A little deeper on amp power please....


If somebody could elaborate on exactly how a higher watt amp will improve the sound of speakers (lower sensitivity speakers that “need” power).  More specifically, I get that when the nature of the recording and the volume setting demand an immediate spike in power, an amp that delivers the spike will perform better than one that does not.  But when I used to have an amp with output meters, it would be in single digits for most normal listening, and I don’t recall what a spike would have been - I want to say 15 or 20 watts.  What I am scratching at is whether there is something more to power, i.e. the notion that the effortless power of, say, a 300 watt amp would somehow be an improvement over an otherwise similar 75 watt amp…even if a spike is just 20 watts.  Hope the question make sense.

mathiasmingus

Showing 1 response by fsonicsmith

I think that is why there are class D amps now that are shutting down class A solid state designs for sheer musicality.

Ralph, others have posted here and there with the question "what is meant by musicality?". They do so because the word is vague and not particularly helpful. It connotes something positive and nothing more. When a food critic uses the word "tasty" I cringe and when a person near me claims something he or she is eating is  "tasty" I resist the urge to say "sh*t has taste, but I am pretty sure I don't like it". 

I would love to audition your Class D amps one day but I have heard others and to me they sound very clear, fast, but sterile and without soul. 

And where is the support for the "shutting down" portion of your statement? At the lower end of the cost spectrum certainly. We all know why. And for in-board speaker modules, sure and we again all know why. 

I actually do own and use two digital amps. One is inside a Rotel home theater receiver that replaced a nearly identical Class AB unit that became an expensive door stop due to not offering HDMI connectivity. It sounds markedly inferior to it's Class AB predecessor. The sound is dry and one-dimensional which is no easy feat when there are seven loudspeakers spread around. The other is installed under the roof of an outdoor pavilion covering our patio and powers low-end KEF loudspeakers. It sounds like good crap too. Good for the cost and intended use, but crappy.