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help connecting amp to passive sub

post #1 of 6
Thread Starter 
Hello all,
I need help connecting my power amp to my passive sub. I've connected my receiver to the amp with using RCA connection. The amp is 2 channel that can be bridged to 1 for a bit more power. So I would connect using a single set of speaker wire (plus and minus) to my sub. But my sub has a two sets, left and right input (from amp) and also a left and right output (to speakers). So should I take the single set of speaker wire coming out of the amp and connect it to either the left or the right input of the sub?
Or should I run two sets of speaker wires (left and right) from the sub combinging them (two to one) to the two posts on the amp?

A little hard to explain but hopefully you'll get it. Basically I have an extra set of inputs on my sub and not sure how to connect it to the bridged amp.

Thanks
post #2 of 6
Thread Starter 
Nothing?
post #3 of 6
Without knowing the model of subwoofer; you can probably use just the left or right connections. The left/right in and out would be for connecting speakers to the sub to maintain stereo. You could also run the sub amp in stereo and then connect both sets of inputs.
post #4 of 6
If everything you've said is true and without knowing the make/model, I'm guessing the sub has a dual voice coil driver. I would use a splitter to split the sub signal from the receiver to the L/R inputs on the amp, then use both the amp's L/R outputs to the L/R inputs on the sub. I would leave the L/R speaker outputs alone in this connection.

If this is a sub/sat system with a high pass filter on the sub's L/R speaker outs and you aren't using the receiver's bass management (high pass filter on the satellites and sub out for the sub), then I would change the amp's input to the receiver's L/R outs. Then, I would connect the satellites to the sub's L/R output. Examples of this connection are the Bose Acoustimass system or Gallo Nucleus Micro/M1 Passive sub system.
post #5 of 6
Thread Starter 
Thanks for the response,
Great, so it sounds like I have some flexibility in the connection..
The sub is a Canton Plus C, 12" sub. It's pretty old but still works well because it's never really pushed as I've been using it inline with my front speakers. I don't know if this sub has a dual coil driver, not a lot of info on this model.

Power ??
The label on the sub says this: 4ohms, can handle 4-8 ohm receiver, 2x50 DIN power 2x70 Music power, 22-120 hz

The info on this site says it's Nominal Output is 70 w
http://www.ciao.com/Canton_Plus_C_Su...#productdetail

I don't know which it is? 2x50, 2x70 or 70w? So would this 2x50 1x130 watt amp overpower this sub?

If I could use both L/R or single bridged connection. What if I used just one channel in the two channel set up to try to get just 50w in case my sub can only handle 70w as stated in the link above.

I'm currently using it as a passive sub with both L/R front speakers connections from my receiver running through the sub and out to the front L/R mains. But with new full range speakers I recently bought I don't need it to support my fronts.

With this amp I'm hoping I can start taking advantage of the Sub channel (bass management) on my 5.1 receiver I can balance out the use of the sub to more then just the information for the L/R mains in the passive setup.
post #6 of 6
Thread Starter 
OK so I tried connecting the single sub RCA plug to the amp (the way it is supposed to go in for a mono connection) then switched it to two channel and then tried to connect the sub to the right channel, I did this because i wasn't sure if the sub needed the 160w it would receive if I bridged the amp to a single channel. Well, it didn't work, not a peep. So I bridged it and now it sounds good and I'm hoping I'm not overpowering the sub. It gave a couple of pops during the first movie I watched, but haven't since. I hope that's not the sub signalling for help.

Any thoughts?
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