[rebar]

Im looking for great 4 ohm home speakers for my ford van.

I have two 8" trucktuba subs 2.5 ohm 500w and a set of vintage MB quarts components on a PPI4200AM 4x50w for the front.. But I need a pair a great sounding speakers for the back I can move around for the unused PPI4200AM channels..

Any suggestions for great sounding 4 ohm book shelf or small floor speakers in the $600 range? Or should I put some components in a cheesy home made cabinet?

Thanks

 

[Old Skewl]

ADS L300 or L400 speakers from the 80s & 90s were 4 ohm and sound beautiful. A few sets on eBay. There is a set of L400s for sale on the forum for less than $90. They could use a little tlc but still a great deal.

 

[captainobvious]

You can also use typical 8ohm home speakers. You'll actually allow your amplifier to run cooler. There are a plethora of 8ohm home speakers available on the market. Look for higher sensitivity and 8 ohms will be even less of an issue.

 

[rebar]

You can also use typical 8ohm home speakers. You'll actually allow your amplifier to run cooler. There are a plethora of 8ohm home speakers available on the market. Look for higher sensitivity and 8 ohms will be even less of an issue.

Yes, but compared to the vintage 4 ohm MB quarts on the front channels, wouldn't equal the volume...

In fact, I need more volume from the home speakers because they would be farther away.. So now way, 8 ohm.

ADS L300 or L400 speakers from the 80s & 90s were 4 ohm and sound beautiful. A few sets on eBay. There is a set of L400s for sale on the forum for less than $90. They could use a little tlc but still a great deal.

Thanks..

Looking at ADS L300 or L400 speakers, I see ADS makes mid size floor speakers like the L-420 .. Are those ADS mid size also the same or better SQ? Because I do have room for a bit larger than book shelf's

 

[captainobvious]

What makes you think you need 4ohm speakers?

Is this a cargo van or a industrial van with an open back cabin?

Why do you feel you need the same volume in the rear?

 

[rebar]

What makes you think you need 4ohm speakers?

Because.........

compared to the vintage 4 ohm MB quarts on the front channels, wouldn't equal the volume on my PPI4200...

In fact, I need more volume from the home speakers because they would be farther away.. So 8 ohm wont fly.

Is this a cargo van or a industrial van with an open back cabin?

Cargo Van with paneling, bench seat and bed on top of the trucktuba's

Why do you feel you need the same volume in the rear?

Really?

Lets say Im tailgating.. Why would I want my front MB quarts about to blow up, when Im trying to get volume from the home speakers?

And I doubt my PPI would like 4 ohm components on two channels , and 8 ohm home speakers on the other two channels.

 

[1fastkingcab]

You could use 2 pairs of 8 ohm book shelf speakers to make tower speakers and wire them parallel for 4ohms on each side.

 

[1fastkingcab]

4x of this

Infinity Primus P163 Bookshelf speaker at Crutchfield.com

I use two of thees Infinity's as my PC speakers and they sound great

 

[rebar]

You could use 2 pairs of 8 ohm book shelf speakers to make tower speakers and wire them parallel for 4ohms on each side.

That's an idea 1fastkingcab.. But with only 50 watts, each would only get 25 and I just like the idea of two home speakers bouncing around back there. As long as they both still fit on my back bench seat.

 

[Old Skewl]

The ADS L420 is a nice sounding speaker as well. Not sure of the impedance off the top of my head. Most of the early ADS were 4 Ohm. The L300 components crossed over into the car audio realm. Personally I owned a set of 300i plates back in the day and own a set of L300C now. For their size they have always impressed me. 50 watts off your 4200am would be ideal.

 

[captainobvious]

What makes you think you need 4ohm speakers?

Because.........
Quote:
Originally Posted by rebar
compared to the vintage 4 ohm MB quarts on the front channels, wouldn't equal the volume on my PPI4200...

In fact, I need more volume from the home speakers because they would be farther away.. So 8 ohm wont fly.

Is this a cargo van or a industrial van with an open back cabin?

Cargo Van with paneling, bench seat and bed on top of the trucktuba's

Why do you feel you need the same volume in the rear?

Really?

Lets say Im tailgating.. Why would I want my front MB quarts about to blow up, when Im trying to get volume from the home speakers?

And I doubt my PPI would like 4 ohm components on two channels , and 8 ohm home speakers on the other two channels.

Look, you're asking the questions and I'm taking the time to try to assist you. You haven't been overly specific about what you're trying to do and in what application/setting so the questions need to be asked. That's how this works.

