Wiring Your Subwoofers?

Question

WHen wiring dual 2 ohm subs like 2 12" Kicker CVR's to reach 4 ohm you wire them in a series. DOes this produce less power?

Answer 1

When connecting identical speakers in parallel the impedance is halved, in series the impedance is doubled.
See the parallel & series wiring diagrams here:
http://www.the12volt.com/caraudio/woofer_configurations.asp?Q=2&I=41
Now your subs are DVC 2 ohms, they can only wired to 2 or 8 ohms like this:
http://www.the12volt.com/caraudio/woofer_configurations.asp?Q=2&I=22
Amplifiers have different power rating @ differents impedance. For example an amplifier that produces 500w rms @ 4 ohms with a speaker impedance of 4 ohms, could produce around 1000w rms when connected with a 2 ohms load, with a 1 ohm load would be around 1500w rms. The power is increased as the impedance is lowered, but also the sound quality decreases. If the impedance is increased, then the power lowers but the sound quality improves.
for running just subs is ok to connect them @ 2 ohms.

Answer 2

Most amplifiers will produce much less power into a 4-ohm load than a 2-ohm load. They will also produce less heat and distortion, so if you can get enough power for your needs with a 4-ohm setup, it's the best way to go.

Note that if you have two dual 2-ohm subs, wiring the voice coils in series will result in a 4-ohm load at each subwoofer. However, if you then connect the two subwoofers in parallel, the result is a 2-ohm load at the amp.