"In general, I'm a fan of more watts. They just don't help at low volume."
Agreed.
#4 above (efficiency into 8, 4 and perhaps even 2 ohms) is the main factor I have found that makes the biggest difference in regards to sound quality at lower volumes. You might not hear much difference at low volumes between a 60 w/ch amp and a 250w/ch amp at low volumes if they both do this well. #2 (Watts/Power) is probably the one factor out of these that is not a significant factor at lower volumes. Everything else can make a difference I believe.
BTW, I checked the specs on your Arcam amps, and it appeared to me that you can do much better in this regard as I did as well in my case, only in your case you might not benefit from more than 120w/ch, unless your goal is to go louder and cleaner than currently as well.
In my case specifically , I found my current 120w/ch Musical Fidelity A3CR does low to moderately high volumes (at which I mostly listen) much better than my prior 360w/ch Carver m4.0t, and the difference can be heard with all my speakers (OHM 5s, OHM 100.3s, OHM Ls, and Dynaudio Contour 1.3 mkIIs) which is why I made the change to 1/3 the watts I had prior. The Carver definitely went louder and sounded good loud, but that was it. The A3CR only cost me $600 used and was worth every penny.
Now, my goal for my next amp, primarily for the benefit of the big OHM 5s in the bigger room, would be to get back up to or past the prior Carver's power levels but with an amp that can do the other things that matter at least as well as the 120w/ch A3CR. That in theory would put me in the best position I can be in at all volume levels, from lowest to highest, even with the OHM 5s. I'm thinking the difference with the OHM 100s in the room they are in will be more marginal at best, but we'll see. First, I have to convince myself to spend more money to improve the sound of a system that is already floating my boat just fine in most every regard these days.
Also remember that technical specs and optimizations alone still do not tell the whole story nor guarantee good sound. Different amps will still sound different or have their own distinctive sound. These are just the technical issues that you can control that if done will put in in the best position to reap maximum performance out of your system overall. Some amps may still sound bad and some good. Some of that is real and some is a result of individual preferences.
Agreed.
#4 above (efficiency into 8, 4 and perhaps even 2 ohms) is the main factor I have found that makes the biggest difference in regards to sound quality at lower volumes. You might not hear much difference at low volumes between a 60 w/ch amp and a 250w/ch amp at low volumes if they both do this well. #2 (Watts/Power) is probably the one factor out of these that is not a significant factor at lower volumes. Everything else can make a difference I believe.
BTW, I checked the specs on your Arcam amps, and it appeared to me that you can do much better in this regard as I did as well in my case, only in your case you might not benefit from more than 120w/ch, unless your goal is to go louder and cleaner than currently as well.
In my case specifically , I found my current 120w/ch Musical Fidelity A3CR does low to moderately high volumes (at which I mostly listen) much better than my prior 360w/ch Carver m4.0t, and the difference can be heard with all my speakers (OHM 5s, OHM 100.3s, OHM Ls, and Dynaudio Contour 1.3 mkIIs) which is why I made the change to 1/3 the watts I had prior. The Carver definitely went louder and sounded good loud, but that was it. The A3CR only cost me $600 used and was worth every penny.
Now, my goal for my next amp, primarily for the benefit of the big OHM 5s in the bigger room, would be to get back up to or past the prior Carver's power levels but with an amp that can do the other things that matter at least as well as the 120w/ch A3CR. That in theory would put me in the best position I can be in at all volume levels, from lowest to highest, even with the OHM 5s. I'm thinking the difference with the OHM 100s in the room they are in will be more marginal at best, but we'll see. First, I have to convince myself to spend more money to improve the sound of a system that is already floating my boat just fine in most every regard these days.
Also remember that technical specs and optimizations alone still do not tell the whole story nor guarantee good sound. Different amps will still sound different or have their own distinctive sound. These are just the technical issues that you can control that if done will put in in the best position to reap maximum performance out of your system overall. Some amps may still sound bad and some good. Some of that is real and some is a result of individual preferences.
