If you’ve invested in premium speakers, you may wonder how to bridge subwoofers for the best sound quality. Top-tier subwoofers provide a new audio channel and more detailed audio output at lower frequencies. That said, making a bride connection for speakers and subwoofers can seem complicated. While speaker wires can be confusing, you can learn how to bridge a subwoofer with this guide.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- Ensure your amplifier offers a bridged mode for subwoofers and other speakers.
- Connect your first subwoofer’s positive wire to the amplifier’s positive bridge terminal.
- Wire the subs together, and connect the negative speaker wire to the negative output terminal to complete the setup.
Learning how to connect a subwoofer to an amplifier is usually straightforward, especially if you’re familiar with common wiring setups. That said, using a bridgeable amplifier can help you learn how to make a subwoofer louder through multiple amplifier channels.
Insider Tip
Your audio amplifier needs to push enough power to overcome the minimum impedance of your subwoofer and other speakers.
How to Bridge Subwoofers
Using a bridged amplifier with a single subwoofer ensures more power output through two separate channels. This leads to a powerful mono signal for bass across multiple bridged amplifier channels. That said, you should learn how to break in a subwoofer for the longevity and audio quality of the system.
Additionally, ensure you’ve studied some wiring diagrams before breaking out your amp wiring kit. While diagrams can give you a general blueprint, they might not match the exact setup of your audio subwoofer system.
STEP 1 Set Your Amplifier to Bridge Mode
You should find a switch on the back of your amplifier that activates bridge mode. It is near the positive and negative terminals on most amplifier models. These are the bridge terminals that will accept your wire speakers.
STEP 2 Connect the Positive Terminals
If you’re using two subwoofers, take the first one and wire the subwoofer’s positive bridge terminal to the amplifier’s positive terminal. Ensure that you’re using a thick enough wire to support the power output from your amplifier.
STEP 3 Connect the Subwoofers
Connect the negative terminal of the first subwoofer to the positive terminal on the second subwoofer. You can run the subwoofers in parallel by connecting two wires between the subwoofers.
STEP 4 Connect the Negative Terminals
Complete the circuit by connecting the subwoofer’s negative bridge terminal to the negative terminal on the amplifier.
Warning
You can blow out your speakers and subwoofer if you use an amplifier that exceeds the maximum power output they support.
STAT: A 2019 Noise Health survey found that men preferred an average 76-decibel listening volume regardless of their headphone type. (source)