You are correct about speakers farther away needing more output to sound as loud as speakers closer to you. But first, lets start with the 4ohm speaker thing at the top. Impedance doesn't equal volume. What matters is the sensitivity of the speakers being connected. If you connect an 8ohm speaker with 6db higher efficiency than the 4ohm speakers you connected, it doesn't matter that your amplifier is producing more power into the 4ohm speakers- they will still play at a lower volume. Efficiency is even more crucial if you have limited or lower power amplifiers and desire a higher output volume.
Amplifiers which have stable output at 4ohms will have no problems using speakers rated at 8ohms. In fact, they will draw less power from the amplifier allowing it to run cooler, so if anything- it's better for the amplifier, not worse. Many, many people on this forum (myself included) either use or have used 8ohm drivers in their vehicles with great success. In fact, I'd argue that there is a far larger pool of excellent choices in 8ohm impedance than in 4ohm.

Have a quick read here to understand better about 4ohm vs 8ohm:

http://www.diymobileaudio.com/forum...d-our-members/31-real-deal-8-ohm-drivers.html


You mentioned that you want the front and rear speakers to be level matched. You can easily achieve this right from your amplifier (gain) or head unit by adjusting the output level to those channels (You could simply use your Front/Rear fader to adjust that balance.)

Since you're looking at bookshelf and/or tower speakers, I'm assuming that leads to your point about tailgating. Will the speakers be a permanent fixture in the vehicle (like mounted to a shelf inside the cargo van) or will you have a length of wire and set them up outside the vehicle? I ask because you may simply want to look for some higher efficiency small pro audio cabinets. They can play plenty loud and not need much power to do it.

 

[Old Skewl]

The Captain does make some valid points.

 

[rebar]

The Captain does make some valid points.

Yes he does.

I apologize for the attitude captain, and appreciate your and other peoples suggestions.. I was under the assumption that given the same amp output, a 4 ohm speaker would be louder than a 8 ohm and be a better front to rear match.. I did not take in consideration the sensitivity or efficiency rating.. Nor do I have data on my old school MB quarts.

I understand amplifiers which are stable at 4ohms will have no problems powering speakers rated at 8ohms... But aren't you cheating your system by half the watts when you do that?

I don't run a head unit. So no front to rear fade to save the day..

I will have to rely the gain's to fade the front components to the rear home speakers like you said, but I don't want to end up where they are grossly mismatched. Meaning having to turn down the front less than half and crank the rears to full to be balanced, or visa versa. Wouldn't that decrease the total SPL ?

The home speakers will be on a length of wire where I can place them wherever.

Having more speaker choices sounds great, but I would need some suggestions. Or what efficiency rating would I need to look for to equal the volume front to rear closely?
But I would raise my spending money to $1000 because they would be more versatile at 8 ohm.

Thanks!

 

[miniSQ]

Some threads just make my head hurt more than others...this is one of them

 

[rebar]

Some threads just make my head hurt more than others...this is one of them

Thanks for sharing

 

[captainobvious]

I understand amplifiers which are stable at 4ohms will have no problems powering speakers rated at 8ohms... But aren't you cheating your system by half the watts when you do that?

Not necessarily. You just have to understand what the actual sensitivity is and how it's rated (at 4ohms or 8 ohms). If both speakers are equally efficient when factoring in the impedance they were rated at, then yes you'd be sacrificing overall volume.

That said, you might be surprised how much output you can get. Also, even if you have a small difference in overall power applied, it's not going to make much of an audible difference. Every doubling of power applied equates to appx 3db increase in output. But if you have a 50 watt per channel amplifier and the fronts are seeing 50 watts and the rears are seeing 40watts, that 10 watts difference amounts to less than 1db of output- not even really noticeable.

I don't run a head unit. So no front to rear fade to save the day..

I will have to rely the gain's to fade the front components to the rear home speakers like you said, but I don't want to end up where they are grossly mismatched. Meaning having to turn down the front less than half and crank the rears to full to be balanced, or visa versa. Wouldn't that decrease the total SPL ?

Thanks!

Bummer on the fader control. It would make it easier to pull out the speakers when tailgating and just adjust it right from the source. But not a big deal, you can do the same thing right with the gain at the amplifier- it's just not as easy on the fly.
This will also allow you to lower the fronts and turn up the rears higher at events when you might not want the front to be playing since you'll have the external speaker cabinets playing.


Parts Express is a great resource for some prebuilt pro audio cabinets or some decent home bookshelf/tower designs.

Speaker Systems - Live Sound & Commercial in the Pro Audio Department at Parts Express | 194


Something like the JBL EON stuff would be great.
JBL EON305 15" 2-Way Passive Portable PA Speaker System

These are some relatively inexpensive mini towers from Dayton:
Dayton Audio T652 Dual 6-1/2" 2-Way Tower Speaker Pair