Can someone explain db sensitivity?

your both correct and wrong at the same time not to be splitting hairs. to simplify the original question. measured speaker output is either at 1watt on8ohm or 2 watt at4ohm,being it takes twice the amplifier power on lower impedance loads .examples on dynamic power as follows. 8ohm speaker with90db rating 1watt90,2watt 93db 4watt96db, 8watt99db 16watt102db, 32watt105db, 64watt108db, 128watt111db, 256watt114db.these are avg power,now to sustain these unclipped power levels on music you need to have ten times the power in reserve for peaks . now you can see why a big amp is needed for just a little more clean volume which makes the music able to be less constrained on louder levels. so back to 1watt90 or10watts needed in reserve, 2and20, 4and40, 8and80, 16and160, 32and320,64and640,128and1280etc,hope this helps to understand , regards engineering at M L , mike

Ok, after doing some research, I now think the 10 times power part of my answer was wrong. I don't know where I got that but I know I've heard it before. Must be the 10 times reserve power mentioned above. Sorry for the confusion.

I also agree with Sean, I just can't type very fast and a post that long would take me about a week.

After reading this thread I'd say the answer is no. Know one can explain db sensitivity. At least not in a language that I can understand.

I still want to contribute so here's my take. Find a pre-amp that has a volume control that goes to 11. This is guaranteed to make the music louder then conventional pre-amps that only go to 10.

Enyoy the music no matter what the heck db sensitivity means:~)

My attempt to answer the original question "What it means and what is considered good? ":

From what I have seen and been told, speakers rated at 90db or so are considered to be of "average" sensitivity, perhaps of what's on the market right now. Speakers rated below 87db are considered "below average", and speakers rated above 93db are considered "above average". These are rough approximates of course.

From my listening experience, it seems that "highly efficient" speakers (above 96db) tend towards a brighter, more in-your-face sound. Klipsch, Cerwin, and some horns come to mind.

Bottom line though, IMO, the "db rating" has absolutely nothing to do with how good a speaker sounds, if the amplifier is up to the task. (2w amp on 80db rated speakers would sound bad). Having said that, I'm a fan of single ended, so I seek out speakers rated 93db or above, and more importantly, speakers that have a relatively flat impedence curve (which I think is actually more important in general).

These responses have helped me out in my quest to understand db and speakers.

Thanks,

Keith