Thread: Adding 5th speaker to a 4way head unit?

I have a 50w x 4 head unit( ithink pioneer) on my boat. Id like to add a 5th speaker, would there be a problem splicing into one of the other speakers? Would that over-load the radio of just put less power to the speakers?? Thanks

most HU want to be at a 4 ohm load. Running below 4 ohms causes the internal amp to overheat and possibly burn out. I have run more than 4 speakers on one head unit but I sourced a 8 ohm speaker that i ran in parallel to get my 4 ohm load. Boats are hard because of noise and I usually end up adding a amp to get the volume most will want. I did 4 12's in a cig boat with 4 amps.

Im not very good with electronics and ohms and stuff. Do more ohms mean less power? Im having the same problem with noise. When im at anchor its fine but underway it gets drowned out. I have a pair of 4.25 speakers and want to add just one next to the captains chair. If i splice it in with one of the rear speakers it should be ok as long as the ohms don't exceed the HU's capacity? This crap is very confusing to me.

Normal car audio speakers are 4ohms. this includes boat speakers which are just car speakers that are poly with a rubber suround. In order to increase volume you need to double the speakers or power. I would suggest adding a amplifier and larger speakers. A cheap way to do boats is to get 6x9's and boxes to mount them in. Getting over motor noise will require adding a good size amp and 2 sets of 6x9's. The nice thing about the 6x9's and boxes is that they are removable which will extend the life of the speaker. A marine enviorment severly decreases the life of all audio equipment. You can expect most stuff to last 1-2 boating seasons max. here is a link to a page about speaker wiring.

Speaker Wiring Info

Thanks for the info. Im going to mess with it after the weekend so i atleast have some sound for sat/sun..lol Im trying to stay away from amps cause of the battery drainage. I already have 3 marine batteries and am scared to be out somewhere and not be able to start.. Ill follow the diagram you posted and hopefully just the one speaker helps a little. My next boat which i hope is a 29' Sea Ray ill be doing a nice system and ill prob hit you up with some questions Thats gotta be one loud system to hear it over thru-hulls on a cig

the cig boat I did had twin 454 in board motors and over 2000 watts of power. This guy had way too much money. Every time I saw him in the water his boat had nothing but hot women on it. If you are worried about drianing the battery get a battery disconnect switch that cuts every thing off once the voltage drops to a certain point. this still allows you to start you boat.

Girls like boats, thats for sure. The next boat will hopewfully have a generator and i wont have to worry about it..lol

You definitely need some amps for the speakers on a boat.