Elevick is right. g_nakamoto, if Julian Hirsh said that when you triple your power, you gain 3db in volume, then he is wrong. Julian Hirsh also said that all well designed amplifiers sound the same.
Current, Amperage
I’m trying to make sense of the argument about various types of speakers [ sensitivity, brand, etc ] and their relationship with power/ current/ amperage.
Can someone please provide some basic perspective.
I have a 91.5db tall floor speaker [ Focal Chorus 826V ] and what should I look for in an amp to drive these? How much power do I really need with all things being equal? I use a VTL tube 2.5 amp if that matters to the discussion.
Thank you.
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Julian Hirsh also said that all well designed amplifiers sound the same.He was certainly wrong about that, but it depends on what is considered 'well designed'. If the amp is designed to have good specs and that's considered good, that's one thing. If the amp is designed to adhere to the human hearing perceptual rules, that's another thing. Two such amps won't sound the same- the specs on paper don't take human perceptual rules into account. |
Efficiency and sensitivity are not the same thing, although many people think so. https://www.galaxyaudio.com/education/efficiency-vs-sensitivity |
No doubt elevick's math is correct, however there is more to consider. Those SPL's are at 1m, and the further away they decrease, but there's 2 speakers and room gain. If it's a 4 ohm speaker, the sensitivity spec is at 2 watts unless it states 1 watt. If nothing is stated or it says 2.83v, then 2 watts, so a 1 watt rating is 3db lower. The power necessary is for a maximum peak SPL, not the average. Depending on the type music, some peaks can be as much as 20-25db higher than the average. The recommended minimum power of this speaker being 40 watts is likely due to it's varing impedance, 8 ohms nominal, 2.9 ohms minimum. But that wattage spec can be misleading as well. I'm sure a 30 watt Pass would have no trouble, where as a budget 100 watt receiver would struggle. |
current and wattage, courtesy of Atmasphere http://www.atma-sphere.com/Resources/Common_Amplifier_Myths.php |
- 24 posts total