2. amps-preamps
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Is there any truth to this question?

Will a lower powered amp that can drive your speakers, in your room, listening to the music you like sound better than using a powerful amp to avoid clipping?

Here's the scenario: Use a 50 w YBA amp to drive 86 db efficient Vandersteens in a 10 x 12 room, listening to jazz or

Will a 200 w Krell or such sound better and more effortless.

Some say buy all the power you can afford and others say the bigger amps have more component pairs ie) transistors to match and that can effect sound quality.
128x128digepix
pubul57
3,712 posts
 
"but, I would certainly given them a try because nothing perks up the sound of dynamically polite speakers like OTLs."

Do they ever!
atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
11,850 posts
 
It has more to do with the transients in digital recordings compared to most vinyl. PLaying a record is a physical process involving mass and inertia that inhibits the ability to deliver transients. The fact is historically most vinyl rigs/record players do not handle this very well, although many more modern, high tech and expensive rigs probably do better.

Often or typically the result is a natural and perhaps even pleasant filtering of transients that makes the signal easier for an amp to deliver. The more this occurs, the easier for the amp, often with pleasant sounding results nonetheless.

DIgital involves no physics of mass and inertia.

Another way to describe what you are talking about is raw bandwidth. If you have bandwidth, you also have risetime- the two are related. Most analog has more bandwidth (remember CD4 from the 1970s?) than most digital, in addition most amps have more bandwidth than either analog or digital.

So the transient theory can't explain your observations.
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,333 posts
 
YEs, so bottom line, personally, for mainly lower volume near field listening in smaller quarters, I would be more inclined in general to go exclusively with speakers that are easy to drive and more phase coherent at close range due to proximity of drivers and I would give strong consideration to more moderate powered tube amplification to drive them.
unsound
7,329 posts
 
Generally speaking, phase coherence without time coherence negates the advantages. Most speakers that are time and phase coherent tend to have impedance's that generally work better with ss.
unsound
7,329 posts
 
Digepix, if you have a solid wall 3' behind the listening position, you might want to consider putting some absorptive material on that wall behind you, and moving your sitting position further back from the speakers. Not only will you get the rather considerable (with Vandersteens) benefits of driver integration and all advantages that come with it, you just might get better bass response at the listening position as well.
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