2. amps-preamps
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Difference between New and Old Amp WPC ratings....

I own a pair of CV D-9's (I know this is an audiophile website, be kind, it's what I can afford for big sound). My question is this. Old amps, Marantz and the like have power ratings of 20, 30wpc, and newer amps have 70-150wpc. My CV's say they can take 300 wpc, and I have them on a Pioneer that is about 80wpc, and it gets pretty crappy as the volume goes up. Is there something about the wpc ratings of new and old amps that I need to know, or do I just need to get a PA amp to run these things?
kuksuldom
slikric3000
638 posts
 
I have a Pioneer SX 626 rated at 27 wpc, by today's standards it's like 3 or 4 times that
martykl
3,578 posts
 
Actually, I believe (not 100% sure) that there was another rule change subsequent to 1998. It actually had the effect of going the other way as IIRC it reduced the preconditioning stress and discoutaged and/or disallowed the power RMS @ X% THD over bandwidth spec that had been traditional. Someone with more energy might want to research it further, but the current specification regime is I believe less useful than previous.

Apologies in advance if I screwed this one up, but I'm pretty sure there's a kernel of truth in here smoewhere.

Marty
blkadr
739 posts
 
Not all wpc are created equally. Some amps, not necessarily new, sound significantly more powerful than others of the same power rating. I have heard the class A Bedini 25X25 sounds huge for a 25wpc amp. The classic NAD 3020 kicked out an amazing 20wpc. And tube amps can pull off the same trick.
Me thinks there is much more to the equation than the wpc rating, whether using the old or new standard.
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