STRDE945 A&B Speakers

From what I remember with my 845, Sony recommends that you don't use A and B speakers at the same time if either pair is 4 ohms. For A + B, it says use speakers between 8 and 16 ohms. For A or B, use speakers between 4 and 16 ohms. I might be mistaken, but I know my 845 couldn't handle too much of a load (especially at higher volumes). However, it would be fine if you weren't running both zones at the same time.


Jason

I just finished up a chat with Sony Online Support... they weren't that helpful, but led me to believe that I could cause damage to the speakers and my receiver if the ohms of the speakers and the selector on the receiver are not matched.


Is that for real, or a BS answer?

Well, if the receiver is properly designed, it will probably over heat if you try to drive speakers with an impedance that is too low for them to handle, which SHOULD cause the receiver to shut down.


My old Sony receiver had a 4 ohm/8 ohm switch in the back and there was some verbiage about what Jason mentioned above.


The online support answer is probably a bit of Cover-your-butt-itis, since speakers are only nominally rated, and may spend a bit of time below the nominal rating. Plus, consumer receivers like your 945 don't have the most robust power supplies and there is no way for Sony to test the receiver with every possible combination...


You may want to just simplify your life and go get an inexpensive 2 channel receiver to solve your problems.