Is it OK to use 2 different L & R speakers if the ohms are the same?

[Deal4Fuji]

New poster here and thanks in advance for any replies. Here's my question: I want to have a outdoor deck speaker that will be driven off an indoor receiver. I only have 1 speaker for outdoors, what would be the better way to drive it? Wire (combine) both L and R channels into the one +/- speaker terminals (I do have a mono setting on thee receiver so stereo signals shouldn't be fighting each other) or just use one channel outdoors and one indoors since both speakers are 4 ohms, but that's all they have in common....in fact the outdoor speaker is inside a guitar amp with bad circuitry, so I'd just be using the 10" amp speaker. I guess the other option might be to just use one channel of the receiver, but I've always heard that's not a good idea, both channels need a load ??

Thanks !

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I would use ONE channel of the AVR to power ONE speaker.

 

[j_garcia]

There is no reason why using one channel would be a problem.

 

[Deal4Fuji]

Should I turn the balance all the way to the channel I'm using ?

 

[j_garcia]

Yes, I would. I ran a stereo amp like this using one channel to power my center for nearly a year and it wasn't a problem. When using one channel, if you can restrict it from getting an input on the channel that isn't going to a speaker, it should be no issue. Not sure what sources you are expecting to use, but that may result in odd sound from that speaker because you will only get the right or left sound. In which case, you'd use the Mono setting and you should get both channels from it.

 

[Deal4Fuji]

It would most often just be the tuner, so the unused channel would have input. The more I think about it, I kind of would like to have sound both inside and outside on the deck. If both speakers are rated 4 ohms, even though they're not a matched pair, couldn't they be played together ?

 

[j_garcia]

Yes, should be fine with mismatched speakers too. 4 Ohm isn't the only factor, but unless they are radically different speakers, I don't think it will be a problem.

 

[Deal4Fuji]

Thanks !!

 

[Deal4Fuji]

Yes, I would. I ran a stereo amp like this using one channel to power my center for nearly a year and it wasn't a problem. When using one channel, if you can restrict it from getting an input on the channel that isn't going to a speaker, it should be no issue. Not sure what sources you are expecting to use, but that may result in odd sound from that speaker because you will only get the right or left sound. In which case, you'd use the Mono setting and you should get both channels from it.

A follow up - my receiver appears to now have a blown output transistor in the channel I was using to power the 1 deck speaker. Per your suggestion, I turned the balance all the way to the channel I've been using, but now that channel is distorted and making crackling sounds. When I switch to the matched pair of indoor speakers the channel I was using for the 1 outdoor speaker is still faulty so it's not a speaker problem, and I never ran the 2 indoor speakers at the same time I used the 1 outdoor deck speaker. There was always input going into the unused channel (from the tuner) so could that be the culprit? I suppose it could be a coincidence but not likely. I appreciate you taking the time to offer assistance, I just wanted to let you know for future reference. Let me know if I misunderstood anything.

 

[j_garcia]

Hard to say, but possibly is a coincidence? The channel that was powering the speaker should not have developed an issue; if anything it would have been the other channel and it would have had to have signal and no output to have a problem IMO. Have you checked the other one of that pair? If both are bad, that could have been the cause.

 

[lovinthehd]

Your receiver has an A/B speaker switch? I'd not expect using just one channel to create a problem....did you drive that outdoor speaker to very high levels or something?

 

[charmerci]

Sending sound to an outdoor speaker requires a lot of power. Methinks that it was just too much of a strain for the amp in your receiver.

 

[Deal4Fuji]

Thanks for the questions, here are the answers: The unused channel did have signal (input from the tuner - which I can't disconnect) and no output because the balance was all the way to the deck speaker channel and I only had the one deck speaker connected on the "B" speakers. "A" speakers are a matched pair inside, and I never ran A & B together, always either/or. I didn't have to turn the volume up any higher to hear well on the deck but this might be something - I also have audio output jacks on a TV in the same room, and I sometimes played the TV audio on the deck speaker. I do have to turn the volume up higher when listening TV than with the receiver tuner to get the same volume level, but that's just to the 12:00 position (or halfway) where I'm probably just at 9:00 on tuner. This older receiver has CD, LD, Phono, and Tape inputs and I ran the line out from the TV to the LD inputs.

 

[lovinthehd]

Shouldn't matter the source (does it now sound the same when using the tv as source?). Volume levels don't sound extreme but hard to say as dial position doesn't mean a whole lot. Curious, are the inputs of equal signal strength when you compare the volume setting? No ideas for you except perhaps do a reset of the receiver; soft reset--unplugging the unit for a while, maybe it has a hard/microprocessor reset also? What receiver make/model is it? This old guitar speaker doesn't have any short or anything does it?

I saw you're a cyclist in another post. Road? Mountain? Both in my case, mostly mountain though.

 

[Deal4Fuji]

Shouldn't matter the source (does it now sound the same when using the tv as source?). Volume levels don't sound extreme but hard to say as dial position doesn't mean a whole lot. Curious, are the inputs of equal signal strength when you compare the volume setting? No ideas for you except perhaps do a reset of the receiver; soft reset--unplugging the unit for a while, maybe it has a hard/microprocessor reset also? What receiver make/model is it? This old guitar speaker doesn't have any short or anything does it?

I saw you're a cyclist in another post. Road? Mountain? Both in my case, mostly mountain though.

Yes I get the same distortion on TV and FM. I didn't know about resets - unplugging for 5 minutes didn't change anything, how do I do a hard reset? It's a Pioneer VSX-402 model. The speaker from the guitar amp seems to be fine. I'm not using the amplifier at all. The 10" Bugera speaker has 2 sets of posts and I left the amp connection and just used the 2nd set of posts for connecting with the receiver. I used an old Allison speaker connection port cut into the back of the amp. See photo

I ride a road, rode last night as a matter of fact - Wouldn't you hate to learn English as a 2nd language Thanks for your help !!

 

[lovinthehd]

Yes I get the same distortion on TV and FM. I didn't know about resets - unplugging for 5 minutes didn't change anything, how do I do a hard reset? It's a Pioneer VSX-402 model. The speaker from the guitar amp seems to be fine. I'm not using the amplifier at all. The 10" Bugera speaker has 2 sets of posts and I left the amp connection and just used the 2nd set of posts for connecting with the receiver. I used an old Allison speaker connection port cut into the back of the amp. See photo

I ride a road, rode last night as a matter of fact - Wouldn't you hate to learn English as a 2nd language Thanks for your help !!

More the multi-ch units with processors that can be hard reset than old 2ch units, didn't see a manual for yours in any case. Thanks for the pic of the speaker, I take it it is not powered when you use it this way? I have no more ideas for you, it may just be a failure in the receiver (my last Pioneer avr didn't last as long).

I gotta get my road bike out soon, have some new wheels I (didn't) need to try out (long story, I usually build my own). My sister has recently gotten back into road riding and she's coming up this weekend so probably will do that soon! My dad tried to learn Japanese as an adult, working for a company with production in Japan....he said that was really tough and didn't complete the course (and he majored in German and Russian in college). I'd think Chinese would be tough, too. English with all its inconsistent oddities could be worse, tho.