Understanding series and parallel wiring in 412 cabinets...

Chazzy

New member
So I have been planning on rebuilding my 412 cabinet for sometime and am waiting for some parts to arrive in the mail... In the meantime I am trying to understand whether to wire my speakers in series or parallel... in my current cab i believe they are in parallel... the speakers are each 8 ohms and my volt meter reads 4 ohms... What are the sonic differences between series and parallel? which one gives me the fullest and most power sound for metal and other heavy rock styles?
 
Re: Understanding series and parallel wiring in 412 cabinets...

The overwhelming majority of 4x12 cabs are wired series/parallel.

3848d1229590462-series-parallel.jpg


Pair A wired in parallel. Pair B wired in parallel. Then the pairs are wired in series.

People can go for days about the nuances of series v. parallel. In my opinion, it ain't worth thinking about it too much. The cabs construction and what speakers are in it have FAR more impact on the final sound.
 
Re: Understanding series and parallel wiring in 412 cabinets...

Unless you're Eric Johnson, I don't think the difference between series and parallel or 4/8/16 ohm impedance ratings have that important or perceivable effect on tone.
 
Re: Understanding series and parallel wiring in 412 cabinets...

Definitely not eric johnson! I guess i will just stick with the same wiring...
 
Re: Understanding series and parallel wiring in 412 cabinets...

So I have been planning on rebuilding my 412 cabinet for sometime and am waiting for some parts to arrive in the mail... In the meantime I am trying to understand whether to wire my speakers in series or parallel... in my current cab i believe they are in parallel... the speakers are each 8 ohms and my volt meter reads 4 ohms... What are the sonic differences between series and parallel? which one gives me the fullest and most power sound for metal and other heavy rock styles?
:no1: This is not possible!

The overwhelming majority of 4x12 cabs are wired series/parallel.

3848d1229590462-series-parallel.jpg


Pair A wired in parallel. Pair B wired in parallel. Then the pairs are wired in series.

People can go for days about the nuances of series v. parallel. In my opinion, it ain't worth thinking about it too much. The cabs construction and what speakers are in it have FAR more impact on the final sound.
:fing2:
 
Re: Understanding series and parallel wiring in 412 cabinets...

If your 4x12 is at 4 ohms total (mono) you either have 4 ohm speakers (unlikely unless they came with the cabinet [usually cheaper brands]) or 16 ohm speakers.
With 4 x 4 ohm speakers you can get to 1 ohm (parallel), 4 ohms (series/parallel or parallel/series) or 16 ohms (series).
With 4 x 8 ohm speakers you can get to 2 ohms (parallel), 8 ohms (series/parallel or parallel/series) or 32 ohms (series).
With 4 X 16 ohm speakers you can get to 4 ohms (parallel), 16 ohms (series/parallel or parallel/series) or 64 ohms (series).
 
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