speaker impedence matching question...

[Karma1]

I know this has been covered before and I tried searching but am not finding the exact info I need. Most of what I'm finding is about heads, cabs, and multiple speakers.

 

What I want to know about is putting a 16 ohm speaker into an 8 ohm 1x10" combo amp. The speaker is a 10" Jensen Neo - 16 ohm 100 watt model and the amp is a Fender Super Champ XD that came with an 8 ohm speaker. From what I've read it's ok to mismatch to a higher ohm rather than a lower. I've also heard that you get less power by doing that, although I installed the speaker today to try it out and the amp is way louder with the Jensen. So reduced volume doesn't seem to be an issue. I generally play at moderate volumes if that matters.

 

Are there any downsides to using this 16 ohm speaker in my amp - either electronically or tonewise? Clean headroom is important to me and I want as little breakup as possible (I use pedals for distortion). Any advice would be appreciated.

[Zozobra]

I wouldnt mismatch with that amp, I doubt the OT will like it much. Also that mismatch is only safe for solid state amps, not tubes (generally) and this amp has 2 6V6s yes?

[Belva]

I wouldnt mismatch with that amp, I doubt the OT will like it much. Also that mismatch is only safe for solid state amps, not tubes (generally) and this amp has 2 6V6s yes?

 

See if you can get an attenuator that will match your impedance. SS amps can take the mismatch. Tube amps can't. If you did this for economy reasons, just get a phucking 8 ohm speaker & quit being a cheap b@$t@%d! Tube amps will stand a higher impedance over a lower impedance. But it still is hard on your OT. Another option is to get another speaker just like the 16 ohm and wire them parallel. If one blows you have enough time to finish the song before the ot says bye bye.