How do i find out how my subs are wired?

Question

ok i bought 2, 12" alpine type r (2 ohm) subs already in a box from this guy. they are already hooked up inside the box im just not sure how and i don't know if i should take them out to see or if it can be determined another way. the back of the box has 2 wires coming out (1 for each sub obviously). i want to hook them up to an amp and be powered at 2 ohms. they are dvc subs.

Answer 1

Get a digital volt meter or analog from a friend or at walmart/radioshack and switch the meter to ohms(usually it will say 20 ohms on meter).Then take the red lead and put it on the positive side of the wire and the black lead to the negative side of the wire.It will give you a ohm reading.

If you dont have a meter on hand,then unscrew subs and explain to us how its wired and we can tell you

If they are dual 2 ohm subs,then you need to wire each sub in series then you parallel the two subs together.Here is a diagram

http://rockfordfosgate.com/rftech/woofer...

Answer 2

2 subs = 4 wires (2 pos. 2 neg.) if it is only 2 wires they may be wired together inside the box and have  a shared connection. so the amp should be able to handle their combined power rating.

Answer 3

Just to add to what spnkysparky said..

A DMM is a good way to figure out how your subs are wired but it is not going to give you an exact number (like 4 ohms or 8 ohms, etc.).  It will give you some number that is going to be different then what your subs impedance is.  

For example, if your sub was say, 4 ohms SVC you may recieve a reading of 3.2 ohms.  This is close enough to figure that it is a 4 ohm sub.

In your case, if the subs are wired together then you would have an overall load of either 2 or 8 ohms.  On a DMM you would not likely get a number close to 2 or 8 ohms but you would be a number close enough to figure out what the impedance is.

The reason you will not get an exact number is because you are not actually measuring the impedance of the subs.  What you are measuring is the DC resistance of the subs.  This value can be found in the owner's manual of your sub under Re or Revc, most commonly.  Impedance is actually a AC resistance which is not measurable with a simple DMM.

If you don't have a DMM you can get one for cheap at radio shack or harbor freight.

Good Luck!!!