Damping Factor: The ratio of rated load impedance to the internal impedance of an amplifier. The higher the value, the more efficiently an amplifier can control unwanted movement of the speaker coil. A high damping factor is crucial for large speakers that reproduce bass. Usually the higher the number, the better, although it is debatable if anything over 50 is audible. Damping factor is calculated by dividing the load (speaker) impedance by the output impedance of the amplifier. Thus, a given amplifier’s damping factor will decrease as the speaker’s impedance decreases. This means an amp optimized at 4 ohms will provide tighter bass than at 2 ohms.

 

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