What is an Ohm?

I am getting close to publishing my memoir! It's called 99% True and it is chock full of adventures, debauchery, struggles, heartwarming stories, triumphs and failures, great belly laughs, and a peek inside the high-end audio industry you've never known before.

[davidswanson]

You remind me of my dad: a wealth of electrical/engineering knowledge, an eagerness to helpfully explain, and a tendency to approach the crux of my understanding, without ever reaching it. I’ve spent my whole life not knowing whether I need to get smarter or whether my dad needs to alter his approach. Regardless I love him very much and appreciate every attempt he’s ever made…and continues to make.

[SJMessinwithBoats]

Confucious Say:
"it's better to know nothing, than to be a know it all"

[editorjuno]

The ohm is the measurement unit that quantifies opposition to the flow of electricity. When that electricity is in the form of direct (constant polarity) current, that opposition is called resistance, when that electricity has alternating or variable polarity (AC mains, audio, radio, or microwave signals), that opposition is called impedance and varies with frequency because of the influence of capacitance and/or inductance.

[spacemissing]

Simplest explanation:
A current of one ampere at one volt will flow through a resistance of one ohm.

[craigsaunders]

I think you may have confused me more.

[editorjuno]

Paul's expression @0:02 is absolutely priceless. :-)

[trialnterror]

Finally someone that made it make sense!

[makai]

Thank you…you just made me give up on this word OHM f*ck it😂

[aaa-rjeu]

So higher the ohm the more energy efficient the speaker is; because it requires less energy to do the same as a lower ohm speaker.

[terryreese]

It seemed like he was explaining what a watt is. P=E x I. Or if it was an ohm it would be E/I=R. An ohm is a measurement of resistance to electrical flow. Too low of resistance will allow a great deal of current to flow. Nearing zero ohms looks like a short to a circuit. Free flow of current, when all flow is allowed, rush current to ground. Resistance drops voltage across the load and slows down the rush of current. Maybe that will help.

[SpeakerBuilder]

You could have gone further and explained in more detail how that applies to speakers, e.g., 4 ohm speakers will produce more output for the same amp vs 8 ohm speakers, or that some amps are not designed to drive an impedance load down to 2 ohms, and then there is series vs parallel wiring that effects impedance, or whatever application you think would be helpful.

[selenefroehlich]

the example with the hand over the mouth is actually a good one lol, it brings the term into practical matters

[gabrielreifinger]

Once the glasses came off I knew it was going to be good.

[senseiroach]

thx this actually helped me understand

[yonatanmakara]

So basically Ohms is the resistance for a voltage for a cable? Like if i got a cable that 10 voltage and the ohms resistance is 5 ohms. I be producing 5 voltage. The other 5 is being used to resist the 5 ohms. Am i right ir wrong?

[bvdvoort]

would there be a musical advantage in using 4 ohm instead of 2 ohm in a subwoofer? Or would I just be less loud and draw less power from the power source.

[blastfromtheeast]

Ohm is the unit of "resistance" of any electrical or electronic unit or a load (laptops, light bulbs, microwave, etc.). What a certain Ohm value generally tells us is how much current (or power) that load will consume. Most consumer products mentions a load rating in Watts (W) instead of the actual resistance of the unit since it is a more easily understandable and relatable measure of how much power that load ends up consuming. When it comes to speakers, matching the load (the speaker in this particular case) to the amplifier output (source) is necessary and for the purpose of clarity, the "Ohm" unit is frequently quoted to understand the load matching. Other electrical loads (a CD player, amplifier, laptops) are always connected to the mains (wall outlet with 110 V or 220 V) which is a fixed source with theoretically infinite supply power. The matching of input load for laptop is obviously taken into consideration to limit excessive current flow. But for the consumers having rating of the laptop in Ohms is not necessary. Alternatively, rating of 65 W on the laptop adapter rather tells us the load (laptop) can consume up to a maximum of 65 W when running. Same thing for a 100 W light bulb.

[kizunadragon]

it's a good fundamental question that anyone dealing with pushing electricity though material should know.

[EitriBrokkr]

Paul, you should start a side vlog that gets more in-depth with the enginerdy subjects you try and suger coat here. I'd love to hear your more technical point of views on things

[Tubetinkerer]

"Errmmm... I don't really know.." is also a valid answer. Much more concise too. ;-)
Ohm is the unit of resistance ! Not the measurement of it.