It looks like you're new here. If you want to get involved, click one of these buttons!
Subscribe to our Patreon, and get image uploads with no ads on the site!
A while ago I made a little speaker/ junction box with 3 jack sockets that enabled me to connect 2 8ohm speaker cabs together to create a single 4 ohm load (can't remember if that is a series or parallel connection).
Is it possible to make one that creates a 16ohm load from 2 separate 8 ohm cabs. ie. plug a speaker cable from each cab into the box and run a single speaker cable to the amp?
If anyone has a simple drawing of what connects to where (or could point me in the direction of one) it would be useful. As you can tell, my knowledge is poor but I can solder.....
Base theme by DesignModo & ported to Powered by Vanilla by Chris Ireland, modified by the "theFB" team.
Comments
If you open up the box you already have, it will have (assuming jack connectors) the tip from the input going to the tip of both outputs 1 and 2. Similarly, the ground from the input goes to the ground of both ouputs. This is PARALLEL wiring, two 8 ohm cabs giving a 4 ohm load.
What you need to make is a SERIES splitter box. Connect the tip of the input to the tip of output 1. Connect the ground of output 1 to the tip of output 2. Connect the ground of ouput 2 back to the ground of the input. Two 8 ohm cabs will give a load of 16 ohms. If you unplug one of the cabinets the circuit will be broken (unlike the parallel box where one cab would contnue to be in circuit).
To get 4 ohms your sockets would be wired in parallel, to get 16 ohms you'd need to wire them in series.
http://www.gollihurmusic.com/images/parallel-series.gif
Thanks for the quick replies chaps, really appreciated. However, I've had another thought which you may be able to offer some advice on. My existing cab is a 1x12 made by MJW. The input has a double socket, which, according to Martin, is wired in parallel. I can currently plug the speaker cable into either jack and it will work.
Presumably, I could just rewire this twin input socket to series wiring (as illustrated above). I assume I would then connect one input to the amp and the other to another 8 ohm cab and end up with the amp seeing a 16 ohm load?
Could I still use either socket for connecting to the amp if I was only using the MJW cab on it's own?
If you had the 'link' socket switched so that the tip and ground were shorted together when nothing was plugged in, it would work but I wouldn't like to trust a switched socket like that with speaker voltages and a valve amp. If it failed, your amp would be left without a speaker load.
All can be done but be wary. Series wired external speakers can be dangerous to valve amps, one dodgy lead or 1/2 pulled plug and you have no load!
Also, "quality" speakers are never wired in series but that does no matter with guitar jobbies.
Dave.
"Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski
"Only two things are infinite - the universe, and human stupidity. And I'm not sure about the universe." - Albert Einstein