Will my receiver be able to drive a 6 ohm speaker?

Question

I have a harman kardon 340 rated 55watts at 8 ohms. I'm wondering it can drive a set of psb speakers rated 6ohms to their full potential. I like the psb but the impedance doesn't match the receiver.

Answer 1

If you read your owners manual the manufacture warranty is void if you do this. I would expect the manufacture to know better than a remote holder.

Answer 2

Difference slight.  I doubt the resulting distortion and power usage would be audible.

Answer 3

They should work, but the impedance-mismatch will result in energy losses and potential distortion.  Better to stick with standard 8-ohm speakers.

Answer 4

From Harman Kardon, a similar question:

Question:Can my surround-sound receiver handle a 4-ohm load?

Answer: All Harman Kardon Audio/Video receivers can handle most 4 and 6 ohm speakers on the market today. However, there are some manufacturers' speakers that have a minimum impedance well below the 4 and 6 ohm nominal impedance. In this situation, the receiver will protect itself by going into standby mode. This will not damage the speakers or the electronics, but it is an indication that the speaker in question is not compatible with our receiver. Note: The continued use of the receiver with speakers that cause it to shut down can result in eventual failure of the receiver which is not covered by the warranty.

Answer 5

He Who Holds The Remote is absolutely correct. I couldnt have explained it better......... Use his advice and you will not go wrong!!!

Answer 6

(sigh)

There is no "impedance matching" speakers to receivers. You are fine to run those speakers, but it will draw a bit more power than "8 ohm nominal" speakers so be careful about cranking the volume and make sure the receiver is well ventilated to draw off the extra heat.

If you want to know scary details about impedance - read on.

SPEAKERS & IMPEDANCE

FACT: 8 ohm speakers .... are NOT 8 ohms except for some sounds.

Speakers actually swing from 2 to 30 ohms during a song.  The impedance changes with different frequencies being played at that moment.

When you see "8 ohms"  on a speaker - Think "8 ohms nominal" or "8 ohms average".

Here is the trick: Speakers come in 8,6,4 ohms.  The lower the number, the closer to zero/direct short and the more power these speakers will try to suck from your amp. More power drawn = more heat generated.  

RECEIVERS AND IMPEDANCE

Receivers are never called "8 ohm" receivers or "6 ohm" receivers.  Because speakers swing through a range of impedances, receivers cannot expect a fixed impedance.

But to compare one amp to another, honest companies publish numbers about how much power the amp will provide to:

8 ohm

6 ohm

4 ohm

speakers as SEPARATE values.

So receivers are POWER MEASURED for different impedances.  This does NOT mean you are limited to one type of speaker with just 8/6/4 ohms impedance.

The poster was correct to say "55 watts at 8 ohms".  This also means that receiver could produce:

80 watts ate 6 ohms

110 watts at 4 ohms

So this gives you an idea about what the receiver can do with lower-impedance speakers.