Can I just use the “Speaker B” connection on my amp for the extra speakers?

2514

Generally no, but with some speakers you can.

Many Hi-Fi stereo amplifiers have connections for Speaker A and Speaker B. These connections are **normally in parallel, so it is the same as connecting two speakers in parallel – but the amp provides switches to turn each set on or off.

These are designed to allow easy connections of 2 sets of speakers. Normally these amp have a warning notice. This notice is saying that when connecting to either A or B, then the speaker should have an impedance of 4-16 ohms. But when connecting to both A+B, then each individual speaker should be 8-16 ohms.

So if you have 2 sets of your speakers which are 8 ohms or more, then you can safely use these connections.  This is because two 8 ohm speakers in parallel gives a total impedance of 4 ohms – the minimum impedance the amp is designed for.

However if your are connecting speakers with an impedance less than 8 ohms, or you have more than 2 sets of speakers, then you should not use these connections as the total impedance will be below the minimum 4 ohms.

For these speakers you could connect them in series to Speaker A only. Or you can use a speaker selector switch connected to Speaker A only.

** Most amplifiers with an A/B switch connect both outputs in parallel, but there are the occasional exception where they connect both outputs in series.