pro sound

[dannertitus]

This question is for a band PA system.
Using a two channel amps, is it better to run one speaker per side (or channel) in stereo, or run mono hooking the speakers up in series? Meaning crossover to amp to input on one speakers, out of that same speaker to the next speaker? (know what I mean?) Is one way more powerful for volume? I always thought one side of a power amp per each speaker. It seems if you run amp to speaker in, then out to another speaker, you lose power to last speaker.

[daddymac]

> This question is for a band PA system.
> Using a two channel amps, is it better to
> run one speaker per side (or channel) in
> stereo, or run mono hooking the speakers up
> in series? Meaning crossover to amp to input
> on one speakers, out of that same speaker to
> the next speaker? (know what I mean?) Is one
> way more powerful for volume? I always
> thought one side of a power amp per each
> speaker. It seems if you run amp to speaker

> in, then out to another speaker, you lose
> power to last speaker.

Actually, If I follow your description correctly, you are hooking up the speakers in parallel. Nearly all PA speakers that have two 1/4" jacks on their connection plate are wired in parallel. So when you "daisy chain" and run a speaker cable from one speaker to the next. they are in parallel. This would be exactly as if you hooked up each speaker to "one" channel of the amp, using both output jacks on the amp, provided the amp is like most and has two output jacks for each channel.

You must consider the "total" impedence load on the amp when connecting speakers this way. As a pretty good rule of thumb, never connect more than 2 speakers of 8 ohm impedence in parallel to one channel of the amp. Follow your amps manual on this if not certain.

Hope this helps.

[Paul O]

When you connect 2 speakers per channel as you describe, you will get more total power from that channel, maybe, but not always twice as much, but it's then split between 2 speakers. So 1 speaker per channel, or both speakers on 1 channel should be about the same sound level, and each speaker gets roughly the same amount of power in both situations.
If you really want to make a big diference, set the amp for bridged mono and connect both speakers across the red(hot) terminals. If the amp is rated to sustain this load, then it will generate perhaps 6 times the per channel power, and each speaker will get half that, ot 3 times.