“Power and Impedence I have an onkyo HT-S8400 home theater system with a 5.1 set-up instead of a full 7.1 that its capable of. The receiver has a 130watt per channel output with 6-16 ohm impedance. I want to replace the original onkyo speakers with new Bose component speakers. I want to purchase the Bose 161 speakers that are rated at 10-100 watts per channel for the surround L/R with 4-8 ohm impedance. For the front L/R speakers I want to buy the Bose 301 speakers rated at 10-150 watts with 4-8 ohms per channel. I will keep the onkyo subwoffer (own power supply) and the onkyo center channel (no bose alternative). BTW the original onkyo speakers were all 6 ohm and 130 watts. My main concern is that the 161 and 301 Bose speakers have a 4-8 ohm rating, does this mean that these speakers will sometimes demand 4 ohms or will they work with the 6-16ohm receiver? Do I run the risk of frying my receiver? The other concern is that the the 161 has a 10-100 watts while the receiver throws 130, can this damage the speakers at high volume? The 301 has 150 watts but the receiver again is only 130watts, does this means I can't use the 301 to their full potential? I am thinking these values are RMS anyway but it doesn't hurt to ask. Also I run 12 gauge wire for all my speakers since wires are 20-30 feet, but I don't think this will fit into the 161 or 301 speaker rear ports. Please let me know if these bose speakers will be a safe purchase with this receiver. My others worry is that since the 301s are reflexcing speakers with a purpose to fill the room with stereo sound, will this be detrimental to a HT set-up as it will make the sound ubiquitous rather than seem as if the sound is coming from the right or the left respective to the onscreen performance? One has to place the 301s at least a foot off the wall perpendicular to them to allow the reflexing technology to work, but what is the best distance? I think I will have to measure the trajectory of the 301 rear speaker sound wave (based on the principle: angle of incidence is equal to angle reflection) and trace the wave to see where is lands on the listening area. Also, the bose floor stands for the 301, will they hide the 12 gauge wire in the shaft? In addition, will the floor stands, with a fixed height of 2 feet, be high enough for optimal listening (Our sofas place our ears at approx 30-36 inches). Based on the 30-36 inches, at what height should I mount the 161 to be used as L/R surround speakers (the room is a perfect rectangle with a horizontal listening area of 30-36 inches in height). Also, what angle below the horizontal should I lower the 161 to face the listening area? Thank you for your time and expertise, Singh”
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Hi Singh. The impedance specifications of the 161 and 301 speakers refers only to their compatibility with a receiver. Since the Onkyo is compatible with any speakers rated between 6 and 16 ohms, you will not run into any problems. You are correct in your statement that the receiver is putting out 130 watts RMS. Since the 161 speakers are being used as surround speakers, they will not be playing all the time and not at an extremely high volume level. We don’t see any issues with the setup there, either. Regarding the wattage rating of the 301 speakers, the difference between 130 and 150 watts is extremely negligible. We doubt you’d be able to hear a difference at all. 12 gauge speaker wire is a rather thick gauge for a run of this length. Signal loss is not a concern in this situation, so dropping down to a 16 or 18 gauge wire would be our recommendation, since you may have difficulty connecting a wire of that thickness to the speakers. Although the 301 speakers use our Direct Reflecting technology, this will not impact their quality in a home theater set up whatsoever. The receiver handles the duty of directing sound to the proper speaker positions so therefore the surround sound effect will be preserved. In reference to the floor stands and wire thickness, our suggestion would be to change your wire gauge to something smaller. Due to internal design of the 301’s, the 24 inch height of the floor stands should be sufficient for your listening position. The height of the ceiling in your room should dictate how high to mount the 161 speakers, but the general rule of thumb is about 18 to 24 inches above ear level. At this height, a slight downward angle of 15 to 25 degrees would be acceptable for the rear speakers in your setup. We hope this information is helpful for you. If you are located withing the U.S. and require further assistance, feel free to contact our support group at 1-800-711-5772. Thanks!
Sorry, there was a problem. Please try again later.I have pretty close to the same setup as you. Bose 301's and 161's. You should be using 16 or 18 gauge wire easily at those distances. As far as power they will be able to handle some really loud driven power from your receiver. Unless you are pushing the receiver at its highest volume limits then you should be fine.
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