old speakers not compatible with new amp?

Rubidium

aliceb1234 wrote: »

not sure how to fix this + and - prob before i connect

You can easily check the polarity of your speaker wires with a 1.5V battery e.g.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TFlwINTNFqg

aliceb1234

thanks a lot

luckily have a friend coming over Saturday who is doing some diy stuff for me, she is also quick techie so i will ask her about all this including checking with the battery as seen in that video

googler

aliceb1234 wrote: »

i dont have those spring loaded things on the amp and also i am having trouble telling which speaker is + and - as even on on the cable they look exactly the same

You might have been able to tell by dismantling the plugs - positive to round terminal, or vice-versa.

But, as has been said - once the plugs are cut off, bare the wires (wire strippers from an electrical store may help), insert bared ends into holes on speaker posts, and tighten plastic nuts to secure cables.

Look closely at the cable - there may be some marking to indicate positive and negative, or a physical characteristic - one conductor sheath round, the other hexagonal or ribbed. It won't damage anything if you get one the wrong way round, but google 'speaker phasing' for tests to determine which way is correct by listening.

spud17

GunJack wrote: »

yes, that's right

GJ correct again,

Connect the speakers, don't worry too much if you're not sure which wire is which.
Listen carefully to a piece of music you know well, assuming you get that side of it working.
Turn it all off, just to be on the safe side, swap ONE speaker connection, play the same track again.
One of the times will not sound quite right, usually the bass will be quite pronounced and thumping away.
If it's the first test that sounds wrong, leave the connection as it is, if the second test sounds wrong, swap ONE speaker connection back.

aliceb1234

what do u mean by swap one, as i only have a pair of speakers

so if after listening it doesnt seem right, i guess i just have to swap them over and see it that sounds better?

s_b

spud17 wrote: »

GJ correct again,

Connect the speakers, don't worry too much if you're not sure which wire is which.
Listen carefully to a piece of music you know well, assuming you get that side of it working.
Turn it all off, just to be on the safe side, swap ONE speaker connection, play the same track again.
One of the times will not sound quite right, usually the bass will be quite pronounced and thumping away.
If it's the first test that sounds wrong, leave the connection as it is, if the second test sounds wrong, swap ONE speaker connection back.

doing this could result in both speakers being out of phase so the cones go back when they should be going forward pushing air out
OP
refer to my post where i explained even cheap speakers usually have cabling with a stripe down it
i hope if we ever need a to defuse a bomb online we DONT have all these problems as bob newhart would be happy the coastguard gets it in the end
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ArMf6xbMsLI

kwikbreaks

That "stripe" is often a slight ridge.

If you really can't see any difference then as several posters have said just connect them any old way then swap the wires around on just one. Pick how it sounds best. Swap back if unsure.

You've now been given the same info using different wording by several posters and myself several times. If you still can't figure it out wait til your friend turns up - maybe they will understand what is being said.

googler

aliceb1234 wrote: »

what do u mean by swap one, as i only have a pair of speakers

so if after listening it doesnt seem right, i guess i just have to swap them over and see it that sounds better?

A pair is two speakers. If the stereo image seems vague and undefined, swap the polarity of ONE speaker and see if it becomes clearer.

Don't swap the speakers left/right. Only reverse the polarity (+/-, red/black) of one of them.

googler

s_b wrote: »

doing this could result in both speakers being out of phase so the cones go back when they should be going forward pushing air out

Really? You think absolute phase is going to make a difference at this level?

Let's just stick to getting the phase BETWEEN the speakers right, shall we?

spud17

googler wrote: »

Really? You think absolute phase is going to make a difference at this level?

Let's just stick to getting the phase BETWEEN the speakers right, shall we?

I've run a pair of IMF tls50's since the 1970's and I think you'd struggle to tell whether absolute phasing was correct....... but I'm getting on a bit.