has a built in selector switch.. fyi all 8 speakers may not be running at the same time. any feed back is greatly appreciated.

BOB