Hooking Up Your Outdoor Speakers
Posted: Tuesday, March 03, 2009
by Ben Peverly
Outdoor Speaker Guy
You are reading this because you purchased some outdoor speakers and you need some guidance on hook up, right? Well then this is the article you have been looking for! In this session we will discuss the tips and techniques on hooking up your stereo/amplifier in your home to your outside sound systems. We will also give you some do's and don'ts along the way to make your install go that much easier.
Step two: plan out your wire routing so that your wires from your outside speakers gets to your amplifier in the most direct way. What I mean by this, is that you want to keep your wire lengths as short as possible. This keeps the strain off your amplifier and prolongs its life. But I understand that if you have a big slab of concrete between your speakers and your amp, then you will be better off running the lines around rather than trying to punch a hole through the concrete. It is always best to make your wires hidden, no one wants to see stray wires just jetting out of the wall and draped across the floor. You will also need to make sure that you seal the holes you make to the exterior of your home or building with a high quality sealant. You can find these at your local home improvement center and you have many choices in grade and color, so you should be able to find what works for your application. This is a crucial step as moisture and pests can and will get into these holes no matter how small you think they are. Don't skip this step!
Step three: hook up the wires as described by your amplifiers manufacturer. Be sure to keep your polarity correct when hooking up to your outdoor speakers. Most speaker wire is marked with a stripe or color to help you keep this straight, so utilize it. You also will want to make sure that you are not putting too much load on the amplifier by putting too many sets of speakers on one line. For the most part you will be hooking up only one speaker per channel, but if you plan to do this, then you will need to read our article on hooking up multiple sets of speakers. But for now we will just concentrate on hooking up one pair. Check the ohm resistance on the speakers you have. 95% of them will be rated at 8ohms. The same applies to your amplifiers resistance capabilities, although some amps and speakers can have multiple resistance values for more flexible installations. Be sure you check your technical information that came with yours to be sure.
Step four: once you have placed your amplifier, run your wires, concealed them and sealed out the bugs and weather and after you have hooked everything up, make sure you have connected everything right. After you have done this you are ready to sit back, relax and turn up the volume of your favorite tunes relaxing out on your deck or patio!
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Top-level comments on this article: (3 total)Ben,After reading this, you are my new 'go-to guy' for do it yourself projects; I've become a fan!
I wanted to install rock speakers outside. How do I do that and hide the wire. I have a semi small concrete patio in the front of my home with a landscaped front yard.Hiding your speaker cables is a matter of just placing them where they can not be seen. For example: if placing speakers in a landscaped area, the cables can be buried just inches under the soil or mulch. If there is a sidewalk close by the cable can be placed right up against it and covered that way. If you have your speakers on a deck you can run the wires in watertight conduit easily attainable at your local home improvement center. It really depends on your situation. But be creative, you may even be able to use your cables to create a visual focal point or accent! Just a word of caution: when buring speaker cable, use burial grade wire. You don't have to if using some sort of conduit though. Good luck!
No. I'm confused about the OTHER EQUIPMENT needed to use this speakers. Amplifier? Is that built into the audio source or what? I see speakers on stuff like computers and boomboxes that are connected directly to that equipment. Y'know, if folks new all the terminology and equipment, most of us wouldn't need to read an article like this. You should include an equal level of BASIC information (so if you talk about how pests can get into a small opening--duh--you should talk about whether or not a set of speakers need an amplifier!).
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