Can I mismatch the impedance of the amp and loadbox ?

The speaker output of a tube amp is designed to be matched to one (or several) specific load(s). A 8 ohms speaker output is supposed to be connected to a 8 ohms speaker or loadbox. In some situations however, you may not be able to match the impedance of the load to the impedance of the speaker output, for example if you have a 8 ohms speaker or loadbox and an amp with only a 16 ohms output. Connecting the two leads to an impedance mismatch.

This mismatch may or may not be a problem, it actually heavily depends on the amp's design, and the way you use it. It is generally accepted that a small mismatch is not a problem if you play the amp at a low level, but this isn't a general rule. As a result, we can't guarantee that a mismatch will always work for you. It's always best to go for the right impedance if possible.

That being said, if you want or need to mismatch the impedance of the amp and load, we recommend the following:

• Only go for small mismatches: 2 vs 4, 4 vs 8, 8 vs 16. But not 2 vs 8 or 16, 4 vs 16.

• Play your amp at a low level, at least at first. Monitor the behavior of the amp, the tone coming out of it, the color of the output tubes. If anything seems wrong, stop playing. In short, follow even more carefully the Recommendation on the proper use of a loadbox with a tube amplifier you'll find in the user manual of your Torpedo product (here, for example, for the Torpedo Captor).

• On a related topic, read here about what a low level might be for your amp.

Transistor amps are designed differently, and usually have a "minimum load" rating rather than expecting an exact impedance match. This means you can use any speaker or load box with an impedance equal or greater than this rating. A speaker output rated "8 ohms min" can safely be used with 8 or 16 ohms loads.