I would like to connect my speaker wires without reversing the polarity. However, i can not tell if I did hook it up correctly. My wires run under the floor and are not color coded so I cant tell which was connected to which polarity. I was hoping EZset would check it but it looks like I have to get it right myself. Please advise
If you don't have a multi-meter/tester you can do this. Connect the speaker wires to the speakers and take off the grills so you can see the cones. Get a small 1.5 dry cell battery and connect (+ and -)it to the other end of the speaker wire only momentarily, a slight tap to the nodes will suffice. Observe the movement of the cones, if it moves outward, you have the polarity correct so look at the + and - side of the battery and you should be set. If the cones suck in, then you have it backwards. Mark the negative wire accordingly with a black permanent marker and do the same for the other end.
BERNY!! Wow, the battery trick worked perfectly. I definately had the polarity crossed because the sound difference is HUGE! I must have gotten lucky with my last receiver.
This makes me wonder how many people buy speakers and after hook up find them dull- only because they crossed the polarity. This was a pretty big difference. Thank you!
J. Vigne
Unregistered guest
Posted on
Another way to check polarity is to tune your FM dial to a talk station with a centralized vocal content. When the speakers are in phase the voice will appear centered between the speakers. When the speakers are out of phase the voice will be diffuse and have no center image.